"NO INTEREST IN EVEN GAINING THE RUDIMENTARY KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED"

President Barack Obama blasted Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a Sunday fundraiser for Hillary Clinton.

Politico reporter Gabriel Debenedetti was at the New York City event where the president laid into former reality TV star trump as unqualified and not particularly interested in becoming qualified.

“This guy is not qualified to be the president,” Obama said. “And he shows no interest in even gaining the rudimentary knowledge required to make really hard decisions on a day-to-day basis. There’s no curiosity, there’s no desire to get up to speed. It’s an infomercial. It’s a reality show. And more disturbingly, it’s tapping into some of our worst impulses as a country — ones that divide us rather than bring us together; ones that seek to put down people who have been historically vulnerable as opposed to lifting them up.”

Obama also said that one of the reasons the U.S. hasn’t had a female president is because the national character is still coming to terms with its view of strong, independent women.

“We as a society still grapple with what it means to see powerful women,” the president said. “And it still trouble us in lots of ways, unfairly. And that expresses itself in all sorts of ways.”

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STAFF WRITER

DNC HEAVY WEIGHTS COMPLETEY SHRED CHEETO JESUS

Yesterday, the GOP presidential nominee asked a foreign government to hack American computers. Most of the US citizenry would have be arrested for treason for conducting such actions.

Up until now, I have severely questioned the judgment and intelligence of Trump supporters and the GOP in general. After today, I question their patriotism.

With that said, speakers at the DNC convention last night took Trump to task, and it was not a good night to be Fuckface Von Clownstick - nor a supporter for that Matter.

Michael Bloomberg, John Hutson, Leon Panetta, Joe Biden and President O all took center stage last night, and oh what a night it was for slaying the green slimy two toed sloth.

Below are videos from last night’s Democratic convention in Philadelphia.

Sit back with your favorite beverage and enjoy the blistering evisceration of Trump.

Rear Admiral John Hutson




Leon Panetta Skewering Trump





Joe Biden on Trump: "No major party nominee has ever known less or been less prepared to deal with our national security." Fact check: True.



Bloomberg “I know A Con When I See One”




Obama Rips Orange Hitler



In the literal sense, Trump is a shit stain on the society of America; he is everything we are not. Hopefully this country wakes up early enough to recognize the disaster that this con-man is.





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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

Under Obama, Police Have Never Been Safer. Huh, Who Knew?

Following the shooting of police officers in Dallas this week, conservatives raced to Twitter to blame President Barack Obama, but the data doesn’t support their complaints.

Former Rep. Joe Walsh tweeted, “Obama’s words & [Black Lives Matter]’s deeds have gotten cops killed.” Rep. Steve King claimed the shooting had “roots” in the “anti-white/cop events illuminated by Obama.”

But according to an analysis by the Chicago Tribune, blaming Obama or Black Live Matter activists, who began protesting shootings by police following the death of Michael Brown, isn’t supported by any of the data available. In fact, their claims are outright false.

The Officers Down Memorial Page paints a different picture than conservatives would have the public believe. The site tracks law enforcement officers murdered in the line of duty in real time and shows an average of 101 police officers deliberately killed each year under the Reagan administration. Under George H.W. Bush that number fell to 90, to 81 under Clinton and 72 deaths per year under George W. Bush.

As for the Obama administration, that number has continued to drop. The average number of police murdered during his presidency has fallen to an average 62 deaths each year through 2015. Looking at projections for 2016, that number stays the same.

There are so few officers being killed intentionally that just the Dallas shootings skew the data showing a 44 percent increase. Without the murders this week, the year-over-year rise would only have been 17 percent.

This isn’t about better medical care and quicker response time either. Under Obama’s administration, assaults on police officers have dropped as well. The FBI reports that in 1988, the final year of the Reagan administration, police had 15.9 assaults per every 100 law enforcement officers. However, at the end of the Clinton administration in 2000, that number dropped to 12.7 assaults for every 100 officers. Under the Bush administration, it fell again 11.3. The trend has continued under Obama’s administration. The most recent data from the FBI shows that in 2014 it decreased to 9.0.

Facts, they always ruin the narrative of the ignorant! 

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West 

APOLOGY TOUR

Bill Maher last night in his New Rules segment recommended that President Obama use his last months in office to go on an "Apology World Tour," and make amends for all of the harm we've intentionally and unintentionally done to other countries.

VIDEO COURTESY OF HBO

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

MAHER PETITIONS FOR OBAMA VISIT

One of President Obama's staunchest supporters is Bill Maher. For years Obama has ignored the stage of HBO's Real Time - and Maher last night, in his return from vacation, put Obama on notice that its time to get his ass to the show for an interview.

