CALIFORNIA YANKEE

Obama's I won, let's compromise and do things my way post-election press conference

On Tuesday, President Obama held the 16th "full" White House press conference of his presidency. That's right Obama goes golfing more than six times for every press conference he gives.

This was the first scheduled, solo news conference for Obama since March. The last time Obama saw fit to allow the White House press corps an opportunity to formally ask him questions on U.S. soil was his "hastily-announced" appearance in the White House briefing room on June 8, 2012, during which he infamously said "the private sector is doing fine."

During today's press conference Obama was asked about climate change, Gen. David Petraeus, the fiscal cliff, immigration reform, Iran, A mandate, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, Gov. Mitt Romney and Syria.

Ambassador Rice

Obama was the most obstreperous responding to a question from Jonathan Karl, Senior Political Correspondent for ABC News, about whether statements from senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham that they would do everything in their power to block Ambassador Rice from becoming Secretary of State.

As I am sure you will recall, on this year's anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks on America, we suffered a terrorist assault which resulted in the murder of four Americans including Ambassador Christopher Stevens. For days we saw riotous Muslim mobs, first in Egypt, then Tunisia, Yemen and Sudan attack U.S. embassies espousing hate for American values and belief. The hateful Muslim mobs multiplied throughout the Muslim world, even in countries not considered Muslim, such as Britain and Australia.

It got worse as al Qaeda went on the offensive. Al Qaeda attacked the American-lead multinational peacekeeping force in the Sinai. They also attacked a U.S. Marine base in Southern Afghanistan in an effort to kill Britain's Prince Harry and inflicting the worse loss of air power on the Marine Corps since Vietnam.

Against this backdrop, which was clear to the  foreign press, CNN and even a member in good standing of the biased so-called fact-checking wing of the Democrats' party, Ambassador Rice went on news show after news show and misled the American people. Rice claimed the vicious attack in Benghazi was unplanned and provoked only by a silly anti-Islam video.

Nevertheless, Obama strongly defended Rice's so-called honor:

"But let me say specifically about Susan Rice, she has done exemplary work. She has represented the United States and our interests in the United Nations with skill, and professionalism, and toughness, and grace. As I’ve said before, she made an appearance at the request of the White House in which she gave her best understanding of the intelligence that had been provided to her.

If Senator McCain and Senator Graham, and others want to go after somebody? They should go after me. And I’m happy to have that discussion with them. But for them to go after the U.N. ambassador who had nothing to do with Benghazi? And was simply making a presentation based on intelligence that she had received? And to besmirch her reputation is outrageous."

I wish folks would go after Obama on this as well as Rice. There is plenty of blame to go around, even enough for Hillary. But Obama won't address what actually happened in Benghazi, he is stonewalling -- saying his regime is still "investigating" what happened there two months ago.

Fiscal Cliff

On the fiscal cliff, CNN chief White House correspondent Jessia Yellin reminded Obama that two years ago, he said he wouldn’t extend the Bush-era tax cuts, but at the end of the day, he did. Yellin asked why people and the Republicans should believe that Obama won’t cave again this time.

In response, Obama said two years ago was different, his cave two years ago was a one-time proposition. We'll see. Obama claimed that if he gets his tax on those individuals who earn $200,000 and couples who earn $250,000 we would be half way to solving the fiscal cliff. I don't see how that computes and he didn't explain it. 

Obama also managed to work in two of his campaign catch phrases which infuriate me -- balanced and fair share. "Balanced" is Obamacrat code for higher taxes. And Obama's so-called balanced approached is skewed.

James Pethokoukis, at the AEI Enterprise blog, writes that Obama’s new ‘balanced’ debt plan is 73% tax hikes:

"President Obama’s opening bid in budget talks with congressional Republicans is a reheating of his 80-page deficit reduction package from September 2011. The president calls it a balanced plan.

[. . .]

Of the supposed savings, then, $1.6 trillion comes from tax hikes and $577 billion comes from spending cuts, not counting saved interest. So 73% of the savings comes from taxes, 27% from spending cuts. That’s $3 of tax hikes for every $1 of spending cuts."

Obama's use of fair share is likewise misleading at best. How is it fair to make one percent of taxpayers, who already pay more than 35 percent of all income taxes, pay even more?

In response to a subsequent followup, Obama again shook up Wall Street by saying going off the fiscal cliff is imaginable:

"Well obviously, we can all imagine a scenario where we go off the fiscal -- fiscal cliff. If -- if despite the election, if despite the dangers of going over the fiscal cliff and -- and what that means for our economy, that there’s too much stubbornness in Congress that we can’t even agree on giving middle-class families a tax cut, then middle-class families are all going to end up having a big tax hike. And that’s going to be a pretty rude shock for them, and I suspect will have a big impact on the holiday shopping season, which in turn will have an impact on business planning and hiring and we can go back into a recession."

