Saturday, November 23, 2013

"JUST LIKE TASS": White House Bans Photojournalists, Grants Access Only to Official Propaganda Photographer

When The New York Times compares the White House to a Soviet news service, you can be sure we're living in a very different America.

New York Times photographer Doug Mills strode into Jay Carney's office Oct. 29 with a pile of pictures taken exclusively by President Obama's official photographer at events the White House press corps was forbidden to cover. "This one," Mills said, sliding one picture after another off his stack and onto the press secretary's desk. "This one, too – and this one and this one and … ."

The red-faced photographer, joined by colleagues on the White House Correspondents' Association board, finished his 10-minute presentation with a flourish that made Carney, a former Moscow correspondent for Time, wince.

"You guys," Mills said, "are just like Tass."

...Media photographers were able to take photos of Obama visiting Nelson Mandela's former jail cell (see left). They were told his visit with Mandela's family in the cell would be "private." And yet photos of Obama and the family, taken by the government-funded White House photographer, were made public and went viral. This passes as "private" in the Obama White House.
...Official White House photographers are paid to document the president of the United States for posterity. So why do they take and distribute so many photos like this – ones with no sign of the president? Hint: The crowds are always big, happy and adoring of Obama. All on your dime.
...One of the most compelling and historic images of the Obama era, the nation's first African American president is picture here looking out of the window of the Rosa Parks bus. It's a great photograph but as a matter of public record, it's no better than beefcake photos of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Those are shot and distributed by Tass.

As National Journal's Ron Fournier observes, when George W. Bush visited the crypt believed to be the birthplace of Christ, independent photojournalists were able to freely take photos. Obama, however, "barred photographers during his visit to the exact same spot, and released [one] exclusive image... It was taken by photographer paid by taxpayers to make flattering photos of the president."

Put simply, Chief White House photographer Pete Souza is the modern-day equivalent of Leni Riefenstahl.


McClatchy's Anita Kumar reports that the press is growing quite upset with Obama's Soviet-style propaganda tactics.

The nation’s largest news organizations lodged a complaint Thursday against the White House for imposing unprecedented limitations on photojournalists covering President Barack Obama, which they say have harmed the public’s ability to monitor its own government.

The organizations accuse the White House of banning photojournalists from covering Obama at some events, and then later releasing its own photos and videos of the same events...

...Examples cited in the letter are Obama’s meetings with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on July 10, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on July 29 and Pakistani human rights activist Malala Yousafzai on Oct. 11.

In each case, journalists weren’t allowed – and sometimes were unaware – of the event. The White House later released written summaries of the events, along with photos taken by a government photographer.

On Thursday, the presidents of the American Society of News Editors and the Associated Press Media Editors sent a letter to their members urging them to stop using handout photos and video from the White House.

The complaint was signed by 38 news organizations, including all major broadcast and cable networks, the major wire services as well as large newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post among them.

It's ironic: the same media that marketed Obama's cult of personality and increasing authoritarianism is now complaining that the cult of personality has become too authoritarian with the press.

Tell you what, guys: read "FOREVER SIX" and then report back for further education.


UPDATE: Oh My, Obama Enrages Media With A “Screw You” Pic


Hat tip: BadBlue News.

FREE KINDLE DOWNLOAD: Max Velocity's "Patriot Dawn"

It's available as a free Kindle download today and tomorrow only.

The United States has descended into Civil War.

The storm was rising for some time, a Resistance in the hearts of American Patriots to the strangulation of liberty by creeping authoritarianism.

The scene was set. It just took a little push. A terrorist attack on the United States leads to war with Iran, followed by collapse, as the economy goes over the cliff.

The final blow is a widespread opportunistic Chinese cyber attack, taking down the North American Power Grid.

From the ashes, the Regime emerges. Liberty is dead.

What remains of the United States of America is polarized.

The Resistance Rises.

Jack Berenger is a former Army Ranger Captain, living in northern Virginia with his family. Following the collapse, they fall foul of Regime violence and evacuate to the farm of an old Army friend. Jack is recruited into the resistance, to train the fledgling forces in the Shenandoah Valley.

The fight begins.

Live hard, Die Free.

Resist.

WILE E. COYOTE: Super-Sleuth Darrell Issa Opens Yet Another Huge Probe While Other Scandals Lie Unresolved

Now that we have evidence that the Obama administration lied about unemployment numbers to help turn the 2012 election, the House Oversight Committee has announced yet another investigation.

An anonymous whistleblower in a New York Post column by John Crudele is alleging that unemployment jobs data in the current population survey conducted by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics was manipulated in 2012 to help Barack Obama get re-elected... According to the source, specifically the Oct. 5, 2012 jobs report was faked — just in time for the election. Worse, the practice reportedly continues to date.

...Nathan Mehrens, president of Americans for Limited Government, said the allegations were "extremely serious," noting "financial markets and economic policymakers all over the world depend on the integrity of jobs data to make informed decisions."
Mehrens warned, "This is a case where distorted data will result in distorted policies that harm the well-being of the global economy." Particularly, the Federal Reserve has said it is waiting until unemployment drops below 6.5% before it begins raising interest rates.

...To that end, Mehrens called for Rep. John Kline, chairman of the House Health, Education & Workforce Committee, and Rep. Darrell Issa, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, to investigate any potential wrongdoing.

