(CNN) — Despite his campaign-trail promises, President Obama has failed to change the partisan tone in Washington, Arizona Sen. John McCain said Friday. “I’m afraid they have,” Obama’s former presidential rival told CNN’s John King when asked if the administration has ‘failed’ in delivering on its repeated pledge of bipartisanship.
“Look they’ve got the votes. We understand that. They had the votes in the stimulus package, in the budget, in the Omnibus, in the SCHIP, all this legislation. And they have picked off, sometimes, two or three Republicans,” McCain continued. “But that’s not changing the climate in Washington.” “What that is, is exercising a significant majority,” the Arizona Republican continued. “And so I — I respect their successes, but please don’t call it changing the climate in Washington.”
Friday, July 31, 2009
Beer(Water)loo.......Obama Poll Numbers Plummet Faster Than Carter's
(Newsmax).President Barack Obama's public approval rating has plummeted faster than President Jimmy Carter’s, reports RealClearPolitics in its review of Gallup polling.
Carter first polled at a 66 percent approval rating, dipping to 54 percent by September. Meanwhile, Obama has already tumbled down to 52 percent approval rating at the end of July, according to the latest Gallup survey.
The bottom line: Obama began his presidency at 68, hitting 69 the following day. That translates to a 16 point drop since day one. In less time than Carter, Obama has fallen more, concluded the RealClearPolitics review.
In other Pew survey findings:
*Among 30- to 49-year-olds, only 49 percent approve of Obama’s job performance – a 14-point decline from one month ago.
*With regard to Americans with annual family incomes less than $30,000, 55 percent approve today vs. 65 percent in June.
*While a plurality of independents approves of the job Obama is doing (48 percent approve, 37 percent disapprove), this is an eight-point decline in approval since June.
*Majorities of the public disapprove of Obama’s handling of the economy (53 percent) and the budget deficit (53 percent), while opinion is split on Obama’s handling of health care (42 percent approve, 43 percent disapprove) and tax policy (39 percent approve, 42 percent disapprove).
*Thirty-eight percent now say they approve of Obama’s handling of the economy – down from 52 percent in June and 60 percent in April. In total, this rating has dropped 22 points from April to July.
*Approval ratings for Obama’s handling of the federal budget deficit dropped 18 points since April – going from 50 percent to 32 percent.
*Approval for Obama’s handling of foreign policy has slipped from 61 percent in April to 47 percent – a decline of 14 points.
*On Obama’s handling of health care, approval declined 9 points from 51 percent in April to 42 percent in July.
Carter first polled at a 66 percent approval rating, dipping to 54 percent by September. Meanwhile, Obama has already tumbled down to 52 percent approval rating at the end of July, according to the latest Gallup survey.
The bottom line: Obama began his presidency at 68, hitting 69 the following day. That translates to a 16 point drop since day one. In less time than Carter, Obama has fallen more, concluded the RealClearPolitics review.
In other Pew survey findings:
*Among 30- to 49-year-olds, only 49 percent approve of Obama’s job performance – a 14-point decline from one month ago.
*With regard to Americans with annual family incomes less than $30,000, 55 percent approve today vs. 65 percent in June.
*While a plurality of independents approves of the job Obama is doing (48 percent approve, 37 percent disapprove), this is an eight-point decline in approval since June.
*Majorities of the public disapprove of Obama’s handling of the economy (53 percent) and the budget deficit (53 percent), while opinion is split on Obama’s handling of health care (42 percent approve, 43 percent disapprove) and tax policy (39 percent approve, 42 percent disapprove).
*Thirty-eight percent now say they approve of Obama’s handling of the economy – down from 52 percent in June and 60 percent in April. In total, this rating has dropped 22 points from April to July.
*Approval ratings for Obama’s handling of the federal budget deficit dropped 18 points since April – going from 50 percent to 32 percent.
*Approval for Obama’s handling of foreign policy has slipped from 61 percent in April to 47 percent – a decline of 14 points.
*On Obama’s handling of health care, approval declined 9 points from 51 percent in April to 42 percent in July.
Recession Worse Than Prior Estimates, Revisions Show;Obama:"Guardedly optimistic".Updated:Candidate Obama Blasted Bush for same GDP numbers
(Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Friday he was "guardedly optimistic" about the direction of the U.S. economy after GDP figures showed the economy shrank modestly in the second quarter:"Today's GDP is an important sign that the economy is headed in the right direction and that business investment, which had been plummeting in the last several months, is showing signs of stabilizing."
(Bloomberg) -- The first 12 months of the U.S. recession saw the economy shrink more than twice as much as previously estimated, reflecting even bigger declines in consumer spending and housing, revised figures showed.
The world’s largest economy contracted 1.9 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the last three months of 2008, compared with the 0.8 percent drop previously on the books, the Commerce Department said today in Washington
...The updated statistics also showed that Americans earned more over the last 10 years and socked away a larger share of that cash in savings. The report signals the process of repairing tattered balance sheets following the biggest drop in household wealth on record may be further along than anticipated.
...Over the most recent period, the third quarter of 2008 underwent one of the biggest changes, going from a 0.5 percent decrease in gross domestic product to a 2.7 percent drop. The new reading better illustrates the effect the September collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. had on the economy and credit markets.
Via Hotairpundit:
Flashback October 30, 2008 Sarasota Florida, the economy went into negative for the first time in 2008(same numbers as today), and candidate Obama fired back at Bush: "OUR FAILING GDP IS A DIRECT RESULT OF A FAILIED ECONOMIC THEORY...THAT HAVE DRIVEN OUR ECONOMY INTO A DITCH"
Read my Lib's...... 48% Say Obama Is Very Liberal
(Rasmussen).Seventy-six percent(76%)of US voters now think President Obama is at least somewhat liberal. Forty-eight percent (48%) say he is very liberal, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.Seventeen percent (17%) of voters say the president is moderate,Among Democrats, 42% say the president is somewhat liberal and 26% say he is a moderate.
For the second month in a row, 53% of voters say the president is governing like a partisan Democrat, while 32% say he is being bipartisan. In late January, only 39% of voters said he was governing in a partisan fashion while 42% said he was being bipartisan.
No luck for Huck! Disappointing low HuckPAC Fundraising report
(tolbertreport).According to a release this evening from Gov. Mike Huckabee’s Political Action Committee, HuckPAC has raised just over $300,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2009. HuckPAC’s financial report for this period is due to be filed with the FEC tomorrow and will release more details.“So how are we doing so far? Well by the goals I personally set for our efforts, we are largely on track,” said Huckabee in the release. “Are we satisfied and complacent? Absolutely not, we are always working to do better and we will. We’ve got some new ideas up our sleeves so please stay tuned.”
By comparison to the other two early contenders in 2012 Presidential GOP Race, Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC raised $1,924,373 and Palin’s SarahPAC raised $732,867 for the same time period.
Obama, Biden Senate Seats in Danger?
(rothenbergpoliticalreport).Lost in the focus on President Barack Obama and Vice President Joseph Biden’s history-making move down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House in January was the fact that Republicans have a historic opportunity to pick up the pair’s former Senate seats,Over the past century, half of the dozen seats vacated by a new president or vice president have switched partisan control in the next election..
In 2010, Republicans have open-seat opportunities in Illinois and Delaware and could win both seats vacated by a president and vice president in the same cycle for the first time in U.S. history.
Democratic chances of holding Obama’s seat improved when appointed Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) decided not to run next year. Burris’ tenure has been overshadowed by fallout from his controversial appointment by then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich, But after Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D) took a pass on the Senate race and Rep. Mark Kirk (R) jumped in, Republican chances improved dramatically.
In Delaware, former Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D) appointed longtime Biden aide Ted Kaufman (D) as a placeholder to fill the vice president’s Senate seat. State Attorney General Beau Biden (D) is expected to run for his father’s seat once he returns from active duty in Iraq. Meanwhile, political operatives on both sides of the aisle are waiting for Rep. Mike Castle (R) to make a decision on the race. With Castle, who has represented the entire state both as Congressman and governor, this race might be one of the best GOP takeover opportunities in the country.
Read more.....
In 2010, Republicans have open-seat opportunities in Illinois and Delaware and could win both seats vacated by a president and vice president in the same cycle for the first time in U.S. history.
Democratic chances of holding Obama’s seat improved when appointed Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) decided not to run next year. Burris’ tenure has been overshadowed by fallout from his controversial appointment by then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich, But after Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D) took a pass on the Senate race and Rep. Mark Kirk (R) jumped in, Republican chances improved dramatically.
In Delaware, former Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D) appointed longtime Biden aide Ted Kaufman (D) as a placeholder to fill the vice president’s Senate seat. State Attorney General Beau Biden (D) is expected to run for his father’s seat once he returns from active duty in Iraq. Meanwhile, political operatives on both sides of the aisle are waiting for Rep. Mike Castle (R) to make a decision on the race. With Castle, who has represented the entire state both as Congressman and governor, this race might be one of the best GOP takeover opportunities in the country.
Read more.....
Rudy to Beer'ack Obama: 'Shut up'
(Ben Smith-Politico).Rudy Giuliani, who has returned as a leading Republican spokesman, condemned Obama's health care plan in an interview with Sean Hannity,He also offered, in response to the president's hope that the Gates arrest would be a "teachable moment," this:
"He's actually right. It is teachable. Here's the lesson: Shut up."
"He's actually right. It is teachable. Here's the lesson: Shut up."
Romney:We have proved that Republicans have Positive plans for Health care
HUMAN EVENTS Editors Tom Winter, Jed Babbin and Allan Ryskind interviewed former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney about health care reforms now being considered by Congress and his experience in creating the state plan for which he is well known.
.....JB: Governor, we have a bunch of alternatives to the Obamacare plan emanating from Republicans who, I think, are getting a bad rap for having no alternative ideas. Have you seen any that attract you? What are the general things that you like about the Republican alternatives?
Romney: Well, I’ve seen Paul Ryan’s plan. I’ve seen the Wyden-Bennett plan that is a bipartisan plan. Sen. McCain proposed a plan during his presidential bid. Congressman Tom Price led with a plan today, and, of course, I had a plan during my presidential bid.
When it comes to suggesting that Republicans are the party of “no,” I hope people remember that there is only one state that has coverage for all of its citizens, and it’s Massachusetts and it’s something that a Republican governor was able to accomplish. So Republicans have views and plans and our plans have a number of positive features.
First, every one I’ve seen gets our citizens insured, and does so without establishing a government insurance program. And also does so without creating a trillion dollar obligation of the taxpayers of the nation. And that’s what I think is critical. We have proven in Massachusetts that you can get everyone insured without having to break the bank. You can get everyone insured without having government institute an insurance plan. And whether you like our Massachusetts plan or not, it proves those two things, and there are some others that have other features that are perhaps just as good or better than those that we devised in Massachusetts. They ought to be evaluated, scored by the CBO and given the kind of thorough analysis that a topic as big as healthcare deserves.
Read here the Full Interview
.....JB: Governor, we have a bunch of alternatives to the Obamacare plan emanating from Republicans who, I think, are getting a bad rap for having no alternative ideas. Have you seen any that attract you? What are the general things that you like about the Republican alternatives?
Romney: Well, I’ve seen Paul Ryan’s plan. I’ve seen the Wyden-Bennett plan that is a bipartisan plan. Sen. McCain proposed a plan during his presidential bid. Congressman Tom Price led with a plan today, and, of course, I had a plan during my presidential bid.
When it comes to suggesting that Republicans are the party of “no,” I hope people remember that there is only one state that has coverage for all of its citizens, and it’s Massachusetts and it’s something that a Republican governor was able to accomplish. So Republicans have views and plans and our plans have a number of positive features.
First, every one I’ve seen gets our citizens insured, and does so without establishing a government insurance program. And also does so without creating a trillion dollar obligation of the taxpayers of the nation. And that’s what I think is critical. We have proven in Massachusetts that you can get everyone insured without having to break the bank. You can get everyone insured without having government institute an insurance plan. And whether you like our Massachusetts plan or not, it proves those two things, and there are some others that have other features that are perhaps just as good or better than those that we devised in Massachusetts. They ought to be evaluated, scored by the CBO and given the kind of thorough analysis that a topic as big as healthcare deserves.
Read here the Full Interview
Mitt Romney to Obama: Cool down Mr. President,whats the Rush?
(A op-ed).Obama could learn a thing or two about health care reform from Massachusetts. One, time is not the enemy. Two, neither are the Republicans.
