24thState

Sneak Peek: Russ Carnahan Fundraising Commericial

Breaking Update! Ed Martin just outraised Russ Carnahan in the 3rd quarter by almost $40,000! Maybe we'll see this commercial on air afterall.

The Link Between Robin Carnahan And FiredUp

Everyone knows I'm a clean government proponent and a long-time blogger, so it's not much of a stretch so see why I've put so much time digging into FiredUpMissouri.  They were annoyances from 2005-2008, but in the last year, they've turned into a media arm for various Democrats, and I'm in the midst of showing how different Democrats use FiredUp to spread stories.

This here is a teaser of what I have.  It's shot in super secret video tape of the Secretary's office a couple months ago.

Take Off The Pajamas, Get Dressed, And Grow Up

Hysterical video of liberal John Harwood telling barking moonbats the Left Internet Fringe to get dressed and realize governing is hard.

It's almost too much to take.  When the most progressive White House ever is taking potshots at you, where do you have left to go?  The media ignores you.  The Democrats ignore you.  And now the President ignores you.

Here's an idea.  Join a Tea Party.  They may still slander us, but at least we get their respect.  Remember when that healthcare bill was going to be passed in July? 

Remembering What Columbus Day Is All About

We get taught at an early age that great men do great things, and far too often we assume their struggles were against nature, instead of themselves.  Doubt and fear has always been our two greatest obstacles, and when you look to make something of yourself, to reach past yourself, you find that you are no different than Christopher Columbus.  Here's a verse of the Columbus Day song taught to me by my friend, Leo, 15 years ago.

While up in the crow's nest, you heard Luigi say....

Hey Mr. Columbo, turna de ship around,

I want to feel my feet back down on solid ground!

Why'd you tell Isabella, datta de world was round,

I want to go back to Italy where paisans are all around.

You can listen to the naysayers, or you can listen to your heart. Each year, I sing that part of the verse to myself and chuckle.  Good old Luigi - always looking for comfort.  Nothing wrong with it, but you don't listen to that guy if you're going places. 

ShowMeProgress Video From Their Yearly Retreat

Imma let you finish, but this video is the best of the year.  BEST OF ALL TIME!

 

This video is the single best reason why leftists can never really control a society.  And I know it says Earth First, and not ShowMeProgress, but haven't we learned that they are all the same, simply slipping on new costumes and taking new names?

  

An Open Letter To Missouri Senators And Congressman On Healthcare

Doug Edelman sends in this well-written letter on the healthcare bill.  It was addressed to each of his representatives and Senators.

We are watching carefully how you vote on the upcoming health care series of votes … we have educated ourselves and know what “cloture” means and that a yes vote means you are promoting government run health care, no matter what the semantics or sidesteps.  We know how to access the Congressional records and have the ability to publish all voting records.
We also have informed ourselves on what a vapor bill is and we are disgusted that this is even being considered as a method to pass this devastating bill that will crush our economy.
We have researched the impact of the CBO statements and understand the difference between the scoring on a conceptual bill and the scoring on legislative language. Wait for the legislative language score, insist on it, then compare it carefully to the historical estimations of previous government run programs and the difference between the estimate and the reality. 
 
We also know that the CBO considers medical malpractice/tort reform an area that would save over $54 billion during the same time frame.  They also state that the cost will spiral to $1.5 trillion by the year 2020, not the $829 billion reported and the estimated $81 billion that may be saved won't reduce the budget but must go to the Social Security trust fund.  Therefore, the numbers lie.
 
It is important to note what you have left out, through oversight or with intent, but we have noticed.  You say 12 to 15 million illegals will NOT be covered, then why isn't it stated specifically.  Therefore, the bill lies by omission.
Social Security is broke.  Medicare is broke.  The United States Post Office is broke.  The Veterans Administration benefits are depleted (and is a disgrace to our heroes).
You know the American people have cried out against this health care debacle. We don’t want more bureaucracy, we fear the higher taxes, we want to decide for ourselves what options for health care fit our families, we do not want the threat of fines or jail time if we do not buy in to a government run option.  Do you wonder why the tax-paying citizen, for whom you work, no longer trusts your judgment?

