Carolina Politics Online

Mark Sanford

Want to be Jackass of the Year for 2010? It’s easy! All you have to do is be a lying hypocritical bastard who betrays his core supporters and cheats on his wife and family. That seems to be the best way to earn the wrath of CPO’s readers, who twice in two years have chosen just such a loser as their top jackass. Last year, John Edwards took home the prize. This year, it’s Mark Sanford. Hell hath no fury like a CPO reader scorned, I suppose.

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. Sanford tops this list because of the shitty way he treated his more-than-patient wife, the disgusting disregard he showed his children, and the mockery and disrepute he brought to the governor’s office. Then by not doing the decent thing (resigning and going the hell away), he’s subjected South Carolina to such an ongoing circus that there’s a trapeze set and a dancing bear outside the state capitol.

So for all that, Mark Sanfraud is a supreme and total jackass.

But Sanford is not only a jackass for what he did; he’s a jackass because now he can’t do what he could have done. If I may plagiarize Classic Hollywood for a moment: Mark Sanford coulda been somebody. He coulda been a contender… instead of a bum. And not just a contender for president in 2012; that’s just a job. Sanford could have been the voice of an entire political movement that is desperately needed in America. Since 1994, he had been been regarded as a continually ascending star on the right and as an articulate and passionate spokesman for libertarian conservatism. In much the way that Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan re-defined the Republican Party,  Sanford too could have led a generational and ideological shift that could have forever changed this county.  Instead, he threw it all away for a booty call.

When I spoke about Kay Hagan and Bev Perdue, I noted that they were both fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time. Sanford too had that opportunity rolled out to him on a silver platter. America faces more internal danger today than it’s faced at any time since the Civil War. It is indebting itself at a suicidal pace and taxing itself out of prosperity. The treasury prints money like toilet paper. It clings to entitlement programs it simply cannot afford. It faces an older generation that continuously asks what more the government can do for them, and a younger generation that clamors for their own goodie train to start chugging up the tracks.

Into all this could have strode a voice of reason and fiscal sanity. A leader who didn’t just talk about making government smaller, but actually took steps to do it. Somebody who wouldn’t be afraid to tell the teet-suckers and the governments hacks to shove off. Someone around whom like-minded conservatives and libertarians could rally. Mark Sanford was going to be that man. It was going to be his time. And when his country needed him to step up and lead… he stepped out to cavort on the Appalachian Trail in Argentina with his soulmate on the taxpayer’s dime.

He leaves behind him only the shadow of what could have been. Not just for him, but for the country. Maybe another, better man or woman will step up and be the leader America needs.

Or maybe not.

Mark Sanford is a dule-threat jackass. In one selfish, mindless, conceited act of stupidity, he betrayed the people who loved him the most- his family. In that same act, he also let down the people who could have needed him the most- his fellow countrymen. Mark Sanford could have been somebody… he could been a contender, a president, an ideological lodestar for an American revitalization…

Or he could have simply been a good husband and father.

Instead, he’s a jackass. The biggest one of 2009.

I received this in an email from one of our readers who sent this letter to the editor to several of the local newspapers.  I told him I would post it here since I wrote about a similar incident that I disapproved of involving the City of Charlotte city manager about a month ago.

With reference to The Herald’s Dec 15 article “Rock Hill City Manager gets new agreement” as the city deals with a tight budget in a down economy, the city manager with a $171,683 annual salary, the highest paid public County official, get’s a $4,200 bonus. In 2002 the starting salary was $128,000.

Now the concern with reference to the Herald’s Dec 27 article “Probing the causes of Rock Hill’s job crisis” of 23.3% unemployment, basically one in four are out in the unemployment line.

When everyone else has been forced to hunker down, lay off or get laid off, cutback, or go out of business, where does this money come from to give public officials these kinds of raises and perks?

PLEASE HELP ME UNDERSTAND!

Jim Harper
Fort Mill,SC

James Carville once described Pennsylvania as being Pittsburgh and Philadelphia with Alabama in the middle.  While I spent many years in Pittsburgh and consider that my “home” I was originally born in the Alabama part of the state and still have one sister and many extended family members there.  Even up there in the redneck mountains of Williamsport the extent of expressing our new year cheer when I was a kid was banging pots and pans outside at my grandmother’s house and pissing off some of the neighbors.  I never even thought about emptying my revolver into the air, but I guess the hillbillies in Williamsport, PA had nothing on Concord, NC.