Because of President Obama's frantic approach, health care has run off the rails. For the sake of 47 million uninsured Americans, we need to get it back on track)
Health care cannot be handled the same way as the stimulus and cap-and-trade bills. With those, the president stuck to the old style of lawmaking: He threw in every special favor imaginable, ground it up and crammed it through a partisan Democratic Congress. Health care is simply too important to the economy, to employment and to America's families to be larded up and rushed through on an artificial deadline. There's a better way. And the lessons we learned in Massachusetts could help Washington find it.No other state has made as much progress in covering their uninsured as Massachusetts. The bill that made it happen wasn't a rush job. Shortly after becoming governor, I worked in a bipartisan fashion with Democrats to insure all our citizens. It took almost two years to find a solution. When we did, it passed the 200-member legislature with only two dissenting votes. It had the support of the business community, the hospital sector and insurers. For health care reform to succeed in Washington, the president must finally do what he promised during the campaign: Work with Republicans as well as Democrats.Massachusetts also proved that you don't need government insurance. Our citizens purchase private, free-market medical insurance. There is no "public option." With more than 1,300 health insurance companies, a federal government insurance company isn't necessary. It would inevitably lead to massive taxpayer subsidies, to lobbyist-inspired coverage mandates and to the liberals' dream: a European-style single-payer system.
To find common ground with skeptical Republicans and conservative Democrats, the president will have to jettison left-wing ideology for practicality and dump the public option.The cost issue Our experience also demonstrates that getting every citizen insured doesn't have to break the bank. First, we established incentives for those who were uninsured to buy insurance. Using tax penalties, as we did, or tax credits, as others have proposed, encourages "free riders" to take responsibility for themselves rather than pass their medical costs on to others. This doesn't cost the government a single dollar. Second, we helped pay for our new program by ending an old one — something government should do more often. The federal government sends an estimated $42 billion to hospitals that care for the poor: Use those funds instead to help the poor buy private insurance, as we did.When our bill passed three years ago, the legislature projected that our program would cost $725 million in 2009. At $723 million, next year's forecast is pretty much on target. When you calculate all the savings, including that from the free hospital care we eliminated, the net cost to the state is approximately $350 million. The watchdog Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation concluded that our program's cost is "relatively modest" and "well within initial projections."And if subsidies and coverages are reined in, as I've suggested, the Massachusetts program could actually break even.
One thing is certain: The president must insist on a program that doesn't add to our spending burden. We simply cannot afford another trillion-dollar mistake.The Massachusetts reform aimed at getting virtually all our citizens insured. In that, it worked: 98% of our citizens are insured, 440,000 previously uninsured are covered and almost half of those purchased insurance on their own, with no subsidy. But overall, health care inflation has continued its relentless rise. Here is where the federal government can do something we could not: Take steps to stop or slow medical inflation.At the core of our health cost problem is an incentive problem. Patients don't care what treatments cost once they pass the deductible. And providers are paid more when they do more; they are paid for quantity, not quality. We will tame runaway costs only when we change incentives. We might do what some countries have done: Require patients to pay a portion of their bill, except for certain conditions. And providers could be paid an annual fixed fee for the primary care of an individual and a separate fixed fee for the treatment of a specific condition. These approaches have far more promise than the usual bromides of electronic medical records, transparency and pay-for-performance, helpful though they will be.Try a business-like analysis I spent most of my career in the private sector. When well-managed businesses considered a major change of some kind, they engaged in extensive analysis, brought in outside experts, exhaustively evaluated every alternative, built consensus among those who would be affected and then moved ahead. Health care is many times bigger than all the companies in the Dow Jones combined. And the president is rushing changes that dwarf what any business I know has faced.
Republicans are not the party of "no" when it comes to health care reform. This Republican is proud to be the first governor to insure all his state's citizens. Other Republicans such as Rep. Paul Ryan and Sens. Bob Bennett and John McCain, among others, have proposed their own plans. Republicans will join with the Democrats if the president abandons his government insurance plan, if he endeavors to craft a plan that does not burden the nation with greater debt, if he broadens his scope to reduce health costs for all Americans, and if he is willing to devote the rigorous effort, requisite time and bipartisan process that health care reform deserves.
Because of President Obama's frantic approach, health care has run off the rails. For the sake of 47 million uninsured Americans, we need to get it back on track)
Health care cannot be handled the same way as the stimulus and cap-and-trade bills. With those, the president stuck to the old style of lawmaking: He threw in every special favor imaginable, ground it up and crammed it through a partisan Democratic Congress. Health care is simply too important to the economy, to employment and to America's families to be larded up and rushed through on an artificial deadline. There's a better way. And the lessons we learned in Massachusetts could help Washington find it.No other state has made as much progress in covering their uninsured as Massachusetts. The bill that made it happen wasn't a rush job. Shortly after becoming governor, I worked in a bipartisan fashion with Democrats to insure all our citizens. It took almost two years to find a solution. When we did, it passed the 200-member legislature with only two dissenting votes. It had the support of the business community, the hospital sector and insurers. For health care reform to succeed in Washington, the president must finally do what he promised during the campaign: Work with Republicans as well as Democrats.Massachusetts also proved that you don't need government insurance. Our citizens purchase private, free-market medical insurance. There is no "public option." With more than 1,300 health insurance companies, a federal government insurance company isn't necessary. It would inevitably lead to massive taxpayer subsidies, to lobbyist-inspired coverage mandates and to the liberals' dream: a European-style single-payer system.
To find common ground with skeptical Republicans and conservative Democrats, the president will have to jettison left-wing ideology for practicality and dump the public option.The cost issue Our experience also demonstrates that getting every citizen insured doesn't have to break the bank. First, we established incentives for those who were uninsured to buy insurance. Using tax penalties, as we did, or tax credits, as others have proposed, encourages "free riders" to take responsibility for themselves rather than pass their medical costs on to others. This doesn't cost the government a single dollar. Second, we helped pay for our new program by ending an old one — something government should do more often. The federal government sends an estimated $42 billion to hospitals that care for the poor: Use those funds instead to help the poor buy private insurance, as we did.When our bill passed three years ago, the legislature projected that our program would cost $725 million in 2009. At $723 million, next year's forecast is pretty much on target. When you calculate all the savings, including that from the free hospital care we eliminated, the net cost to the state is approximately $350 million. The watchdog Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation concluded that our program's cost is "relatively modest" and "well within initial projections."And if subsidies and coverages are reined in, as I've suggested, the Massachusetts program could actually break even.
One thing is certain: The president must insist on a program that doesn't add to our spending burden. We simply cannot afford another trillion-dollar mistake.The Massachusetts reform aimed at getting virtually all our citizens insured. In that, it worked: 98% of our citizens are insured, 440,000 previously uninsured are covered and almost half of those purchased insurance on their own, with no subsidy. But overall, health care inflation has continued its relentless rise. Here is where the federal government can do something we could not: Take steps to stop or slow medical inflation.At the core of our health cost problem is an incentive problem. Patients don't care what treatments cost once they pass the deductible. And providers are paid more when they do more; they are paid for quantity, not quality. We will tame runaway costs only when we change incentives. We might do what some countries have done: Require patients to pay a portion of their bill, except for certain conditions. And providers could be paid an annual fixed fee for the primary care of an individual and a separate fixed fee for the treatment of a specific condition. These approaches have far more promise than the usual bromides of electronic medical records, transparency and pay-for-performance, helpful though they will be.Try a business-like analysis I spent most of my career in the private sector. When well-managed businesses considered a major change of some kind, they engaged in extensive analysis, brought in outside experts, exhaustively evaluated every alternative, built consensus among those who would be affected and then moved ahead. Health care is many times bigger than all the companies in the Dow Jones combined. And the president is rushing changes that dwarf what any business I know has faced.
Republicans are not the party of "no" when it comes to health care reform. This Republican is proud to be the first governor to insure all his state's citizens. Other Republicans such as Rep. Paul Ryan and Sens. Bob Bennett and John McCain, among others, have proposed their own plans. Republicans will join with the Democrats if the president abandons his government insurance plan, if he endeavors to craft a plan that does not burden the nation with greater debt, if he broadens his scope to reduce health costs for all Americans, and if he is willing to devote the rigorous effort, requisite time and bipartisan process that health care reform deserves.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
'BAR'ack Obama solves American Problems with a Beer
(WSJ).President Barack Obama hoisted a beer with a white policeman and a black professor Thursday evening, aiming to cool a dispute between the pair that ignited a national debate and threatened to damage his reputation as a politician whose appeal transcends race. Speaking in the Oval Office earlier Thursday, Mr. Obama said he was "fascinated with the fascination about this evening," calling the meeting "so hyped and so symbolic."
The White House billed the meeting as a "teachable moment" occasioned by the July 16 arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. by Cambridge police Sgt. James Crowley after a confrontation between the two men. The incident, and the president's public comment that police "acted stupidly" in arresting his friend Mr. Gates, placed Mr. Obama squarely in the middle of a dialogue about racial profiling and police power that spread from the Ivy League enclave across the nation. The president later said he regretted his offhand words. The White House was clearly hoping Thursday's beer -- originally suggested by Sgt. Crowley after Mr. Obama called him to discuss the incident -- would end the fracas. The affair has occupied time the administration needs to make headway on a health-care revamp, climate-change legislation and financial-industry regulation before Congress begins its monthlong August recess.
The White House billed the meeting as a "teachable moment" occasioned by the July 16 arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. by Cambridge police Sgt. James Crowley after a confrontation between the two men. The incident, and the president's public comment that police "acted stupidly" in arresting his friend Mr. Gates, placed Mr. Obama squarely in the middle of a dialogue about racial profiling and police power that spread from the Ivy League enclave across the nation. The president later said he regretted his offhand words. The White House was clearly hoping Thursday's beer -- originally suggested by Sgt. Crowley after Mr. Obama called him to discuss the incident -- would end the fracas. The affair has occupied time the administration needs to make headway on a health-care revamp, climate-change legislation and financial-industry regulation before Congress begins its monthlong August recess.
Rep. Waters:"Now the chickens have come home to roost".
(Thehill).The White House may only have one of its top officials to blame for its difficulty in passing healthcare, one liberal California Democrat asserted Tuesday.
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) blamed now-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's work as head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), during which he worked to recruit many centrist candidates, resulting in landslide Democratic victories, for difficulties facing House leaders trying to pass reform legislation.
"That may be difficult for Rahm Emanuel, because remember, he recruited most of them," Waters said during an interview on MSNBC when asked if the White House could lean on centrist, Blue Dog Democrats to pass reform legislation.
"Now the chickens have come home to roost," she added.
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) blamed now-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's work as head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), during which he worked to recruit many centrist candidates, resulting in landslide Democratic victories, for difficulties facing House leaders trying to pass reform legislation.
"That may be difficult for Rahm Emanuel, because remember, he recruited most of them," Waters said during an interview on MSNBC when asked if the White House could lean on centrist, Blue Dog Democrats to pass reform legislation.
"Now the chickens have come home to roost," she added.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Reason to be Optmistic for a Republican Resurgence in '10
(TheFix).A slew of new national polls released over the last 24 hours show Republicans narrowing what had been a wide gap on the generic ballot question -- "do you plan to vote for the Democratic candidate or the Republican candidate in 2010" -- over the past two elections, results that suggest the GOP may be on the road to recovery on the Congressional level. Let's first look at the data.
* The latest NBC/Wall Street Journal survey showed the Democratic candidate receiving 46 percent to the Republican candidate's 39 percent -- the closest Republicans have been on the generic ballot in that poll since April 2006.
* A National Public Radio poll, conducted jointly by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research (a Democratic firm) and Public Opinion Strategies (a Republican firm) showed the generic ballot as a dead heat: 43 percent chose the Republican candidate while 42 percent opted for the Democratic candidate.
* A Gallup poll (in the chart above) showed a Democratic candidate receiving 50 percent to a Republican candidate's 44 percent, a tightening of the wider margin -- 53 percent to 41 percent -- that Democrats enjoyed in Gallup data just before the 2008 election.
As we have written many times in this space, it's important when looking at the generic ballot to understand what it does and what it doesn't. It doesn't double as a predictor of specific results in a congressional district. It does, usually, serve as an accurate guide to the feelings that voters have about the two parties. Given that, there is reason for Republicans to be optimistic about where they stand in the battle for Congress. "It's going to be a bad year for the incumbent party," Democratic pollster Peter Hart told NBC'S "First Read. "It may not affect the president as much as it will affect the party and the makeup of the Congress." And this from the Gallup analysis: "The six-point Democratic advantage among all registered voters in the current poll suggests the 2010 election could be quite close if it were held today given low turnout in midterm elections and the usual Republican advantages in turnout."
* The latest NBC/Wall Street Journal survey showed the Democratic candidate receiving 46 percent to the Republican candidate's 39 percent -- the closest Republicans have been on the generic ballot in that poll since April 2006.
* A National Public Radio poll, conducted jointly by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research (a Democratic firm) and Public Opinion Strategies (a Republican firm) showed the generic ballot as a dead heat: 43 percent chose the Republican candidate while 42 percent opted for the Democratic candidate.