Please consider the long term implications on us, our future, our children, our economy, our freedom and put this bill to death.
 
Then come back with tort reform, cross-state competition, lifting of state mandates. We will support your efforts for that reform.
Remember that any promise made to you by party leadership in exchange for casting a "yes" vote, or any penalty threatened to prevent your casting a "no" vote, will be meaningless to you in the long run, if you no longer hold office come the next available voting opportunity.  You WILL NOT be re-elected if you support any variety of Government takeover of healthcare!

Personally, I'm looking forward to a takeover of the House by Republicans in 2010.  Perhaps the first order of business will be House Republicans going to Obama and the new Senate Majority Leader (maybe it will be Claire), and sitting down to pass a real bipartisan plan - one that gets 20 Republican Senate Votes and actually makes a difference in premiums, regulation, and the ability of Medicare and Medicaid to last long enough for me to get them.

Okay, that's a joke, but I hope it helps my parents - they've been paying for 35 years, and should get something.

K & N Protestors Hold Another Successful Event

Bob McCarty has a video up of yet another K&N protest - this time with a few dozen counter-protestors waving paid for signs.  The K&N protest is amazing, seeing as it was started by one woman, and has now grown to over 200 people each Saturday, with one event bringing 400 people.

Join if you are out there, and consider your own 99 corners protest if you live in a different part of the city. This isn't about press attention - it's about meeting people with like minds.  It also shows an important aspect of the Tea Party movement - it's not set up by Bill or Dana, but rather a 67 year old woman who wants to do her own thing.

We surround them.

Keep it up, K&N!

We Are Americans. It Is Enough.

A comment over at Redstate from Reality Unwound  is strong enough to stand alone.  I  post it in full here.

I’m like a lot of people who comment here in that I regularly vacillate between smiling at the historical writing on the wall (Democratic overreaching guarantees the swift ebb of their power) and knee-buckling fear of the irreversible (you can’t undo entitlements).

Beneath all of that, life has convinced me that fear and panic are weak and fleeting emotions in the face of things that will remain. There are definitely forces greater than any current political reality and its attendant implications. When Faith, Hope, and Love remain, even if everything else in a man is defeated, his condition can be bettered.

My faith is not in our legislators, my FAITH is in Americans. Our collective reaction to George W. Bush led us to take a flyer in November. We gambled on the rhetoric of hope and change. It was a flyer, it was NOT a declaration of permanent political intent. Painless as it is, It was my generations (30 somethings) chance to learn as my parents learned from Jimmy Carter. But we will learn and move forward. I take great comfort that President Obama is as different from Candidate Obama as North is from South. Faith assures me that regardless of the legislative freak show he foists on the people, nothing is irreversible in America. I don’t believe Americans will accept that we can’t do whatever the hell we want. After all, we were created free!!

I also cling to the deeply embedded hope that things aren’t what they seem.. At the San Antonio Tea party, with 16,000 of my closest friends I found that hope does not disappoint. My former life as a hippie, on-the-road following a band with the beautiful people qualifies me to say that the Glen-Beck-loving, Ted-Nugent-cheering throng in San Antonio was more satisfying and real than any show I went to… better smelling too! I don’t believe even Fox news (much less those others) can adequately capture or convey the steady quiet beat of the American heart for freedom. The shrill voices in our media culture inevitably drowns out the steady persistent whisper of freedom loving Americans.

My hope is rooted in the fact that those who set the philosophical cornerstone of national in our founding documents handed down more than quill parchment… they handed us a deeply seated national legacy of freedom. Because I hope, I am prepared to wait for that legacy to ooze out of if we nuzzle too closely with freedom -pinching ideas that seem to be all the vogue in D.C. Philosophy fills the academy, and is paid little attention by those committed to the business of living free (that’s part of the problem with liberalism, it is content with empty philosophical constructs and rarely accounts for the influence of human nature). No matter how badly Obama and friends wish it: we are not Europeans, and as a national demographic (I love what I’m about to write) we’re closer to George W. Bush than to Barack H. Obama.

