Sunday, August 31, 2014

 President Obama, who ended a pay freeze for federal workers last January, is acting to give civilian and military employees another 1 percent increase effective January 1, 2015. As expected, labor unions are complaining it's not enough.


Always ready to shift the blame to others, President Obama responded to criticism of his "no strategy" stance on ISIS threats by saying, "The world's always been messy. We're just noticing now in part because of social media. Second reason people are feeling anxious is that if you watch the nightly news, it feels like the world is falling apart."


U.S. Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi, held in a Mexican jail since last March after he took a wrong turn and mistakenly crossed the border, appears to be no closer to being released despite a petition with more than 100,000 signatures sent to the president. The White House has finally responded to the petition  with a statement that the State Department is providing "extensive consular assistance." 



Saturday, August 30, 2014

It's commonplace for roads, bridges and public buildings to have politicians' names placed on them. In Nevada the opposite occurred. Southern Utah University, the alma mater of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is removing his name after a lobbying campaign by citizens and alumni.




Your Government at Work
The U.S. Forest Service has published an article on how to roast marshmallows safely. The federal agency recommends a roasting stick at least 30 inches long. For more information about campfire safety, the article advises "let Smokey Bear guide you."




 Like most other federal government employees, President Obama took off for the holiday weekend for a round of Democratic fundraisers and a high profile social event. He and First Lady Michelle Obama were scheduled to attend the wedding in New York of MSNBC host Alex Wagner and Sam Kass, the personal chef to the Obama family. The New York Times, in a gushing front-page feature, called Kass the "Foodmaster General." 

Friday, August 29, 2014

(There was no blog post for Thursday, August 28)


He didn't exactly say these words, but it came across like this when President Obama admitted he didn't have a strategy for dealing with the Islamic State terrorist menace: "I don't want to put the cart before the horse. I don't have a cart. I don't have a horse. I don't have a clue."

Obviously, judging from his suit and tie combination, he also doesn't have a wardrobe strategy. The tan summer suit and gray-striped tie created a frenzy on social media outlets.

What Obama does have is a Democratic fundraising strategy. After his news conference and a meeting with national security advisers, he embarked on a tour that included two New York events and one in Newport, R.I. to raise money for Democratic candidates.

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Warren Buffett, who criticized the tax code for favoring wealthy investors like himself, comes across as a hypocrite by helping to finance a deal that would allow Burger King to pay lower taxes by moving its headquarters to Canada. Not exactly the "Buffett Rule" President Obama had in mind in his 2012 campaign.



Could it be the kiss that cost Democrats a Senate seat? Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., is in a tight race for reelection and there was speculation she wouldn't be seen with President Obama on a visit to her state. She blasted the president on the VA hospital scandal ahead of his visit, but then greeted him warmly on his arrival with an embrace and a buss on the cheek, reports the Washington Post. They exchanged another well-photographed hug after Obama's speech.


How Your Taxes Are Spent
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is investigating misuse of taxpayer dollars at the Labor Department, including spending $2,627 a week to produce propaganda elevator posters. One featured former Secretary Hilda Solis rallying alongside activist Rev. Al Sharpton. The agency spent at least $725,000 on producing the posters and other self-promoting materials.

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Back from his golfing vacation, President Obama didn't stay in the White House long. He hit the road to help Democratic candidates. Except some don't want his help. Prior to his speech at the American Legion national convention in Charlotte, N.C., Sen. Kay Hagan issued a stinging statement saying Obama "has not yet done enough to earn the lasting trust of our veterans and implement real and permanent reforms at the VA." The vulnerable North Carolina Democrat hopes to put enough distance between herself and the unpopular president to survive a Republican challenge.

Have you heard about the latest monkey business in Congress? It involves no less than House Speaker John Boehner. His office posted to its website a video featuring a windup toy monkey his staff gave to him. In the video, Boehner says, "Every 15 to 30 minutes, they come in and wind me up and I do my thing." It's supposed to show his sense of humor.


How would you like to have a socialist for president of the United States? A real socialist, that is. Sen. Bernie Sanders, elected as an independent from Vermont but describes himself as a socialist, is considering a run for the White House in 2016. He's said to be gearing up for a primary challenge against Hillary Clinton.

Monday, August 25, 2014

One of the most highly publicized -- and criticized -- presidential vacations is over. After two weeks at Martha's Vineyard -- interrupted by a strange 48-hour round trip to Washington costing taxpayers a million dollars -- President Obama returned to the White House in the wake of condemnation from many quarters of his aloof attitude, happily playing golf amid grimly serious situations at home and abroad.