Unfortunately, Issa has plenty of experience in opening -- not closing -- investigations. To date, the following major Obama administration scandals lie largely dormant, yet in a normal era each would result in cries for impeachment.

Issa, Treasury Wrangle Over Subpoena to IRS for Tea Party Documents: "“As of today, almost five months since the committee’s initial request, the department has produced almost no internal communications about the substance of the investigation and has only produced material in response to a few of the committee’s multiple document requests,” Issa said."

Issa calls denial of dismissal in Fast and Furious lawsuit ‘repudiation’ of DOJ: "This ruling is a repudiation of the Obama Justice Department and Congressional Democrats who argued the courts should have no role in the dispute over President Obama's improper assertion of executive privilege to protect an attempted Justice Department cover-up of Operation Fast and Furious,” Issa claimed."

12 Oversight Committe Democrats Flee Benghazi Hearing Before Family Members Testify: "When the second panel began, however, Issa tweeted a picture showing a Democratic desertion. Only Representatives Jackie Speier (Calif.) and ranking member Elijah Cummings (Md.) stayed for the second panel to hear testimony from Patricia Smith, mother of Sean Smith, an information management officer, and Charles Woods, father of Navy SEAL Tyrone Woods."

Issa, House Oversight Panel Probe Healthcare.gov: "Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is exploring a long list of issues: insufficient testing, possible security flaws, design shortcomings — even allegations of political meddling."

DOJ’s Phone Sweep of AP Reporters Draws Dual House Inquiries: "“From a constitutional standpoint, the First Amendment, it’s very clear that Judiciary will have the lead on this,” said Issa, who is also a member of Judiciary. He added that he has “a fairly full plate” with investigations into the Benghazi attacks and alleged Internal Revenue Service misconduct, among other things... However, in a follow-up statement later in the day, Issa signaled he might be more closely involved than he had previously suggested."

This is insanity.

The Obama administration is the Roadrunner and Issa is Wile E. Coyote.

The proper way for Congress to investigate these impeachable offenses is to name Select Investigative Committees. These dedicated committees would not be burdened by multiple investigations or extraneous activities.

Whether it is hubris or fear of exposure of their own secrets, the House Republican leadership is operating irresponsibly and without regard for the best interests of the American people.

We must demand that Republicans name select committees, before it's too late to make a difference. Call the House Oversight Committee at (202) 225-5074 and make your voice heard.


Larwyn's Linx: The Last Days of the Republic, Filibuster Edition

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Nation

The Last Days of the Republic, Filibuster Edition: Ganymede
Obamacare and Liberal Cruelty: Karin McQuillan
In Their Panic, Dems Become Reckless Gamblers.: Noah Rothman

Don’t Get Fooled Again: Blasted Fools
Congressional GOP Scramble to Find Votes for Pelosi Amnesty Bill: Joe Guzzardi
When Is Obama Going To Publicly Condemn The Knock-Out Game?: Nice Deb

TX family with two kids fighting cancer have insurance canceled: RWN
The Mary Jo Kopechne of the autumn of 1963: Cold Fury
Surprise: ACA Subcontractor Under FBI Investigation: RWN

Just Sad: Mitch McConnell Feels … ‘Bullied’: Dan Riehl
McAuliffe Appoints Gun-Control Activist to Transition Team: WFB
Votes don't matter when rights are at stake: Mike McNulty

Economy

Common Core textbook: white voters rejected Obama because of race: IL Review
An Employer, Known to IRS, has Close to 40k Illegals on Its Payroll: CIS
Employer health plans in danger: CNBC

Scandal Central

Texas Navigators exposed in O'Keefe videos won't face government action: Lee Cary
Issa to Investigate “Census Gate” Faking Employment Numbers Prior To 2012 Election: WZ
Did HHS Lie to Congress About Healthcare.gov’s ‘Anonymous Shopper’ Function?: Bryan Preston

Media

Journalism Union Helped Push Nuclear Option, HuffPo Admits: MRC
Black Mob Violence Breaching Media Barricades: Dave Blount, AbsoluteRights
Former Duke Lacrosse accuser Crystal Mangum guilty of second-degree murder: WTVD

78 year old Jewish woman was victim of KNOCK OUT crime: GretaWire
Reporter: Ammunition in house fire “could have fired off wildly.” Uh, no.: Bob Owens
Hillary Clinton's Achilles Heel: Jack Cashill

Sarah Palin: Honoring JFK by Protecting Our Republic: A Time For Choosing
Obama Had Senate-Office 'Portrait Session' With Pornographer: Barbara Boland
Dems Rewrite History of Lincoln and JFK: Glob

World

British Students Threatened With “Racial Discrimination Note” If They Miss Islam Trip: GWP
Star Wars Era to come: US Air Force to employ laser cannons on jets by 2030: Jacek Siminski, The Aviationist
Meet the Spies Doing the NSA's Dirty Work: Shane Harris

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News)

Switching to Tea May Ease Psychological Stress Like Depression: Eric Ravenscraft
Microsoft Adds Load Balancing As Azure Availability Stutters: CIO
Water-Resistance Breakthrough Makes a Splash: Kris Holt, TechNewsWorld

Cornucopia

From Camelot, we've plunged into darkness: Doug Ross
Nuclear Option: We Were “Againts” (sic) It Before We Were For It.: MOTUS
This American Life: Paul Beston

Image: Sick Simpering Tyrant
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: What is an Article V Convention of States?