Finally, I love this country, and I am not alone. Much of the world (incidentally, a MUCH smaller percent than we are led to believe) “dislikes” us and is offended by us because they envy and revile what they don’t understand. They don’t understand a ready willingness to fight and die for principles like freedom around the world, even at the expense of our sons and daughters. They derisively mock us as imperialists cowboys, as they aggressively import our culture every day. I honestly mean no disrespect to global friends and neighbors, I willingly accept being disrespected and reviled as the price of global leadership. To whom much is given, much is required.

You and I weren’t surprised to see the start of a backlash about Obama’s policies from the wealthy intelligentsia when it dawned on them that their paper ideas had come to life, jumped off the page, and began to deal the fierce consequences that were only imagined before… it was as if they forgot that the wealth to be redistributed was THEIR wealth. The ruling left knows this, but they don’t understand it. They just feel in their gut the increasing urgency that rises up when battling on the wrong side against the tide of history and a finely tuned national heritage accustomed to freedom.

Historically, If anything were permanent, eternal, and timeless, it should have been colonial Britain at the twilight of the 18th century. Yet, the greatest imperialist force since Alexander the Great was tossed aside by a poorly assembled and expertly led group of committed idealists. Those patriots bent the curve of history toward freedom, and they stand today as a faithful cloud of witnesses, urging us on, encouraging us to embrace the idea that only one thing is Eternal: the Creator who endows us daily with the unalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Legislation can be overturned… maybe not easily, but it can be done.

I love that Glen Beck used “Common Sense” as the title for his latest treatise. Thomas Paine inspired patriotism calls us forward to take hold of our inheritance in, “The Crisis.” Paine challenged weary revolutionaries and calls to us today when he says, “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country… Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value.”

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of happiness will never pass from the American consciousness. Even if it seems they have been attacked into dormancy like a rolly-poley protectively curled, and even if this current administration were to become a force of tyrannical oppression, Faith, Hope, and Love will remain and have their way.

We are Americans. That is enough.

More of the man who wrote this can be found at Reality Unwound.

Nancy Pelosi Believes House Healthcare Bill Is Perfect Plan

Nancy Pelosi was in town last week, giving a little off the cuff speech for our very own "RubberStamp" Russ at the Chase Park Plaza.  The video I aired on Monday has the remarkable admittance by Pelosi that Carnahan is "not high maintenance...and doesn't have 50 questions on why a bill will or won't work."  In addition to calling Carnahan a lapdog, there is another juicy story coming out of that night.  It's Pelosi in her own words.

Normally you'd expect fundraisers to be kind boring.  They are full of politicians who live in fear of saying the wrong thing, and they're speaking to a room full of believers, so it's usually just a little rah, rah, sis-boom bah cheerleading to a half-drunk crowd.  Luckily for us, Nancy was feeling woozy from the high altitude (hanging up on the roof for the $2400 private reception), and let her real feelings on healthcare be known.

First watch this video carefully and listen to the Speaker of the House demonstrate second grade understanding of politics and legislation.  If she weren't third in the line for the presidency and one of the most powerful women in the world, it would be funny. Instead, it's terrifying.

Did You Catch All That? 

1) The legislation she is touting is as close to perfect as legislation can get.  Think about that for a second. "Perfect legislation?" What kind of mind does it take to look at a bill taking over 1/6th of the US economy and conclude that it's perfect.  The legislation has to go through the Senate reconciliation, and then get implemented, without any hiccups, which in the history of this country has never happened.

What would lead her to say it's perfect?

2) It lowers costs, higher quality, broadens the reach of the healthcare system to the uninsured, and allows you to keep what you have.

Gee that sounds nice, but you can tell from the tone of her voice that something is off.  It took a while to figure out, and then it hit me.  She's using her grandmother voice. She's addressing the crowd like they are children.  She's not talking about the legislation - she's reading off the feel-good points that Democrats always try to use to stifle debate.  She lists those four conditions, but how exactly do you insure it will happen?  You don't worry about such things.