Maybe it was to convince Americans he could keep a cool head in times of impending crisis, but for whatever reason former President George W. Bush took the ice bucket challenge and got doused by his wife Laura. He then challenged his predecessor, Bill Clinton, to follow suit in the popular movement to raise money for the charity that fights ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease.

Normally members of Congress spend the August recess campaigning in their home states or going on exotic overseas junkets. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chose to do neither. He tweeted that he and his wife, Barbara, were "retracing our honeymoon of 60 years." Grassley didn't disclose the itinerary except to say that one stop was in the "South Dakota Badlands".

Sunday, August 24, 2014

"FORE! Score? And seven trillion rounds ago, our forecaddies brought forth on this continent a new playground ..." - New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, in a blistering piece satirizing President Obama's rewriting of Lincoln's address to justify his compulsion to go to the golf course when the going gets rough.


Will President Obama assign his attorney general to investigate a major crime in the Elyria, Ohio public schools -- namely the killing of the famous Elyria pink cookie? The prime suspect is First Lady Michelle Obama. The velvety, cake-like delicacy glazed with sugary pink icing has been judged the "Best Cafeteria Cookie" but it fails to meet federal dietary guidelines pushed by Mrs. Obama. Elyria students now have to choose between salads, yogurt or "egg patties."

News reports say "ISIS", Obama says "ISIL" -- ISIS or ISIL, which is correct? When the jihadist group began launching terror srikes and carving out territory two years ago, it was known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. But the president and the State Department adopted a more precise term: the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The Associated Press switched from ISIS to ISIL, so no more arguments, okay?

Saturday, August 23, 2014

Obamacare's chickens are coming home to roost in the president's home city, adding more woes for the Chicago Cubs. The bad luck baseball team had a short-staffed grounds crew of seasonal workers for a game with the San Francisco Giants to avoid paying certain health care benefits. The crew couldn't get the diamond covered quickly enough during a sudden thunderstorm. Officials cut the game short with the Cubs leading 2-0.


There he goes again. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said to members of the Las Vegas Asian Chamber of Commerce, "I don't think you're smarter than everybody else, but you've convinced a lot of us you are." Then he added, "One problem I've had today is keeping my Wongs straight." Is it any wonder that despite an apology, the group backed a Republican opponent over Reid's choice for lieutenant governor?"
Instead of slamming President Obama for spending too much time on the golf course, Republicans may wish they were cheering him on. Ben White of politico.com says such actions as blatantly teeing off right after shocking the American public with news of the grisly execution of a journalist by ISIS terrorists will hurt Democrats' chances of retaining a majority in the U.S. Senate. According to this observer, Obama "is dragging Democrats down."

Friday, August 22, 2014


Another Obamacare deadline may be missed and as a result many Americans could be delayed in seeking tax refunds. The government must send Obamacare customers a form detailing their coverage and tax credits. Officials are vowing to meet the January 31 deadline to develop the form, but they don't have a very good track record.




President Obama's decision to seek "justice" for the execution of an American hostage did not sit well with one of his most loyal supporters. MSNBC's Chris Matthews loudly ridiculed Obama's statement, saying: "No American president can survive if he lets Americans be beheaded on international television with impunity. He has to strike back."

"Sign me up for Mitt mania. Absolutely. I'd drive his bus if he asked me to." - Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., Mitt Romney's 2012 running mate. But in a joint appearance on Fox News, Romney said, "I've had my turn."




Thursday, August 21, 2014

President Obama's checklist:
Put on white shirt and jacket - no tie.
Leave Martha's Vineyard vacation compound to issue statement.
Tell the world the U.S. failed in a mission to rescue Americans held hostage by terrorists.
Express sympathy for parents of beheaded hostage and pledge to see that justice is done - "standing alongside others."
Go immediately to golf course to play seventh 18-holes in ten days.

 

Attorney General Eric Holder made a much-publicized flight to Ferguson, Mo., but did little or nothing to ease the racial tensions and end the violence that erupted after the fatal shooting of a black youth by a white police officer. Instead he talked about how he had personally endured the humiliation of racial profiling in his past.



Hillary Clinton, who demands expensive hotel accommodations and other luxuries for her speaking engagements, is not the only member of the family who enjoys high living. Author Daniel Halper says former president Bill Clinton loves a Gurkha. At $1,000 each, it is the world's most costly cigar.




