Gone Snorkeling....

We are headed out on vacation....Keep an eye on Congress and the 2010 budget for us!!!

A Couple of Quick Items

Earth Hour
Don't forget, tonight is the night of "Earth Hour". If you believe in global warming, you are supposed to turn off your lights for one hour starting at 8:30 pm.

On the other hand, if you haven't drunk the kool-aid yet... you might want to consider turning on every light in the house (grin).

GIVE/SAVE ACT
The GIVE/SAVE act (HR 1388) was passed with the language about MANDATORY service removed. HOWEVER, there is an alternative bill being floated (HR 1444) that has the language back in it. Keep an eye on that one.

Universal Health Coverage
Looks like the House voted that this legislation (part of the 2010 budget process) can be "fast tracked". That means that the Senate can pass it with only 51 votes (not the customary 60). Oh well....

Tea Parties

Here's the website that can help you find any of the April 15 Tea Parties that are being planned. We'll be going. I encourage you to go, and take a friend!

Just When You Thought Government Couldn't Get More Involved in Your Life

California is thinking about banning dark-colored cars, because it takes more energy to cool them via their air conditioning.

The California Air Resources Board has proposed regulations requiring that paint and glazing (on windows and sunroofs) reflect certain amounts of energy, and there is no black paint that will meet these requirements. It's not clear if other dark colors could be made more reflective in order to meet the requirement.

Unfortunately, what California does often affects other states because they are such a huge market.

What Will Happen to GITMO Detainees?

At a press conference on Thursday, National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair talked about releasing some of the detainees at Guantanamo into the U.S. as free men, and also potentially giving them money and/or support to help them out.

During his news conference, Blair also said the Obama administration is still wrestling with what to do with the remaining 240 detainees at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, which the president has ordered closed.

Some of the detainees, deemed non-threatening, may be released into the United States as free men, Blair confirmed.

That would happen when they can't be returned to their home countries, because the governments either won't take them or the U.S. fears they will be abused or tortured. That is the case with 17 Uighers (WEE'-gurz), Chinese Muslim separatists who were cleared for release from the jail long ago. The U.S. can't find a country willing to take them, and it will not turn them over to China.

Blair said the former prisoners would have get some sort of assistance to start their new lives in the United States.

"We can't put them out on the street," he said.

Your tax dollars at work.

Your Tax Dollars at Work

Attorney General Eric Holder has issued an e-mail and flyer inviting employees to attend a speech given by Donna Brazile, a Vice Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Not only are our tax dollars paying her speaker's fee, but Holder's flying encourages all supervisors to grant official time to employees to attend the event (so we get to pay their salaries while they go and listen).

Glad to see the Justice Department is non-political and concerned about spending our money wisely.

Mandatory Volunteerism?

From the American Thinker Blog:

The “Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act” (GIVE act). HR 1388 has already passed the House and is on its way to the Senate.

You can read the final version of the House bill here. The legislation is a long string of amendments to existing laws that make it almost impossible to understand. (Really. This legislation is incomprehensible. I challenge you to click on this link and try to read the bill.)

There appears to be little volunteerism and almost no education in the bill. But there are a lot of make-work government jobs for doing God only knows what.

Part of it sounds like the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps from the 1930's) and part of it sounds like socialism. Read the whole thing, and if you don't like it, call your Senator.

401(k) Plans

From Instapundit:

BECAUSE THE STOCK MARKET IS DOWN, people are saying the 401(k) has “failed.”

But the question is, “compared to what?” Public pensions are woefully underfunded — they’re promising defined benefits, but may not be able to deliver. Defined-benefit private pensions are dragging companies like GM, Ford and Chrysler toward bankruptcy. And Social Security is on an unsustainable trajectory, which the political system knows but which politicians can’t bear to confront. At least when 401(k) balances go down, the whole system isn’t rendered insolvent.

Employee Free Choice Act (a.k.a. Card Check) - UPDATE

Today, Senator Arlen Specter (R - PA) announced during a speech in the Senate that he will NOT support this legislation (at this time). Actually, what he said was that he will not vote to stop an expected Republican filibuster. This would have the same effect, as 60 votes are needed to pass the bill.