At investors Business Daily, Andrew Malcolm writes that Obama's biggest challenge in avoiding the fiscal cliff isn't the Republicans, but his own hard-core left-wing supporters:

Two days after the election, Obama's favorite economist, Paul Krugman, set the tone for the intransigent left in a column titled: "Let's not make a deal." Boiled down, his advice to Obama was this: Don't give in to any Republican demands, even if doing so would "inflict damage on a still-shaky economy." After all, Obama would be better positioned to "weather any blowback from economic troubles."

Krugman's advice may be disturbingly cold and calculating, but he has plenty of company on the left.

Robert Kuttner, co-founder of the liberal American Prospect magazine, suggests Obama should just sit it out, let all the Bush tax cuts expire, the automatic spending cuts kick in and expect public pressure to force Republicans to give in entirely.

The left-wing Daily Kos called any kind of "grand bargain" between Obama and the GOP a "Great Betrayal."

And several Democratic lawmakers have suggested that the correct approach would be to let the country go over the fiscal cliff, since that will only strengthen Obama's position. "It's a hand Democrats are looking forward to playing," according to the liberal Huffington Post "news" site.

Unfortunately, Obama's idea of compromise is to tell his adversaries to do it his way.

Immigration Reform.

Telemundo national correspondent, Lori Montenegro, asked Obama whether immigration reform would include a legalization program. In response, Obama took a victory lap touting a significant increase in the Latino vote. Obama falsely claimed immigration reform has "not historically been a partisan issue." It might have been a nonpartisan issue back in 2006, but not since.

On April 5, 2006, Republicans compromised and the Senate appeared to have reached a deal on comprehensive immigration reform. Just a day later the great compromise proved to be stillborn.

In a web-exclusive commentary, Newsweek's Eleanor Clift, a commentator generally regarded as being politically liberal, laid the blame on the Democrats [the original link no longer works, but I found Elanor Clift's piece posted at Hispanic News.]:

A compromise fashioned by Republicans Chuck Hagel of Nebraska and Mel Martinez of Florida had toughened the earned citizenship portion of the Kennedy-McCain bill and made it more palatable to Republicans yet still acceptable to Kennedy.

But according to the recollections of those close to the principal figures, a battle ensued over how many amendments the Republicans would entertain, and Democrats feared that the GOP would use the amendments to strip away the progressive elements of the bill. Kennedy argued that he and McCain had the votes to defeat any troublesome amendments.

This is the U.S. Senate, Kennedy reportedly argued. The leadership has to allow for amendments. But the Democrats were dubious. They’d been burned before. And it didn’t take much persuading when New York Senator Charles (Chuck) Schumer reportedly made the case that the failure to get a bill would be good for the Democrats. As the head of the Democratic campaign committee, Schumer is focused on getting his party back into power in November.

Despite the Democrarts' strident attempt to rewrite the history, of the Senate's great immigration reform compromise was killed at the behest of the Democratic campaign committee chair Schumer. Schumer and the Democrats turned their backs on the proposed compromise for crass political advantage. It doesn't get much more partisan than that.

Obama actually did finally lay out what he wants in immigration reform:

• Continuation of strong border security measures. 
• Serious penalties for companies that purposely hire undocumented workers.
• A pathway for legal status for those who are living in this country and are not engaged in criminal activity.
• Requirement to learn English.
• Requirement that illegals potentially pay a fine.
• Legalization of Obama's extra-legal immunity scheme for certain "younger" illegal aliens.

It is too early to tell if the Republicans feel they can again trust the likes of Schumer enough to engage in another meaningful compromise on immigration with the Democrats.

Mandate

Ed Henry, of Fox News, asked Obama whether he thought he had a mandate. In reply Obama claimed a very limited mandate:

"I’ve got one mandate: I’ve got a mandate to help middle-class families and families that have been working hard to try to get into the middle class. That’s my mandate."

That will of course be used to try and obtain some of the higher taxes he seemingly constantly seeks.

Gov. Mitt Romney

Nancy Cordes, CBS News correspondent, asked Obama whether had spoken to Gov. Romney, and scheduled a time to sit down and discuss the issues of the day with him.

Instead of just leaving it alone with his, "we haven’t scheduled something yet," Obama went on in a failed attempt at magnanimity:

"You know, there -- there’re certain aspects of Governor Romney’s record and his ideas that I think could be very helpful. And, well, to give you one example, I do think he did a terrific job running the Olympics. And, you know, that skill set of trying to figure out how do we make something work better applies to the federal government."

Obama continued rambling on about consolidating programs that are duplicative and eliminating   waste. This of course did little other than to remind us all of his obviously broken promise to "go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely."