* A Gallup poll (in the chart above) showed a Democratic candidate receiving 50 percent to a Republican candidate's 44 percent, a tightening of the wider margin -- 53 percent to 41 percent -- that Democrats enjoyed in Gallup data just before the 2008 election.
As we have written many times in this space, it's important when looking at the generic ballot to understand what it does and what it doesn't. It doesn't double as a predictor of specific results in a congressional district. It does, usually, serve as an accurate guide to the feelings that voters have about the two parties. Given that, there is reason for Republicans to be optimistic about where they stand in the battle for Congress. "It's going to be a bad year for the incumbent party," Democratic pollster Peter Hart told NBC'S "First Read. "It may not affect the president as much as it will affect the party and the makeup of the Congress." And this from the Gallup analysis: "The six-point Democratic advantage among all registered voters in the current poll suggests the 2010 election could be quite close if it were held today given low turnout in midterm elections and the usual Republican advantages in turnout."
Rudy considering a '12 run;Republicans need strong leader against Obama policies
(CNN) — Republicans should focus on President Barack Obama’s “left-wing” policies and not get sidetracked by “false” issues such as the validity of his birth certificate, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani told CNN on Wednesday. Giuliani lamented the lack of a strong Republican leader who could direct the party’s attention to what he called “the most left-wing agenda … since Roosevelt.” “We don’t have a real leader of the party right now because we don’t have a president, we don’t have presidential candidates,So everybody gets to speak their minds.”
Giuliani criticized Obama’s domestic policies, including the economic stimulus package and proposed overhaul of the health care system, saying they expanded government and threatened economic stability. “I think he has gone much further to the left than I thought he would,” Giuliani said.
He was less critical of Obama’s foreign policy so far, agreeing with the increased military focus on Afghanistan and Obama’s low-key approach to the controversial Iranian election, and the subsequent demonstrations and government crackdown.
Asked about questions by some conservatives about whether Obama is a U.S. citizen, Giuliani laughed and said, “We’ve got better things to do than that.” “I’ve actually seen a birth certificate that kind of satisfies me that he was born in the United States,” he said. “I don’t get the issue. I don’t know why they’re pushing it as far as they are. … To pick false issues like that hurts us more than it hurts the other side.”
Asked if he would run for president again, Giuliani didn’t rule it out. “I don’t know. We’ll see,” he said, adding, “We’ll have to decide that some time at the end of this year.”
Giuliani criticized Obama’s domestic policies, including the economic stimulus package and proposed overhaul of the health care system, saying they expanded government and threatened economic stability. “I think he has gone much further to the left than I thought he would,” Giuliani said.
He was less critical of Obama’s foreign policy so far, agreeing with the increased military focus on Afghanistan and Obama’s low-key approach to the controversial Iranian election, and the subsequent demonstrations and government crackdown.
Asked about questions by some conservatives about whether Obama is a U.S. citizen, Giuliani laughed and said, “We’ve got better things to do than that.” “I’ve actually seen a birth certificate that kind of satisfies me that he was born in the United States,” he said. “I don’t get the issue. I don’t know why they’re pushing it as far as they are. … To pick false issues like that hurts us more than it hurts the other side.”
Asked if he would run for president again, Giuliani didn’t rule it out. “I don’t know. We’ll see,” he said, adding, “We’ll have to decide that some time at the end of this year.”
New low for Nobama- 48% approve, 28% strongly
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Thursday shows that 28% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty percent (40%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -12. That's the lowest rating yet recorded for President Obama.Forty-nine percent (49%) now say that America's best days have come and gone . Just 38% believe they are still to come.
Overall, 48% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. That is the lowest level of total approval yet recorded for this President. Fifty-one percent (51%) now disapprove. A plurality of voters now believe the President views American society as unfair and discriminatory .
Overall, 48% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. That is the lowest level of total approval yet recorded for this President. Fifty-one percent (51%) now disapprove. A plurality of voters now believe the President views American society as unfair and discriminatory .
Blue dogs win to delay vote on Obamacare
(Thehill).The Blue Dogs and House leaders have struck a deal to guarantee that the House will not vote on a healthcare bill before August, a leading Blue Dog said on Wednesday. In exchange for putting off a floor vote until after Labor Day, the Energy and Commerce Committee may be allowed to continue its markup of the healthcare bill this week even if an agreement has not been reached between Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and seven Energy and Commerce Committee Blue Dogs over the content of the bill. Asked if House leaders had told Democrats that there will be no House vote on healthcare before Friday, Blue Dog Co-Chairwoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.) said, “I don’t think [leaders have] made public statements to that regard, but my understanding is that that would be part of an agreement, if they actually do move forward with an Energy and Commerce markup that there will be no vote on the House floor until after Labor Day.” … “There has been no official announcement on floor timing, but at this point, the odds are that we will not likely vote before we adjourn for August,” a Democratic leadership aide said.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Mitt not drawing Fire - NBC Poll:58% have a Positive or Neutral feeling on Mitt Romney
The WSJ/NBc poll rating the feelings toward Politicians - Positive, neutral and Negative shows Mitt Romney only getting a negative view from 20% of those Polled, while 28% have Positive view and 30% neutral,a total of 58% , while Obama gets a 34% negative rating. Sarah Palin gets a 43% negative view and 52% Positive(32) + neutral(20) view.
Obama sees the begining of the end of Recession
"Here's what's true: we have stopped the freefall. The market is up and the financial system is no longer on the verge of collapse. That's true," he said to applause. "We're losing jobs at half the rate we were when I took office six months ago...so there's no doubt that things have gotten better"
Salami Victories- States,Senate and WH - Republican candidates lead by double digits in NJ and VA
*Virginian gubernatorial candidate, Bob McDonnell (R), leads his Democratic opponent, Creigh Deeds, by 15% in a new poll from Survey USA.
And Barack Obama might have something to do with all this. A new Survey USA poll shows his approval at -5% in Virginia.only 44% Approve, 49% Disapprove
*PPP's newest look at the New Jersey contest for Governor finds Chris Christie leading Jon Corzine 50-36. That 14 point margin is up from 10 in our June survey.
Christie continues to hold a commanding lead with independents, 54-26, and is receiving 86% of the Republican vote while holding Corzine to just 64% of the Democrats.
51% of New Jersey voters say that Barack Obama coming to campaign for Jon Corzine had no impact on their choice for Governor, Although Obama maintains a 53% approval rating in the state, the same as a month ago, only 18% of respondents say that his campaigning for Corzine made them more likely to support the Governor for reelection. 32% said his appearance made them less likely to do so.
And Barack Obama might have something to do with all this. A new Survey USA poll shows his approval at -5% in Virginia.only 44% Approve, 49% Disapprove
*PPP's newest look at the New Jersey contest for Governor finds Chris Christie leading Jon Corzine 50-36. That 14 point margin is up from 10 in our June survey.
Christie continues to hold a commanding lead with independents, 54-26, and is receiving 86% of the Republican vote while holding Corzine to just 64% of the Democrats.
51% of New Jersey voters say that Barack Obama coming to campaign for Jon Corzine had no impact on their choice for Governor, Although Obama maintains a 53% approval rating in the state, the same as a month ago, only 18% of respondents say that his campaigning for Corzine made them more likely to support the Governor for reelection. 32% said his appearance made them less likely to do so.
3 MORE YEARS???? AMERICANS ARE PESSIMISTIC UNDER OBAMA
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Wednesday shows that 29% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-nine percent (39%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -10,Overall, 49% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance.Fifty percent (50%) now disapprove.
A plurality of voters (49%)now believe the President views American society as unfair and discriminatory.
Nearly one-out-of-two U.S. voters (49%) now say the nation’s best days are in the past, a five-point jump from last month and the highest level of pessimism on this question in a year,38% still say America’s best days are in the future.
A plurality of voters (49%)now believe the President views American society as unfair and discriminatory.
Nearly one-out-of-two U.S. voters (49%) now say the nation’s best days are in the past, a five-point jump from last month and the highest level of pessimism on this question in a year,38% still say America’s best days are in the future.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
NPR Poll:Obama's approval at 53% (Gallup: 54%)
(NPR).President Obama has hit a rough patch this summer, squeezed between a lingering recession and rising questions about the health care overhaul he has made the centerpiece of his first-year agenda.
Those are the chief findings of the latest NPR poll of registered voters conducted nationwide Wednesday through Sunday by a bipartisan team. The pollsters found 53 percent approving of the president's handling of his job, while 42 percent disapproved — the narrowest gap of the Obama presidency to date. Most of the approving group said they approved strongly, and an even greater majority of the disapproving group said they disapproved strongly.
In another part of the poll, respondents were asked which of two statements on the economy came closer to expressing their view. The first statement: "President Obama's economic policies helped avert an even worse crisis and are laying the foundation for our eventual economic recovery." The second statement: "President Obama's economic policies have run up a record federal deficit while failing to end the recession or slow the record pace of job losses." A plurality preferred the second statement, 48 percent to 45 percent.
Congress fared far worse, with just 7 percent saying they approved strongly and 25 percent saying they approved somewhat. A 61 percent majority said they disapproved of Congress, with 2 out of 3 of them doing so strongly.
Those are the chief findings of the latest NPR poll of registered voters conducted nationwide Wednesday through Sunday by a bipartisan team. The pollsters found 53 percent approving of the president's handling of his job, while 42 percent disapproved — the narrowest gap of the Obama presidency to date. Most of the approving group said they approved strongly, and an even greater majority of the disapproving group said they disapproved strongly.
In another part of the poll, respondents were asked which of two statements on the economy came closer to expressing their view. The first statement: "President Obama's economic policies helped avert an even worse crisis and are laying the foundation for our eventual economic recovery." The second statement: "President Obama's economic policies have run up a record federal deficit while failing to end the recession or slow the record pace of job losses." A plurality preferred the second statement, 48 percent to 45 percent.
Congress fared far worse, with just 7 percent saying they approved strongly and 25 percent saying they approved somewhat. A 61 percent majority said they disapproved of Congress, with 2 out of 3 of them doing so strongly.
Obama Takes Wrong Approach Towards Israelis
(The Pulse).The New York Times posted an op-ed by Aluf Benn describing the reasons behind the negative Israeli sentiment towards President Obama. Although Obama addressed the Arab and Muslim world in his Cairo speech, and the American Jews through many speeches, he has not yet focused his attention on the Israeli Jews. Instead of a speech to stir support among Israelis, Israel has witnessed an increase in American pressure towards Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to freeze the settlements, an approach that angers the Israelis and creates disapproval of the Obama administration.
"This policy of ignoring Israel carries a price. Though Mr. Obama has succeeded in prodding Mr. Netanyahu to accept the idea of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, he has failed to induce Israel to impose a freeze on settlements. In fact, he has failed even to stir debate about the merits of one: no Israeli political figure has stood up to Mr. Netanyahu and begged him to support Mr. Obama; not even the Israeli left, desperate for a new agenda, has adopted Mr. Obama as its icon.
As a result, Mr. Netanyahu enjoys a virtual domestic consensus over his rejection of the settlement freeze. Moreover, he has succeeded in portraying Mr. Obama as a shaky ally".
So far, Israelis have embraced Mr. Netanyahu’s message. A Jerusalem Post poll of Israeli Jews last month indicated that only 6 percent of those surveyed considered the Obama administration to be pro-Israel, while 50 percent said that its policies are more pro-Palestinian than pro-Israeli.
"This policy of ignoring Israel carries a price. Though Mr. Obama has succeeded in prodding Mr. Netanyahu to accept the idea of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, he has failed to induce Israel to impose a freeze on settlements. In fact, he has failed even to stir debate about the merits of one: no Israeli political figure has stood up to Mr. Netanyahu and begged him to support Mr. Obama; not even the Israeli left, desperate for a new agenda, has adopted Mr. Obama as its icon.
As a result, Mr. Netanyahu enjoys a virtual domestic consensus over his rejection of the settlement freeze. Moreover, he has succeeded in portraying Mr. Obama as a shaky ally".
So far, Israelis have embraced Mr. Netanyahu’s message. A Jerusalem Post poll of Israeli Jews last month indicated that only 6 percent of those surveyed considered the Obama administration to be pro-Israel, while 50 percent said that its policies are more pro-Palestinian than pro-Israeli.
House overwhelmingly rejects Obama's signing statement
The House rebuked President Obama for trying to ignore restrictions to international aid payments, voting overwhelmingly for an amendment forcing the administration to abide by its constraints.
House members approved an amendment by a 429-2 vote to have the Obama administration pressure the World Bank to strengthen labor and environmental standards and require a Treasury Department report on World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) activities. The amendment to a 2010 funding bill for the State Department and foreign operations was proposed by Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas), but it received broad bipartisan support.