This comes after reports of activity over the weekend by Starbucks, Costco and Whole Foods to offer a compromise version, which has received a "luke-warm" reception at best.

With the announcement by the Senator, this would be a moot point.

We'll keep an eye on this, and see what happens next.

Prior Post

Bailout for Newspapers?

A bill has been introduced into the U.S. Senate which would allow newspapers to restructure themselves as nonprofit entities, with special tax breaks. They could still run ads, and any money they get from ads would be tax free. Also, they would still charge subscriptions, and that money would also be tax free.

Basically, if this law passes, they would do what they do now, but not pay any taxes.

Wish I could do that....

U.S. Seeks Expanded Power to Seize Firms

From the Washington Post (emphasis added):

The Obama administration is considering asking Congress to give the Treasury secretary unprecedented powers to initiate the seizure of non-bank financial companies, such as large insurers, investment firms and hedge funds, whose collapse would damage the broader economy, according to an administration document.

The government at present has the authority to seize only banks.

Giving the Treasury secretary authority over a broader range of companies would mark a significant shift from the existing model of financial regulation, which relies on independent agencies that are shielded from the political process.

New Treasury Plan for Banks

Yesterday Treasury Secretary Geithner unveiled the Administration's plan to deal with all of the "toxic" or bad assets held by some banks.

The program intends to use $100 Billion of TARP funds, plus financial guarantees from the FDIC and Federal Reserve, to buy up bad loans and real estate related securities from troubled banks.

In order to succeed, the plan will need to attract private investors to buy the debt, and those private investors will have to accept the U.S. government as a 50-50 partner. Private investors may be leery of the participating, given recent Congressional moves to retroactively change the law and the current bashing of profits and capitalism in Congress and the Administration.

The way it's supposed to work is that the Federal Government and a private investor would jointly buy a "bad loan", thus allowing the bank to get that off of their books. Both the Government and the investor would be taking a risk - if the loan ends up getting paid off, they will profit, but if it does not, then both will lose the money. The hope is that this can help banks rebuild their balance sheets and maybe allow something to be salvaged from the bad loans.

Culture of Corruption

All too often, Congressmen accept donations from those organizations whom they are supposed to regulate. Here is one example - Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who is also being investigated for getting sweetheart mortgage deals from Countrywide Financial.....this is from a Connecticut newspaper:

Let's take our own U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd as a prime example. As a ranking member of the all-important U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs between 2003 and 2008, Dodd accepted donations from the nearly defunct insurance giant American International Group totaling nearly $225,000. In 2008, while we looked to him to represent our best interests, he received $157,194 from a now-quasi-nationalized Citigroup Inc., part of his total annual take of $854,200 from all TARP recipients, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. (emphasis added)

How can he truly represent his constituents' best interests when he is accepting vast sums of money from organizations that the government has assisted through the infusion of federal tax dollars? While legal, an objective observer should question the judgment and ethics of our state's senior senator.

Read the whole thing for more troubling activities by Dodd.

Do As I Say, Not As I Do

I guess the laws are for you and me, not them....

Two Congressmen (Pete Stark, D-CA and Eliot Engel, D-NY) have been claiming Maryland real estate as their primary residences so that they can get a tax break. Aren't they supposed to have residency in the state where they are Congressmen?

California congressman Pete Stark has improperly claimed a Maryland lakefront home (assessed at $1.7 million) as his primary residence in order to qualify for a special real estate tax break...

Earlier this month, Congressmen Eliot Engel, a lifelong resident of the Bronx, was outed for claiming the Maryland real estate tax break on his Maryland home (formerly owned by ABC's Ted Koppel and Wonder Woman Lynda Carter) assessed at $938,000.

TARP Recipients Make Donations to Congress

TARP is the $700 Billion program started last fall and continued under the Obama Administration to help with the banking and credit crisis. Companies who have received TARP funds are continuing to give donations to members of Congress.

While a few big firms, such as Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase, have curtailed their campaign giving, others are quietly doling out cash to select members of Congress, particularly those who serve on committees that oversee TARP...