The Concord Police Department wants to remind residents that firing a gun into the air is not the way to ring in the New Year.

The definition of celebratory gunfire is the shooting of a firearm into the air in celebration.

Law prohibits discharging a firearm into the air, and if caught, violators will be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, according to a statement from the Concord Police Department.

“It’s been a tradition for as long as I can remember,” Concord Police Department spokeswoman Capt. Betty Crump said. ” It’s important that everyone is aware of the potential dangers.”

The Independent Tribune

North Carolina will be 37,000 to 75,000 people short of gaining a 14th seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, according to experts tracking U.S. Census Bureau estimates of state population.

The state’s rate of growth dropped significantly in 2009, according to Census Bureau estimates released Wednesday. Although North Carolina added the third-highest number of people among the 50 states in 2009, the state’s rate of growth fell to ninth place, down from fourth in 2008.

Other states solidly on track to gain one seats are Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina and Washington, with Texas gaining three or four seats, depending on the projection used.

States set to lose seats according to the projections are Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania (one each) and Ohio (losing two)

The W-S Journal

Bev Perdue

Bev Perdue: Mini-Mike

“I don’t believe you can raise taxes in an economy with folks struggling the way they are.”
-Candidate Bev Perdue, Oct. 2008

Sept. 1, 2009: A 14% sales tax increase, signed by Gov. Perdue, goes into effect.

One of the all-time dumbest things I’ve ever seen was witnessed on Election Day, 2008. Outside many polling locations in Wake County were signs, erected by the NC Democrat Party, with the message: “Vote for Change- Vote Democrat”. Instructions for straight ticket voting followed.

Now, if we’re talking about change exclusively on a Presidential level, those signs would be appropriate. I think we can all agree that it was inappropriate to apply that logic to U.S. House and Senate campaigns, as Democrats controlled both those chambers.

The reason those signs entered the threshold of the idiotic, however, was that anyone with even a cursory knowledge of N.C. politics knows that here, “change” means voting for Republicans. Democrats have held the governor’s mansion since 1992. Since 1900, they’ve held the state house for all but a few years. They’ve held the state senate since Reconstruction. Reconstruction! That’s like McDonald’s having a sign saying, “Eat Healthy- Scarf down a Big Mac!”

I was reminded of those signs as I sat thinking of what to write about your choice for the penultimate jackass of 2009- N.C. Governor Beverly Perdue. For all the talk of “change”, both nationally and statewide, all I’ve seen in the past year is the same old incompetence on a more cataclysmic scale.

“Change” would have meant a governor taking a tougher stand against the knee-high crap-pool of corruption in this state. Instead, she appointed Tony Rand, who is corruption personified, as head of the parole board. What, Bev? Couldn’t wait for Jim Black to get out of prison? At least he’d be more qualified.

“Change” would have meant avoiding absurdist dick-measuring contests like the tax-wasting fiasco between her and June Atkinson. It took several months and a court decision for Bev to finally figure out what was clear to anyone who could read- that Atkinson’s office and authority are clearly defined in the state constitution.

“Change” would have meant cutting spending to avoid budget deficits. Oh, some spending was cut- teachers got the shaft, which was ironic considering that Perdue was a teacher and that they are her core constituency. Nice move Bev. I hope you told them it was for a good cause, because while you hung them out to dry, you refused to cut a $25 million pier, $123 million for the Wildlife Resources Commission, $55 million for low income energy assistance, $277 million in “free” child care, which isn’t so free if you pay taxes to support it, a “cultural tour” to China, and more pork spending projects than I care to review here.

And “change” would have meant doing something about North Carolina being the highest taxed state in the southeast. When you and I have income troubles, we cut spending. When the N.C. state government has income troubles… they just get more income by raising taxes. Perdue, who pledged not to sign a tax increase on “working families”, signed a 14% sales tax increase and an income tax surcharge. Well… at least we can say that our tax rate changed.

Yesterday I said that Kay Hagan was one of those accidents of history who happened to be at the right place at the right time- in this case, a Democrat in 2008. Ditto for Purdue. Now a woman who has no business running more than a Qwik-E-Mart is doing her damnedest to ruin the state’s economy for a generation. Not even her pal Mike Easley did that, and that’s why Bev Perdue is the 2nd Biggest Jackass of 2009. Not bad for your first year in office Bev. Now let’s see how low you can crater your approval ratings in 2010.

Tomorrow- Your choice the Biggest Jackass of 2009!

