THE ENTERPRISE: WHO'S IN CHARGE HERE? NOBODY RESPONSIBLE!
AFTER MEETING WITH TWO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS THIS WEEK….
There is still hope. They were both great guys, who are dedicated to the right things, and doing their best in impossible circumstances. The article that follows is a result of thoughts from those meetings. It will be my last one for about 2 weeks, while I take some R & R and with Maureen, celebrate out 50th wedding anniversary.
Keep the faith. "We the people" will win out in the long run.
August 16, 2014 By John Mariotti
Who’s focused on fixing America? Nobody? Or at least too few of America’s elected leaders, are concentrating on fixing America. Face it. Barack Obama and his inept, failed policies and lack of leadership has “broken” America. While Obama vacations, plays golf and attends fundraisers, nobody is “tending the store.” The United States of America is like a driverless, sometimes runaway and sometimes stalled car, which is going in aimless circles when it moves at all.
Barack Obama is openly contemptuous and disrespectful of Congress. The House majority (GOP) openly dislikes him, distrusts him and having tried and failed, now refuses to work with him. Why? Because Obama earned this reaction by his unwillingness to discuss, compromise and/or even negotiate in good faith.
Meanwhile, Obama’s accusations of obstructionism in the Congress are wrong; they are distortions at best, lies at worst. The real obstruction in Congress is Senate leader Harry Reid. Under Reid’s control, the Senate has ignored and blocked some 300 bills from the House allowing none (not a few–NONE) of them to even be considered, debated, or amended. Reid’s motives appear to be clear: avoid any chance that his fellow Democrats in the Senate, or the president might have to actually vote (take a public position) on anything even remotely counter to the wishes of core liberal constituents.
Fixing America, at its core, requires the GOP to retake control of the Senate in Nov. 2014. This would at least get the legislative process moving until Obama’s veto stops it again, and neutralize some of Obama rampant over-reach. Then it would be indisputable who and where the obstruction was—in the White House.
In Feb. 2014, Townhall published the results of a Gallup poll in which 72% of Americans viewed “Big Government” as more harmful than “Big Labor” or “Big Business.” To get on with fixing America, at least 6-7 key areas require urgent action, to alter BIG GIVERNMENT! (Once the Supreme Court is finished striking down Obama’s most egregious and illegal (unconstitutional) over-reaches here’s the to-do list:)
- SIMPLIFY: tax reform–clean up the ridiculous tax code, via dramatic simplification and broad elimination of “sacred cow” loopholes & deductions. Recognize that lowering capital gains taxes actually raises tax revenue, not vice versa. Both sides of Congress and both parties agree that this needs to be done. The question is how. Figure it out!
- REPATRIATE: bring American business earnings from abroad back to the USA, removing the incentive for “inversion.” Either tax foreign earning just once, in the country where they are earned, and/or drop the tax rate for repatriated earnings way down to the 5-10% range. Put American companies’ money back to work in the USA, where it can produce jobs and growth.
- UNLEASH: slash many of the excessive, oppressive, unnecessary, and often punitive regulations (promulgated by career bureaucrats accountable to no one) and while doing so, remove the paralyzing uncertainty that inhibits American corporate investment. More jobs and growth will follow. Stimulate American growth and investment by “steering” (via tax breaks) money to the newest, most promising strategic growth areas, and fueling innovation in those areas (most of them science and technology—not crony political boondoggles). Open up H1B visas and offer green cards to every foreign student graduating in the top half of their class from an American university and a direct path to citizenship.
- CONTROL: spending, replace welfare with workfare (again), stop building multiple, redundant expensive weapons of past wars, in favor of nimble, flexible, portable and advanced weapons suitable to fight today’s asymmetrical battles. Go after cyber-threats as if they were the huge dangers they truly represent. Rein in the Fed, and make it accountable to “someone’ besides itself; stop the wholesale “printing of money” with nothing to back it.
- BE REALISTIC: accept that demographics are destiny and update America’s entitlements to recognize the realities of the 21st century–index COLAs to costs, not wages; index retirement ages to life expectancy edging them upward faster; use means testing to charge more for Medicare to those who can afford it; offer investment options for part of Social Security at a meaningful but still cautious rate; institute and enforce severe criminal penalties (jail time) for Medicare fraud; encourage user involvement in health care purchasing via Health Savings Accounts, cafeteria benefit plans, quoting prices before procedures (non-emergency) and services are provided; encourage more local clinics to provide basic health care needs (Walmart recently announce expansion in this area).