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Financial Services chair Rep. Barney Frank both said recently they won't take donations from TARP recipients. But House Democratic fundraisers have quietly passed the word that the party's campaign committee will resume accepting them—but down the road, not right now.

Weekend "Tea Parties"

Several more taxpayer protests, dubbed "Tea Parties" after the Boston Tea Party, were held this weekend. Ironically, the 40 people who protested the AIG bonuses got national coverage (journalists outnumbered protestors by more than 2 to 1), while the Tea Parties did not.

Orlando, Florida 4,000 people
Raleigh, NC 300-400
Ridgefield, Conn. 200-300
Lexington, KY 1,200 - 1,500
Solomons Island, Maryland 300

Obama Budget Deficits

The budget proposed by President Obama for 2010 and beyond will average $1 Trillion in deficits each year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The Congressional Budget Office figures, obtained by The Associated Press Friday, predict Obama's budget will produce $9.3 trillion worth of red ink over 2010-2019. That's $2.3 trillion worse than the White House predicted in its budget.

Worst of all, CBO says the deficit under Obama's policies would never go below 4 percent of the size of the economy, figures that economists agree are unsustainable. By the end of the decade, the deficit would exceed 5 percent of gross domestic product, a dangerously high level.

It took us 40 years to get to a national debt of $11 Trillion. If these plans are adopted, it will take only 9 more years to get to $20 Trillion.

Federal Reserve and Monetary Policy

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve announced that it would pump an extra $1 Trillion into the economy by buying Treasury bonds and mortgage securities.

"The action makes the Fed a buyer of long-term government bonds rather than the short-term debt that it typically buys and sells to help control the money supply."

Why do we care? There is a risk that these actions could dilute the value of the dollar (which dropped sharply upon this news) and cause inflation in the future.

This is in addition to an "unprecedented expansion of lending by the Fed."

"In effect, the central bank has been lending money to a wider and wider array of borrowers, and it has financed that lending by using its authority to create new money at will..." (emphasis added).

"Since last September, the Fed’s lending programs have roughly doubled the size of its balance sheet, to about $1.8 trillion, from $900 billion. The actions announced on Wednesday are likely to expand that to well over $3 trillion over the next year...The Fed’s action is an expansion of its effort to bypass the private banking system and act as a lender in its own right."

By adding more money to the system, the Fed hopes to head off deflation, but runs the risk of setting off inflation.

This is a complicated issue that many of us don't understand fully.

To start you thinking, try this video (hat tip Anchoress):




Then, for a good basic description of a market economy and how we got to where we are, read this article: The Money Meltdown.

AIG Bonuses - Opinion

Yesterday, Congress passed a bill to tax 90% of the AIG bonuses that were given out last week.

This is the same Congress that passed the Stimulus Bill with the amendment specifically allowing those bonuses a few weeks earlier.

Senator Dodd (D-Conn.) is taking fire for putting the amendment in the bill. Senator Dodd is saying that the Administration and Treasury Department told him to put the bonus language in the amendment. C-SPAN video shows that both Congress and Treasury knew about the bonus amounts by March 3rd.

So, the people responsible for allowing the bonuses are the ones yelling the loudest about them, and now they have passed a law that sets precedent for future laws taxing particular people or industries just because Congress doesn't like how they are acting. That's hypocrisy (and not good leadership).

By the way, regardless of how you feel about the AIG bonuses, the stirring up of a mob mentality (complete with death threats) and Congressmen wanting to release the names of people who received bonuses so people could go to their houses and "protest" is just plain dangerous.

St Patricks Day Milestone

In case you didn't notice, while we were eating corned beef and cabbage and washing it down with green beer the National Debt rolled pass the $11,000,000,000,000 ($11 TRILLION) mark.

Current Debt Level

Your Tax Dollars at Work

470 firms have received taxpayer bailouts. A House Committee has checked the records of 23 of them, and found that 13 of the 23 had unpaid federal taxes of over $220 million.