An attempt to blow up a trans-Atlantic flight from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day would be all-consuming for the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration — if there were one.

The post remains vacant because Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., has held up President Barack Obama’s nominee in opposition to the prospect of TSA workers joining a labor union.

As al Qaida claimed responsibility Monday for the thwarted attack and President Barack Obama made a public statement about it, Democrats urged DeMint to drop his objection and allow quick confirmation of nominee Erroll Southers, a counterterrorism expert, when the Senate reconvenes in three weeks.

McClatchy

If you read through the whole article you’ll see that the primary reason Senator DeMint has been holding up this appointment is over fears of the TSA unionizing.  I lean in that same direction that I don’t feel the TSA need to be unionized, but I’m not dead set against it.  I don’t feel they do a job that needs union representation for one, but furthermore, whether or not I would be fully opposed to the idea is how it would effect air transportation.  Anyone old enough can remember when the air traffic controllers went on strike in 1981.  Fortunately, then President Reagan was ready for it and was able to mitigate the damage ahead of time that would have been much worse to the nation had he not been prepared.  Even then, it still effected about 50% of flights nationwide.  If TSA were able to strike and did it would wreak havoc on the entire country.  All air traffic would have to stop and that would give the TSA far too much leverage.  Even if they have a no strike clause in their contract, the transit workers in New York City showed us back in 2005 that it doesn’t really mean anything.

Having said that, I don’t see how a Presidential appointment of the individual to head the TSA really makes it more or less likely that they would unionize.  It would appear to me that person would not have the power to make that determination and so I can’t see much reason for DeMint holding up the appointment, particularly now in the wake of what happened in Detroit over the weekend.  I realize DeMint is a principled individual and is not afraid to stand up for what he believes which is one of the qualities I admire about him, but I think in this particular instance he needs to concede for the sake of national security.

State Rep. Hugh Holliman, a Democrat from Lexington, is one of the most powerful members of the General Assembly — but in the conservative-leaning district he represents, that can be both a blessing and a curse.

As the N.C. House majority leader, Holliman has his fingerprints on every major piece of legislation passed by the Democratic-controlled General Assembly. This year, in addition to helping write a state budget amid a massive shortfall, Holliman championed a statewide smoking ban at businesses. It will take effect on Jan. 2.

But Holliman may face his toughest test at home in the 81st House District, where Republicans and interest groups are already gearing up efforts to unseat him next year. His re-election fight in 2010 is likely to be one of the most hard-fought and closely watched legislative races in the state.

The W-S Journal

Holliman, one of our dis-honorable mentions in the Jackass of the Year contest, will hopefully learn that there are consequences to treating your constituents like 3-year olds who can’t make their own decisions. Anyone who wants to retire that conceited arrogant fascist has as much support as I can give him.

Two Republicans have already declared that they will run for Holliman’s seat. They are Rayne Brown, a social worker who ran against Holliman in 2008, and Fred McClure, a Davidson County commissioner.

Holliman beat Brown in the last election with 53 percent of the votes to Brown’s 47 percent. That was during a tide of Democratic victories up and down the ballot. Next year will likely be a much tougher environment for Democrats, and the 81st House District is one of the few true swing districts in the legislature.

Where Hugh Holliman Lives

In the past year, more than 500 illegal immigrants have been deported as a result of a fingerprint system at the Wake County Sheriff’s Office that automatically tells federal immigration agents they are there, according to Department of Homeland Security records.

Wake County joined the federal Secure Communities program about a year ago, along with Durham, Orange and seven other counties across the state. Since then, Wake has put nearly 700 aliens into federal custody – about three out of every five turned over through the program across the state.

About 50 of those had committed major drug offenses or violent crimes such as murder or robbery. Most had committed property crimes or misdemeanors.

The N&O

Kay Hagan

Kay Hagan, like a lot of politicians, seems destined to go down as one of those accidents of history. She shows no great intelligence or political skill. There is no over-riding theme or rationale to her time in office. She has very few accomplishments to her name. And yet, through luck or destiny, she and many others like her somehow find themselves at the right place at the right time.

Pity the rest of us.

Because when Kay Hagan took her oath, North Carolina didn’t get a senator; Harry Reid got a marionette. Hagan campaigned as a moderate, but after a year in office it’s obvious that she isn’t. Conservatives accuse her of being a liberal, but I don’t think that’s accurate either. No, Hagan is really more of a political jello mold: she has no spine. She has no brain. Shake her with a hard question and watch her wiggle and jiggle around like an overweight hula dancer. Sure, she stays in roughly the same shape throughout, but it’s the shape her Democrat enablers made for her. I’d be very surprised if in the past year this woman has come up with a single original thought.

