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Posted by Mike LaChance on November 23, 2014 9 Comments
I don't watch Saturday Night Live anymore but when I saw this clip from Tina Nguyen on Mediaite, I have to admit it made me laugh. It's a spoof of the well known Schoolhouse Rock cartoon:
SNL’s Obama Shoves The Schoolhouse Rock Bill Down The Capitol Steps Finally, the first biting political spoof from Saturday Night Live in a while: the Bill from Schoolhouse Rock explains to a student how he becomes a law, only to be violently beat up by Barack Obama and his new best friend, “Executive Order.” Even then, the poor Executive Order still thinks he’s used for simple things, like declaring holidays and creating national parks, until Obama informs him that he’s going to be used to grant amnesty to 5 million undocumented immigrants. His reaction: “Whoa.”
Watch: As long as we're showing the spoof, let's watch the original as well.

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Posted by Amy Miller on November 23, 2014 15 Comments
Net Neutrality has existed for a long time in the nerd-niche of the policy world, but now that Obama has asked the FCC to impose strict new regulations on internet service providers, the issue has jumped out of the shadows and into the forefront of public debate. "Net Neutrality" provisions---new regulations that would use the authority of Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 to prevent internet service providers from granting preferential treatment to different types of online content---are controversial, and have already spurred lawsuits from companies like Verizon who are loathe to cede control of their services to the government, and the FCC is preparing for another onslaught. Via Ars Technica:
"We are going to be sued," he said in a Q&A after the FCC's monthly meeting. "That's the history. Every time in this whole discussion any time the commission has moved to do something, one of the big dogs has gone to sue... We don’t want to ignore history. We want to come out with good rules that accomplish what we need to accomplish, an open Internet, no blocking, no throttling, no fast lanes, no discrimination, and we want those rules to be in place after a court decision. So we want to be sure we’re thoughtful in the way in which we structure them and we're thoughtful in the way we present what will ultimately be presented to a court." Verizon sued to block rules passed under Wheeler's predecessor, Julius Genachowski, and has already threatened to sue the FCC over new rules under consideration. AT&T has threatened to sue as well.
Those who support Net Neutrality worry that not having a clear line in the sand will allow large corporations to throttle content from smaller content providers (read: content providers who don't have piles of money to offer up) and create an unequal playing field for the kinds of free speech the internet is so famous for. But as the great people over at Tech Freedom have explained, this desire for a bright line rule ignores the reality and nature of online content:

Posted by Mike LaChance on November 23, 2014 12 Comments
Wow. It's not often that I can say it but this new video from the GOP is really powerful. Whoever made this video deserves a promotion. The ad uses an audio track of Hillary Clinton criticizing George W. Bush's so-called "imperial presidency." Via the Washington Free Beacon:
An Imperial Presidency A new video released by the GOP on Friday calls out former Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton for her hypocrisy on the issue of executive action. In 2008, Clinton said the George W. Bush administration was transforming the executive branch into an “imperial presidency.” In 2014, Clinton said she supported President Obama’s decision to grant citizenship to more than four million illegal immigrants. Clinton unknowingly provided the narration for the GOP’s newest video. “Unfortunately our current president does not seem to understand the basic character of the office he holds,” Clinton said of Bush in April 2008. “Rather than faithfully execute the laws, he has rewritten them through signing statements, ignored them through secret legal opinions, undermined them by elevating ideology over facts. Rather than defending the constitution, he has defied its principles and traditions.”
Check it out:
“This administration’s unbridled ambition to transform the executive into an imperial presidency in an attempt to strengthen the office has weakened our nation.”
But that was then. This is now:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on November 23, 2014 4 Comments
Our post and video, Cornell Pro-Israel students taunted: “F**k You Zionist scums” has started to gather attention, with articles in The Blaze, The College Fix, and elsewhere. The video has over 10,000 views as of this writing: Language Warning Please share the video, people need to see the reality of what pro-Israel students have to deal with on campuses. The open hate in the eyes and mouths of these anti-Israel activists reminds me of points I made back in June, during my interview with Larry Elder about the Boycott Divest and Sanctions movement. I had forgotten about it until it saw this Tweet this morning:

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Posted by Leslie Eastman on November 23, 2014 21 Comments
A settlement reached in early November between the EPA and two car manufacturers may have as much impact on the economic health of the country as the recent wave election that ushered in a Republican Senate. Essentially, the result of this legal case means that rules to prevent "global warming" will be implemented by the use of "lawfare" instead of science and technology. On November 3rd it was reported that Hyundai and Kia will pay a record combined $100 million penalty for overstating fuel economy estimates for many of their vehicles.
The South Korean automakers had already agreed to pay consumers for the difference in estimated fuel costs, when the discrepancy was discovered by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2012. The civil fine and other penalties announced Monday are in addition to those direct payments to vehicle owners. The vehicles involved were the Hyundai Accent, Elantra, Veloster and Santa Fe and the Kia Rio and Soul. The automakers overstated fuel economy figures for their vehicles by an average of six miles per gallon, the EPA said.
And while the mainstream media was reporting this as a big win for the environment against an evil big business, a closer look at the origin of the problem points to vague regulatory language -- a hallmark of bureaucrats who want to promote an agenda than actually address valid technical concerns. :