QOTD: "Of particular importance in protecting minority rights is Senate Rule 22, which requires a supermajority of two-thirds of Senators to end debate on any proposal to amend the Senate Rules. In the past, a few Senate majorities, frustrated by their inability to get certain bills and nominations to a vote, have threatened to ignore this two-thirds requirement and instead to change one or more debate rules by a simple majority. Because that step would change the Senate into a legislative body where the majority can, whenever it wishes, change the rules, it has been dubbed the “nuclear option.”

Arguments about the nuclear option are not new. This question has been debated for decades. Confronting the same question in 1949, Senator Arthur Vandenberg, a giant of the Senate and one of my predecessors from Michigan, said that if the majority can change the rules at will, “there are no rules except the transient, unregulated wishes of a majority of whatever quorum is temporarily in control of the Senate.” Changing the rules, in violation of the rules, by a simple majority vote is not a one-time action. If a Senate majority demonstrates it can make such a change once, there are no rules that bind a majority, and all future majorities will feel free to exercise the same power, not just on judges and executive appointments but on legislation...

...Today, we once again are moving down a destructive path. The issue is not whether to change the rules. I support changing the rules to allow a President to get a vote on nominees to executive and most judicial positions. This is not about the ends, but means. Pursuing the nuclear option in this manner removes an important check on majority overreach which is central to our system of government. As Senator Vandenberg warned us, if a Senate majority decides to pursue its aims unrestrained by the rules, we will have sacrificed a professed vital principle for the sake of momentary gain." --Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI)

Friday, November 22, 2013

Why Obamacare is different

Fritzworth has a thought experiment for you:

First, let's visit the standard Left shrieking points.

1) How many of you know someone who died in Hurricane Katrina? (Just thought I'd get that out of the way.)

2) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who was a valid registered voter and who was denied the chance to vote due to Voter ID laws?

3) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who was unable to afford birth control due to a lack of health insurance?

4) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who was denied the chance to have an abortion, due to state regulations?

5) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who has been laid off due to the Federal budget sequester?

6) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who was furloughed during the brief Federal Government shutdown and then did not get back pay for the time furloughed?

7) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who was unable to find a meaningful job because of Right to Work legislation in the state where they live?

Now for the flip side:

8) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who had their existing health insurance policy cancelled as a result of Obamacare, and who are now looking at options that are more expensive and have higher deductibles? (My own hand goes up.)

9) How many of you know someone (including yourself) who works for a business whose health insurance coverage is either going to be eliminated or become more expensive as a result of Obamacare?

Show of hands, everyone?

Yep, what I pretty much thought.

Note that most of the Left's boogiemen -- items 1-7 -- are just that -- largely imaginary, except for the occasional OFA worker who gets press coverage for her 15 minutes of fame. But I suspect that the vast majority of the voting population can't answer yes to question 1-7.

On the other hand, between now and November 2014, I am willing to bet that the vast majority of the voting population will answer yes to questions 8 and 9. And that is why, in spite of the Left's desperate attempts to find some equivalents between the burgeoning Obamacare debacle and the sins of the Right (as they define them), it's really no contest.

And, in spite of today's announcement -- to unlawfully delay Obamacare's rollout for employer-sponsored plans (to avoid the midterm elections) -- Democrats will pay a heavy price.

In fact, employers should make a point to send out cancellation notices a week before the election.


Hat tip: Jim Geraghty

Conservatives Flee Marxist-Controlled Radicals at AARP

Guest post by Ryan Ekvall

MADISON — David Stella taking over AARP in Wisconsin might be very good for conservative seniors groups.

The appointment of Stella, former head of the state pension fund, who once signed a petition to recall Gov. Scott Walker, is a further lurch to the left for an organization that played an instrumental role in getting Obamacare passed.

“We made an offer to anyone who cut their AARP card in half that we’d give them a year’s free membership,” said Randy Lewis, spokesman for the American Seniors Association. “We had to stop it early. I had too many 55-gallon trash bags full of AARP cards cut in half.”


Older conservatives are fleeing AARP due to the organization’s support of Obamacare.

Phillip Owens, of Beloit, dumped his AARP membership after 20 years with the organization, objecting to his dues supporting liberal policies like Obamacare he didn’t agree with.

Owens joined and is now the state delegate for the Association of Mature American Citizens. AMAC now boasts more than 1 million members, including 18,500 members in Wisconsin alone, Owens said. He claims the organization has been adding about 60,000 new members a month.

“People are looking for an alternative,” he said. “AMAC listens to membership, they respond to membership. AARP’s membership had written them on a repeated basis and they continued to support Obamacare.”

And all that AARP junk mail?

“Their mail still comes and it goes right into the trash barrel,” said Owens, a retired veteran of the U.S. Army and Navy.

Handy Safety Kit for Patriotic Americans

Guest post by Amalaur



CHARTS: Public Views Obamacare Less Favorably Than Body Lice, Fish-Flavored Gum and Rosie O'Donnell

The public's view of Obamacare: dark and growing darker (click to explodify).