"Banks and other firms receiving federal money were required to sign contracts stating they had no unpaid taxes...But he said the Treasury Department did not ask them to turn over their tax records."

If the companies knowingly signed a contract with false information, they can be prosecuted for fraud.

AIG Campaign Donations

Here's who AIG made campaign donations to for the 2008 election cycle. AIG continued with contributions even after they received their first set of bailouts last year.

Here's the list of top AIG recipients for the 2008 campaign:

1. Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., $103,100
2. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., $101,332
3. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., $59,499
4. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., $35,965
5. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., $24,750
6. Former Gov. Mitt Romney, (R) Pres $20,850
7. Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., $19,975
8. Rep. John Larson, D-Conn, $19,750
9. Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., $18,500
10. Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) Pres $13,200
11. Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., $12,000
12. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., $11,000

Fannie Mae to Double Bonuses Over Last Year

Fannie Mae (while receiving financial backing from the Treasury department of over $200 Billion and asking for $15.2 Billion in taxpayer bailouts) has announced plans to increase bonuses for this year. Bonuses will range from $470,000 to $611,000 per recipient, which is more than double what they were last year.

Rival mortgage lender Freddie Mac, who has also Treasury backing of $200 Billion and has asked for $45 Billion in bailouts, said they were formulating similar plans.

Both organizations cite a need to keep key employees as a basis for these bonuses.

Stimulus Bill Allowed AIG Bonuses

In the midst of all the outrage from politicians at the bonuses recently paid to AIG executives, one fact stands out:

a provision in the Stimulus Bill specifically allows bonuses contracted for on or before February 11, 2009 (all of the AIG bonuses fulfilled this provision).

Who put this provision in the stimulus bill? Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.). Interestingly, Senator Dodd received more campaign contributions from AIG than any other congressperson.

Perhaps next time they should read the bill before they vote on it!

In addition, the Administration has known about the bonuses for several months, but concluded that contract law would prohibit them from doing anything about them. That didn't keep them from complaining all day yesterday though.

First Major Shot Fired in Trade War

Apparently, the recently passed 2009 Omnibus Budget/Spending bill included a provision that killed a program that was implemented as part of the 1995 NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement). I wonder if anyone even knew it was there. (grin)

So, today Mexico announced that it will retaliate (which it has a right to do so) and increase duties on 90 US products which we export to them (totaling over $2 billion).

Some folks have had concerns about the program, centered around the safety of the Mexican trucking companies. As a result, the program has not had heavy participation.

But I think the posting from the Club For Growth sums it up best... "This didn't have to happen".

Club for Growth post (with link to Wall Street Journa)l

Reuters article

Tea Party Protests

There were several more Tea Party Protests against government spending this weekend. There are many more planned for April 15th across the country.

This weekend's Tea Parties were as follows:

Cincinnatti, OH 4,000 - 5,000 people
Columbus, OH 200
Leawood, KS 110 (4th protest in 4 weeks in KC)
Little Rock, Arkansas 200
Boise, Idaho 100-15o

Congress Keeps Automatic Pay Raises

Congress defeated an amendment last week that would have ended the automatic pay raises that Congress gets.

The automated pay raise was implemented in 1989 so that Congress doesn't have to vote to raise their own pay, which can be politically unpopular.

Budget Deficit Tops $765 Billion So Far

The federal budget deficit for the first 5 months of Fiscal 2009 is at $765 Billion. This is $500 Billion more than the same period last year. (Note: the government fiscal year begins in October).

The Obama Administration estimates the total deficit for 2009 will be $1.75 Trillion. The 2008 deficit was $455 Billion.

Deficits are projected to by larger than ever for the foreseeable future, adding to the overall national debt at an amazing rate.

Former Guantanamo Detainee Heads Taliban Operations

"The Taliban's new top operations officer in southern Afghanistan had been a prisoner at the Guantanamo Bay detention center, the latest example of a freed detainee who took a militant leadership role and a potential complication for the Obama administration's efforts to close the prison. U.S. authorities handed over the detainee to the Afghan government, which in turn released him, according to Pentagon and CIA officials." From an AP report - read the whole thing here.