Climate Change

New York Times reporter Mark Landler asked Obama about climate change. In response Obama offered the following sound bites:

• We can’t attribute any particular weather event to climate change.
• We know the temperature around the globe is increasing faster than was predicted even ten years ago.
• We do know that the Arctic ice cap is melting, faster than was predicted even five years ago.
• We do know that there have there have been an extraordinarily large number of severe weather events here in North America, but also around the globe.
• And I am a firm believer that climate change is real. That it is impacted by human behavior, and carbon emissions.
• I think we’ve got an obligation to future generations to do something about it.

I'll deal with Obama's versions of the facts on another day. But I can't sum up a response to Obama's climate change nothing burger any better than Slate's Will Oremus who offered this interpretation:

    1. Climate change is real.
    2. We have an obligation to future generations to do something about it.
    3. Doing something about it will require tough political choices.
    4. I'm not willing to push for those tough political choices.

Iran

Chicago Tribune White House correspondent Christi Parsons asked whether Obama was preparing a final diplomatic push here to resolve Iran's nuclear program and whether we are headed toward one-on-one talks with Iran.

In response Obama actually sounded tough, at least at first:

"I was very clear before the campaign, I was clear during the campaign, and I'm now clear after the campaign, we're not gonna let Iran get a nuclear weapon."

But I think there is still a window of time for us it resolve this diplomatically. ... There should be a way in which they can enjoy peaceful nuclear power while still meeting their international obligations and providing clear assurances to the international community that they're not pursuing a nuclear weapon.

Obama also suggested there would be no one on one talks with Iran:

"I will try to make a push in the coming months to see if we can open up a dialogue between Iran and not just us, but the international community to see if we can get this thing resolved."

Syria

Reuters reporter Mark Felsenthal asked whether the U.S. would intervene in Syria. Obama was unclear and would not go beyond talking about how we are engaged:

"We have been extensively engaged with the international community as well as regional powers to help the opposition."

Gen. Petraeus

Ben Feller of the Associated Press asked whether there had been any breaches of national security or classified information in the scandal involving Generals Petraeus. Feller got stonewalled. Obama denied that he has "no evidence at this point from what I’ve seen that classified information was disclosed that in any way would have had a negative impact on our national security."

So in a 50-odd minute press conference, Obama was able to take only ten questions. From those ten questions we learned little. It could all be summed up briefly as I won, let's compromise and do things my way. Just further confirmation that we spent billions of dollars and more than a year on a campaign to maintain the status quo.

If you were unable to watch the speech the press conference I encourage you to read it, listen to it or watch it.  Don't let others decide what you think, decide yourself. Reading summaries, excerpts and critiques lets others do the thinking for you. Snippets can't help you grasp the import, which you should have especially if you want to disagree in a knowledgeable manner.

You can watch the entire press conference in the accompanying video here. Or you can read the transcript here.

Special Operations OPSEC targets Obama for reckless intelligence leaks

A group of former special operations and C.I.A. officers accuse President Obama of spiking the football -- taking credit for killing Osama bin Laden, and recklessly leaking intelligence information about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden and other security matters solely to gain political advantage.

"Mr. President, you did not kill Osama bin Laden, America did. The work that the American military has done killed Osama bin Laden. You did not." -- Ben Smith, a Navy SEAL

The Special Operations OPSEC Education Fund Inc, argues that high level Obama administration's leaks are damaging U.S. security. They make their case in a new video called "Dishonorable Disclosures: How Leaks and Politics Threaten National Security."

Watch the very well done documentary video;

The good folks at Special Operations OPSEC see their mission as stopping President Obama and others, from politically capitalizing on U.S. national security operations and secrets, which allows the special operations and intelligence capabilities to be degraded., and educating the public about the importance and necessity of Operational Security. The video does a good job of doing that.

The Former Special Operations and C.I.A. are upset about the "avalanche" of leaks obviously intended to politically benefit Obama:

• Immediate disclosure of the killing of Osama bin Laden rather than waiting to exploit the information taken by SEAL Team Six.
• Disclosure and special access to Department of Defense and C.I.A details about the Osama bin Laden operation to Hollywood filmmakers.
• Disclosure of the unit, the cover name, The aircraft that were used, the number of raiders, and how the team entered and moved around the grounds.
• Disclosure of details pertaining to the intelligence gathering before the raid, including the identity of the Pakistani doctor who provided information.
• Disclosure of U.S. and Israeli involvement in the computer viruses which targeted Iran's nuclear program.
• Disclosure of a joint U.S./British/Israeli covert operation that planted a spy in Al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen, whose information stopped a terrorist bomb plot against a U.S.-bound airliner.
• Disclosure of the secret Obama "Kill List." 

OPSEC is not alone in being outraged about the Obama Administration's national security leaks. Former Democrat Senator Bob Kerrey, took Obama to task for his decision to disclose some details of the Osama bin Laden operation:

"By describing certain methods — the name of the unit involved, the kinds of equipment employed, the nature of intelligence collected and techniques of insertion and extraction used in the operation — the President violated a key rule of clandestine work."

Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has also gone after Obama for controversial leaks of classified information, saying "I think the White House has to understand that some of this is coming from their ranks." She was even tougher during an appearance on CNN's "Situation Room" program:

"What we're seeing...is an Anschluss, an avalanche of leaks. And it's very, very disturbing. You know, it's dismayed our allies. It puts American lives in jeopardy. It puts our nation's security in jeopardy."

But nobody summed up as well as former defense secretary, Robert Gates, who blasted the Obama White House's leaks and told the Obama national security team to  "Shut the f--- up."

Watch the "Dishonorable Disclosures" video.

Congratulations to President Obama on his 100th round of golf

Today, President Obama completed his 100th (documented) round of golf.

In celebration of this milestone, Duane Lester of All American Blogger made the following video:

Obama is working hard, at least at playing golf. In less than three-and-a-half years he has played 100 rounds of golf. 

Just nine months into the Obama presidency the New York Post reported that Obama surpassed former President George W. Bush on the number of days spent on the golf course when Obama played a round of golf for the 24th time in his presidency -- a milestone it took Bush almost three years to reach. Bush gave up golf in 2003 saying "I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal." That's a position Obama obviously rejects.

Nothing seems to keep Obama off the golf course. Not a 5.8 magnitude earthquake or the need help Democrat Tom Barret in the effort to failed effort to recall Governor Scott Walker. In an appearance on CNBC, Politico's Jonathan Allen joked that "neither rain nor snow nor gloom of night will keep the president from his appointed rounds of golf."

Helene Cooper reporting on the Obama's 2009 Martha's Vineyard vacation in the New York Times, noted that Obama's golf is characterized by long, slow rounds due to spending a lot of time hunting for balls in the woods. Which might have caused English golfer Paul Casey to wonder if Obama’s game might be a boost for the American economy:

"If he’s losing lots and lots of golf balls, then he’ll have to buy a lot of new ones, and maybe that will spur growth,” Casey said. “And people will find his lost golf balls and sell those as collector’s items. More growth, right?"

Maybe golf has been Obama's secret economic plan all along. Who knew?

Happy Obama 'one-term proposition' day

"If I don't have this done in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition." - President Barack Obama on NBC's "Today," February 2, 2009:

Three years ago today, President Obama appeared on NBC's "Today show and and made his infamous "one-term proposition" prediction:

"I will be held accountable. You know, I’ve got four years. … A year from now, I think people are gonna see that we’re starting to make some progress, but there’s still gonna be some pain out there. If I don’t this done in three years, then there’s gonna be a one-term proposition."

I feel the pain, but I don't see any progress. How about you? Even Obama admits that we are not better off than we were four years ago -- inviting comparisons to the malaise of Jimmy Carter's failed presidency.

It's time to revisit the devastating video put together by the good folks at Minnesota Majority. The video uses Obama's own metrics to assess his presidency. You can watch "Obama Presidency by the numbers" here.

The more people are exposed to Reagan's "are you better off" question to Carter, the more the belief that Obama will also be a one-term president is reinforced.

 UPDATE: To help celebrate Obama "one-term proposition" day, the good folks at the RNC produced a new video which catalogues Democrat leaders' descriptions the poor economy under President Obama’s failed leadership.Watch the video:

 

Obama's failed promises: Florida edition

The good folks at the RNC took a look  at what Obama promised in Florida four years ago .... and the record of failure that followed. The result is the following research demonstrating Obama's failure:

Three Years After Campaigning In Florida, President Obama Has Failed To Live Up To Candidate Obama’s Promises

IN 2008, OBAMA ASKED FLORIDIA, “Will This Country Be Better Off Four Years From Now?” “The question in this election is not ‘Are you better off than you were four years ago?’ We know the answer to that. The real question is, ‘Will this country be better off four years from now?’” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Sarasota, FL, 10/30/08)

FAIL: AMERICA IS NOT BETTER OFF

Obama: Americans Are Not Better Off Than They Were Four Years Ago. OBAMA: “Well I don’t think they are better off than they were four years ago. They’re not better off than they were before Lehman’s collapse, before the financial crisis, before this extraordinary recession that we’re going through.” (ABC News/Yahoo News’ Live Interview, 10/3/11)

• OBAMA: “It Has Been Three Wrenching Years For This Country.” “At a series of fundraisers in New York, where he raised more than $2 million for his campaign and those of other Democrats, Obama acknowledged frustration over the stalemate in Washington that has soured views of his leadership ‘After all that is happening in Washington, it may be tempting to believe that change may not be as possible as we thought,’ he told supporters. ‘It has been three wrenching years for this country,’ said Obama, whose re-election prospects hinge on his ability to heal the economy from the financial crisis that struck before he took office and to lower the 9 percent unemployment rate.” (Laura MacInnis, “Obama Pleads With Voters For Patience On ‘Change,’” Reuters, 11/30/11)