- REGISTER: institute national ID cards, starting with all current undocumented immigrants, and any newly arriving immigrants, as conditions for employment, for future citizenship and to receive any benefits (including a job); then extend the ID broadly for voting (America is the only one of most advanced countries not requiring a voter’s ID), and Medicare, Social Security, and ultimately driving, travel, etc. All immigrants entering the US must have one, or no other benefits (including jobs) are possible. The fear of privacy concerns is bogus, and overblown; the claims of inhibiting voting by the less fortunate are also bogus, since those people figure out how to get welfare, disability, food stamps, housing assistance, aid to dependent children and a raft of other welfare benefits–thus they can, and must get and ID to “collect” on these. Then enforce border security aggressively.
- BE PRAGMATIC: foreign policy must be developed to operate at the fine lines between war, nation-building and isolationism. When foreign crises threaten America, intervene. Otherwise stay out. When humanitarian issues arise, demand intervention by other agencies (UN, et. al.) and other nearby/related countries before US involvement. Do not pay off rogue factions or nations, as it is simple feeds unproductive extortion. Rebuild new, technological military might, to be used sparingly, but powerfully, when necessary. Remember, collateral damage is inevitable–and seldom preventable—in rogue states. Do not feel compelled to be either the world’s police force or humanitarian relief agency.
Is this a daunting list? Sure. But assigning groups of the 3-4 best & brightest of our elected officials from Congress, to each “To-Do” item, and aided by 2-3 of the best non-govenrnment experts, solutions can and will be devised. Then Congress must act on those solutions–not stall, not parse words but take dramatic, bi-partisan action in both houses. Once done, the president must then either lead, agree or “get the hell out of the way.”
Why? Because nothing is more important than fixing America!
Read more at http://www.brennerbrief.com/fixing-america/#PmZzAaUIzAidvutP.99
FISCAL IRRESPONSIBILITY--NO CONCEPT OF HOW MUCH MONEY A $ BILLION AMOUNTS TO!
(AN OLD EXAMPLE, BUT STILL ILLUSTRATES THE POINT.)
Our US government throws around $billion and 4trillion like they had some idea of what those numbers meant. The president's brainless staff cobbled together the idea that $3.7 Billion was how much money was needed to solve problems caused by the recent immigration flood of children from Central America. When that $3.7 billion number was peeled back, less than one-quarter of it was actually planned for spending on the immigration problem and that was a very loose interpretation of how it would be spent. The House whittled it back to under $700 million, and the clueless spendthrift currently in the White House spit at them. Typical. After all, it's not real money to Obama and his minions (new term: "Obamaminions." And it's not their money anyway. Gag!
Consider this old example:NO CONCEPT OF HOW MUCH MONEY IS PROPOSED TO BE SPENTThe next time you hear a politician use the Word 'billion' in a casual manner,think about whether you want the 'politicians' spending YOUR tax money.A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, (a trillion is beyond comprehension!)A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.C. A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.D. A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.E. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours, at the rate our governmentis spending it.
While this thought is still fresh in our brain…let's take a look an example from New Orleans ..post Katrina, whenLouisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D) was asking Congress for 250 BILLION DOLLARS to rebuild New Orleans.What does that mean? What was she thinking? Where did she get that huge number?The way most politicians (including the current president) gets them. Pull them out of their _ss!Here's what $250 Billion would have paid for in the case of New Orleans:A. If you were one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman and child) You each get $516,528B. Or... If you had one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans, your home gets $1,329,787.
C. Or... If you were a family of four…Your family gets $2,066,012.
INSANE? YES! SOME GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS MUST BE! (E. g., Sen. Landrieux): ARE YOU CRAZY?
SURPRISE! IN SPITE OF THIS EXAMPLE,
SOME MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ARE SMART, DEDICATED AND PATRIOTIC AMERICANS.
WE NEED TO BE SURE WE REELECT THOSE…AND REPLACE THE "FOOLS, CROOKS & BUMS."
I THINK YOU WILL ENJOY THESE TWO OF MY MOST RECENT ARTICLES
"IS THE PRESIDENT AWOL?"
http://www.brennerbrief.com/the-president-awol/
The answer to the question posed: Is the President AWOL is technically, no; but practically speaking, yes. He has no "superior" directly, thus there is no one specifically to give (or deny) him permission for his current behavior. The American people who elected him might notice that he is doing little or nothing other than having fun, playing the celebrity circuit, and raising money for Democratic party purposes—and he's doing it on the tax payers' time and money.
Here are the definitions that might apply to him these days:
- Absent Without Official Leave: A term used in the United States Military to describe a soldier or other military member who has left his or her post without permission (usually in disagreement with a particular order). This is one of many military terms that has trickled down into everyday speech among civilian populations.