The Pentagon estimates that 60 former Guatanamo detainees have shown up on foreign battlefields. President Obama signed an Executive Order in January ordering the closure of Guatanamo within a year. He did not specify what would be done with the 250 detainees currently held there.

As long as we try to fight terrorism as a law enforcement issue (rather than a military action), this kind of thing will continue to occur.

35 Counties Account for 50% of Foreclosures

In 2008, only 35 counties (concentrated in California and Florida) accounted for 50% of all foreclosures. Four states (Nevada, Arizona, Florida and California) have the highest foreclosure rates by far.

Obama Considers Charging Vets for Service-Related Injuries

"Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki confirmed Tuesday that the Obama administration is considering a controversial plan to make veterans pay for treatment of service-related injuries with private insurance.

But the proposal would be "dead on arrival" if it's sent to Congress, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, said. "

Let's hope so. It's amazing that they are even considering it.

More Stimulus?

Nancy Pelosi and other Congressional leaders are beginning work on another stimulus bill. They aren't sure if it will be needed or not.

Remember, much of the spending in the original $787 Billion stimulus package won't be spent until 2010 or later, so it's unclear how they know more is needed.

Let's hope they read this one before they vote on it!

Poll of Economists Give Obama and Geithner Low Grades

Forty-nine economists were polled by the Wall Street Journal to get their opinions on the administration's economic policies.

"On average, they gave the president a grade of 59 out of 100, and although there was a broad range of marks, 42% of respondents rated Mr. Obama below 60. Mr. Geithner received an average grade of 51. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke scored better, with an average 71."

Criticism centered on the lack of a clear plan and delay in enacting key parts of the plan to rescue banks. Most of the economists surveyed expected the economy to begin recovering next October.

Keep an Eye on Mexico

Because of escalating drug wars on the U.S.-Mexican border, President Obama is considering deploying National Guard troops to the area.

Estimates are that over 200 U.S. citizens have been killed in these drug wars, and so far in 2009 over 1,000 Mexican citizens have been killed. Much of the violence is in towns near the U.S. border.

Mexico has beefed up its troop presence in these areas.

2 Governor's Take a Stand on Stimulus Money

Governors Mark Sanford (R-South Carolina) and Rick Perry (R-Texas) have both made announcements today that may prove politically unpopular for them, but which they feel are the best course of action for their respective states.

Governor Perry is refusing some of the stimulus money designated for Texas because it would require the state to change how it defines unemployment. His concern is that this will create an increased burden on business. Per his office...

Strings attached to the unemployment insurance stimulus dollars would require an unprecedented change in Texas’ definition of unemployment, increasing the tax burden borne by Texas employers. This increased burden would counteract the stimulus package’s objective of job creation by leading companies to limit hiring and raise prices on products, hindering their ability to overcome the economic crisis and ultimately limiting growth. Full Article...

Governor Sanford has made a formal request to the President, asking that he be offered some flexibility with 25% of the money designated for South Carolina. Instead of being "forced" to use it as proscribed by Congress, he would like to pay down the states debt (i.e. strengthen their balance sheet). He feels that would be the best use of the money for this particular State. On the left side of this link is the 3 page letter to the President. I encourage you to read it.

3rd Treasury Nominee Withdrawn

The Treasury Department remains very understaffed at this point in time.

First the candidate for Undersecretary for International Affairs, Caroline Atkinson, had to withdraw her nomination because of a tax problem.

Then deputy treasury secretary pick Annette Nazareth withdrew from possibly being the next deputy treasury secretary because of concerns over her tenure as head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), particularly since she was in charge during the Bernard Madoff fraud.

Now H. Rodgin Cohen has withdrawn from consideration as the next deputy treasury secretary, most likely because he as been a lawyer for many major players on Wall Street.

ABC 20/20 Special Friday Night.... Bailouts, Big Spending and Bull

John Stossel teams up with Drew Carey for a new special on government waste. I believe it is at 9 pm CDT (yup, Daylight Savings Time!). I don't know what the specifics of this particular segment on bailouts will be. But if I was a betting person, I'd guess that you will not agree with some of their views. But hey... that's what this is all about, right?