Hey, could someone drag John Boehner out of whatever bar he's in and have him organize a real vote to repeal Obamacare?

Oh -- and by all means, Debbie Wasserman Schultz -- please run on Obamacare.


Hat tip: BadBlue Real-Time News Engine.

Larwyn's Linx: Senate Republicans Can Retaliate. Will They?

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

Senate Republicans Can Retaliate. Will They?: Daniel Horowitz
Mark Levin: how to respond to Harry Reid's nuclear option: Scoop
The Democrats’ naked power grab: Dana Milbank

No Liberals, We’re Not Going To Help You “Fix” Obamacare: John Hawkins
Thug Playing The “Knock Out Game” Gets Shot Twice: John Hawkins
Obama Throws a Nomination Party Post-Nuclear Option: Bridget Johnson

How Harry Reid Just Nationalized the 2014 Midterms: Bryan Preston
Obama 2005 : Nuking Filibuster "Will Poison Washington": Flopping Aces
Revel in this delicious hypocrisy from Harry Reid: Patterico

Economy

The Case for Evidence Based Government: RS
Disability Trust Fund Runs Record 5 Straight Years of Deficits: CNS
California rejects Obamacare canceled policy “fix”: LI

Confirmed: Government Draws Workers of Lower Moral Caliber: MB
WaPo: No, you can’t keep your doctor or your hospital: Ed Morrissey
The 5 Economic "Big Lies" The Government Is Telling You: ZH

Scandal Central

Mainstream Media Protests Obama White House’s Censoring of Media: TPNN
Battleground Texas, Enroll America Exposed: ‘This Conversation Never Happened’: Bryan Preston
Exclusive emails on rollout debunk Obama’s ‘we didn’t know’ claim: BPR

Ted Cruz on Nuclear Option: Harry Reid broke his promise just like Obama: Scoop
FLASHBACK: Obama, Clinton, Kerry, Biden, Dodd, Feinstein, Schumer, Baucus, Reid Slam Nuclear Option: AllAm
Democrats Go ‘Nuclear,’ Eliminate Filibusters on Most Nominees: Roll Call

Media

Remarkably Mendacious Take on JFK’s Assassination (NYT, WaPo): David Bernstein
Obama Holds Off-The-Record Meeting with MSNBC Hosts, Juan Williams: TruthRevolt
Hysterical Hypocrisy on Filibusters from the New York Times: Patterico

Idiots at Politico Super-Surprised No One Told Them About Consequences Of OFailurecare : Cove
Blackout: NBC Censors All Coverage of ObamaCare for Days: Kyle Drennen
Carville: Obama to Blame for ObamaCare Disaster: JWF

Barack Obama And Harry Reid Aren’t Normal: LoneCon
A Failed Presidency: Peter Wehner
Too much incompetence from Obama to believe it’s not intentional: Allen West

And Barack thought buying insurance was hard: MinorityReport
CEO: ‘When we go to the White House, we talk to people we wouldn’t hire.”: GWP
One Sole Apology for a Generation of Outrages: We Deserve Much More: James Simpson

World

How Obama Let Iran Go Nuclear: Rick Richman, Commentary
Israel 'unpleasantly surprised' by US quiet on Khamenei's vicious speech: Times of Israel
UK Gets Its First Muslim-on-White Honor Killing: Daniel Greenfield

41 uncensored Instagrams from North Korea: David Guttenfelder
5 charged in US bust over North Korean meth: Tom Hays, AP
Egypt Is in Official Mourning as Misery Piles Up: Hamza Hendawi, ABC News

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News

The MEAN Stack: MongoDB, ExpressJS, AngularJS, and Node.js: The Code Barbarian
TIL there is a picture of earth taken from Saturn 6,000,000,000 km away.: Reddit
Google Wallet update allows you to ‘scan’ in your cards: Andrew Grush

Cornucopia

MO Sightings Rise: Obamacare Craters.: MOTUS
U.S. Army General: Let's Make Obama Resign: Angle
Sex in the Senate: Bobby Baker's salacious secret history of Capitol Hill, part I: Todd Purdum

Image: 41 uncensored Instagrams from North Korea
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: It's Time to Bypass Washington and Restore Our Republic

QOTD: "“This is how democracy ends. Not with a bomb, but a gavel.” --Sen. Harry Reid, 2005, describing the proposed nuclear option that would end the filibuster

Thursday, November 21, 2013

THE ENDS JUSTIFY THE MEANS: Deceitful, Mendacious Harry Reid Obliterates the Filibuster

Guest post by Jeff Reynolds

Last Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) demonstrated blatant hypocrisy when he stated that he is ready to invoke the "nuclear option" to ram through President Obama's nominees. This option, also known as the Byrd Option, would use some parliamentary stunts to change fundamental Senate rules, effectively allowing a simple majority to end a filibuster instead of the current 67 vote supermajority requirement. Republicans were quick to point out that this would completely remove the rights of the minority party and stray from the intent of the Founders to operate as a republic, as opposed to a democracy. What is striking, however, is just how quickly Harry Reid has changed his tune on this procedure. Less than a decade ago, when his party was in the minority, he decried the majority party for doing exactly the same thing he wishes to do now.