84 Percent Of Americans Say They Are “Not As Well Off” Or “About The Same” Financially Since Obama Became President. (Washington Post-ABC News Poll, 1,000 A, MoE 3.5%, 1/12 – 15/12)

• Only 15 Percent Of Americans Say They Are Better Off Since Obama Became President. (Washington Post-ABC News Poll, 1,000 A,  MoE 3.5%, 1/12 – 15/12) 

“Nearly Half Of U.S. Adults, 49%, Say They Are Worse Off Financially Today Than A Year Ago, While 29% Say They Are Better Off And 21% Volunteer That Their Finances Haven't Changed.” (Lydia Saad, “Half In U.S Feel Worse Off Financially,” Gallup, 1/18/12)

• “The Worst Evaluations Americans Have Given Of Their Finances Since Gallup Began Measuring This In 1976.” “With barely 3 in 10 saying their finances are better, this is among the worst evaluations Americans have given of their finances since Gallup began measuring this in 1976.” (Lydia Saad, “Half In U.S Feel Worse Off Financially,” Gallup, 1/18/12)

52 Percent Of Americans Say Obama Has Accomplished “Not Much” Or “Little Or Nothing” As President. “Slightly more than half the respondents — 52 percent — say Obama has accomplished ‘not much’ or ‘little or nothing’ as president, while 47 percent offer a positive assessment of his record.” (Jon Cohen And Dan Balz, “Electorate Is Sharply Split Over Obama, Poll Finds,” The Washington Post, 1/18/12)

• Only 12 Percent Of Americans Say Obama Has Accomplished A “Great Deal” As President And 35 Percent Said He Has Just Accomplished A “Good Amount.” (Washington Post-ABC News Poll, 1,000 A,  MoE 3.5%, 1/12 – 15/12)

FAILED ON GREEN ENERGY JOBS

Obama Promised Five Million New Green Energy Jobs For Just $15 Billion. “We'll create two million new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling roads, and bridges, and schools, and by laying broadband lines to reach every corner of the country. And I will invest $15 billion a year in renewable sources of energy to create five million new energy jobs over the next decade - jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced; jobs building solar panels and wind turbines and a new electricity grid; jobs that will help us eliminate the oil we import from the Middle East in ten years and help save the planet in the bargain.” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Sarasota, FL, 10/30/08)

“Obama’s Efforts To Create Green Jobs Are Lagging Behind Expectations At A Time Of Persistently High Unemployment.” (Carol D. Leonnig and Steven Mufson, “Obama Green-Tech Program That Backed Solyndra Struggles To Create Jobs,” The Washington Post, 9/14/11)

“Federal And State Efforts To Stimulate Creation Of Green Jobs Have Largely Failed.” “Federal and state efforts to stimulate creation of green jobs have largely failed, government records show. Two years after it was awarded $186 million in federal stimulus money to weatherize drafty homes, California has spent only a little over half that sum and has so far created the equivalent of just 538 full-time jobs in the last quarter, according to the State Department of Community Services and Development.” (Aaron Glantz, “Number Of Green Jobs Fails To Live Up To Promises,” The New York Times, 8/18/11)

• “The Green Economy Is Not Proving To Be The Job-Creation Engine That Many Politicians Envisioned.” “In the Bay Area as in much of the country, the green economy is not proving to be the job-creation engine that many politicians envisioned. President Obama once pledged to create five million green jobs over 10 years. Gov. Jerry Brown promised 500,000 clean-technology jobs statewide by the end of the decade. But the results so far suggest such numbers are a pipe dream.” (Aaron Glantz, “Number Of Green Jobs Fails To Live Up To Promises,” The New York Times, 8/18/11)

The Energy Department Has Handed Out $35.2 Billion From The Stimulus, But The Clean Energy Industry Has Yet To Provide The Boost Many Had Hoped For. “The Energy Department handed out $35.2 billion from the Recovery Act for energy efficiency and other initiatives. At the time, clean energy was seen as a potentially powerful industry for job creation. But the industry has yet to provide the boost many had hoped for.” (Vauhini Vara, “Red Flags For Green Energy,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/12/11)

• Obama Administration Promised That The $38.6 Billion Loan Guarantee Program Would Create Or Save 65,000 Jobs, But Nearly Two Years Later, Only A Few Thousand Jobs Have Been Created. “A $38.6 billion loan guarantee program that the Obama administration promised would create or save 65,000 jobs has created just a few thousand jobs two years after it began, government records show. The program — designed to jump-start the nation’s clean technology industry by giving energy companies access to low-cost, government-backed loans — has directly created 3,545 new, permanent jobs after giving out almost half the allocated amount, according to Energy Department tallies. President Obama has made ‘green jobs’ a showcase of his recovery plan, vowing to foster new jobs, new technologies and more competitive American industries. But the loan guarantee program came under scrutiny Wednesday from Republicans and Democrats at a House oversight committee hearing about the collapse of Solyndra, a solar-panel maker whose closure could leave taxpayers on the hook for as much as $527 million.” (Carol D. Leonnig and Steven Mufson, “Obama Green-Tech Program That Backed Solyndra Struggles To Create Jobs,” The Washington Post, 9/14/11)