Here's a link to a preview...

Senate Passes 2009 Omnibus Bill

Today the Senate passed the $410 Billion Omnibus Bill for 2009, including over 8500 earmarks and an overall 8.7% increase in spending over 2008 (see posts here, here, here and here for details).

Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) Introduced Today in Congress

Both the House and the Senate introduced the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) today, commonly known as Card Check.

See our earlier post for details on the legislation.

The most controversial part of the bill is that it will eliminate the secret ballot when workers vote on whether or not to unionize. This could lead to intimidation.

Another concern is the arbitration clauses - the bill will force arbitration by the government (or a government chosen arbitrator) if management and labor can't come to an agreement. This inserts the government into a process that some think should remain between labor and management.

Interestingly enough, both George McGovern and Al Sharpton oppose the bill, because it will deprive workers of their right to a secret ballot.

Charles Freeman Withdraws Nomination as National Intelligence Council Chairman

Freeman's nomination concerned Democrats and Republicans alike. Some of the concerns centered around Freeman's very close financial ties to the Saudi Arabian government, his anti-Israel stance, his favorable view of Chinese repression in Tiananmen Square, and his implication that America's support for Israel was to blame for September 11th.

His withdrawal was accepted this afternoon.

In Baghdad, Iraqi Detainees Want to Stay Detained

"An increasing number of Iraqi detainees are refusing to leave detention centres despite being eligible for release because they want to complete studies begun behind bars, a US general said on Sunday.

Some parents of juvenile detainees, too, have asked that their children remain behind bars so they can continue their schooling, said Stone, the commanding general for US detainee operations in Iraq.

The US military, he added, was not encouraging the trend."

The US military offers a wide range of educational programs. Some parents of juveniles have even asked that their other children be detained, so they can benefit from these programs. Full article is here.

Everything written about the economic crisis overlooks its true nature

"The opportunities to avoid the crisis lie in the past two or more decades. At some level we knew that we must save more and borrow less, that our ever-growing trade deficits were a threat to future prosperity, etc. We put those concerns aside, instead indulging in an orgy of consumer spending. Larger houses, more cars per household, granite counter-tops, insane government spending for every politically powerful group — from insane defense spending to bountiful agricultural subsidies.

Now the party ends and the hang-over begins. We fumbled our time as world hegemon and the world turns to something else — as yet unknown."

Quoted from a very interesting blog, fabiusmaximus.wordpress.com. He has lots of detailed analysis of where we are, how we got there, and what might lie ahead.

Foreign Policy Quick Update

In addition to pledging to "reset" our relations with Russia, the Obama Administration has pledged to meet with Syria and Iran without any preconditions. In fact, there was a four hour meeting Saturday been U.S. and Syrian officials.

The Administration is also inviting Iran to a conference on Afghanistan, in the hopes that Iran can help stabilize the government in Kabul and cut down the flow of arms into Afghanistan.

More Tea Party Protests

Several more taxpayer protests were held across the country.

Green Bay, WI 1,200 people
Olathe, KS 150-200
Harrisburg, PA 200-300
Fullerton, CA 8,000 - 12,000 (They were protesting both Federal and California policies)
Salt Lake City 100
Yonkers, NY 350
Lafayette, LA 400-500
Monterey, CA
Maui, Hawaii
Boise, ID

There may be others...they are all locally organized, so there's no central source of info. And the crowd estimates are just that...estimates.

Not Too Late to Change 2009 Budget Bill

The $410 billion Omnibus Budget Bill has been deferred until next week (week of March 9).

Some moderate Democrats and many Republicans are concerned that it has too many earmarks (8500) and duplicates some of the spending that was in the Stimulus Bill. It also has about an 8% increase in overall spending, including additional spending on Congressional offices, etc. (see previous posts).

The Omnibus Bill has already passed the House - it is the Senate that didn't pass it on Thursday. If you have an opinion, contact your Senator. Voting will take place on Monday or Tuesday, and President Obama has said he will sign it, even though it violates his campaign pledge of no earmarks.