Reid made the rounds on the Sunday talk shows this weekend, making the case for fundamentally altering the rules of the Senate:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Sunday signaled that the Senate remains headed toward a historic remake of its rules this week to ease the confirmation of some of President Barack Obama’s nominations.

Reid said Sunday on NBC's “Meet the Press” that he’s faced historic delay and obstruction during his time as majority leader, fighting hundreds of filibusters, including 16 of the president’s executive branch nominees. The Nevada Democrat said it’s time for that to end.

“The changes we’re making are very, very minimal. What we’re doing is saying: ‘Look American people, shouldn’t President Obama have somebody working for him that he wants?’” Reid said. “If you want to look at nominations, you know what the Founding Fathers said: ‘Simple majority.’ That’s what we need to do.”

However, Reid seems to have forgotten his basic principles of fairness that he so adamantly defended in the past:

In 2005, then Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., threatened to invoke the “nuclear option” against Democrats filibustering President George W. Bush’s judicial nominees.

“If there were ever an example of an abuse of power, this is it… The filibuster is the last check we have against the abuse of power in Washington.” – Harry Reid 2005

“Republicans are in power today, Democrats tomorrow. A simple majority can change anything. Mr. President, this is the way it should be. You should not be able to come in here and change willy-nilly a rule of the Senate.” – Harry Reid on Senate floor, May 23, 2005

“I just couldn’t believe that Bill Frist was going to do this. The storm had been gathering all year, and word from conservative columnists and in conservative circles was that Senator Frist of Tennessee, who was the Majority Leader, had decided to pursue a rules change that would kill the filibuster for judicial nominations. And once you opened that Pandora’s box, it was just a matter of time before a Senate leader who couldn’t get his way on something moved to eliminate the filibuster for regular business as well. And that, simply put, would be the end of the United States Senate.” – Harry Reid in his 2008 book “The Good Fight”

“As long as I am the leader, the answer’s no. I think we should just forget that. That is a black chapter in the history of the Senate. I hope we never ever get to that again because I really do believe it will ruin our country.” – Harry Reid on nuclear option, C-SPAN interview, Sept. 12, 2008

So it's a very dark chapter in the history of the Senate, unless it's your party in the majority that's being asked to work with the minority party. Harry Reid has done a lot of hypocritical, hyperpartisan, unprincipled things in his time in the Senate (see e.g. Obamacare, passage), but even by his standards, invoking the nuclear option would be a breathtakingly political move.


Read more at FreedomWorks

ENEMY WITHIN: Obama unilaterally dismantling U.S. nuclear deterrent far beyond what he promised Congress

Guest post by Investor's Business Daily

Defense: Breaking yet another promise, this one to Congress, the administration jeopardizes our national security with plans to eliminate an entire squadron of intercontinental ballistic missiles and destroy its silos.

Yet another example of what President Obama meant in 2012 when he promised Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, that after his re-election he would have more "flexibility" on defense issues, comes on the news that an ICBM squadron would be scrapped to comply with the New START Treaty — even as both the Russians and Chinese deploy new ballistic missiles.

A document prepared by the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon maps out a strategy to eliminate an ICBM squadron — and destroy its missile silos — by Dec. 5, 2017.

The military would begin removing ICBMs next October, after an environmental assessment is complete, and the silo elimination would begin in May 2016.

The fact is, as the Heritage Foundation notes, the U.S. does not need to eliminate an ICBM squadron to meet New START's limits. The State Department's Oct. 1 fact sheet says the U.S. must dismantle 109 of its deployed ICBMs, deployed submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and deployed heavy bombers, and remove another 138 warheads.

Heritage notes the U.S. has already reduced its deployed warheads by 112 and that destroying an ICBM squadron to comply with New START is unnecessary.

Predicting a TSA Patdown [Papa B]

Guest post by Papa B*

I'm just saying...


*Editor's note: this post has absolutely no redeeming value whatsoever, which is precisely why we love Papa B around these parts.

WE'RE IN THE VERY BEST OF HANDS: Enrollment Data Entered Into Healthcare.gov Available in Google Search Results

Some rascal online called it IdentityTheft.gov and that assessment appears to have been validated by a top security research team. The Ohio firm TrustedSec has released a security assessment of Healthcare.gov and the results, even though they were cursory by modern standards, were very grim indeed.

David Kennedy, CEO of the firm, revealed that he withheld many of the vulnerabilities because they were so severe that publishing them could have meant the complete destruction of the site. His executive summary read simply, "based on what I can see … I would say the website is either hacked already or will be soon."

I perused the entire report (PDF) this evening. In short, the site is not only a complete catastrophe from an operational perspective, it's also a hacker's dream.

...The website cost an estimated $624 million and consists of over 500 million lines of code. With the number of lines of code, this is one of the most complex applications ever written in the history of applications. To put this in comparison, the Microsoft Windows 8 operating system, which is the latest, has an estimated 50 to 80 million lines of code and has over 25 years of development and maturity. It should be noted that with 80 million lines of code, the Windows operating system has had a significant amount of “exploits” that have hit their product line since it’s early existence...

Microsoft has one of the largest and most sophisticated security development, protection, and remediation processes today. This process has taken years to mature and places security at the forefront. With a website that is over 6 times more complex than the Microsoft operating system and developed in an extremely short period of time, there is and was no foreseeable way to build security into the website...