FAILED ON LOWER HEALTH CARE PREMIUMS

Obama Promised Lower Health Care Premiums. “If you already have health insurance, the only thing that will change under my plan is that we will lower premiums.” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Sarasota, FL, 10/30/08)

Factcheck.org: ObamaCare “Falls Short Of Making Health Care ‘Affordable And Available To Every Single American,’ As Promised.” “Furthermore, the law falls short of making health care ‘affordable and available to every single American,’ as promised. The law provides subsidies to help some Americans buy insurance, expands Medicaid and doesn’t allow insurance companies to exclude persons with preexisting conditions. But still, the director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projected 23 million persons will remain uninsured — some because they can’t afford coverage.” (D’Angelo Gore, “Promises, Promises,” Factcheck.org, 1/4/12)

• Factcheck.org: ObamaCare Is Actually Making Health Care “Less Affordable.” “At the moment, the new law is making health care slightly less affordable. Independent health care experts say the law has caused some insurance premiums to rise. As we wrote in October, the new law has caused about a 1 percent to 3 percent increase in health insurance premiums for employer-sponsored family plans because of requirements for increased benefits. Last year’s premium increases cast even more doubt on another promise the president has made — that the health care law would ‘lower premiums by up to $2,500 for a typical family per year.’” (D’Angelo Gore, “Promises, Promises,” Factcheck.org, 1/4/12)
   
• The Washington Post’s The Fact Checker: “Moreover, at this point it is debatable whether the law has made health care more affordable. Insurance premiums have gone up, in part because of new benefits mandated by the law.” (Glenn Kessler, “The Fine Print In Obama’s ‘Promises Kept’ Ad,” The Washington Post’s “The Fact Checker,” 1/6/12)

“The Cost Of Health Insurance Skyrocketed In 2011 After Several Years Of Relatively Small Increases.” (Jane M. Von Bergen, “Health Insurance Costs Skyrocketing,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, 9/27/11)

• Workers Paid An Average Of $132 More For Family Coverage In 2011 Than They Did In 2010. “Although premiums rose, employers kept the percentage of the premium workers pay about the same: An average of 18 percent for single coverage and 28 percent for family plans. Still, with rising costs, workers paid more, up an average of $132 a year for family coverage. Since 1999, the dollar amount workers contribute toward premiums nationally has grown 168 percent, while their wages have grown by 50 percent, according to the survey.” (Julie Appleby, “Cost Of Employer Insurance Plans Surge In 2011,” Kaiser Health News, 9/27/11)

• The Cost Of Single Employee Coverage Grew 8 Percent According To The Kaiser Survey. “Family plan premiums hit $15,073 on average, while coverage for single employees grew 8 percent to $5,429, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research & Educational Trust. (KHN is an editorially-independent program of the foundation.)” (Julie Appleby, “Cost Of Employer Insurance Plans Surge In 2011,” Kaiser Health News, 9/27/11) 

In 2012, Florida Is Expected To See An 8 Percent Increase In Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Costs. “The cost for employer-sponsored health insurance in Florida is expected to increase 8 percent next year…” (Liz Freeman, “Study: Florida Workers Face 8 Percent Health Insurance Cost Hike Or Higher Deductible,” Naples News, 11/21/11)

Sen. Rubio delivers weekly address - Americans have always believed that all of us can succeed

In the weekly GOP address, Florida's U.S. Senator Marco Rubio talks about why President Obama didn't talk about his accomplishments -- because there isn’t much that Obama has accomplished and Obama made everything worse:

The bottom line is this President inherited a country with serious problems. He asked the Congress to give him the stimulus and Obamacare to fix it. The Democrats in Congress gave it to him. And not only did it not work, it made everything worse.

In the second part of the weekly address, Senator Rubio takes Obama to task for asking us to abandon our economic heritage and accept Obama's devise class warfare:

He tells all of us that the only way for some of us to climb up the economic ladder is for others to be pulled down.

This divisive rhetoric, this effort to gain political support by convincing some that they will be better off if we punish others, this stuff has never worked anywhere it’s been tried.

Rubio continues with an optimistic call to embrace the American Free Enterprise system.

Americans have always believed that all of us can succeed.

[. . .]

This is what has made us different. This is what has made us prosperous. This is what makes us exceptional.