News You Can Use

In January, a lot of Mastercard and Visa users were hacked....Heartland Payment systems processes MC and Visa payments for restaurants, retailers and others and their system was hacked in January.

So be sure to check your credit card statements for any charges you may not have made....your liability is zero if you didn't make the charge. Same with debit card charges, although if they hacked your account your money is gone and you will have to fight to get it back.

Diplomacy 2009

Brits feel that their Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was snubbed by the White House this week. A joint press-conference with Brown and Obama was cancelled due to "snow," and other typical diplomatic niceties were missing.

Secretary of State Hilary Clinton gave Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov a button that to symbolize our new relationship with Russia -- it was supposed to say "RESET" in Russian (because Obama wants to "press the reset button on our relationship with Russia") but in fact it said "OVERCHARGE" in Russian. Don't we have anyone who can spell in Russian?

Not Too Late to Change 2009 Budget Bill

The stopgap spending bill expires today (Friday).

The Senate majority leader (Harry Reid) assumed that they would be able to pass the $410 billion Omnibus Budget Bill last night or today (60 votes are required). So, instead of making sure that he had all the votes; he and others decided to spend Thursday at the White House for the big "Health Care Reform Summit".

Well, guess what? They are a few votes short! Two democratic senators oppose it, due to the amount of spending and earmarks. (As a reminder, this represents an 8% increase over last years spending; and includes money for programs that have already been allocated funds as part of the "stimulus" package).

So what happens next? A stopgap measure to provide funding at current levels is in place for next week. Senator Reid expects to vote on it again as early as next Tuesday.

It is not too late to contact your senators over the weekend or Monday.

One possible outcome is to just pass a bill that keeps spending flat, which would save about $20 billion.

Here's a piece from the New York Times.

An Earmark by Any Other Name.....

President Obama campaigned on ending earmarks. He is getting ready to sign the $410 Billion Omnibus Bill (see earlier post) with 8500 earmarks totaling $7.7 Billion.

And in the stimulus bill that was passed a few weeks ago, there were no "formal" earmarks -- they just made items so specific that only one location or one company could fulfill them (not technically an earmark, but with the same result). Look forward to much more of this as Congress spends your money while telling you they aren't spending money on earmarks.

While most earmarks are for small amounts (millions as opposed to trillions) they all add up, and they are often a waste of taxpayer's money.

Congress Gives Itself 11% More in Budget

After getting a raise in salary last month, Congress has also put in the 2009 Omnibus Spending Bill an 11% increase in spending on itself (from $3.97 Billion to $4.4 Billion). Inflation has been 0-1%.

This will go for things like pay increases for staff, special expense accounts, renovations to meeting rooms, and new Capitol Visitor Center, capitol infrastructure improvements, etc.

Some of these things may be necessary, but an 11% increase isn't the belt-tightening that we are told our leaders are doing.

Mexico is Becoming a Security Risk

Drug gangs are running rampant in Mexico, killing many civilians and police officers. U.S. Joint Forces command lists Mexico as being at risk of a "rapid and sudden collapse".

In Juarez, 230 people have been murdered since January 1st. The drug cartels are battling to control the drug trade, and the Mexican government is battling them.

Obama tells AFL-CIO Bosses that Card Check Will Pass

Wall Street Journal article

The politics on this will be fun to watch. Typically, this legislation would originate in the House and if passed, then proceed to the Senate.

However, it looks like this process might be reversed. Why would they do that?

There are many Democratic congressman in the House that are from states that have "Right to Work" rules (i.e. no unions) or represent conservative districts. If they vote YES on this bill, their constituents will not be pleased. They are worried that if they vote YES but then the bill does NOT pass in the Senate, then they will run the risk of not being re-elected.

Having the Senate vote first can provide them some "cover". If the Senate does NOT pass the bill, then Pelosi will not bring it up for a vote in the House. If the bill DOES PASS in the Senate, those democratic congressman who would put themselves "at risk" for re-election with a YES vote would probably be able to abstain (and thus not upset their constituents).

Here's a link to the earlier post that describes this legislation.

Here's a link to a more complete description of the "process".