- Dereliction of Duty (definition) : the act of no longer caring for, using, or doing something : the act of abandoning something : the condition of being no longer cared for law : failure to do your job or duty : failure to do what you should do. This is the definition of dereliction, used in the context of "dereliction of duty."
"Dereliction of duty is a specific offense under United States Code Title 10,892. Article 92 and applies to all branches of the US military. A service member who is derelict has willfully refused to perform his duties (or follow a given order) or has incapacitated himself in such a way that he cannotperform his duties."
"In order to prosecute a service member under Article 92, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the service member knew (or should have reasonably known) his duties and that he was either, through neglect or culpable inefficiency (i.e., being inefficient without just cause), derelict in the performance of those duties.[5]A duty is imposed in any one of the following ways:[5]"
- via a treaty,
- statute,
- regulation,
- lawful order,
- standard operating procedure, or
- custom of the service
Since the President is Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, doesn't his performance and duty in his job fall under this classification? And if the answer is yes, is he in fact, eligible for court martial? No, he cannot be court martialed. The Court Martial ruling body must consist of people of equal or higher rank than the person subject to court martial, and since the president is the highest ranking person, with no one of equal or higher rank, he is not subject to Court Martial. Otherwise, he could be, and should be.
Syndicated columnist and Fox News panelist Charles Krauthammer described the situation quite well recently. Here are a few excerpts from Charles Krauthammer's The Vacant Presidency.
The president's demeanor is worrying a lot of people. From the immigration crisis on the Mexican border to the Islamic State rising in Mesopotamia, Barack Obama seems totally detached. When he does interrupt his endless rounds of golf, fundraising and photo ops, it's for some affectless, mechanical, almost forced public statement."
"The preferred explanation for the president's detachment is psychological. He's checked out. Given up. Let down and disappointed by the world, he is in withdrawal."
"The world is aflame and our leader is on the 14th green. The arc of history may indeed bend toward justice, Mr. President. But, as you say, the arc is long. The job of a leader is to shorten it, to intervene on behalf of "the fierce urgency of now." Otherwise, why do we need a president? And why did you seek to become ours?"
To many Americans, the answer to Is the President AWOL? is absolutely. Is he derelict in his duty. You bet he is. What will happen to him? Very little, in fact, can be done to a sitting president who "checks out on the job." He can't stand for reelection, so all the voters can do is punish is obvious allies and supporters and not elect them come 2014 elections.
Meanwhile, America suffers globally, while the president plays and ignores the job he said he wanted, not once, but twice in his campaigns. It turns out that he doesn't know how to do that job, so he is simply the president who is AWOL. In many opinions, the US might be better off if he does little or nothing, since most of the things he has tried to do either stalled or failed. You can form your own opinion on that count.
=============SENT TO ME BY A FRIEND:Hamas is attacking. Israel is defending. Russia is invading. The Middle East is smoldering. Boko Haram is massacring. ISIS is marching. Iran and N. Korea are threatening. American cities are crumbling. Our southern border is dissolving. Our debt is skyrocketing. Obamacare is falling apart. The VA is showing us how Obamacare will wind up. The IRS is violating the law. Americans are hurting. Our enemies are laughing.
Obama is fundraising, golfing, and vacationing.
Please take it easy on Obama, it IS his first REAL job!===================="AN ELECTORATE OF DUNCES"
http://www.brennerbrief.com/electorate-dunces/Amidst the phony debate about voter ID cards, which are common in most other countries, there is a larger issue that remains unmentioned. Why? Because it is not PC (politically correct). America is quickly becoming an electorate of dunces. The Founding Fathers drafted the Constitution and assumed a reasonable level of education, intelligence and involvement in such important matters as how informed the voters would be. Now it appears that the vast majority of voters are essentially clueless about the issues and even the candidates.Perhaps that is why they elected and tolerate a president who seems, at many times, to be similarly uninformed and clueless. Of course they can depend on him for ever-expanding welfare and handouts. So why bother knowing anything about America, its history, the government's actual workings, who holds key positions and what the candidates actually stand for. Just give me my Food Stamps, free cell phone, Welfare Check, Housing Allowance, Obamacare subsidy, Aid to Dependent Children and extended unemployment (or phony disability) checks, and you'll get my (uninformed) vote.
If you don't believe we are growing an electorate of dunces, simply watch a few of the segments of Jesse Watters from the The Bill O'Reilly show on Fox News network. Jesse Watters goes out to ask "the people on the street" (and more recently "the young people on the beach") a series of the simplest questions on history. The outcomes are appalling and often even shocking. The knowledge of the most fundamental American history, key figures, and other governmental issues, is simply abysmal. Watch a few clips of Jesse Watters questioning Americans. You will be amazed and appalled. They have "no idea" on a wide range of government, political or economic questions:
- Who did America fight in the Revolutionary War?