...there are clear indicators that even basic security was not built into the healthcare.gov website. TrustedSec is confident based on the exposures identified that the website has critical risks associated with it and security concerns should be remediated immediately...

...TrustedSec identified multiple severely critical exposures that it is not publishing publicly until they have been addressed.

...One of the more alarming trends is that the actual security testing of the website was deferred due to project delays. The website was launched without formal testing and with known risks around the security of the applications. Even further, there was little to no security built into the website or through the development. With the complexity of the website, this would indicate
that the website will suffer from significant security concerns for a long period of time unless significant action is taken to address the issues and flaws within it.

...It appears that individual user accounts and names are indexed via Google and can expose profile information of individuals that sign up on data.healthcare.gov.

Based on what I've seen, Healthcare.gov may be the single biggest magnet for identity thieves in world history.

And, come to think of it, that's another historic Obama first!


Larwyn's Linx: ObamaCare by the Numbers

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

ObamaCare by the Numbers: Brenda Zurita
Re-election Woes Are Dems' Only Concern From Obamacare Failures: Outcast
New Obamacare Defense: Blame Everyone But Yourself: RS

Obamacare Website Crashes In Front Of Sebelius In Miami: WFB
Democrat Pols: Obama more unpopular than George W. Bush: Outcast
RNC invites Dems to "We're Running on Obamacare' presser: John Hawkins

Obamacare-speak fails to mask an evolving fiasco: Victor Davis Hanson
Obama and the Limits of Schadenfreude: Roger Kimball
Brutal: Obama Plummets to 37% in CBS Poll, ObamaCare at 31%: JWF

Economy

Yet Another Government Agency Is Keeping Tabs On You: Hester Peirce
"Obamacare Shock" - One California Employer's Terrifying True Story: ZH
Dems Want ‘Movement from the People’ to Hike Social Security Taxes: Tatler

ObamaCare Creates 'Two-Tier' Health System: AmPower
Food Police Will Soon Hit Businesses with Pointless Regulations: CFIF
Warren Buffett vs the Salad Oil Swindler, November 1963: Reformed Broker

Scandal Central

BENGHAZI UPDATE: Staffers Told: 'You Are On Your Own': Angle
Enroll America Director Conspires to Release Private Data: Jason Howerton
Issa Investigating Alleged Faked Jobs Data Prior To 2012 Election: Tammy Bruce

Climate & Energy

Dems Hold 'Closed-Door Discussions' with NFL, NBA to Promote Climate Hoax: Sean Long, CNS
Awesome: Climate Change As Terrorism, U.S. Blamed: Cove
Arctic Algae Shows Doom Or Something: Cove

Media

CNN host tries to LECTURE Ted Cruz on his ‘job as a Senator’…Cruz hits back: Scoop
BOOM: Sarah Palin CANCELS Today Show interview because MSNBC won’t discipline Martin Bashir: Scoop
What? Those ‘Toxic Little Queens’ at MSNBC Don’t Want Alec Baldwin Back?: R.S. McCain

Free Beacon Stumbles Ass-Backwards Into A Good Video Mashup: Ace
Poll: Obama Crashes to 37% Approval, Obamacare Disapproval Up Sharply: Bryan Preston
Katie Pavlich has a suggestion for Matthew Yglesias’ ‘coddled, overpaid’ doctors: Twitchy

ObamaCare’s “branding” problem: John Hayward
Judge Napolitano Schools Juan Williams On ObamaCare And The Constitution: Glob
Politico Magazine Writer Burns Flag on Twitter: TruthRevolt

World

DHS Admits Iraqi Terrorists As Refugees: RS
On Eve of Nuclear Talks With Kerry, Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Israel “Doomed To Extinction”: WZ
Iranian Nuclear Capabilities: Events in Washington & Los Angeles: RWN

New York Times' Loathsome Thomas Friedman Slams ‘Israel Lobby’ for Preventing Iran Deal: Israpundit
How well is government-run health care working out in socialist Venezuela?: Wintery Knight
Google's Project Link builds high-speed networks in Africa: Steven Musil

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News)

Healthcare.gov ‘may already have been compromised,’ security expert says: Fox
How Munich rejected Steve Ballmer and kicked Microsoft out of the city: Nick Heath
Google widens Fiber rollout in Kansas City, shows how signups will work in Austin: Engadget

Cornucopia

On the heels of a chest cold: Protein Wisdom
Obamacare: Welcome to the Roach Hotel: MOTUS
ObamaCare Website Glitch Causes VP Biden to Vanish: Cube

Image: JFK in The New Yorker
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: What is an Article V Convention of States?

QOTD: "[In trying to blame Republicans for his failures, Obama] fails to explain how GOP opposition has had any impact at all. Obamacare is the law. It is being implemented. It is funded.

As he bemoans the “toxic political atmosphere” he should do a bit of soul-searching (admittedly it would take about fifty men and a sizable pack of bloodhound to find his soul) and examine how the political environment got this way. It didn’t happen overnight. He struggled in a manner worthy of Hercules to burn down his own credibility, rebuff the opposition, and lie left-right-and-center for no greater reason than just to stay in practice.