The conditions on World Bank and IMF funding were part of the $106 billion war supplemental bill that was passed last month. Obama, in a statement made as he signed the bill, said that he would ignore the conditions.
They would "interfere with my constitutional authority to conduct foreign relations by directing the Executive to take certain positions in negotiations or discussions with international organizations and foreign governments, or by requiring consultation with the Congress prior to such negotiations or discussions," Obama said in the signing statement.
Senior Democrats and Republicans railed against the notion that the president could ignore a law they had passed and he had signed.
"We do this not just on behalf of this institution, but on behalf of this democracy," said Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.). "There's kind of a unilateralism, an undemocratic, unreachable way about these signing statements."
House members approved an amendment by a 429-2 vote to have the Obama administration pressure the World Bank to strengthen labor and environmental standards and require a Treasury Department report on World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) activities. The amendment to a 2010 funding bill for the State Department and foreign operations was proposed by Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas), but it received broad bipartisan support.
The conditions on World Bank and IMF funding were part of the $106 billion war supplemental bill that was passed last month. Obama, in a statement made as he signed the bill, said that he would ignore the conditions.
They would "interfere with my constitutional authority to conduct foreign relations by directing the Executive to take certain positions in negotiations or discussions with international organizations and foreign governments, or by requiring consultation with the Congress prior to such negotiations or discussions," Obama said in the signing statement.
Senior Democrats and Republicans railed against the notion that the president could ignore a law they had passed and he had signed.
"We do this not just on behalf of this institution, but on behalf of this democracy," said Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.). "There's kind of a unilateralism, an undemocratic, unreachable way about these signing statements."
Monday, July 27, 2009
Obama falls as Americans tie his Personality to Policies
Much was said on Obama's recently high ranking approval rating in the past six months, as more then Two thirds of Americans approved his Job handling,despite very divided opinions on his Policies, as The People draw different examination between his Personality and his Policies and views,What happened in the past Month that Obama's rating is continuing to fall and in most polls of July his approval rating is between 55% to 48%, and The republicans candidates are starting to gain by closing the gaps in a '12 match up, Because the Americans started to see that his policies are bad for the Economy, bad for America and for the Middle and lower class struggling for ends meat, and all Obama succeeded doing is expanding Spending, growing the deficit, failing to halt the rise of the Unemployment rate and Job creation, pushing forward aggressively his health care form that will only raise taxes and increase the deficit.
So People are now finally putting together the puzzle and seeing a simple connection of Obama and his policies, his inexperienced past with his current failures, therefore we are experiencing a equality drafting drop in his Job approval and drop of support in his Policies.
So People are now finally putting together the puzzle and seeing a simple connection of Obama and his policies, his inexperienced past with his current failures, therefore we are experiencing a equality drafting drop in his Job approval and drop of support in his Policies.
Krauthammer: When Rhetoric Meets Reality
(Charles Krauthammer-Wapo).What happened to Obamacare? Rhetoric met reality. As both candidate and president, the master rhetorician could conjure a world in which he bestows upon you health care nirvana: more coverage, less cost.
But you can't fake it in legislation. Once you commit your fantasies to words and numbers, the Congressional Budget Office comes along and declares that the emperor has no clothes.
President Obama premised the need for reform on the claim that medical costs are destroying the economy. True. But now we learn -- surprise! -- that universal coverage increases costs. The congressional Democrats' health care plans, says the CBO, increase costs in the range of $1 trillion plus.
In response, the president retreated to a demand that any bill he sign be revenue neutral. But that's classic misdirection: If the fierce urgency of health care reform is to radically reduce costs that are producing budget-destroying deficits, revenue neutrality (by definition) leaves us on precisely the same path to insolvency that Obama himself declares unsustainable.
The president is therefore understandably eager to make this a contest between progressive Democrats and reactionary Republicans. He seized on Republican Sen. Jim DeMint's comment that stopping Obama on health care would break his presidency to protest, with perfect disingenuousness, that "this isn't about me. This isn't about politics."
It's all about him. Health care is his signature reform. And he knows that if he produces nothing, he forfeits the mystique that both propelled him to the presidency and has sustained him through a difficult first six months. Which is why Obama's red lines are constantly shifting. Universal coverage? Maybe not. No middle-class tax hit? Well, perhaps, but only if they don't "primarily" bear the burden. Because it's about him, Obama is quite prepared to sign anything as long as it is titled "health care reform."
But you can't fake it in legislation. Once you commit your fantasies to words and numbers, the Congressional Budget Office comes along and declares that the emperor has no clothes.
President Obama premised the need for reform on the claim that medical costs are destroying the economy. True. But now we learn -- surprise! -- that universal coverage increases costs. The congressional Democrats' health care plans, says the CBO, increase costs in the range of $1 trillion plus.
In response, the president retreated to a demand that any bill he sign be revenue neutral. But that's classic misdirection: If the fierce urgency of health care reform is to radically reduce costs that are producing budget-destroying deficits, revenue neutrality (by definition) leaves us on precisely the same path to insolvency that Obama himself declares unsustainable.
The president is therefore understandably eager to make this a contest between progressive Democrats and reactionary Republicans. He seized on Republican Sen. Jim DeMint's comment that stopping Obama on health care would break his presidency to protest, with perfect disingenuousness, that "this isn't about me. This isn't about politics."
It's all about him. Health care is his signature reform. And he knows that if he produces nothing, he forfeits the mystique that both propelled him to the presidency and has sustained him through a difficult first six months. Which is why Obama's red lines are constantly shifting. Universal coverage? Maybe not. No middle-class tax hit? Well, perhaps, but only if they don't "primarily" bear the burden. Because it's about him, Obama is quite prepared to sign anything as long as it is titled "health care reform."
Obama’s Bias Jeopardizes his Presidency
(Ronald Kessler-Newsmax).If you are black and act in a belligerent and threatening manner toward a police officer, you may be invited to the White House.
That’s the message President Obama has sent in his effort to undo the political damage he caused with his remarks about the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.
As anyone who has watched a police traffic stop on television knows, the most respectable citizens can rage out of control when police confront them. If they refuse to obey orders or continue to act in a threatening and belligerent way, they are arrested.
Although Gates and Crowley are “two decent people,” Americans should be “mindful of the fact that because of our history, because of the difficulties of the past, you know, African-Americans are sensitive to these issues.” Even when you’ve “got a police officer who has a fine track record on racial sensitivity, interactions between police officers and the African-American community can sometimes be fraught with misunderstanding,” Obama opined.
Obama said he hopes the incident will be a “teachable moment,” leading people to spend “a little more time listening to each other.” But rather than teaching blacks and whites to be more tolerant, Obama sent a message to police officers that, if they do their duty and arrest a man who happens to be black, they may find themselves criticized and maligned by the president of the United States on prime-time television.
Obama’s decision to inject himself into a local arrest was “politically costly for the nation’s first African-American president, who has sought to cast himself as a clear-eyed arbiter of the nation's racial divisions,” the Washington Post said in a news account. “That image was challenged once before, in a controversy surrounding another Obama friend [the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr.].”
To the law enforcement community and a large swath of Americans, Obama’s bias is unacceptable. Nor does it sit well with white liberals. Americans thought they were electing a post-racial candidate. Instead, Obama exposed himself as having the same prejudices as Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and Obama’s longtime mentor Rev. Wright.
Together with his failures on the economy and world affairs, Obama’s insistence on siding with Gates undercuts his credibility and, ultimately, jeopardizes his presidency.
That’s the message President Obama has sent in his effort to undo the political damage he caused with his remarks about the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.
As anyone who has watched a police traffic stop on television knows, the most respectable citizens can rage out of control when police confront them. If they refuse to obey orders or continue to act in a threatening and belligerent way, they are arrested.
Although Gates and Crowley are “two decent people,” Americans should be “mindful of the fact that because of our history, because of the difficulties of the past, you know, African-Americans are sensitive to these issues.” Even when you’ve “got a police officer who has a fine track record on racial sensitivity, interactions between police officers and the African-American community can sometimes be fraught with misunderstanding,” Obama opined.
Obama said he hopes the incident will be a “teachable moment,” leading people to spend “a little more time listening to each other.” But rather than teaching blacks and whites to be more tolerant, Obama sent a message to police officers that, if they do their duty and arrest a man who happens to be black, they may find themselves criticized and maligned by the president of the United States on prime-time television.
Obama’s decision to inject himself into a local arrest was “politically costly for the nation’s first African-American president, who has sought to cast himself as a clear-eyed arbiter of the nation's racial divisions,” the Washington Post said in a news account. “That image was challenged once before, in a controversy surrounding another Obama friend [the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr.].”
To the law enforcement community and a large swath of Americans, Obama’s bias is unacceptable. Nor does it sit well with white liberals. Americans thought they were electing a post-racial candidate. Instead, Obama exposed himself as having the same prejudices as Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and Obama’s longtime mentor Rev. Wright.
Together with his failures on the economy and world affairs, Obama’s insistence on siding with Gates undercuts his credibility and, ultimately, jeopardizes his presidency.
Fox Poll: Republicans Prefer Romney as front runner, Palin for VP
Fox News/Opinion Dynamics 2012 GOP Nomination: Among Republicans, Palin is their third choice when read a list of potential candidates for the 2012 nomination. Former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney takes the top spot (22 %), though he bests former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee by just one point (21%). Palin receives the backing of 17 percent and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giluiani comes in at 13%,The remaining candidates receive single-digit support.
* Mitt Romney 22%
* Mike Huckabee 21%
* Sarah Palin 17%
* Rudy Giuliani 13%
* Newt Gingrich 9%
* Bobby Jindal 3%
* Tim Pawlenty 1%
Republicans think the best job for Palin is vice president (27 percent), followed by homemaker (18 percent), talk show host (14 percent), president (12 percent) and professor (7 percent).
More Americans have a negative view of Palin than have a positive one. While 38 percent say they have a favorable opinion of her, 51 percent have an unfavorable view. Even so, her ratings are better than those of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi: 29 percent favorable and 47 percent unfavorable.
Anti-Obama Rally in Jerusalem
(Ynet).About 1,000 settlers and right-wing activists, including Knesset members Uri Ariel, Michael Ben-Ari (both from the National Union party) and David Rotem (Yisrael Beiteinu), marched towards the US Consulate, carrying torches and calling for US special envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell to "go home."
(US President Barack) Obama is a racist," said Rabbi Eliezer Waldman, the head of the "Nir" yeshiva in the West Bank town of Kiryat Arba.
"How dare he (Obama) tell the Jews where they can or can't live? The era when Jews were banned from living in different places has ended," said Rabbi Waldman.
"Obama beware. This insolence will bring about the downfall of the American leadership," he said. "Anyone who dares give an order to prevent Israeli life in Jerusalem or anywhere else in the Land of Israel is destined to fall."
Yesha Council Director-General Pinchas Wallerstein said, "This week the American pressure reached new highs that are a shame to democratic societies. We are brought here by America's treatment of Israel as if it were a banana republic and its willingness to abandon us in order to gain the support of public opinion within the Islamic world."
(US President Barack) Obama is a racist," said Rabbi Eliezer Waldman, the head of the "Nir" yeshiva in the West Bank town of Kiryat Arba.
"How dare he (Obama) tell the Jews where they can or can't live? The era when Jews were banned from living in different places has ended," said Rabbi Waldman.
"Obama beware. This insolence will bring about the downfall of the American leadership," he said. "Anyone who dares give an order to prevent Israeli life in Jerusalem or anywhere else in the Land of Israel is destined to fall."
Yesha Council Director-General Pinchas Wallerstein said, "This week the American pressure reached new highs that are a shame to democratic societies. We are brought here by America's treatment of Israel as if it were a banana republic and its willingness to abandon us in order to gain the support of public opinion within the Islamic world."
Barak: All options on Iran are still on the table
Defense Minister Ehud Barak told visiting U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Monday that Israel was keeping on the table all the options regarding a response to Iran's nuclear program, indicating that a military strike is still a possibility even as Washington tries to persuade Israel to give diplomacy more time.
"We clearly believe that no option should be removed from the table. This is our policy. We mean it. We recommend to others to take the same position but we cannot dictate it to anyone," Barak told reporters as he stood alongside Gates during a Jerusalem press conference.
"We clearly believe that no option should be removed from the table. This is our policy. We mean it. We recommend to others to take the same position but we cannot dictate it to anyone," Barak told reporters as he stood alongside Gates during a Jerusalem press conference.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Obama plays golf….again
(The hill).President Obama has become quite the golf fanatic since he began his presidency.
The commander in chief is out on the links again today, playing a round at Andrews Air Force Base. This is the 10th time in as many weeks that Obama has found time to squeeze in some golf (all weekends, except for one Monday.)