3) She brags about ending discrimination against pre-existing conditions, but that's not something that is opposed by Republicans or wavering Democrats.  She cherry picks pieces of the legislation that both sides agree on, and pretends that those who oppose her grab at power are somehow against lowering costs, and improving quality. 

4) The best part is her statement that premiums will be capped, but benefits will be unlimited.  Somehow she thinks that you can cap payments and never cap benefits.  Who pays for those?  Not her problem!  This is really the most insulting part. It's the idea that government should buy voters off with their own money.  If the Democrats had stepped forward and said, "This is going to cost money, but it's important," you could at least respect them.  But you can't do that, because they claim that the country's healthcare problems can be solved with no pain in the wallet. 

In shorter terms - they're lying to you and count on those lies to get legislation enacted before people wake up.  They don't need to read or even write the bills because all that matters is they pass something that sounds good. 

5) Broadened Coverage as a Right and Not A Privilege.

Pelosi here shows she neither understands the Constitution nor cares to.  Those who suggest healthcare is a "Right" don't understand "rights."  It's a benefit to being born in a wealthy society, but to suggest that every illness in the world - every disease, both natural and caused by poor choices, and every sniffle, broken arm, and violent wound from Chicago youths can be elevated to the status of a right is not only dangerous, but foolish.

Rights are absolute.  If healthcare is a right, then denying someone healthcare is violating that right.  Failing to give someone a MRI is not the same as the government locking a man up for speaking out against a law.  There is no comparison between the two, but if Pelosi can make you think there is, then only truly vile people would oppose her.

This is what she is trying to say.  Her ways are perfect, and only those with cruel intentions dare oppose her.  There is no room for honest disagreement.  Only Pelosi gets to determine who is good and who is bad.  Good means following her wishes.  Bad means opposing her.  That's what that language means, even when it's delivered in a happy singsong voice.

ACORN Cut Off By OMB, Durbin, and LA

Despite the best efforts by local organizer Glenn Burleigh to put a brave face on the panicked retreat of Democrats from anything to do with ACORN, the bad news keeps piling up.

1) The OMB has issued an order to cut all ties with ACORN and its progeny.

None of the funds made available by this joint resolution or any prior Act may be provided to the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, or allied organizations.

That includes two major branches of SEIU, who in turn are also funded by other SEIU chapters.  As has been noted by others, the OMB is a temporary order for this year and can be changed next year - but it's still a sign that the Obama administration considers ACORN tainted goods.

2) Dick Durbin files an amendment calling for an audit of ACORN and its affiliates.

Normally we'd laugh at the Illinois Senator pretending to be on the side of good government, but this amendment gives cover to everyone who supports ACORN.  Durbin is pro-ACORN, but any audit, no matter who runs it, is going to find massive discrepancies between money funneled into the organization and money funneled out of the organization. They're terrible at keeping books, and most important, as Burleigh himself admits, they mix political and community work in the same people and paycheck.  Even an audit by ACORN's biggest backers is going to raise more uncomfortable questions.

3) Take for example ACORN Housing in Louisiana, which took in hundreds of thousands of dollars, and yet seems to be having a problem explaining where it all went.

More than two years before an ersatz pimp and prostitute raised troubling questions about Acorn Housing Corp.’s financial advice, Louisiana officials criticized the organization’s bookkeeping as it denied the group tens of thousands of dollars from a potential $1.5 million state contract.

The office overseeing the contract recommended against rehiring Acorn Housing in part because it couldn’t document its work.  The contract was designed to inform low-income residents about the Road Home program and help them apply for post-hurricane benefits.

4) Louisiana isn't the only place with a problem.  ACORN HOUSING IN MISSOURI got $100,000 from Mayor Slay, then up and disappeared with nothing to show for it.  In their wake, they left dozens of badly filed foreclosure papers, no documentation of how they spent that grant, and have been accused of using the money to fund political operations in federal court.

Where did the money for St Louis go to?  Oh, we're going to find out.