Obama’s ‘pass this [stimulus] bill’ speech


Unfortunately, except for the price tag, President Obama’s big jobs stimulus speech was nothing new and all too familiar and repetitive.

It really was that repetitive. Obama used some version of “pass this bill” — 17 times in his stimulus speech.

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The Debate. The Speech. And More #EERS #CNNTEAPARTY


I’m on live tonight from Carroll County, Georgia where I’ll be speaking tomorrow at a huge gathering of tea party activists from around Georgia. Then I’m off to Tampa, FL for the CNN-Tea Party Express GOP debate.

Tonight, we’ll go in depth into the President’s speech, look more at the last GOP debate, and preview next week’s CNN-Tea Party Express GOP Debate. The show starts at 7:05 p.m. ET.

You can listen live at http://wsbradio.com and call in at 1-800-WSB-TALK.

Consider this an open thread.


The Solyndra Green Recovery That Wasn’t


No One Messes With Joe!

With news this past week of Solyndra’s bankruptcy, firing of 1,100 employees and federal agents now raiding the homes of the executives, I thought it would be instructive for all to go back to where this began. Two years ago on September 4th of 2009, Vice President Biden was live via satellite to praise a little known solar company that was going to help America and the Obama administration win the future.

Part of our plan — part of our plan is to make sure that as we create these jobs, we creat jobs of the future, like the ones you’re creating, jobs you can raise a family on, green jobs, jobs that will serve as a foundation for a stronger American economy, which is why it’s sp important we — we — we invest in Solyndra and invest in what Solyndra is doing, not just to get us through today, but to power our way to a much brighter tomorrow.

And I’m really happy, along with the secretary, to announce today that we’ve closed a $535 million loan guarantee for Solyndra, more than a half a billion dollars. This is the first in what the secretary’s going to be announcing the Department of Energy will be making available for more than $30 billion in loan guarantees the recovery act is providing and will provide to American companies that are leading the way to a new clean energy future.

Back in the salad days of the Obama administration, when hobbits were still only fantasy and the Democrats controlled all the rings of powers, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act glided through Congress and was signed by a gleeful President. All were confident that they now had the power and the plan to turn the economy around and fix the environment in the process.

Green Jobs were here to stay. Our very salvation depended on it.

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The American Jobs Act of 2011: Lather, Rinse, Repeat and Fail.


As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly.

– Proverbs 26 (HT: Kingjbible.com)

It’s fortunate that all our Elected Leader promised us was a Job’s Plan. Because the plan he presented last night looks like a cribbed version of Christine Roemer’s failed effort from 2009. The President’s proposed American Jobs Act features the same boondoggles, the same EBT Cards, the same targeted tax relief and undoubtedly; the same result.

Like the rest of Barack Obama’s Presidency, this bill will be smaller than the failure bomb detonated in 2009. He intends to only add $447Bn worth of “paid for” spending to the deficit this time. The last time out, the price tag was $787Bn. So, outside of a $342Bn concession to the results of the 2010 Midterm Election, President Obama has learned positively nothing from the last 2.5 years.

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Senate Dems approve another $500 billion debt limit increase


Senate Dems out-game Republicans -- avoid veto

Senate Democrats gamed Republicans and saved their unpopular President from issuing a veto to get his request for another $500 billion in the national debt.

Last night, after the Obama’s “pass this bill” speech, 52 Senate Democrats voted not to consider the Resolution disapproving President Obama’s request to increase the national debt.

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Congress disapproves of the President’s exercise of authority to increase the debt limit, as exercised pursuant to the certification under section 3101A(a) of title 31, United States Code.

One Democrat, Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.), voted with the Republicans. Two Republicans, Sens. Bob Corker (Tenn.) and Scott Brown (Mass.), voted with the Democrats.

This was the vote Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid scheduled to force GOP attendance.

If the resolution of disapproval had passed, Obama would have had to veto it to get the debt limit increased to $15.19 trillion.


The President Moves on to Jobs


Yeah, let’s roll the tape again.

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Obama Vindicates Rick Perry on Social Security


The Bernie Madoff Retirement Plan


The major controversy right now in the GOP presidential primaries is over Rick Perry’s contention that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme that can’t deliver on its promises under its current structure. Mitt Romney doesn’t exactly dispute this – in fact, Romney himself said the same thing in his book, but then Romney always did like to attack other Republicans for things he himself has said or done – but Romney’s argument is that you can’t say these things out loud and win elections.

Well, President Obama last night handed Perry a huge gift, by providing a vivid illustration of how Perry is right about Social Security.