Watch Rubio's outstanding address:

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Full transcript of Senator Rubio’s Address:

"Hello, I’m Marco Rubio, a Senator from Florida. Right now all eyes are focused on my home state ahead of next week’s Republican presidential primary. It’s an exciting contest and I know that passions are high. So I wanted to take a moment to explain to the rest of the country why Republicans in Florida are so excited about this primary: Because we believe our country is in big trouble.

As you know, earlier this week, President Obama delivered his fourth annual address to Congress. It was an opportunity for the President to talk about his accomplishments over the last three years and to lay out his plans for the year ahead.

And he missed on both counts.

You didn’t hear much talk about the success of his Administration—and that’s because there isn’t much.

Yes, this President inherited a significant national debt, but over the last three years he’s made it worse. Our national debt has grown by nearly 50 percent since he took over, and now, for the first time since World War II, our national debt is larger than our country’s economy.

Yes, this President inherited an economy where unemployment was too high, but over the last three years he’s made it worse. Today our unemployment rate is higher than the day he took office. In fact, since he took over, it’s been stuck over 8 percent every single month.

This President didn’t talk about his record for one simple reason; he doesn’t want you to know about it. But you do know about it, because you feel the failure of his leadership every single day of your life.

The bottom line is this President inherited a country with serious problems. He asked the Congress to give him the stimulus and Obamacare to fix it. The Democrats in Congress gave it to him. And not only did it not work, it made everything worse.

President Obama has a year left in the White House. So what are his plans now to make things better? What does he plan to do now, that he didn’t do before? Well we got our answer Tuesday night. He plans to divide us against each other. To pit Americans against other Americans in the hopes of generating enough votes to get re-elected.

He tells Americans worried about their jobs that the way to help them is to raise their bosses’ taxes.

He tells those who are hurting that the only way they can be better off, is for others to be worse off.

He tells all of us that the only way for some of us to climb up the economic ladder is for others to be pulled down.

This divisive rhetoric, this effort to gain political support by convincing some that they will be better off if we punish others, this stuff has never worked anywhere it’s been tried.

People end up fleeing countries who adopt economic policies based on these flawed principles. And more often than not, they come here.

They come here because this is not who we are.

Americans have always believed that all of us can succeed.

That those who have made it fairly, can stay there. And those who are trying to make it will have a real chance to join them.

This is what has made us different. This is what has made us prosperous. This is what makes us exceptional.

And now, for the first time in my adult life, we have a President who’s asking us to abandon our economic heritage.

To become like the countries people come here to get away from.

To become like everybody else.

Yes, people are hurting. Yes, there is a growing gap between the rich and the poor.

But the way to solve it is not to embrace the ‘trickle up poverty’ economics of other nations.

The way to solve it is to embrace the American Free Enterprise system.

No economic system is perfect. But the American Free Enterprise system has empowered millions of people in the past. I know, because I saw it with my own eyes. 

My father was a bartender. And I thank God every night that there was someone willing to risk their money to build a hotel on Miami Beach and later in Las Vegas where he could work.

I thank God that there was enough prosperity in America so people could go on vacation to Miami or Las Vegas. Where people felt prosperous enough to have weddings or Bar Mitzvahs and, by the way, could leave tips in my Dad’s little tip jar. Because with that money he raised us. And he gave me the opportunity to do things he never had a chance to do.

Now, we had help along the way. I had student loans and grants from the government to help me get my education. And I went to our public school system.

That’s an important role for government to play. And so I also thank God that we had an economy prosperous enough to afford to pay for these things as well.

So, I’ll just close by saying, I hope this year will be the beginning of our work towards a new and prosperous American century.

Because I know that this idea of a nation where anyone from anywhere can accomplish anything, it’s not just something I read about in history books. I’ve seen it in my own life. And there’s no reason why we cannot continue it here, if only we do the right things.

May God bless all of you, and may God continue to bless the United States of America."

Iraq War ends on Bush's schedule, not Obama's

President Obama and the biased media wing of the Democrat Party are heralding the "official" end of the Iraq War.

They are neglecting to note that in order to get the Democrats' nomination, presidential candidate Obama promised to remove all combat brigades from Iraq within 16 months:

Whatever nuance Barack Obama is now adding to his Iraq withdrawal strategy, the core plan on his Web site is as plain as day: Obama would "immediately begin to remove our troops from Iraq. He will remove one to two combat brigades each month, and have all of our combat brigades out of Iraq within 16 months."

As we reported in July 2008, Obama's 16 month withdrawal plan was not realistic. To save face, President Obama redesignated the 7 remaining combat brigades still in Iraq after his artificial 16 month deadline as "Advise and Assist Brigades," and declared his scheduled end to the war in Iraq on August 31, 2011

All U.S. troops, except for a 159 uniformed troops and officers as well as a marine guard in the US embassy in Baghdad, will be out of Iraq before December 31, 2011, as required by the Status of Forces Agreement President Bush made with Iraq.