In fact, the White House press corps has come up with a nickname to refer to the President's golfing habits: "The First Duffer," as they refer to him in pool reports when he's hitting the links.
The commander in chief is out on the links again today, playing a round at Andrews Air Force Base. This is the 10th time in as many weeks that Obama has found time to squeeze in some golf (all weekends, except for one Monday.)
In fact, the White House press corps has come up with a nickname to refer to the President's golfing habits: "The First Duffer," as they refer to him in pool reports when he's hitting the links.
BRIDGE TO (NO)WHERE? Palin steps down as Gov. of Alaska into Washington splash
(Foxnews).Sarah Palin stepped down Sunday as Alaska governor to write a book and build a right-of-center coalition, but she left her long-term political plans unclear and refused to address speculation she would seek a 2012 presidential bid.In a fiery campaign-style speech, Palin said she was stepping down to take her political battles to a larger if unspecified stage and avoid an unproductive, lame duck status.
"With this decision, now, I will be able to fight even harder for you, for what is right, and for truth. And I have never felt that you need a title to do that," Palin said to raucous applause from about 5,000 people gathered at Pioneer Park in Fairbanks.
Free speech was a theme of her farewell speech at a crowded picnic in Fairbanks, as the outgoing governor scolded "some seemingly hell bent on tearing down our nation" and warned Americans to "be wary of accepting government largess. It doesn't come free.",And she told the media: "How about, in honor of the American soldier, you quit makin' things up?"
Palin campaign speech takes aim at Media; "Ya' quit makin' things up"
Part Two of speech
FOX poll: Obama drops to 54% approval(among registered voters); 53% say Obama has no plan for Future
(Foxnews).A FOX News poll (900 registered voters) released Thursday shows approval of Obama's job performance at a new low of 54%. That is down 8 points from 62% in June. The president's job approval rating has averaged 61 percent over the first six months of his term.
As Democrats continue to be happy with their party leader (86 percent approve) and Republicans continue to be cool to Obama (75 percent disapprove),54% of independents approve of the job Obama is doing, down from 66 percent last month, and 36% disapprove, up from 26%).
Obama's approval rating is lower on the top issues of the day. On health care,43%of Americans say they approve of the job the president is doing and 45% disapprove. On the economy, 50%approve and 43% disapprove.
Americans put fixing the economy (36%) as the top priority for the federal gov't right now, followed by creating jobs (21%). Reducing the deficit (12%) and reforming health care (12%),"The president's challenge will be to position health care reform as an everyday 'pocket book' issue and not a government takeover of a large part of the economy," said Ernest Paicopolos, a principal of Opinion Dynamics Corporation.
Americans say that if there had been no stimulus plan the economy would be worse off today (36 %) as say it would be in better shape (18%), while 41% think the economy would be in about the same shape as it is today, without the $787 billion dollars of taxpayer money.
Americans don't think anyone has a plan for the economy. While 42% of voters think the Obama administration has a clear plan for fixing the economy, a 53% majority says he doesn't. Congress gets even lower marks: 21%think it has a clear plan for the economy, while most 73% disagree.
Regardless of how they voted in the presidential election, almost all Americans 84% say they want President Obama to succeed, including 97% of Democrats, 67% of Republicans and 85% of independents,When this question was asked about President Bush, 63% of Americans said they wanted him to succeed, including only 40 percent of Democrats, 90 percent of Republicans and 63% of independents (8-9 August 2006).
As Democrats continue to be happy with their party leader (86 percent approve) and Republicans continue to be cool to Obama (75 percent disapprove),54% of independents approve of the job Obama is doing, down from 66 percent last month, and 36% disapprove, up from 26%).
Obama's approval rating is lower on the top issues of the day. On health care,43%of Americans say they approve of the job the president is doing and 45% disapprove. On the economy, 50%approve and 43% disapprove.
Americans put fixing the economy (36%) as the top priority for the federal gov't right now, followed by creating jobs (21%). Reducing the deficit (12%) and reforming health care (12%),"The president's challenge will be to position health care reform as an everyday 'pocket book' issue and not a government takeover of a large part of the economy," said Ernest Paicopolos, a principal of Opinion Dynamics Corporation.
Americans say that if there had been no stimulus plan the economy would be worse off today (36 %) as say it would be in better shape (18%), while 41% think the economy would be in about the same shape as it is today, without the $787 billion dollars of taxpayer money.
Americans don't think anyone has a plan for the economy. While 42% of voters think the Obama administration has a clear plan for fixing the economy, a 53% majority says he doesn't. Congress gets even lower marks: 21%think it has a clear plan for the economy, while most 73% disagree.
Regardless of how they voted in the presidential election, almost all Americans 84% say they want President Obama to succeed, including 97% of Democrats, 67% of Republicans and 85% of independents,When this question was asked about President Bush, 63% of Americans said they wanted him to succeed, including only 40 percent of Democrats, 90 percent of Republicans and 63% of independents (8-9 August 2006).
Fresh Gaffe out of Joe the Biden's oven:Russia will bend to U.S. due to their weakness
Vice President Joe Biden says Russia will bend to U.S. demands on numerous national security issues due to a host of problems the country is currently experiencing. The vice president made the remarks in a Wall Street interview published Saturday.
Biden tells the WSJ: "Russia has to make some very difficult, calculated decisions. They have a shrinking population base, they have a withering economy, they have a banking sector and structure that is not likely to be able to withstand the next 15 years, they're in a situation where the world is changing before them and they're clinging to something in the past that is not sustainable."
(Interfax) - The Russian leadership is perplexed by the harsh criticism of Russia by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden at the time when the two countries are actively "resetting" their relations.
"Now that Russian and U.S. delegations and institutions have started important practical work to put into practice the agreements that have been achieved, it is perplexing why the second-in-command in the U.S. administration, Vice President Joe Biden, decided to share his interpretation of and his view on the bilateral relations," Russian presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko said.
Biden tells the WSJ: "Russia has to make some very difficult, calculated decisions. They have a shrinking population base, they have a withering economy, they have a banking sector and structure that is not likely to be able to withstand the next 15 years, they're in a situation where the world is changing before them and they're clinging to something in the past that is not sustainable."
(Interfax) - The Russian leadership is perplexed by the harsh criticism of Russia by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden at the time when the two countries are actively "resetting" their relations.
"Now that Russian and U.S. delegations and institutions have started important practical work to put into practice the agreements that have been achieved, it is perplexing why the second-in-command in the U.S. administration, Vice President Joe Biden, decided to share his interpretation of and his view on the bilateral relations," Russian presidential aide Sergei Prikhodko said.
Comfortable status quo - U.S. Source: Strike on Iran Means 'End of Obama'; 20 Year War
(IsraelNN.com) A senior U.S. source told Asharq Al-Awsat that if there is a war against Iran, Barack Obama’s presidency “will be over” and so will the peace process in the Middle East. “An American war on Iran would mean entering a twenty-year battle with the Islamic world starting from Afghanistan and Iraq to Iran,” according to the major pan-Arabic newspaper’s reporter Huda Al Husseini.
“I understood from my source that Obama cannot launch a war against Iran until conditions stabilize,” Husseini wrote. “He cannot embark on a war without negotiating the issue.” Such a war would be “difficult and costly,” she noted, claiming that senior officers in the U.S. army oppose it, asking – “how can we not live with a nuclear Iran if we can live with a nuclear Pakistan, which is less stable than Iran?”
CIA Director Leon Panetta visited Israel two weeks ago and asked to see documents in Israel’s possession that confirm that Iran is producing a nuclear weapon, according to the report. Panetta requested that the Israelis “do not rush into anything.” This was reportedly followed by a similar request from Michael Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
“I understood from my source that Obama cannot launch a war against Iran until conditions stabilize,” Husseini wrote. “He cannot embark on a war without negotiating the issue.” Such a war would be “difficult and costly,” she noted, claiming that senior officers in the U.S. army oppose it, asking – “how can we not live with a nuclear Iran if we can live with a nuclear Pakistan, which is less stable than Iran?”
CIA Director Leon Panetta visited Israel two weeks ago and asked to see documents in Israel’s possession that confirm that Iran is producing a nuclear weapon, according to the report. Panetta requested that the Israelis “do not rush into anything.” This was reportedly followed by a similar request from Michael Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Obama's Handmade rival - DeMint: Obama's "out of control"
(GOP12).SC Sen. Jim DeMint, on This Week w/George Stephanopoulos.
"This is not personal against the President. I like the President, but he's out of control, and he's been leading a stampede of more spending and debt and taxes and government take-overs.
He's taken a bad economy and made it worse. He used a lot of false promises and bogus numbers and panic to push through the stimulus, and the promises have not panned out.
And now he's trying to use the same strategy on health care. And what I'm trying to do -- and I think even [North Dakota Senator] Kent [Conrad] has had reservations -- let's slow down and get this [health care reform] right."
He's taken a bad economy and made it worse. He used a lot of false promises and bogus numbers and panic to push through the stimulus, and the promises have not panned out.
And now he's trying to use the same strategy on health care. And what I'm trying to do -- and I think even [North Dakota Senator] Kent [Conrad] has had reservations -- let's slow down and get this [health care reform] right."
Dick Morris/Polls Indicate Obama Losing Power
(Dick Morris-Newsmax). Superficially, the United States appears to have a presidential system, but in fact it more and more resembles a parliamentary form of government. When a president loses the approval of the majority of the voters and polls reflect that his ratings have fallen substantially below 50 percent, he loses his power.
In this context, polls are like parliamentary votes of no confidence in European systems. While the government does not fall if it loses in the polling, it limps on until either its ratings improve or it is voted out of office at the next election.
President Bill Clinton was called "irrelevant" after the congressional defeats of 1994, when his ratings hovered in the high 30s. George W. Bush seemed almost out of power in the last years of his administration, when his approval dropped to the low 30s.
Now President Barack Obama faces the loss of power that comes with dropping poll numbers. The two early symptoms of this creeping impotence are his inability to pass the union card-check legislation or to force action on healthcare before the August recess, once highly touted administration goals... Like the body counts that mounted in Iraq and drove Bush's numbers ever downward, the rising unemployment numbers are stripping Obama of his popularity and power.
Obama's very activism in promoting the stimulus package in January as a cure-all has set him up for failure now that he cannot deliver on his overblown promises. Unlike Clinton's presidency, Obama's cannot be rescued by good public relations. His obvious failure to turn the economy around drags him down at every turn.
Will the group of moderate Democrats that is increasingly blocking his programs prove to be a lasting coalition? As long as Obama's economic failures continue, they will grow and harden in their opposition to his radical agenda. Once their president's popularity tanks, Democratic centrists will not look forward to running in an election defending his policies. The race to distance themselves from his failures will be on.
Despite having 60 votes in the Senate, it is a serious question as to whether Obama will be able to get his controversial programs passed in the fall. The public mood is congealing against his healthcare proposals, and skepticism over the impact of cap-and-trade on American manufacturing is growing.
While voters are idealistically determined to cover the uninsured, they are more selfishly concerned about their own healthcare. And they are loath to trust the man who sold them on the stimulus package when he says that their care will be protected. More and more, they are asking the very simple question that Obama cannot answer: How is he going to cover 50 million new people without more doctors?
In this context, polls are like parliamentary votes of no confidence in European systems. While the government does not fall if it loses in the polling, it limps on until either its ratings improve or it is voted out of office at the next election.
President Bill Clinton was called "irrelevant" after the congressional defeats of 1994, when his ratings hovered in the high 30s. George W. Bush seemed almost out of power in the last years of his administration, when his approval dropped to the low 30s.
Now President Barack Obama faces the loss of power that comes with dropping poll numbers. The two early symptoms of this creeping impotence are his inability to pass the union card-check legislation or to force action on healthcare before the August recess, once highly touted administration goals... Like the body counts that mounted in Iraq and drove Bush's numbers ever downward, the rising unemployment numbers are stripping Obama of his popularity and power.
Obama's very activism in promoting the stimulus package in January as a cure-all has set him up for failure now that he cannot deliver on his overblown promises. Unlike Clinton's presidency, Obama's cannot be rescued by good public relations. His obvious failure to turn the economy around drags him down at every turn.
Will the group of moderate Democrats that is increasingly blocking his programs prove to be a lasting coalition? As long as Obama's economic failures continue, they will grow and harden in their opposition to his radical agenda. Once their president's popularity tanks, Democratic centrists will not look forward to running in an election defending his policies. The race to distance themselves from his failures will be on.
Despite having 60 votes in the Senate, it is a serious question as to whether Obama will be able to get his controversial programs passed in the fall. The public mood is congealing against his healthcare proposals, and skepticism over the impact of cap-and-trade on American manufacturing is growing.
