Posts Tagged ‘congress’

Sometimes Joe Scarborough just NAILS  it!

Posted: December 13, 2010 by datechguy in congress, economy
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I’m very hard on Joe Scarborough mostly because I like him (I’m always harder on people I like because I expect more from them) but today he said something that is incredibly important.

He was going on about the hypocrisy of both right and left on deficits and said this:

“There are a couple of tea partiers who care about this (the deficit) Rand Paul and Jim DeMint,that’s it!”

Although Joe likely doesn’t know Porkbusters he has a point. The Tea Party crowd doesn’t actually trust the republicans. I could not find a single person in the crowd at the Washington Freedom Works rally who would say they trusted republicans.

A lot of the newly elected republicans in congress got little or no help from the national GOP. This was due to several factors, they were not professional pols, the party didn’t expect them to win, but also because they are committed controlling spending.

Trent Lott gave the game away in July:

the last thing Lott needs is a bunch of unwashed, Tea-Partying right-wingers coming to Washington on a wave of anti-establishment, free-market populism, and messing up the good thing he has going.

“We don’t need a lot of Jim DeMint disciples,” Lott told the Washington Post, referring to the conservative South Carolina senator who has been a gadfly for party leadership and a champion for upstart conservative candidates. “As soon as they get here, we need to co-opt them.”

But Lott is no longer in the Republican leadership — he resigned from the Senate in December 2007, mid-term, just before a law kicked in that would have required him to wait two years before lobbying the Senate. So who is he talking about when he says “we need to co-opt them”?

“We” means the K Street wing of the Republican Party.

There are an awful lot of republicans who are more interested in chairmanships and favors than controlling spending and lowering taxes (and yes they are connected). That group needs to keep the good will of the Tea Party voters who brought them over the top for now so they will play ball, but if they get the chance they will try to turn the newly elected reps.

This is going to be the fight that will dominate Washington over the next 2 years and will determine the party and the country’s future longterm and will actually have a lot to do with both the presidential elections in 2012 and if we have a tea party 3rd party in 2014.

If Morning Joe follows this story, they will have a jump on the rest of the MSM.

My Interview with Ann Marie Buerkle

Posted: November 14, 2010 by datechguy in congress, elections, opinion/news, politics, short films/interviews
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Following up on my last post I spoke to Ann Marie Buerkle this week:

DaTechGuy: How are the absentee ballots looking so far?

Ann Marie Buerkle: They are looking pretty good absentee ballots are breaking more from areas I’ve done well in.

DTG: So what kind of tactics have you been seeing the other side running?

AMB: Well first of all they asked for a manual count, the Judge has rejected that temporarily. No problems have come up with the machines. The DCCC and the Unions are here in force and their campaign has asked the media to in a memo to hold off reporting on the race. They’ve even been contacting voters at home to find how they voted! (DTG as I’ve reported here)

DTG: Has there been any issues with Military Ballots?

AMB: No they have steered clear of them, so far.

DTG: I guess that is the last resort, What kind of operation are they running?

AMB: The goal seems to be to disqualify as many republican ballots as they can, they are objecting to absentee ballots at a ratio of 3-1 compared to us.

DTG: And what about the congressman himself?

AMB: There has been sign of him, he has not make a statement or an appearance since election night. On Veterans day he didn’t even put in an appearance or a statement, very very unusual.

DTG: Speaking of unusual a lot of people seems to have been taken by surprise by your lead.

AMB: John McCain only took 43% of the vote in this district.

DTG: And there was that poll we talked about during Stacy McCain’s and my visit.

AMB: We worked very hard in Monroe County and took it 55-45. No Republican had ever taken Monroe county before. We did even better in Wayne county with 65% of the vote and I have to mention the grass roots effort in the town of Webster, simply masterful, volunteers knocked on every door and left materials at every house more than once. I can’t say enough about our volunteers.

DTG: And as the count goes on what will you be up to?

AMB: I will be attending the Congressional Freshman Orientation event in Washington.

DTG: Yeah with the current popularity of the president that a losing proposition, no wonder they are all in now. Finally with all the Union and DCCC help against you I presume you could use a few dollars to keep up.

AMB: Yes we need to be able to match them as they try to disqualify enough republican absentee ballots to manage a win.

DTG: And where can people give?

AMB: They can give at our post Election Fund here.

DTG: Ann Marie Buerkle thank you for your time

The Globe discovers that Massachusetts has shot itself in the foot…AGAIN

Posted: November 12, 2010 by datechguy in congress, economy, elections, opinion/news, politics
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The Boston Globe reports that things are looking grim for Massachusetts:

Massachusetts could lose more than $200 million in funding this year — and quite possibly similar amounts each year for the foreseeable future — as the incoming Republican congressional leadership and President Obama take aim at earmarked spending projects.

At risk are a host of projects across Massachusetts. The Paul Revere House in Boston’s North End could lose $400,000 in funds for a crucial renovation project. The University of Massachusetts Amherst could see $2 million intended for a science building slip away. And a new Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate could lose $10 million — providing an unintended case study in the politics of federal spending.

Hang on a second didn’t we just hear all during the last election how much our delegation was able to “bring home the bacon” so to speak?

Massachusetts Democrats have long boasted of their ability to win hundreds of millions of dollars in earmarked funds for such projects. But speaker-in-waiting John Boehner, the Ohio Republican, has said earmarks must end,

Oh republicans are in charge in the House now where all spending much come from. Well I’m sure the Massachusetts members of the new House Majority will use what pull they have to help protect the state.

What that you say? While practically the entire country joined the big red wave Massachusetts once again elected only democrats? We don’t have any committee chairmen anymore or even a single member in the majority to try to help protect the state? Funny how the globe finds bad news now that the election is over.

Let’s be blunt. For months we have known the democratic majority in the house was doomed and as the president’s popularity continues to drop, 2012 is looking just as dark for Democrats.

Yet Massachusetts voters (perhaps with some help) choose to return Barney (Fannie/Freddie are fine) Frank and John (it was only 7 million my wife helped hide from Taxes) Tierney and the entire Massachusetts delegation. We knew about these things and voted them back in.

In a republic we always get the government we deserve. You wanted a delegation from the left. You’ve got it. As I said the day after the election:

…it will be the shock when you discover that all these democrats that you returned to congress are now in the minority and all of those tax dollars taken from you that they returned in lump sums at .82 cents on the dollar will not be coming back since they don’t have the clout to gain them and the republican house where all spending must originate is unlikely to approve them. If you had sent even a single republican to the house at least in one district there would be clout, but nope, no can do. You will miss that .82 cents on the dollar, but don’t worry the feds will meet you halfway. They will still take that dollar it was part of.

I don’t want to hear a single complaint from anyone on the left in the state over this.

And as for everyone else, you get another chance in two years. Don’t blow it.

11:39 A.M Fairfax Va Va-11

Posted: October 19, 2010 by datechguy in congress, elections, personal
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At the Keith Fimian HQ running in va-11 here in Fairfax

The HQ front door

It is a beehive of activity, people are in and out and excited. In the half hour I’ve been here workers have been in and out and in and out. The candidate has a debate tonight and time and preparation are being devoted to nailing it down.

Signs of the times, lots of activity at the Fimian HQ

Even as I was preparing to pack up a man named Joe Van Dalsum came in and picked up a sign as well.

Joe Van Dalsum at the Keith Fimian HQ

I talked to the campaign mgr Tim Edson and the story is the same, a democrat running from his record and playing the attack card and very little national polling to try to hide the decline so to speak.

Well you can’t hide voter enthusiasm and they have it here.

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