Is Capitalism Dead?

OK, so this is a bit of an "editorial post".

Capitalism is alive and well (although definitely under attack by the politicians and media). We take so much for granted here in this country. Here's a link to a short article from Cafe Hayek. There's a link inside of it to a short essay which is worth the 60 seconds it takes to read.

Next time you're in the grocery store, Home Depot, or whatever; you might want to take a minute to pause and look around. We have so much to choose from (sometimes there are too many choices!). And all of this due to the individual actions of thousands/millions of people, each acting in their own self interest.

What do you think it would look like if it was managed by the politicians in Washington, DC?

Cap and Trade (aka. Your Energy Costs are Going Up!)

During the campaign, President Obama said that he wanted to raise energy prices so that Americans would consume less energy. This is based on two assumptions:

1. that there is a global warming crisis, and
   
2. that it is primarily man-made.

We will not debate (in this posting) whether or not these are valid assumptions.

If you assume that they are true, then you can help the environment by forcing fossil fuel consumption down by making it much more expensive, so that people will consume less energy generated by fossil fuels . A common strategy for achieving this type of result is called "Cap and Trade".

President Obamas recent budget draft assumes $80 billion of revenue from "Cap and Trade" beginning in 2012 (article). This will grow to be upwards of $300 billion per year.

SO, JUST WHAT IS CAP & TRADE?

CAP

Cap-and-trade plans work by having the government sell to businesses the right to emit a certain amount of carbon dioxide or other gases. These permits set an enforceable limit (cap), on the amount of greenhouse gas pollution that the company is allowed to emit. Over time, the limits become stricter, allowing less and less pollution.

TRADE

It will be relatively cheaper or easier for some companies to reduce their emissions below their required limit than it will be for others. The companies who emit less than their allowance can sell their extra permits to companies that are not able to make reductions as easily.

MONEY

Basically, this creates a huge new revenue stream for the federal government. What will they do with it? The president’s plan assumes $80 billion of additional revenue in 2012. $65 billion would be used for the “Making Work Pay" tax credit (which offsets payroll taxes for about 95 percent of workers), while $15 billion per year gets set aside for various clean-energy technologies, energy efficiency, clean-car development, and so forth.

HOW WILL THIS IMPACT US?

ENERGY COSTS WILL INCREASE

The goal of this is to increase the cost of energy. Yes, you read that correctly. We are already using the cheapest energy sources available (fossil fuels). The renewable energy technologies are nowhere close to being cost competitive. So, to promote them the government is increasing the cost of the carbon-based energy sources. Duke Energy Corp. Chief Executive Officer James Rogers said President Barack Obama's plan to raise revenue from an emissions-trading system would increase electricity bills by as much as 40 percent in some U.S. states.

MORE WEALTH REDISTRIBUTION / GOVERNMENT CONTROL

This will generate $80 billion to $300 billion per year in additional revenues for the government. Businesses will pass on their additional costs (fee’s for permits, higher cost renewable energy sources) to consumers and other businesses. This will have a negative impact on economic growth, which again impacts us as workers and investors. Most important is the fact that more money is run through the federal government, who will “control the purse strings”. Think there won’t be some lobbyists hanging out around that pot of gold!

MINIMAL IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Even if the assumptions listed above are correct, this will have minimal impact on the environment at the risk of inflicting great damage on the economy. More on this in a later post.

Things Aren't So Bad.....

A little something to lighten up your day, on YouTube

Everything's Amazing, Nobody's Happy

Here's Another One...

Ron Kirk, President Obama's nominee for U.S. Trade Representative failed to pay almost $10,000 in taxes in the past 3 years. This came to light when the Senate Finance Committee investigated his credentials for the job. The Senate will consider his nomination next week.

This is after several other nominees (Geithner, Daschle, Killefer, etc.) were identified as having underpaid their taxes.

Government Spending

USA Today has a chart showing government spending from 1977 through the proposed 2010 budget. Take a minute and look at it here.

It also shows our national debt going from it's current level (somewhere around $11 Trillion) to $17.6 Trillion by the end of 2010.