While voters are idealistically determined to cover the uninsured, they are more selfishly concerned about their own healthcare. And they are loath to trust the man who sold them on the stimulus package when he says that their care will be protected. More and more, they are asking the very simple question that Obama cannot answer: How is he going to cover 50 million new people without more doctors?
Presser backfires - 40% strongly disapprove
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Sunday shows that 29% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty percent (40%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -11. That's the first time his ratings have reached double digits in negative territory
These updates are based upon nightly telephone interviews and reported on a three-day rolling average basis. Today is the first update based entirely upon interviews conducted after the President's prime time televised press conference. The number who Strongly Approve of the President has remained unchanged since the press conference but the number who Strongly Disapprove has gone up by five percentage points (from 35% on Wednesday morning to 40% today).
The President received generally poor grades for his response to a question about a Cambridge police incident involving a black Harvard professor. However, the results show a huge divide between black Americans and white Americans on all questions.Overall, 49% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Fifty percent (50%) disapprove
These updates are based upon nightly telephone interviews and reported on a three-day rolling average basis. Today is the first update based entirely upon interviews conducted after the President's prime time televised press conference. The number who Strongly Approve of the President has remained unchanged since the press conference but the number who Strongly Disapprove has gone up by five percentage points (from 35% on Wednesday morning to 40% today).
The President received generally poor grades for his response to a question about a Cambridge police incident involving a black Harvard professor. However, the results show a huge divide between black Americans and white Americans on all questions.Overall, 49% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Fifty percent (50%) disapprove
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Prime time Depress - Obama's approval at 49% among Likely Voters,strongly disapprove rises to 39%
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Saturday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-nine percent (39%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -9,The number who Strongly Disapprove of the President has increased slightly following the prime time press conference on Wednesday night. That figure--39%--is now at the highest level yet recorded. As a result, the overall Approval Index has fallen to the lowest level yet recorded for this President .
Overall, 49% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. This is the second straight day that his overall approval rating has been below 50% among Likely Voters nationwide. Fifty-one percent (51%) disapprove, More than two-thirds of the interviews for today's update were completed after the President's nationally televised press conference on Wednesday night.
It is important to remember that the Rasmussen Reports job approval ratings are based upon a sample of likely voters. Some other firms base their approval ratings on samples of all adults. President Obama's numbers are always several points higher in a poll of adults rather than likely voters. That's because some of the President's most enthusiastic supporters, such as young adults, are less likely to turn out to vote.
Overall, 49% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. This is the second straight day that his overall approval rating has been below 50% among Likely Voters nationwide. Fifty-one percent (51%) disapprove, More than two-thirds of the interviews for today's update were completed after the President's nationally televised press conference on Wednesday night.
It is important to remember that the Rasmussen Reports job approval ratings are based upon a sample of likely voters. Some other firms base their approval ratings on samples of all adults. President Obama's numbers are always several points higher in a poll of adults rather than likely voters. That's because some of the President's most enthusiastic supporters, such as young adults, are less likely to turn out to vote.
Friday, July 24, 2009
OB-Lame - Zogby:Only 48% approve Obama's job;53% give a negative job performance rating
A new Zogby Interactive survey shows a slight decline in President Barack Obama’s job approval, with 48% of likely voters now approving of the job he is doing as president, down from 51% who said the same in an interactive/telephone hybrid poll conducted in mid-June. 49% now say they disapprove of the job the president has done so far in office and 4% are not sure.
The survey found similar results when likely voters were asked specifically to rate President Obama’s performance—47% give him a positive rating, with 22% rating his job performance as “excellent” and 25% rating it as “good.” But slightly more than half (53%) give the president a negative job performance rating, with 10% who say he is doing a “fair” job as president and 43% who say he is doing a “poor” job—up from 36% who said he was doing a poor job in mid-June.
As President Obama pushes for healthcare reform, this latest survey shows Americans are growing increasingly dissatisfied with the direction the country is headed—just 41% believe the nation is headed in the right direction, while 51% believe the U.S. is on the wrong track.
"First of all, the two scales are identical showing President Obama with about as many approving as disapproving,” said John Zogby, President and CEO of Zogby International. “What is troubling for the President is not only his slide with voters but that they are re-polarized. He is strong with Democrats but only has 6% approval from Republicans and 40% from Independents. Support from young voters is high (59%) but he is down several points from the margin they gave him in November 2008. His support wanes as voters get older.”
Americans to Obama:FIX the Economy rather then fighting for Healthcare reform
(Foxnews poll)...The president gets mixed marks on health care: 43 percent of Americans approve and 45 percent disapprove of the job Barack Obama is doing on the issue. In addition, while 43 percent of Americans think the president has a clear plan on health care, a slim 51 percent majority thinks Obama doesn't have a clear plan -- including nearly a third of Democrats (31 percent).
The president's overall job approval rating has dropped to a new low of 54 percent, down from 62 percent approval last month (9-10 June 2009). The previous low was 58 percent approval at the end of March. Today 38 percent of Americans say they disapprove of the job the president is doing.
By a wide 64 percentage point margin, Americans say fixing the economy and creating jobs (76 percent) should be a higher priority for the federal government right now than reforming health care (12 percent).
In fact, majorities of Democrats (52 percent), Republicans (69 percent) and independents (61 percent) doubt the reforms can happen without tax increases,Furthermore, fully 79 percent think if health care legislation is passed they personally will pay more in taxes, 1 percent think their taxes will decrease and 18 percent expect no change.
Cop Tells Obama: I Didn't Vote for You and Won't Apologize
(Newsmax).The police officer at the center of a national racial firestorm triggered by President Barack Obama told an interviewer Thursday that he had nothing to apologize for in the arrest of a black Harvard scholar, and that the president he didn’t vote for should have considered his words more carefully.
“The apology won’t come from me,” Sgt. James Crowley told Carl Stevens of WBZ News Radio in Boston. "I’ve done nothing wrong."
A well-regarded officer who is an expert on racial profiling, Crowley responded to a call at the Cambridge home of Henry Louis Gates Jr. last week to investigate a report of a burglary. Confronting Gates and another man who appeared to have forced open the door of the home, Crowley asked Gates to show him identification,Gates initially refused and accused Crowley of racism. The professor is a close friend of Harvard alumnus Barack Obama.
“I acted appropriately. Mr. Gates was given plenty of opportunity to stop what he was doing,” Crowley said. “He didn’t. He acted very irrational, and he controlled the outcome of that event,“There was a lot of yelling. There was references to my mother,” Crowley said. “Something you wouldn’t expect from anybody who should be grateful you’re there investigating the report of a crime in progress, let alone a Harvard University professor.”
Asked what he thought of the president’s comments, Crowley immediately replied, “I didn’t vote for him,” and then smiled ,"I think he’s way off base wading into a local issue without knowing all the facts".
2010 As 1994, But a Messenger is needed
(Race42012).We’ve seen this before: a young, charismatic Democratic president, elected largely due to the screw-ups of a Republican president named Bush, finds himself totally unprepared for the job, ends up having his reformist agenda shelved by his own party’s congressional power-brokers, and allows his White House to become the property of congressional Democrats and left-wing interest groups, who run the president’s policies and approval rating into the ground. By the summer of 1993, President Clinton’s attempt at health care reform had been dealt a serious blow, many of the president’s social policies were viewed as outside the cultural mainstream by most Americans at that time, and the most significant piece of legislation to be signed into law by the president was a tax bill opposed by large numbers of Americans. As of the summer of 2009, President Obama’s efforts to reform health care seem to be flailing, the president’s Supreme Court nominee enjoys luke-warm support on the part of the American people due to her questionable statements on race, and the most significant piece of legislation to become law remains an economic stimulus bill that is increasingly seen as a giveaway to special interests on the part of a naive fledgling president.
As such, Republicans will probably do well in 2009/10 just as they did in 1993/94. The GOP will likely benefit from the return of the Atlantic-readin’, Tom Friedman totin’, moderate independents to the Republican tent for at least one election cycle in order to prevent Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid from gaining any more power than they already have, as well as from the regional dynamic that characterizes midterm elections. Without a single national leader, Republicans are free to run as the Anybody But Obama party, fielding regionally-appropriate candidates for public office in red, blue, and purple territory. That will mean that 2009/10 will see victories by an ideologically diverse group of Republicans, from Chris Christie to Bob McDonnell, from Rudy Giuliani and Carly Fiorina to John Kasich, from Charlie Crist and Mike Castle to Pat Toomey. And that will be good for the party, because fresh blood means new ideas, and new ideas are sorely needed in a party that, near the end of the Bush years, began to feel like just as much of a tired, old clearinghouse of interest groups as, well, the Democrats.
Still, there remains one main distinction between the present political environment and that of 1993/94, and that is the inability of today’s Republican Party to regain the trust and recapture the imagination of a majority of Americans,The problem with today’s GOP is that it is sorely lacking in both a message that resonates with the majority of Americans as well as messengers that can effectively explain that message to those Americans.
So ultimately, 2010 probably will not be 1994, but Democrats are busily sowing the seeds of their own demise and it will be up to the new Republican officeholders in 2011, such as Gov. Giuliani, Sen. Fiorina, Gov. Christie, etc., to come up with a modern Republican agenda that fits the times in which we live. And should President Obama fail to move back to the center after 2010 the way President Clinton did after 1994, Republicans will have a real opportunity to take back the White House in 2012, which makes the reformist messages of Gov. Romney and Gov. Huckabee all the more important and which provides an opening for a fiscally conservative, high-tech, socially inclusive Republican presidential contender should one make his way onto the political stage.
Mitt Romney the Front-runner or Runner-up?
(blogs.cqpolitics.com).A Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted from July 15 through July 18 places Huckabee as the favorite of 26 percent of Republicans and GOP-leaning independents, 5 percentage points ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (21%), 7 points ahead of soon-to-be-former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin(195) and 16 points ahead of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
But polls differ on this speculative matter, as you'd expect roughly three years out from the next Republican National Convention. A Gallup poll released July 16 showed Romney in the lead at 26 percent, with Palin second at 21 percent -- and Huckabee third at 19 percent.
While this latest survey shows Romney a bit behind Huckabee, he has a personal and family history that suggests being a front-runner isn't all it is cracked up to be.
Remember that in 2007, during the run-up to the 2008 Republican presidential campaign, a number of polls showed Romney ahead of Arizona Sen. John McCain -- the eventual nominee -- whose campaign organization had almost gone broke,And his father, then-Michigan Gov. George Romney, led Richard M. Nixon in late 1966 polling about the 1968 GOP nomination. Nixon, who went on to win the nomination and the presidency.
So perhaps drafting behind Huckabee would put less pressure on Mitt Romney as he works to builds strength for the race's stretch run.
WAKE UP AMERICA !!!!! 51% DISAPPROVE OBAMA
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-eight percent (38%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -8.
Just 25% believe that the economic stimulus package has helped the economy.
Overall, 49% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Today marks the first time his overall approval rating has ever fallen below 50% among Likely Voters nationwide. Fifty-one percent (51%) disapprove.
Eighty-three percent (83%) of Democrats continue to approve of the President’s performance while 80% of Republicans disapprove. Among those not affiliated with either major party, 37% offer a positive assessment. The President earns approval from 51% of women and 47% of men.
LISTEN AGAIN TO DENNIS KUCINICH'S WAKE UP AMERICA SPEECH AT THE DNC CONVENTION, JUST IMAGINE A REPUBLICAN IS SAYING IT NOW....WAKE UP AMERICA
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Bye Bye Democrat! Toomey Ties Specter In PA Quinnipiac Poll
(quinnipiac).Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter's 2010 reelection lead over Republican challenger Pat Toomey has shrunk to a tie with 45 percent for Specter and 44 percent for Toomey, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. And voters say 49 - 40 percent that Sen. Specter does not deserve reelection.
"Sen. Arlen Specter's 20-point lead over former Congressman Pat Toomey less than three months ago has virtually vanished," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
"Voters see Sen. Specter much less favorably than they once did and are net negative about giving him a sixth term in the U.S. Senate. Independent voters have shifted narrowly to Toomey 46 - 42 percent and say 53 - 35 percent that Specter does not deserve reelection."
Pennsylvania voters split 47 - 46 percent in their job approval for Specter, his highest disapproval ever and his lowest approval since a 47 - 36 percent score in an April 22, 2004, Quinnipiac University poll, when Specter faced Toomey in a Republican primary battle.
"Sen. Arlen Specter's 20-point lead over former Congressman Pat Toomey less than three months ago has virtually vanished," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
"Voters see Sen. Specter much less favorably than they once did and are net negative about giving him a sixth term in the U.S. Senate. Independent voters have shifted narrowly to Toomey 46 - 42 percent and say 53 - 35 percent that Specter does not deserve reelection."