Here is what the President said:

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How Will the Markets React to Obama’s Jobs Speech?


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On today’s edition of Coffee and Markets, Brad Jackson and Ben Domenech are joined by Francis Cianfrocca to discuss Barack Obama’s jobs speech, the chances of his proposal passing Congress and how the markets will react.

We’re brought to you as always by BigGovernment and Stephen Clouse and Associates. If you’d like to email us, you can do so at coffee[at]newledger.com. We hope you enjoy the show.

Related Links:

Obama jobs speech transcript: Full text
Obama gives campaign speech to liberals
Jobs plan deja vu
FACT CHECK: Obama’s jobs plan paid for? Seems not
Yes, It’s True: Ben & Jerry’s Introduces ‘Schweddy Balls’ Ice Cream Flavor

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Last Night, President Obama Sowed the Seeds of His Own Destruction


Consider, objectively, some of the points of Barack Obama’s plan.

He wants to extend unemployment benefits again. He wants to extend a payroll tax holiday. He wants to give tax credits to small businesses to hire people. He wants more government pork for more roads and bridges.

These are all things Republicans have gone along with in the past. These are all things Republicans will probably go along with this time.

Some of these things just preserve the status quo. The status quo last month created zero jobs.

In other words, Barack Obama has largely proposed a plan key portions of which can pass with bipartisan support. And they will pass with bipartisan support. And there will be a grand bipartisan signing ceremony. Lots of pictures will be taken.

No jobs will actually be created. The recession will double dip. But Barack Obama will have gotten his bipartisan jobs plan. So he will not be able to blame the GOP. He’ll have to blame mother nature again.

By then, voters will have had enough. They will blame Barack Obama. They will see his ideas are failures. Barack Obama sowed the seeds of his own destruction by offering up just enough acceptable bipartisan compromises to make himself look leadenly, but those compromises are not what will create jobs. Obama will get blamed.

And the kicker?

Well, the jobs plan will get passed soon. Then the “super committee” will start tinkering with all of it and there is no guarantee his tax credits and other ideas will survive. But then the super committee was a bipartisan idea too.

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The Democratic Wipeout in Louisiana is of Biblical Proportions


Washington Dems have killed the brand in Louisiana.

Huey Long must be turning over in his grave. Qualifying closed today for Louisiana’s Fall 2011 statewide elections, and the once super-dominant Democratic Party has failed to field a single credible candidate for statewide office.

Not a single one.

Louisiana’s citizens have common sense. They understand that the policies favored by Washington Dems (on energy in particular) seem expressly designed to cripple Louisiana’s economy and kill Louisiana’s best jobs. They realize that there’s no real national role to play for a pro-life Democrat.

Just recently, Democratic registration fell below 50% for the first time in, well, ever.

Governor – Bobby Jindal will run against a field of nine opponents: four independents, four Democrats and one Libertarian. Two of the Dems are schoolteachers, and one of those is a self-described “Tea Party Democrat” who will try to outflank Jindal on the right.

Other than Jindal, the Governor’s race features a field of political neophytes and perennial also-rans. None of the challengers currently holds elective office. John Georges, who finished #3 in the 2007 Governor’s race, has decided to take his $10 million & go home rather than run again.

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Obama’s Fuzzy Stimulus Math


Obama proposes 36% cut to Social Security revenue

Let’s forget the fact that Obama’s entire Stimulus 10.0 is a counterintuitive proposal that doubles down on the very failures that precipitated this speech.  Let’s also disregard the fact that enshrining unemployment insurance as a permanent handout will perpetuate unemployment.  And more union-induced, short-term money drops on infrastructure will do nothing but stimulate traffic jams.  Let’s focus purely on the very numbers that the administration has offered –numbers that would undoubtedly be revised upward, if the plan is passed.

Total package – $447 billion

- 50% payroll tax cut for every employee, dropping the rate from 6.2% to 3.1%= $175 billion

-Obama also proposed cutting the employer payroll tax in half on the first $5 million of a firm’s payroll in 2012. About 98% of firms have payrolls of $5 million or less.= $70 billion

-National infrastructure bank = $10 billion

- Pork project handouts to unions for roads, rails and bridges= $50 billion

-An unprecedented extension of unemployment insurance benefits to be extended for another year, beyond the 99 weeks= $62 billion.

-Handouts to public school teacher unions, even though we already spend more per capita on education than any other country=$35 billion

-Refurbishing schools, a responsibility of local government=$25 billion

-Handouts to community colleges=$5 billion

-Rehabilitate vacant property=$15 billion

Despite the steep cost, Obama claims that it will all be paid for.  How will he pay for it?

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