The Democrats can trumpet the Obama Iraq withdrawal all they want, but it was accomplished right on schedule -- a schedule established by President Bush, not Obama.

Obama gets press conference facts wrong again

Once again President Obama didn't fare so well when the Associated Press fact checked his Oct. 6, 2011 press conference.

Opposition to Obama's latest stimulus boondoggle his so-called "jobs bill."

OBAMA: "If it turns out that there are Republicans who are opposed to this bill, they need to explain to me, but more importantly to their constituencies and the American people, why they're opposed, and what would they do."

THE FACTS: Republicans their objections to Obama's latest stimulus plan. In a memorandum to House Republicans Sept. 16, House Speaker John Boehner and members of the GOP leadership said they could find common ground with Obama on the extension of certain business tax breaks, waiving a payment withholding provision for federal contractors, incentives for hiring veterans, and job training measures in connection with unemployment insurance.

They objected to new spending on public works programs, suggesting instead that Congress and the president work out those priorities in a highway spending bill. And they raised concerns about Obama's payroll tax cuts for workers and small businesses, arguing that the benefits of a one-year tax cut would be short-lived. The memo also pointed out that reducing payroll taxes, which pay for Social Security, temporarily forces Social Security to tap the government's general fund. And it opposed additional spending to prevent layoffs of teachers, police officers and other public workers.

OBAMA: "Every idea that we've put forward are ones that traditionally have been supported by Democrats and Republicans alike."

THE FACTS: Obama proposes to pay for his jobs bill by raising taxes, something traditionally opposed by Republicans and, in the form Obama proposed it, even some Democrats. Senate Democrats were also  to Obama's approach, which relied largely on limiting deductions that can be taken by individuals making over $200,000 a year and couples making more than $250,000, that they're eliminating it and proposing a new tax on millionaires instead.

According to the Associated Press, in claiming bipartisan support for the components of his stimulus, the president appears to be referring just to what the plan would do, not how it's paid for, but that's a crucial distinction Obama doesn't make. 

On Regulation Rollbacks

OBAMA: "The answer we're getting right now is: Well, we're going to roll back all these Obama regulations... Does anybody really think that that is going to create jobs right now and meet the challenges of a global economy?"

THE FACTS: Well, yes, some think it will. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce last month submitted a jobs proposal to Obama that included a call to ease regulations on businesses. It specifically called for streamlining environmental reviews on major construction projects and to delay the issuance of some potentially burdensome regulations until the economy and employment have improved. In the letter, Chamber President Thomas Donohue also called on Congress to pass legislation that would require congressional approval of major regulations.

The Associated Press didn't mention it, but even Obama believes it. Otherwise, why would he have blocked the EPA's job killing smog regulation?

There is more. The Associated Press also looked at Obama's assertions about tax cuts and China's currency manipulation.

'Democrats Anonymous'

The good folks at American Crossroads have produced another great video. This one, "Democrats Anonymous" offers for Democrats fed up  with the Obama Regime's job-killing policies, ridiculous proclamations and demands for more and more tax revenue.

Now Democrats afflicted with doubts about Obama's radical agenda can get help and no longer have to suffer alone and in silence.

The Obama presidency - 'a one-term proposition?'

"If I don't have this done in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition." - President Barack Obama on NBC's "Today," February 2, 2009:

The good folks at Minnesota Majority have put together a terrific video using President Obama's own metrics to assess his presidency. The result is devastating. Watch "Obama Presidency by the numbers."

Do you agree with Obama's self assessment that his presidency will be "a one-term proposition?"

• Poverty Rate: We can't afford to lose a generation of tomorrow's doctors and scientists and teachers to poverty.
• Unemployment Rate: The Obama Regime told us that without Obama's bailout the unemployment rate would reach 9%, but if Congress passed his boondoggle, unemployment would peak at 8%.
• Average Weeks Unemployed: January 2009 - 19.9 weeks. August 2011 - 40.3 weeks.
• Median Income: 2008 - $52,029. 2011 - $49,445.
• Health Insurance Premiums: 2008 - $12,680. 2011 - $15,073.
• Number of Jobs: January 2009 - 142,201,000. August 2011 - 139,627,000. Historically, the U.S. economy should produce 2,433,207 new private sector jobs each year.
• Inflation: January 2009 - 0.03%. August 2011 - 3.77%.
• Food Stamp Usage: January 2009 - 31.9 Million. August 2011 - 45.2 Million.
• Average Price of Gas: January 2009 - $1.82. August 2011 - $3.66.
• Average Home Value: Q1 2009 - $180,449. Q2 2011 - $171,900.
• National Debt: January 2009 - $10.6 Trillion. September 2011 - $14.7 Trillion. An increase of $4.1 Trillion in less than three years.
• National Deficit: 2008 - $438 Billion. 2011 - $1.28 Trillion.