Ironically, it has turned out that the most effective opposition to Obamacare has not been the GOP, it has been the Obama administration’s epic incompetence and malfeasance." --Streiff

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

BIG F***IN' DEAL, INDEED: Only 100 million more Americans to lose their health insurance next year

I wasn't a math major in college, but canceling the insurance plans of 140 million Americans to make sure 9 million other Americans are covered seems rather, eh, counter-intuitive.

A new and independent analysis of ObamaCare warns of a ticking time bomb, predicting a second wave of 50 million to 100 million insurance policy cancellations next fall -- right before the mid-term elections.

The next round of cancellations and premium hikes is expected to hit employees, particularly of small businesses. While the administration has tried to downplay the cancellation notices hitting policyholders on the individual market by noting they represent a relatively small fraction of the population, the swath of people who will be affected by the shakeup in employer-sponsored coverage will be much broader.

...half to two-thirds of small businesses would have policies canceled or be compelled to send workers onto the ObamaCare exchanges. They predict up to 100 million small and large business policies could be canceled next year.

...Under the health care law, businesses with fewer than 50 workers do not have to provide health coverage. But if they do, the policies will still have to meet the benefit standards set by ObamaCare.

...For workers, their experience could mirror that of the 5 million or so on the individual market who already received cancellation notices because their plans did not meet new standards under the Affordable Care Act.

President Obama announced last week that insurance companies could offer out-of-compliance plans for another year. But that only means the cancellation notices will resume late next year.

...The business community has already been hit with another side effect from ObamaCare. Because the law will require businesses with more than 50 full-time workers to offer health coverage, there are reports that companies are shifting employees to part-time status to avoid hitting the threshold... A survey showed 31 percent of franchise businesses, and 12 percent of non-franchise businesses, have already reduced worker hours. It also showed 27 percent of franchise businesses, and 12 percent of non-franchise businesses, have replaced full-time workers with part-time employees.

I wonder what the Leni Riefenstahl of the Obama administration -- Taegan Goddard -- has to say about this?


Hat tip: BadBlue News.

Crisis of Legitimacy, Superhero Edition

Sent to us by MtnTopPatriot


On a more serious note, there's also this from America's best investigative reporter:


Ruh roh.


The Biggest Money-Printing Exercise in World History

Guest post by Martin D. Weiss

The U.S. economy is now so addicted to the Fed’s monthly $85 billion injection of monetary stimulus … that just the thought of withdrawal is enough to cause violent market convulsions.

Consider, for example, the absurdity of this recent chain of events:

* The U.S. Labor Department announces a far better-than-expected report on new jobs …

* Investors fear that the good economic news may nudge the Fed a tad closer to cutting back its stimulus …

* They dump their investments by the truckload, and …

* Bond prices plunge the most in four months, driving interest rates skyward.

All in response to supposedly good news about the economy!

All because investors would rather see the economy sink than see the Fed cut back on its monthly megadose of money shot up their veins.

Or consider the long sequence of excuses Fed Chairman Bernanke has offered for smashing the 100-year Fed prohibition against running the money printing presses 24/7 …

If you call it Obamacare now, you could be a racist

Well, that's odd. All of a sudden POTUS's signature achievement -- which, fittingly, is a catastrophic failure -- can no longer be referred to by its proper name.

President Barack Obama told a gathering of corporate executives Tuesday he's confident that his model of health care will work in the end, but he said he's going to have to "re-brand" it to sell it to a skeptical public.

He didn't use the word "Obamacare" once on Tuesday in talking about his health care law, but he mentioned the "Affordable Care Act" seven times ... "We are going to have to, (a) fix the website so everybody feels confident about that. We're going to have to, obviously, re-market and re-brand, and that will be challenging in this political environment."

During a campaign stop in Colorado last year, the president embraced the name that Republicans had given to his health insurance law: "The Affordable Care Act -- also known as Obamacare," Obama said in August 2012. "I actually like the name," he added. "Because I do care -- that's why we fought so hard to make it happen."

Obama isn't the only Democrat moving away from the term "Obamacare." Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told NBC's David Gregory on Sunday that she has always preferred to call it the "Affordable Care Act." "It -- the Affordable Care Act, as I call it -- Pelosi chuckles -- and have always called it; the Affordable Care Act is right up there with Social Security, Medicare, affordable care for all Americans as a right, not a privilege," she said on "Meet the Press."

As for alternative names, may I suggest choosing from among the following?

• ClusterCare
• Obama's Folly
• Final Solution
• Democare

I'm not happy with any of these, so please suggest some better options in the comments. The winner gets to keep his doctor.


Hat tip: BadBlue News.

Larwyn's Linx: Obama Still Trying to Blame the Republicans for His Failures with a Straight Face

Send us tips! Bloggers: install a Larwyn's Linx widget. Get real-time news, 24/7, at BadBlue.