Hagan showed off her “moderate” credentials by criticizing a budget with an almost $2 trillion hole in it…  right before she joined the rest of her party and voted for it. Spineless.

Then she said the budget reins in fiscal irresponsibility. Brainless.

She feigned uncertainty about how she’d vote on the “We’ll Throw You in Jail if you Don’t Buy Health Insurance” Bill. Then joined every other Democrat in voting to bill your family $40,000. Spineless.

But when asked if it was unconstitutional, she wouldn’t give an answer. When asked if she would vote for the health care bill even if the majority of North Carolinians opposed it, she wouldn’t give an answer. When asked if she’d vote to raise income taxes or tax people’s health care plans in order to fund a public plan, she wouldn’t give an answer. I don’t think she can. I don’t think she’s capable of the thought processes that would go into answering those questions. Brainless.

Oh, to be fair, she was the only Democrat to vote against placing tobacco under the scrutiny of the Food & Drug Administration, marking the first time in perhaps her entire political career that she’s proven herself capable of independent thought. Somehow, I don’t foresee this becoming a trend.

And so for voting for several bills that not only harm her constituents, but her entire country; for being an empty shell with no clear convictions; and for being utterly incapable of independent or even rational thought, Kay Hagan (D-Harry Reid) is the 3rd Biggest Jackass of 2009. 

Tomorrow, the 2nd Bigggest Jackass of 2009.

For the past three years the Citizens for Responsible Ethics in Washington have released their list of the ten biggest political ethics scandals of the year.  We’ve had more than our share of notoriety this year here in South Carolina and this is yet another list that we couldn’t escape.  Yes, you’ve probably guessed it.  Mark Sanford has made CREW’s list of top ten ethics scandals of the year.  That infamous hike to Argentina along the Appalachian Trail ranked up there with Congressman Charlie Rangel’s (D-NY) tax cheating and Senator John Ensign’s (R-NV) blackmailed extra-marital affair.

The aught decade of the 21st century showed a man with a promising political future and hopes of change and reform for our state fall from grace virtually overnight.  Sanford managed to get some of the things done he wanted, but most of his ambitious agenda fell along the way side.  Unfortunately for him, his legacy will be that of a marriage and an Argentine “soul mate.”

Perhaps the teens will show better promise.

Mike Easley

Mike Easley

I could make this incredibly easy and just recycle Easley’s Jackass entry from last year. You see, Former Gov. Clownass now has the distinction of being the only person to make the Jackass list both in 2008 and 2009- both times coming in at #4. That right there is more than he ever accomplished in eight unfortunate years as governor of N.C.

Last year’s entry did have one line of note that I’d like to bring up again. I mentioned that only the timely intervention of Rod Blagojevich saved Easley from the distinction of being the nation’s worst governor. Well, Mike must have taken that to heart, because in the year since, his antics have officially surpassed Blago’s and earned him the distinction of the nation’s worst recent ex-governor! Congratulations, Mike!

I find it fascinating that for eight years, a lot of people thought that Easley was nothing more than a do-nothing slug; sort of a political version of Punxsutawney Phil. Phil comes out once a year to check his shadow, and Mike comes out once a year to see which way the wind is blowing before he signs a few bills. But it appears as if we underestimated Mike. His public veneer of a detached, lazy, incompetent idiot effectively covered what lay within- an active, devious, incompetent idiot. In retrospect, it seems like hardly a day went by that Easley wasn’t breaking some sort of law. No wonder he was too busy to attend to his day job!

And it though it only took eight years and dogged reporting from the Carolina Journal (piggybacked by the N&O after Easley left office) for the powers that be to finally notice that Easley was breaking more laws than he signed, it finally appears as if he’s going to pay for his public corruption: unreported campaign flights, a cushy do-nothing job for his wife, unlawful bundling of campaign funds, sweetheart land deals, and more. All this while N.C. had the highest taxes in the southeast, a decaying economy, crumbling roads, an incompetent parole system, and other troubles that are coming to light daily.

So for all this, Mike Easley (aka. Gov. Clownass) is named the 4th Biggest Jackass of 2009. And here’s hoping that in 2010, we’ll be able to retire this picture:

and replace it with this one:

Tomorrow, your choice for the 3rd Biggest Jackass of 2009.