Pennsylvania voters split 47 - 46 percent in their job approval for Specter, his highest disapproval ever and his lowest approval since a 47 - 36 percent score in an April 22, 2004, Quinnipiac University poll, when Specter faced Toomey in a Republican primary battle.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
After Six month Obama is less popular then Dubya
USA TODAY WASHINGTON — A president's standing after his first six months in office doesn't forecast whether he'll have a successful four-year term, but it does signal how much political juice he'll have for his second six months in office. .
Barack Obama, who completed six months in office Monday, has a 55% approval rating in the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, putting him 10th among the dozen presidents who have served since World War II at this point in their tenures.
A president's standing at the moment is more than a matter of vanity. It affects his ability to hold the members of his own party and persuade those on the other side to support him, at least on the occasional issue. "Approval ratings are absolutely critical for a president achieving his agenda," says Republican pollster Whit Ayres. For Obama, the timing of his slide in ratings is particularly unhelpful: He's intensified his push to pass health care bills in the House and Senate before Congress leaves on its August recess.
His overall approval rating has dropped 9 percentage points since his inauguration in January, and his disapproval rate has jumped 16 points, to 41%. Trouble at home More people disapprove than approve of Obama on four domestic issues: the economy, taxes, health care and the federal budget deficit. The biggest drop has been on his handling of the economy, down 12 points since February; his disapproval is up 19 points. The most erosion has come not from Republicans or independents but among his own Democrats. Support from conservative and moderate Democrats is down by 18 points. Another group in the party's political base — those earning $20,000 to $50,000 a year — had a drop of 15 percentage points, to 47%. That could reflect one reason why moderate Democratic senators and the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats in the House are demanding more cost controls in the health care plan before they'll sign on. "It's important if a president is trying to accomplish some big stuff legislatively," H.W. Brands, a professor at the University of Texas-Austin, says of the approval rating. He was one of several presidential historians who sat down with Obama at a private White House dinner this month. "Members of Congress are somewhat reluctant to tangle with a president who seems to have the backing of the American people."
At 55% overall, Obama's approval rating is a tick below that of George W. Bush at six months.
Barack Obama, who completed six months in office Monday, has a 55% approval rating in the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, putting him 10th among the dozen presidents who have served since World War II at this point in their tenures.
A president's standing at the moment is more than a matter of vanity. It affects his ability to hold the members of his own party and persuade those on the other side to support him, at least on the occasional issue. "Approval ratings are absolutely critical for a president achieving his agenda," says Republican pollster Whit Ayres. For Obama, the timing of his slide in ratings is particularly unhelpful: He's intensified his push to pass health care bills in the House and Senate before Congress leaves on its August recess.
His overall approval rating has dropped 9 percentage points since his inauguration in January, and his disapproval rate has jumped 16 points, to 41%. Trouble at home More people disapprove than approve of Obama on four domestic issues: the economy, taxes, health care and the federal budget deficit. The biggest drop has been on his handling of the economy, down 12 points since February; his disapproval is up 19 points. The most erosion has come not from Republicans or independents but among his own Democrats. Support from conservative and moderate Democrats is down by 18 points. Another group in the party's political base — those earning $20,000 to $50,000 a year — had a drop of 15 percentage points, to 47%. That could reflect one reason why moderate Democratic senators and the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats in the House are demanding more cost controls in the health care plan before they'll sign on. "It's important if a president is trying to accomplish some big stuff legislatively," H.W. Brands, a professor at the University of Texas-Austin, says of the approval rating. He was one of several presidential historians who sat down with Obama at a private White House dinner this month. "Members of Congress are somewhat reluctant to tangle with a president who seems to have the backing of the American people."
At 55% overall, Obama's approval rating is a tick below that of George W. Bush at six months.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Pastor Hagee:"Hello Congress! We are putting pressure on the wrong people"
Via Twitter -@Bibireport Pastor Hagee: "Hello Congress!We are putting pressure on the wrong people",Go get tough with Tehran,get tough with Russia, not with our main ally ....
Romney on Obama's Push For Health Reform: Slow Down
(Katie Connolly-Newsweek). In the last two weeks, political commentators have expressed doubts over President Obama's time frame for healthcare reform. Meanwhile, even some Democrat lawmakers appear to be getting cold feet. In response, Obama is relentlessly pitching his plan. He has spoken about healthcare on eight out of the last nine days, and he's scheduled to hold a town hall meeting on the topic this Thursday. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is one of the few politicians in the country with first hand experience of steering major health care reform through the legislative process. The reforms he enacted in Massachusetts have been critizied for being costly, but they've also managed to extend coverage to a significant number of uninsured people. By 2007, the proportion of uninsured people in Massachusetts was the lowest in the country. I spoke to Romney about his experience with healthcare reform this morning. His cautionary words for Obama? Slow down. Here are some excerpts from our conversation:What do you think needs to happen over the next couple of weeks if President Obama's deadline for healthcare reform is to be met? I think the President ought to hit the reset button. I think it is critical that he have the participation, involvement, and support of people on both sides of the aisle, as well as people in various sectors of the health economy. If we are going to have a dramatic shift in the nature of so large a part of our economy then it needs to be something that has been thoroughly vetted and has received great support. Out of a desire to move very quickly, while his support is highest, he has skipped the critical steps of educating, involving, and evolving his own plans to meet the perspectives of the great majority of our citizens.It sounds like you are encouraging the President to slow down. Aren't there risks in delaying?He's in a very difficult position. We faced a very similar question [in Massachusetts] as we began our process. We spent over two years putting together a health care plan and then building support for it on both sides of the aisle - working with hospitals, providers, doctors, business groups, labor groups, advocates for the poor. We involved all of these parties, and it took a long time, but what we ended up with was a bill that passed the legislature - if you combine the House and the Senate
Solidarity: Huckabee to air show from disputed Israeli site
(Haaretz).Former U.S. presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee plans to broadcast his weekend show on Fox News from the site of a disputed Israeli construction project in East Jerusalem, a New York politician has told Haaretz.
New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind said Huckabee will air the talkshow during a solidarity visit to the site of the project, which is in the Palestinian neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.
New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind said Huckabee will air the talkshow during a solidarity visit to the site of the project, which is in the Palestinian neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.
GOP Representatives in the House use 1 Min. speeches to ask Obama: "Where are the jobs?"
More than 50 House Republicans used their privilege to give a one-minute speech on the floor — most asking, "Where are the jobs?"
Rep. Steve King
Rep. Dave Camp
Rep. Rob Wittman
Rep. Steve King
Rep. Dave Camp
Rep. Rob Wittman
Monday, July 20, 2009
Fred Malek-Ten for the Road, Republican Leaders that Are Making an Impact
(fredmalekblog).My list focuses on the near term for the top five and then the longer term for the next five. The reason is this: President Obama is pressing two legislative initiatives that are the most dangerous, costly, and ineffective as anything seen in recent history – an overhaul of the health care system and a cap-and-trade bill. Despite President Obama’s eloquence, the public seems to get it, and public opinion is turning against these policies. If they can be defeated in their present form in Congress, it will represent a victory for mainstream America, mark the end of the Obama honeymoon, and launch the resurgence of the Republican Party.
Here is my list of the top 10 players making an impact for our party:
1. Mitch McConnell - He has the task of holding together the forty Republican Senators, no small task.
2. John Boehner - He has a simple task in the House and so far has been enormously effective in binding the GOP together, not by partisan political force, but by sensible articulations and unity around a set of policy beliefs.
3. Doug Elmendorf - True, he’s not a Republican but the head of a Congressional Budget Office, appointed by Democrat leadership. Thank goodness he is a man of character and courage, for it is he who put a dagger in the health care plan with an accurate assessment of its true costs and deficit impact.
4. Bob McDonnell…
5. …and Chris Christie - We have two statewide elections in a little more than three months. McDonnell is the best candidate Virginia has had in a generation and leads his opponent by 3-5 points. He is on the right side of the issues on health care, energy, and deficit spending. He will win. Christie is an outstanding candidate and leads Corzine by some twelve points currently.Both McDonnell and Christie are on the path to victory, aided in part by increasing public skepticism of President Obama’s programs and the enormous deficits and mounting debt that results.
6. Mitt Romney - Now I turn to the future. Romney continues to do all the right things campaigning for Republican candidates and raising large amounts for candidates and his own well run PAC. If the current recession continues, President Obama will have to assume responsibility – he may start by looking at his poorly-designed “stimulus” plan – then perhaps nobody will be better positioned than Mitt. His leadership experience and ability were not quite enough to overcome doubts in 2008, but now that he has shown he can run as confident a campaign as the current president’s, he will definitely get a strong second look as the 2012 race takes shape.
7. Tim Pawlenty - Pawlenty is positioned to take on a leadership role among Republican Governors, is receiving top marks on his appearances around the country, and will soon be regarded as a top contender for 2012. He is showing bold leadership, even after announcing he will not run for re-election, with his promise to close Minnesota’s $2.7 billion deficit without resorting to tax increases.
8. Haley Barbour - He is undoubtly the best political strategist in the Republican Party and is just as strong on policy. He will be a dynamic force as Chair of the Republican Governor’s Association and will be enormously helpful to both McDonnell and Christie.
9. Charlie Crist, Mark Kirk, and hopefully Mike Castle - And other moderate candidates. My fellow conservatives may not like this one, but hear me out: Unless our party can embrace a big tent policy that welcomes moderates like my friend Colin Powell, we will not win elections. In liberal-dominated Illinois, Delaware and increasingly purple Florida, we need to be open to supporting officials who can win and will support our issues most of the time, instead of electing more Democrats who will oppose us nearly all of the time. These three plus our great conservative candidates in states like New Hampshire, Ohio, and Missouri give me great hope that we can remain a party in which conservatives and moderates can not only coexist, but flourish.
10. Paul Ryan - As ranking minority on the House Budget Committee, his voice will continue to be heard and become more influential. And it is a clear and compelling voice.Stay tuned- this is a man to watch.
Here is my list of the top 10 players making an impact for our party:
1. Mitch McConnell - He has the task of holding together the forty Republican Senators, no small task.
2. John Boehner - He has a simple task in the House and so far has been enormously effective in binding the GOP together, not by partisan political force, but by sensible articulations and unity around a set of policy beliefs.
3. Doug Elmendorf - True, he’s not a Republican but the head of a Congressional Budget Office, appointed by Democrat leadership. Thank goodness he is a man of character and courage, for it is he who put a dagger in the health care plan with an accurate assessment of its true costs and deficit impact.
4. Bob McDonnell…
5. …and Chris Christie - We have two statewide elections in a little more than three months. McDonnell is the best candidate Virginia has had in a generation and leads his opponent by 3-5 points. He is on the right side of the issues on health care, energy, and deficit spending. He will win. Christie is an outstanding candidate and leads Corzine by some twelve points currently.Both McDonnell and Christie are on the path to victory, aided in part by increasing public skepticism of President Obama’s programs and the enormous deficits and mounting debt that results.
6. Mitt Romney - Now I turn to the future. Romney continues to do all the right things campaigning for Republican candidates and raising large amounts for candidates and his own well run PAC. If the current recession continues, President Obama will have to assume responsibility – he may start by looking at his poorly-designed “stimulus” plan – then perhaps nobody will be better positioned than Mitt. His leadership experience and ability were not quite enough to overcome doubts in 2008, but now that he has shown he can run as confident a campaign as the current president’s, he will definitely get a strong second look as the 2012 race takes shape.
7. Tim Pawlenty - Pawlenty is positioned to take on a leadership role among Republican Governors, is receiving top marks on his appearances around the country, and will soon be regarded as a top contender for 2012. He is showing bold leadership, even after announcing he will not run for re-election, with his promise to close Minnesota’s $2.7 billion deficit without resorting to tax increases.
8. Haley Barbour - He is undoubtly the best political strategist in the Republican Party and is just as strong on policy. He will be a dynamic force as Chair of the Republican Governor’s Association and will be enormously helpful to both McDonnell and Christie.
9. Charlie Crist, Mark Kirk, and hopefully Mike Castle - And other moderate candidates. My fellow conservatives may not like this one, but hear me out: Unless our party can embrace a big tent policy that welcomes moderates like my friend Colin Powell, we will not win elections. In liberal-dominated Illinois, Delaware and increasingly purple Florida, we need to be open to supporting officials who can win and will support our issues most of the time, instead of electing more Democrats who will oppose us nearly all of the time. These three plus our great conservative candidates in states like New Hampshire, Ohio, and Missouri give me great hope that we can remain a party in which conservatives and moderates can not only coexist, but flourish.
10. Paul Ryan - As ranking minority on the House Budget Committee, his voice will continue to be heard and become more influential. And it is a clear and compelling voice.Stay tuned- this is a man to watch.