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 23, 2014 7 Comments
While we were sleeping, President Obama decided U.S. troops will stay in Afghanistan. In May, Obama said, "this year, we will bring America's longest war to a responsible end," as he discussed his plan to withdraw troops. Here was his announcement of troop withdrawal given in the Rose Garden in May:

Posted by Mike LaChance on November 22, 2014 15 Comments
Ayaan Hirsi Ali knows what real feminism is about. As a vocal critic of the treatment of women in Muslim countries, she has risked her life. According to a new report from Ashe Schow at the Washington Examiner, Hirsi Ali is unimpressed with American feminism:
Hirsi Ali slams feminism's 'trivial BS' Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a harsh critic of Islam’s treatment of women, said Wednesday that modern American feminism is focused on “trivial bullshit” and needs to be reclaimed. Speaking at the Independent Women’s Forum Women of Valor dinner, where she received an award for courage, Hirsi Ali reminded her audience of how far feminism has strayed from its original purpose. “I want you to remember that once upon a time, feminists fought for the access — basic right — access of girls to education,” she said... “Feminists in this country and in the West fought against that and won the battle,” she added. But now, Hirsi Ali said, feminism has taken that victory and squandered it. “What we are now doing with the victory, and I agree with you if you condemn that and I condemn whole-heartedly the trivial bullshit it is to go after a man who makes a scientific breakthrough and all that we as women — organized women — do is to fret about his shirt?” Hirsi Ali said, referring to the controversy generated by the shirt featuring cartoons of scantily-clad women worn by the scientist who helped land a robot on a comet. “We must reclaim and retake feminism from our fellow idiotic women.”
Hirsi Ali may not be alone in her views.

Posted by Amy Miller on November 22, 2014 11 Comments
On December 1, Democrats will gather together in a last ditch effort to save Mary Landrieu's political career---but all the money in the world might not be able to save a race that many leftist groups have written off as a lost cause. The swanky fundraiser, headlined by Hillary Clinton, is sure to bring in a sizable chunk of cash, but it might not be a helpful optic for the embattled incumbent. Clinton headlined a rally for Landrieu days before the general election, and Landrieu still failed to rally enough voters to hit the 50% mark. In fact, it seems like Landrieu can do nothing right these days; her campaign is foundering, and even progressive strategists are looking at this runoff as a prime example of what not to do when your campaign is in trouble. From The Hill:
She's fallen back on an advertising strategy that seeks to portray her GOP opponent, Rep. Bill Cassidy (La.), as bumbling and incompetent. But nearly three weeks into their final faceoff, it is Cassidy who is ahead in the polls, and Democrats who are worried that Landrieu’s efforts are falling short. “It didn’t work before, and if all you have is Cassidy bumbling in a speech, then you’re reaching,” said Danny Ford, a Democratic lobbyist and former party official in the state. “If they had something else on him they would have played it already.” Bernie Pinsonat, an independent pollster and political consultant in Louisiana, called the ads “goofy” and said that they do nothing to alter the narrative in the state that Cassidy is bulldozing his way to the finish line. While another Democratic operative close to the race argued that Cassidy remains a relative unknown who can still be defined by the ads, nearly three weeks into their final faceoff, strategists say it’s the Republican who is running the more effective campaign.
Considering Bill Cassidy is currently polling almost 16 points ahead of Landrieu, I'd say the unnamed operative is right. Meanwhile, tea party groups and activists who worked hard to split the Republican vote in the general have joined Team Cassidy, as have volunteers brought in by the RNC and NRSC's joint grassroots effort. This is significant not just for Cassidy's race, but for races in the future.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on November 22, 2014 10 Comments
We previously highlighted the role of anti-Israel activists in exploiting and fomenting trouble in Ferguson, Missouri as a Grand Jury decision is awaited whether to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the killing of Michael Brown, Intifada Missouri – Anti-Israel activists may push Ferguson over the edge:
As much tension as there is, an underreported story is the active role of “pro-Palestinian” activists who have exploited the Ferguson riots and tension this summer and fall to push their anti-Israel agenda. That anti-Israeli agenda, which involves encouraging confrontation with police in solidarity with Palestinians, is helping provide the accelerant to an already volatile situation.... It also has involved a propaganda campaign to blame Israel for the killing of Brown because a former St.Louis County police chief three years ago attended a one-week anti-terrorism program in Israel. Presumably some Ferguson officers also have attended various training sessions routinely given in the U.S. and elsewhere to police departments, but the one-week training in Israel by someone who wasn’t even on the job when Brown was shot was enough for the usual suspects to try to blame Israel for everything that happens in Ferguson.... Israel has nothing to do with whatever did or did not happen in Ferguson. But anti-Israel activists rarely care about the truth, it’s all propaganda for the cause. But this propaganda, and this agitation, actively is pushing for a confrontation between police and protesters in Ferguson, in which people are likely to get hurt. And the activists like Masri will be there to take the viral videos and photos. And that’s the point. Just as Palestinian and supportive Western leftist activists encourage children to throw rocks at Israeli police so they can get the video of the police arresting a child, so too this is all about the photo- and video-ops. And it may push Ferguson over the edge.
One of the featured activists was Bassem Masri, someone active in the #Palestine2Ferguson movement to portray the Ferguson issues as somehow to be blamed on Israel.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 22, 2014 5 Comments
Double standards are an unfortunate reality of the current media construct. Democratic flubs and gaffes seldom make headlines in mainstream outlets unless the offense is so egregious it can no longer be ignored. Of course their Republican betters aren't afforded the same white washing. This past week was a particularly inarticulate week for the Democrats fecklessly attempting to navigate their way through the amnesty cluster. Imagine for a moment the wailing and gnashing of teeth if a Republican uttered any of the following. So we present to you, What if a Republican said __________?