John Spratt

John Spratt has represented South Carolina in the U.S. House for close to 30 years. That is, if you equate the word “represent” with the act of ass-raping, as Rep. Spratt apparently does.

If you’re like Bane Windlow and myself however, and do not equate those two things, then Rep. Spratt hasn’t “represented” his sore-bottomed constituents in many, many years.

Oh, he certainly claims too. Gets paid big bucks for it and has a sweet pension too. But I’d be hard-pressed to find too many of his constituents in northern S.C. who share his passion for taxes, government expansion, and massive spending increases.

Let’s cover the big ones first. Supported the stimulus? Check. Supported the government takeover of health care? Check. Loyal Lap Dog to Queen Nancy of Cooko Land? Chu-eck! Yes, his legislative record is certainly jackasstic, but it’s the sheer contempt in which this man must hold his constituents that really earned him a spot on this list.

While unemployment surpasses 20% in some parts of his district, Spratt voted to give more of our tax dollars to Wall St. in a “bailout”. Spratt supported Cap & Trade (or as I call it- “Crap & Tax”), a disastrous piece of legislation that could end up being the largest total tax increase in American history. Crap & Tax would almost exclusively increase taxes on the poor and middle class. Some “representative”.

Spratt voted to keep the “Death Tax” (a tax on inheritance), but sat on the budget committee that wrote a monstrosity of a budget with a $2 trillion hole that our grandchildren will someday have to pay off. So according to Spratt, his constituents should be taxed if they pass their savings or heirlooms on to their children, but it’s perfectly OK for him and his pals to pass their debt to the next generation. With interest.

And what a debt it will be. Spratt and his handler Queen Nancy recently voted to raise the debt ceiling, so now we can pass on even more zeros to our progeny. I wish I could raise my debt ceiling when I wanted to spend more. It must be good to be John Spratt. Not so good, though, to be his constituents.

For voting against the interests of his constituents (and the whole damn country) for close to 30 years, including votes for Crap & Tax, the Stimulus, a government takeover of Health Care, and a myriad more abominations, John Spratt has richly earned the title of the 5th Biggest Jackass of 2009. And may he be sent on an extended vacation in 2010.

Tomorrow- the 4th Biggest Jackass of 2009

2009 has been a tough year for a lot of us. Having jackasses in powerful and influential places didn’t make things easier, did it? But here is your revenge; your chance to tell those jackasses that they’re… well, jackasses. That they aren’t as awesome as they seem to think they are. That the world would be a lot better and brighter if they just went the hell away.

After gathering your nominations, I asked you to vote for who you considered to be the biggest jackasses of 2009. And boy, did you ever. I’ve collected your emails and your comments, counted the votes, and am pleased to give you the results. It was real tense towards the end, with a surprisingly close vote between #1 and #2.  There’s also a holdover from last year’s Jackass contest. Unlike last year, when the top 5 jackasses were from N.C., this year we have a good mix between the two states. And of  course, jackassery knows no party- there is a good mix of Democrat and Republican.

As always, thanks for voting. Have a great 2010 and keep watching out for those jackasses trying to make your new year miserable. 2010 Jackass nominations are just 11 months away!

Today: Your Jackass also-rans. In no particular order, the jackasses who didn’t make the top 5, but who can rightly claim the mantle of “jackass”:

-”Gosh” (aka: “Giggles”) and other Trolls
-Hugh Holliman
-Tony Rand
-The Wake County Schools Status Quo Crowd
-Cal Cunningham
-Lindsey Graham

Tomorrow: Your choice for the 5th Biggest Jackass of 2009.

VOTING EXTENDED THROUGH CHRISTMAS!

I’ve sorted through your comments and your emails and now I’m pleased to present your nominees. I’m changing the rules a bit from last year, so as you look over this fine list of the best the Carolinas has to offer, keep this in mind:

-You may now vote for THREE people. THREE. Why? Because the outpouring of nominations for one particular jackass was so overwhelming, if I limited y’all to just one vote, he’d end up with about 95% and I wouldn’t be able to rank jackasses #2-5.  So vote for THREE people as your top jackasses.

-Vote by responding to this post or by emailing me at press7forceltic@carolinapoliticsonline.com.

-Voting ends on Christmas Day, and we’ll start counting down the Top 5 Jackassess on Christmas Day.

The nominees are…

Mark Sanford- Now the odds on favorite to take home the gold. Last year’s winner, John Edwards, was also a philandering scumbag.