Wednesday, August 20, 2014

President Obama resumed his vacation on Martha's Vineyard after a trip to Washington of less than 48 hours which puzzled many observers. Washington Times columnist Joseph Curl questioned why both Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder flew back to DC from Massachusetts for Holder to update him on the Ferguson, MO violence. Justin Sink of The Hill speculated the surprise trip might have been prompted by Democrats being wary of the president taking a two-week vacation ahead of November's mid-term elections.Judicial Watch estimated the round trip cost $1.1 million.



Should our national security apparatus be concerned about the latest attack by North Korea? Probably not, since it was a crude insult directed at Secretary of State John Kerry by an unidentified policy spokesman who called Kerry a wolf with a "hideous lantern jaw." American cartoonists have done worse than that.





Although the Democrats' best candidate for the Montana Senate seat dropped out three months before the election after being exposed for plagiarism, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is optimistic. Reid, who lives in a dream world much of the time, said, "We are really doing well in Montana." Math teacher Amanda Curtis, who replaced John Walsh on the ticket, is facing "nearly insurmountable odds" in the race against Republican Steve Daines, according to The New York Times. 



Tuesday, August 19, 2014


Former Budget Director Mitch Daniels, who established a national reputation as a fiscal conservative while serving as governor of Indiana, is applying the same principles as president of Purdue University. Mary Katherine Ham of hotair.com reports Purdue students are enjoying the first tuition freeze in 36 years and a 10 percent drop in their dining hall prices. Now he's teaming with Amazon to try to bring down the cost of textbooks.





When he campaigned for president in 2008, Barack Obama came down hard on Washington lobbyists and declared he would "free the executive branch from special interest influence." But he seems to have forgotten his pledge to "close the revolving door." An analysis by the Washington Post shows there are 65 current members of the Obama administration that were formerly registered to lobby the federal government.

 


How Your Taxes Are Spent

The Social Security Administration gave $3 million in benefits to people in California who were dead, according to an inspector general's audit. In one case the widow of a disabled man received his benefits for 28 years after he died in 1985. The SSA issued $104,906 in retirement benefits to two Mexican nationals living outside the country.

Monday, August 18, 2014

Isn't Hillary Clinton counting her chickens a little too early? The Las Vegas Review Journal reports she insists on staying in the "presidential suite" of luxury hotels, including Las Vegas. The prospective Democratic candidate also requires those sponsoring her speech-making appearances to provide a private jet - 16-passenger Gulfstream G450 or larger - for transportation, according to the newspaper.


"When government picks winners and losers, the losers usually end up being taxpayers." - Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., who released a report showing that federal tax credits meant to stimulate the economies of low-income communities have gone for doggie day care, sculptures, recording studios, limousine services and breweries.



President Obama is under fire from a fellow Democrat for ignoring Congress in using U.S. military power in Iraq. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., said: "I think Congress is really tired of presidents just going in by themselves."

Sunday, August 3, 2014

With both Congress and the President going on vacation, the sources of subject matter for this blog all but evaporate, so Blogger Bob also is taking a break. PolitiQuips will resume on Monday, August 18.

Saturday, August 2, 2014

Only in America
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has invited families fleeing from violence in Central America to come live in his city, where the murder rate is up 38 percent from a year ago. More than 240 people have been killed this year, mostly in shootings.



How Your Taxes Are Spent
The Commerce Department's inspector general's office discovered that dozens of employees at an agency that handles appeals of patent applications had so little work to do they spent time surfing the Internet, exercising, watching TV and doing laundry. All the while they were collecting more than $4.3 million in salaries and -- get this -- about $700,000 in performance bonuses.

"The only people I know who seem willing, who seem gutsy enough to fight, are the Poles, and the rest of the Europeans are a bunch of weenies." - Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif.







Friday, August 1, 2014

The Statue of Liberty says, "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free," and President Obama will give them free admission and shelter in a facility in Texas which has suites with flat-screen TV sets, a soccer field and basketball courts, along with clothing, medical screenings and free schooling.

What does Vice President Joe Biden have in common with the sixth president of the United States? John Quincy Adams regularly swam in the nude and a new book quotes Secret Service agents as saying Biden likes to go skinny-dipping, too. The practice is reported to be upsetting especially for female agents assigned to protect the veep.


In public appearances around the country President Obama brags a lot about "doing my job." But a prominent Democrat begs to differ. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., told MSNBC Obama is "doing his job actually less often and at a rate that is lower than any other president since Grover Cleveland."