Nation

Obama Still Blaming GOP for His Failures with a Straight Face: Stephen Kruiser
Impeach Holder? It's About Time: Dave Blount
Watch Out, Red-State Democrats: Alex Roarty

About that Nuclear Option, Senator Reid...: Ace
Cruz on Potential Impeachment Of "Lawless" Obama: RCP
Collapse of the Leviathan: Erick Erickson

Anti-Gun NYC Chief Wants 6 Armed Guards After Retirement: JPFO
Bummer: Victim shoots attacker in Knockout Game: WGBAL
Open Season on Jews: Black Mob Violence in Brooklyn: WGBAL

Economy

Politico vs. Politico on Insurer Bailouts: Ace
Senator Mike Lee Critiques the War on Poverty: RS
Unionized public employees strike over 14.5 percent raise: Ben Yount

Holder Drops Pursuit of Voucher Program in ‘Temporary Victory’ for GOP: Tatler
WH won’t say if Obamacare payments will be ready 11/30: Poor Richard
Hawaii Spent $778,000 In Taxpayer Funds For Each Obamacare Enrollee: WZ

Scandal Central

Don’t Dismiss a Conspiracy Because it is a Conspiracy: Ben Howe
Fort Worth Drivers Stopped by Police, Asked for Saliva and Blood Samples: Bryan Preston
Emails: IRS official said Lerner threw Cincinnati office under the bus: Instapundit

Climate & Energy

George W. Bush Calls for Keystone XL Construction: WFB

Media

Do Americans Prefer Deception?: Walter Williams
Comically Evasive Mouthpiece Jay Carney: Ace
New York Times signals Dems that it's time to ditch Obamacare?: Rosslyn Smith

WH: “Majority of People” With Group Health Plans Will Lose Their Insurance by December?: PunditPress
“Meanwhile, Obama’s approval rating dipped to a low of 37%”: Scoop
Let me show you precisely how messed up progressive pundits are over Obamacare: Moe Lane

Marco Rubio: No Bailouts for ObamaCare: WSJ
On Martin Bashir's Pooping Fetish: Ben Shapiro
Ted Cruz remembers Gettysburg…: Scoop

World

What could do wrong? Valerie Jarrett reported to have struck deal with Iran for Obama: Sharona Schwartz
White House denies Jarrett's secret deal-making with Iran: Elephant
Ronald Lauder Says ‘Only France Stands Between Us and a Nuclear Iran’ Mocks Wendy Sherman: Algemeiner

British police being ordered to hide crime from being reported: John R. Lott
Shall I SuperSize Your NDAA Combo Meal?: Blasted Fools
UN Chief Ban Ki Moon Visits Auschwitz – Pleads Tolerance for Muslims: GWP

Sci-Tech (courtesy BadBlue Tech News

U.S. Army will have its Iron Man suits in four years: Colin Druce-McFadden
Yahoo CEO Mayer talks mobile strategy, design approach: Chris Kanaracus, CIO
Review: Nike+ FuelBand SE: Mikey Campbell, AppleInsider

Cornucopia

A Democrat Thanksgiving: Rick McKee
Terrified Obama Trapped Inside Healthcare.gov Website: The Onion
Why one Mom's puppy and son photos have become a viral hit: The Blaze

Image: ‘Out of touch’ unionized public employees strike over 14.5 percent raise
Today's Larwyn's Linx sponsored by: What is an Article V Convention of States?

QOTD: "In 1861, Abraham Lincoln told Congress that the “leading object” of American government was:

“...to elevate the condition of men – to lift artificial weights from all shoulders, to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all, to afford all an unfettered start and a fair chance, in the race of life...”

In a single sentence, Lincoln explains precisely what poverty is, and what government ought to do about it. As Lincoln knew first hand, true poverty was not for most people an absence of money, but an absence of opportunity..." --Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT)

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

EZRA KLEIN, CNN AND TECHCRUNCH PUNK'D: White House Falsified Unemployment Rate Before 2012 Election

A month before the 2012 presidential election, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released new unemployment numbers. They turned out to be a stunning surprise: the official U-3 unemployment rate dropped from 8.1 percent in August to 7.8 percent in September.

At the time, former GE Chairman Jack Welch smelled a rat and said so publicly.

Welch’s tweet unleashed a firestorm of criticism with numerous accusations of him being a ‘conspiracy theorist.’ CNN attacked Welch’s hiring history claiming that Obama’s record on jobs trounced that of Welch. The site Tech Crunch deemed Welch a crazy, accusing him of inspiring a ‘web-wide Obama conspiracy’. In response to Welch’s statement, then Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said, “This is a methodology that’s been used for decades. And it is insulting when you hear people just cavalierly say that somehow we’re manipulating numbers.”


Barry Popik reminds us that the pencil-necked journoleftist named Ezra Klein was among the first to mock "jobbers" (i.e., "jobs birthers"):

The Daily Kos and Washington (DC) Post writer Ezra Klein came up with the term “jobber” on October 5, 2012—after an important BLS pre-election jobs report favored the current Democratic administration and Republicans questioned the numbers. “Jobber” follows similar names of “truther” (a 9-11-2001 conspiracy theorist), “birther” (a Barack Obama birth certificate conspiracy theorist) and “deather” (an Osama bin Laden death conspiracy theorist).

Of course, as we recently found out, the White House falsified the unemployment numbers in one of their various criminal enterprises designed to steal the 2012 election.

Now that Welch (and everyone of us with an ounce of common sense) have been vindicated, how long will it take the unemployment denialists like Gregory Ferenstein, Felix Salmon, the freakish Austan Goolsbee, and the loathsome Ezra Klein to apologize?


That's a rhetorical question, of course. Religious extremists like these leftists aren't bound by facts, logic, reason and history. That's why they're fanatics, irrational kooks who have an insatiable desire to control others.

In a word, they're Democrats.