Tony Rand- N.C.’s ethically challenged out-going Senate Majority Leader.

John Spratt- Bane Windlow’s favorite congressman.

Hugh Holliman- the smartest man in the word. This N.C. House member was the driving force behind the liberty-killing smoking ban. Hugh is smarter than you are, so just shut up and do what he says, OK?

“Gosh” (aka. “Giggles”) and other Trolls- We know you’re brain-dead losers. Why must you remind us of it? Every day?

Kay Hagan- N.C.’s  freshman U.S. Senator voted for the porkulus bill that will indebt the grandkids you don’t even have yet.

Richard Burr- N.C.’s other U.S. Senator didn’t indebt your grandkids, but he’s not exactly the best steward of your tax dollars either. He’s a very weak incumbent up for re-election next year.

Lindsay Graham- Who needs Democrats when you’ve got Lindsay Graham-nesty?

McClatchy News- The Raleigh N&O and the Charlotte Observer. Once again showing us how to lose customers and not influence people.

Bev Perdue- N.C.s first-year governor has one of the lowest approval ratings in the country. But she’s still better than…

Mike Easley- Ex-Gov. Clownass is making more news out of office than he did while in it. Multiple state and federal investigations will do that.

Cal Cunningham- Will he be, as one of our commenters says, another John Edwards? Well, Edwards was Jackass of the Year, so Cal’s off to a good start.

UNC Head Basketball Coach Roy Williams- Because I think Logic Connection went to Dook or something.

and finally…

The Wake County School Status Quo Coalition- I received  a lot of individual nominations for people who all have two things in common: wanting to preserve a failed and harmful school system and showing us the definition of “sore loser” after getting their asses kicked last election. So I compiled them into this one big pile. Teacher’s Union? Clay Aiken? The Rev. Racist Piece-of-Shit (aka. William Barber)? All here. Oh yeah… and this lady and all her supporters. Watch this video and tell me that anyone who wanted her on the school board isn’t some sort of jackass.

Even a broken clock gets it right twice a day.  President Obama has made a superb choice in his nomination of Charlotte prosecutor Anne Tompkins (D).  Tompkins has a long record of being tough on crime, something you don’t see from a lot of prosecutors and district attorneys whether in Mecklenburg County or throughout the state of North Carolina.

Tompkins’ credentials are impeccable, having worked as part of the tribunal in Baghdad that prosecuted Saddam Hussein and successfully winning a death sentence for serial killer Henry Louis Wallace.  Ironically, Tompkins worked under the weak and incompetent Mecklenburg DA Peter Gilchrist and appears to be the night to his day, which gives her an A+ in my book.

Hopefully, she will continue the same judicial philosophy in her capacity as U.S. Attorney for the western North Carolina.

The U.S. Senate voted to increase the public national debt to $12.4 trillion in dead of night last night.  They have to do these things under the cover of dark and close to the holidays when most folks won’t be paying attention.  In an almost party line vote it passed 60-39.  Senator Kay Hagan (D) in North Carolina was the lone Senator of the four in our two states to support this debt increase, now amounting to $40,000 for every man, woman, and child in our nation.

In a nutshell, yeah.  That’s a damn good description.  Not only are Americans going to be paying higher insurance premiums once this bill goes into effect, but we will also be footing the bill for Medicaid in Louisiana, Nebraska, and Vermont, a deal made by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) in order to secure the necessary votes for passage.  In the private sector this would be considered bribery, yet in the Federal government it’s considered “compromise.”

A Republican senator who has opposed President Barack Obama’s health overhaul effort said Tuesday that the deals Democratic leaders have cut to round up the votes they need to push the measure through the Senate have been “sleazy.”

Speaking Tuesday on NBC’s “Today” show, GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina cited concessions won by Nebraska Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson, whose support gave Democrats the 60th and final vote they need. Among other things, Nelson won an agreement that the federal government will pay to expand Medicaid services in Nebraska.

Said Graham: “That’s not change you can believe in. That’s sleazy.”

AP

Jack Spratt lackey Chuck Fant confirmed to Politico this afternoon that Spratt is in for the fight to get himself a 15th term in the U.S. House of Representatives.  That won’t happen, however, if we have anything to say about it.  If you want to see Jack retired please donate to Mick Mulvaney’s Congressional campaign and help him send Spratt packing next year.

Mick Mulvaney’s Campaign Web Site