1. Just call me Emperor. Also, kiss my ring.

Obama being called emperor is a complement

Posted by Mike LaChance on November 22, 2014 7 Comments
Remember those "intended immigration consequences" I was talking about yesterday? The word is out. Brendan Bordelon of National Review captured this exchange on CNN:
Illegal Immigrant Tells CNN She Was Inspired to Cross Border by Obama Amnesty “Did the possibility of immigration reform inspire you to come now?” CNN’s Alina Machado asked the Central American migrant waiting for a bus ticket on Thursday. “Yes, that’s right,” the woman said. “That inspired us.” “Now?” the reporter pressed. “Yes, now,” the woman replied.
Watch the video: Media responses to Obama's plan have been mixed but I like this piece by David Harsanyi of The Federalist:

Posted by Amy Miller on November 22, 2014 48 Comments
Today the House GOP sued the Obama Administration in federal court over the Administration's decision to make changes to the version of the Affordable Care Act that Congress passed. From CNN:
The one-two punch from Boehner marks a new era of tension between Republicans who will officially take over Congress in January, and the President who has signaled that despite his party's losses in the midterms, he plans to proceed with his agenda without GOP cooperation. After two Washington firms pulled out of commitments to represent the House in recent months, Boehner hired George Washington law professor Jonathan Turley earlier this week. Turley is an expert on constitutional law and has appeared on multiple television networks as a legal analyst. Boehner and other top congressional Republican leaders are also contemplating a filing a separate lawsuit challenging the president's authority to take executive action to give 5 million immigrants temporary status.
This move has been coming since July, when the chamber passed House Resolution 676, which authorized the lawsuit. Although lawmakers are already being criticized for not taking immediate action to stop Obama's executive order on immigration, there's a good reason for the delay.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 22, 2014 12 Comments
Warning: what you are about to see is...gross. Mystery mush and other questionable "food" offerings being served to teens at public schools have made their way online, and the results are hilarious (and a little sad.) Less than impressed by the First Lady's school lunch program, teens are tweeting pictures of their school lunches using the hashtag #ThanksMichelleObama, as Buzzfeed pointed out. The Health, Hunger-Free Kids Act passed in 2010 and championed by Michelle Obama is responsible for new restrictions on school lunches. Restrictions include limitations on sugar and caloric intake, and also require more veggies. Last month, the Washington Examiner reported, "the nation’s school boards are joining in to demand that the Obama administration let them off the hook of serving the costly and tasteless meals." The Examiner also reported the results of a survey that clearly indicated the meals are a not only gross, but a waste of money:
The survey of school leaders revealed: — 83.7 percent of school districts saw an increase in plate waste. — 81.8 percent had an increase in cost. — 76.5 percent saw a decrease in participation by students. — 75 percent of school leaders want an increase in federal funding for school districts to comply with the new standards. — 60.3 percent want flexibility for school districts to improve their ability to provide good nutrition without harm to instruction, personnel, and other school district operations.
With that in mind, it's easy to understand why the kids being served these meals weren't too terribly excited about eating their science experiments Michelle Obama-approved lunches:
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