- Who fought in the Civil War and who won it? Who attacked Pearl Harber?
- Who was the US fighting in the Cold War, and who won it?
- Who is the Vice President of the US? The Speaker of the House? The Senate leader? Your senator or representative?
- What are the big issues in the Middle East? The next election here in the USA?
- What is the GDP growth and what does that describe?
- Why is unemployment a problem in the US? What is the unemployment rate now?
The list could be endless. Simple questions about political leaders, economic issues, policy issues, and many more topics completely baffle far too many Americans.They know nothing about the Founding Fathers or the Constitution. They know little or nothing about current political leaders—except Barack Obama, the celebrity president—and those few people who have been vilified by the liberal media: George W. Bush, Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney to name just three. They have absolutely no idea which leaders stand for what values, policies, and positions. They have even less idea why they are voting for whomever they are voting for--except that someone told them to, or that they always vote Democratic, (or Republican), or they vaguely remember one of the candidates names and something good or bad about them, that they heard on the TV ads. Yet all of these people vote. Misinforming them is so easy. Misleading them is even easier. No wonder we get the election results we get. Consider the furor over such a simple practice as requiring voter ID cards—which is common in almost all other countries—this issue pales in comparison to requirement of any fundamental knowledge about what they are voting on. In many cases voters don't even know how to read, speak or understand English. Opponents of voter ID cards say it will disenfranchise certain groups of voters. Why? Because those groups will no longer be able to stroll in with the most meager proof of eligibility and even less knowledge about who, why or what they are voting for.
In Columbus, OH, during the 2012 early voting, people from the huge Somali enclave living here were van-pooled, with translators, directly to the polls, using little more than utility bills (no proof of citizenship?), and carrying specimen ballots showing them how to vote (for Barack Obama of course). How many of them were registered and then were allowed to vote remains an unexplained mystery. What is no mystery is the wide margin by which Obama carried the early voting in Columbus.
As more and more immigrants flood into the US across its poorly controlled borders, this problem will grow worse. America has historically been a country populated by immigrants—hard working people looking for a better life. Now it is a magnet for welfare-seekers, looking for freebies handed out by the government. Worst of all, the people who will lead the American government—some of whom are leading it now—are often chosen with less knowledge and thought than used in picking numbers on the latest Powerball lottery ticket. America is rapidly becoming an electorate of dunces, and as that trend grows, every American will pay for such a mistake more and more.
=================
FISCAL IRRESPONSIBILITY--NO CONCEPT OF HOW MUCH MONEY A $ BILLION AMOUNTS TO!(AN OLD EXAMPLE, BUT STILL ILLUSTRATES THE POINT.)Our US government throws around $billion and 4trillion like they had some idea of what those numbers meant. The president's brainless staff cobbled together the idea that $3.7 Billion was how much money was needed to solve problems caused by the recent immigration flood of children from Central America. When that $3.7 billion number was peeled back, less than one-quarter of it was actually planned for spending on the immigration problem and that was a very loose interpretation of how it would be spent. The House whittled it back to under $700 million, and the clueless spendthrift currently in the White House spit at them. Typical. After all, it's not real money to Obama and his minions (new term: "Obamaminions." And it's not their money anyway. Gag!
Consider this old example:NO CONCEPT OF HOW MUCH MONEY IS PROPOSED TO BE SPENT
The next time you hear a politician use the Word 'billion' in a casual manner,think about whether you want the 'politicians' spending YOUR tax money.A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, (a trillion is beyond comprehension!)
A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.C. A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.D. A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.E. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours, at the rate our governmentis spending it.While this thought is still fresh in our brain…let's take a look an example from New Orleans ..post Katrina, whenLouisiana Senator, Mary Landrieu (D) was asking Congress for 250 BILLION DOLLARS to rebuild New Orleans.What does that mean? What was she thinking? Where did she get that huge number?The way most politicians (including the current president) gets them. Pull them out of their _ss!Here's what $250 Billion would have paid for in the case of New Orleans:A. If you were one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman and child) You each get $516,528B. Or... If you had one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans, your home gets $1,329,787.C. Or... If you were a family of four…Your family gets $2,066,012.INSANE? YES! SOME GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ARE! (Sen. Landrieux): ARE YOU CRAZY?
---------------------------
John Mariotti
Go see my latest articles and commentary at http://www.brennerbrief.com/author/johnmariotti/ and at
http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/ and http://www.mariotti.net
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