PPP '12 poll shows Obama with a weak Start, GOP candidates closing gaps
!. Barack Obama 48% Mike Huckabee 42%
2. Barack Obama 50% Newt Gingrich 42%
3. Barack Obama 51% Sarah Palin 43%
4. Barack Obama 49% Mitt Romney 40%
The six point lead over Huckabee is the first time in the four months we've been polling these match ups that Obama has shown an advantage against any of these candidates smaller than his popular vote victory over John McCain.
The Republicans are doing better against Obama in these polls as his popularity has dipped nearly below 50%.
2. Barack Obama 50% Newt Gingrich 42%
3. Barack Obama 51% Sarah Palin 43%
4. Barack Obama 49% Mitt Romney 40%
The six point lead over Huckabee is the first time in the four months we've been polling these match ups that Obama has shown an advantage against any of these candidates smaller than his popular vote victory over John McCain.
The Republicans are doing better against Obama in these polls as his popularity has dipped nearly below 50%.
Rasmussen and PPP: Obama's approval Rating at 50%
(Rasmussen).The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Monday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-seven percent (37%) Strongly Disapprove.
Overall, 50% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Forty-nine percent (49%) disapprove. The President earns approval from 41% of white voters, 97% of black voters, and 58% of all other voters.
(PPP).PPP's monthly national survey shows Barack Obama's approval rating continuing to drop. It's now at 50% with 43% of voters disapproving, continuing a steady decline from 52% in June and 55% in May.
Compared to a month ago his numbers are largely unchanged with Democrats and independents but he continues to lose the little bipartisan appeal he had to begin with. His approval with Republicans is now 12%, down from 18% in June.
While he's continued to maintain a high level of popularity with African Americans and Hispanics, his approval with whites is now at 39%. That's four points below what exit polls showed him earning last November.
Overall, 50% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Forty-nine percent (49%) disapprove. The President earns approval from 41% of white voters, 97% of black voters, and 58% of all other voters.
(PPP).PPP's monthly national survey shows Barack Obama's approval rating continuing to drop. It's now at 50% with 43% of voters disapproving, continuing a steady decline from 52% in June and 55% in May.
Compared to a month ago his numbers are largely unchanged with Democrats and independents but he continues to lose the little bipartisan appeal he had to begin with. His approval with Republicans is now 12%, down from 18% in June.
While he's continued to maintain a high level of popularity with African Americans and Hispanics, his approval with whites is now at 39%. That's four points below what exit polls showed him earning last November.
Oh My.. It's a Tie... Romney vs. Obama 45-45
If the 2012 presidential election were held today, President Obama and possible Republican nominee Mitt Romney would be all tied up at 45% each, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.The president, seeking a second four-year term, beats another potential GOP rival, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, by six points -- 48% to 42%.In both match-ups, seven percent (7%) like some other candidate, with three percent (3%) undecided.Palin is second only to Romney as the presidential candidate Republican voters say right now that they'll vote for in 2012 state GOP primaries . But she's also one of two candidates they least hope wins the party's nomination.
Just 21% of voters nationwide say Palin should run as an independent if she loses the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. Sixty-three percent (63%) say the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee should not run as an independent. Sixteen percent (16%) are not sure.If Romney secured the GOP nomination and Palin chose to run as an independent candidate, Obama would win the resulting three-way race with 44% of the vote. Romney is the choice of 33% of the voters under that scenario, with Palin a distant third with 16% support. Three percent (3%) like some other candidate, and four percent (4%) are undecided.Last November, Obama defeated Republican presidential nominee John McCain by a 53% to 46% margin.
When Romney is the Republican nominee, he beats Obama among unaffiliated voters 48% to 41%. But when Palin is the GOP candidate, unaffiliated voters prefer Obama by a 47% to 41% margin.Men prefer the Republican over Obama whether it's Romney or Obama, while women like the president better in both match-ups. Palin continues to fare more poorly among women than her male rivals.In a three-way race, Palin hurts Romney by drawing 28% Republican support. Romney captures 52% of the GOP vote in that scenario
Just 21% of voters nationwide say Palin should run as an independent if she loses the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. Sixty-three percent (63%) say the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee should not run as an independent. Sixteen percent (16%) are not sure.If Romney secured the GOP nomination and Palin chose to run as an independent candidate, Obama would win the resulting three-way race with 44% of the vote. Romney is the choice of 33% of the voters under that scenario, with Palin a distant third with 16% support. Three percent (3%) like some other candidate, and four percent (4%) are undecided.Last November, Obama defeated Republican presidential nominee John McCain by a 53% to 46% margin.
When Romney is the Republican nominee, he beats Obama among unaffiliated voters 48% to 41%. But when Palin is the GOP candidate, unaffiliated voters prefer Obama by a 47% to 41% margin.Men prefer the Republican over Obama whether it's Romney or Obama, while women like the president better in both match-ups. Palin continues to fare more poorly among women than her male rivals.In a three-way race, Palin hurts Romney by drawing 28% Republican support. Romney captures 52% of the GOP vote in that scenario
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Mr. Obama you can sting us as a Bee, but don't expect to lick from us Honey!
(Jacob K.- Bibi Report)."What does [US President Barack Obama] think to himself? That after I built 20,000 homes in Jerusalem during my last term I'm going to stop the building of 20 more?" Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu reportedly said Sunday in closed conversations, according to Channels 10 and 2.
Sources close to the prime minister said that Obama "had crossed a red line" when his administration began demanding Israel cease building projects in its sovereign capital.
Mr. Obama and the State department,Opposition and the World can all come together and criticize Netanyahu's dispute and confrontation with the US as lack of communication between the two Leaders, that led to the Americans to toughen their stance on the issue of settlement construction and demand that Israel halt all development on a project in the east Jerusalem.
But the Truth is that from the First Day that Mr. Netanyahu entered his term as PM the US President openly displayed the differences the two Leaders share, and the different policies they believe in,instead of continuing the relationship as discreet and honorable, And it was Netanayhu that was told not to come to the US before he comes up with a Peace plan, It was Netanyahu that displayed his policy to the Public in what he agreed to a Palestinian State with Conditions that secure Israel's borders and that enjoys a wide Public support, It was Netanyahu that called on the Palestinian Leaders and the Arab leaders to meet for Peace Negotiations without any pre-condition, It was Netanyahu that was praised by US offiacials and by the Quartet envoy Tony Blair on his moves the past few weeks to ease the lives of the Palestinians in the West Bank, It was Obama himself that declared in Sderot last summer:that "Jerusalem will be the Capital of Israel,and its important that we dont slice the city in Half,but i've also said that is a final Status issue...and its not the Job of the US to dictate the form it which that will take..", and at tha Annual Aipac meeting he said it out Clear:"it must be clear that Jerusalem will remain the Capital of Israel, and it must remain undivded".
So PM Netanyahu is only expressing a wide Consensus Issue across Israel which crosses Party lines and was made clear over decades that Jerusalem is the Capital of the Jeish State of Israel, and that any issue of Settlement freeze or giving up land will be discussed during the Peace negotiations that have yet to take place, Netanyahu has the backing and the Support of the Israeli People to defend Israel's interests and will not compromise when it comes to issues that remain the main spin of stabilty and security of Israel, and as former PM Ehud Olmert wrote in the Washington post: ""The insistence now on a complete freeze on settlement construction -- impossible to completely enforce -- will not promote Palestinian efforts to enhance security measures; the institution building that is so crucial for the development of a Palestinian state; better movement and access to the Palestinians....It will not bring greater security to Israel, help improve Israel's relations with the Arab world, strengthen a coalition of moderate Arab states or shift the strategic balance in the Middle East".
It is not in Nobody's Interest to cross the lines and break up a relationship that has been in decades "a friendship anchored not in transitory interests, but in eternal values and timeless ideals. And these common ideals of liberty and democracy, are the foundation of the deep and enduring bond between the United States and Israel", But If President Obama wants to bring Peace to the region he has to recognize the sacrifice the Israeli people have gone through and realize that this government was elected by the Israeli people to Bring peace and Security, and if his trust diminishes and his efforts fail upon focusing on this Issues that the Majority of Israel cannot accept, History will not only judge him for not achieving peace Between Israel and its neighbors, but for giving up and fighting against the will of freedom and the stabilization of the Middle east region.
Sources close to the prime minister said that Obama "had crossed a red line" when his administration began demanding Israel cease building projects in its sovereign capital.
Mr. Obama and the State department,Opposition and the World can all come together and criticize Netanyahu's dispute and confrontation with the US as lack of communication between the two Leaders, that led to the Americans to toughen their stance on the issue of settlement construction and demand that Israel halt all development on a project in the east Jerusalem.
But the Truth is that from the First Day that Mr. Netanyahu entered his term as PM the US President openly displayed the differences the two Leaders share, and the different policies they believe in,instead of continuing the relationship as discreet and honorable, And it was Netanayhu that was told not to come to the US before he comes up with a Peace plan, It was Netanyahu that displayed his policy to the Public in what he agreed to a Palestinian State with Conditions that secure Israel's borders and that enjoys a wide Public support, It was Netanyahu that called on the Palestinian Leaders and the Arab leaders to meet for Peace Negotiations without any pre-condition, It was Netanyahu that was praised by US offiacials and by the Quartet envoy Tony Blair on his moves the past few weeks to ease the lives of the Palestinians in the West Bank, It was Obama himself that declared in Sderot last summer:that "Jerusalem will be the Capital of Israel,and its important that we dont slice the city in Half,but i've also said that is a final Status issue...and its not the Job of the US to dictate the form it which that will take..", and at tha Annual Aipac meeting he said it out Clear:"it must be clear that Jerusalem will remain the Capital of Israel, and it must remain undivded".
So PM Netanyahu is only expressing a wide Consensus Issue across Israel which crosses Party lines and was made clear over decades that Jerusalem is the Capital of the Jeish State of Israel, and that any issue of Settlement freeze or giving up land will be discussed during the Peace negotiations that have yet to take place, Netanyahu has the backing and the Support of the Israeli People to defend Israel's interests and will not compromise when it comes to issues that remain the main spin of stabilty and security of Israel, and as former PM Ehud Olmert wrote in the Washington post: ""The insistence now on a complete freeze on settlement construction -- impossible to completely enforce -- will not promote Palestinian efforts to enhance security measures; the institution building that is so crucial for the development of a Palestinian state; better movement and access to the Palestinians....It will not bring greater security to Israel, help improve Israel's relations with the Arab world, strengthen a coalition of moderate Arab states or shift the strategic balance in the Middle East".
It is not in Nobody's Interest to cross the lines and break up a relationship that has been in decades "a friendship anchored not in transitory interests, but in eternal values and timeless ideals. And these common ideals of liberty and democracy, are the foundation of the deep and enduring bond between the United States and Israel", But If President Obama wants to bring Peace to the region he has to recognize the sacrifice the Israeli people have gone through and realize that this government was elected by the Israeli people to Bring peace and Security, and if his trust diminishes and his efforts fail upon focusing on this Issues that the Majority of Israel cannot accept, History will not only judge him for not achieving peace Between Israel and its neighbors, but for giving up and fighting against the will of freedom and the stabilization of the Middle east region.
Israeli PM to US President:NO! I will not cave in to your Pressure
(Haaretz,Channel 2).Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he had been "surprised" by a recent U.S. demand that Israel halt a construction project in a Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem. "I was surprised by the U.S. move," the premier told his advisors. "In my conversation with [U.S. President Barack] Obama in Washington, I told him that I could not accept any limitations on our sovereignty in Jerusalem. I told him Jerusalem is not a settlement, and it has nothing to do with discussions on a freeze."
Netanyahu's comments came after both Israel Radio and Army Radio reported that the U.S. State Department summoned Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren over the weekend to advise him that the project, developed by American millionaire Irving Moskowitz, should not go ahead. As of Sunday evening, the bureau has not received a response from U.S. officials to the report. "I won't cave in on this matter," Netanyahu pledged Sunday during consultations at his bureau.
The prime minister added: "During my previous tenure I built thousands of housing units in the [East] Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa, and I went against the world. Therefore, it is clear that in the present situation I will not cave in, all the more so since this is a matter of 20 housing units only."
Netanyahu's comments came after both Israel Radio and Army Radio reported that the U.S. State Department summoned Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren over the weekend to advise him that the project, developed by American millionaire Irving Moskowitz, should not go ahead. As of Sunday evening, the bureau has not received a response from U.S. officials to the report. "I won't cave in on this matter," Netanyahu pledged Sunday during consultations at his bureau.
The prime minister added: "During my previous tenure I built thousands of housing units in the [East] Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Homa, and I went against the world. Therefore, it is clear that in the present situation I will not cave in, all the more so since this is a matter of 20 housing units only."
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