For his 60th birthday, Bill Maher has turned to fans for help. He wants Barack Obama to appear on "Real Time With Bill Maher" before the president leaves office.

Is it so much to ask? The media-savvy Obama did "Running Wild With Bear Grylls."

Maher asked fans to sign a petition urging Obama to visit "Real Time," which started its 14th season on HBO with Friday's telecast. Maher stressed that Obama has done virtually every other talk show.

VIDEO COURTESY OF HBO




Maher also noted his tireless support for Obama, and his request burned up Google Trends.

What might be keeping Obama from "Real Time"? Maher's atheism and marijuana use could be stumbling blocks. But might Obama open up in ways he hasn't on the freewheeling, F-bomb-dropping "Real Time"?

Having supported this President unconditionally, do your backers a favor, schedule some time on Real Time!

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

MEET FLORIDA WING NUTS PAT WAYMAN AND STEVEN R. FIELDS

CONSERVATIVE LOONY BIRDS PAT WAYMAN AND STEVEN R. FIELDS

A Florida county is considering changes to its charter review board after two elected members have focused on punishing political enemies through extralegal tactics instead of government business.

The Sarasota County charter review board typically proposes minor changes to the county charter when they meet three times a year, but critics say two of its members — Pat Wayman and Steven R. Fields — have been using their positions to usurp authority from other elected officials, reported the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

The pair have voted to establish a “people’s common law grand jury,” which sovereign citizens and other anti-government extremists have proposed to investigate and prosecute government officials for treason — which, as they frequently point out, carries a potential death penalty.

“Take a look at the French Revolution and what took place there,” said Mike Bolam, who has attended charter review board meetings to support the common law grand juries.

The board voted 4-4 in May to study a proposal by Rodger Dowdell, a Tea Party activist who denies being a sovereign citizen but, nonetheless, spouts sovereign citizen rhetoric.

“Grand jury powers come from God,” Dowdell said, advocating a return to the post-Revolution legal system where there were no police departments and judges rode horseback to hear cases brought by groups of 25 citizens.

Most importantly, he told the Herald-Tribune, those rulings would be kept out of reach of presidential and even U.S. Supreme Court authority.

“A people’s common law grand jury can, without any probable cause, go into any nook or cranny of government — local, state or federal — research anything that’s going on and root out corruption,” Dowdell said. “We want to government to recognize the contract we call the constitution, and start obeying the law. It’s very simple.”

His proposal failed due to the tie vote.

Tea Party activists have been trying to set up common law grand juries, which don’t actually carry any legal authority, for years in hopes of convicting — and hanging — President Barack Obama for treason.

Dowdell, state coordinator of the right-wing National Liberty Alliance, claims a common law grand jury was already operating in Manatee County, Florida, but he offered no proof.

“I can’t talk about it,” he said. “Everything is secret. In order to keep innocents who may be investigated from being damaged, whatever a grand jury does is secret.”

Wayman, the charter board member, posted a petition Oct. 12 on her Facebook page calling for Obama’s arrest on murder and treason charges, and she has also posted videos questioning whether mass shootings were staged in Sandy Hook and Oregon.

She also promotes the pro-gun extremist III Percent group and warns against a United Nations takeover of the United States through its non-binding Agenda 21 agreement.

Fields, the other charter board member, expresses conservative political views that are a bit more mainstream — with posts expressing his love for guns, law enforcement, the military, Glenn Beck, Andrew Breitbart and Ronald Reagan — but he also voted for Dowdell’s measure.

“If someone brings an idea that we can do, that’s something we should take a look at,” Fields said.

 “I’ve seen the federal government grabbing more rights away from people. They bribe states into federal control. The Charter Review Board should not be acting like the County Commission and protecting the status quo. And I don’t think (the people’s common law grand jury) has anything to do with sovereign citizens.”

The other members of the board are also unaware of the links between common law grand juries and the sovereign citizen movement — which federal authorities consider a domestic terrorist threat.

“That’s the antithesis of what I’m all about,” said Donna Barcomb, the Republican chairwoman of the charter review board, told the Herald-Tribune. “I don’t think board knew anything about that concept. It was a group of individuals who presented a concept to the board. That’s what the Charter Review Board does — not leaning one way or another. Frequently, the board will look at something and determine if it’s appropriate or in the best interests of the county. For the most part, and I include myself in this, we’re completely ignorant about the concepts.”

She said the charter board could recommend a ballot initiative that would put Sarasota County in line with all other Florida counties, which appoint charter board members instead of electing them.

However, just about 200 miles north, sovereign citizens are threatening to arrest or physically harm elected officials in Dixie County, Florida — where a Tea Party activist was arrested after trying to turn a legitimate jury into a common law grand jury.

“I’m getting harassing emails and threatening faxes saying they’re going to arrest me,” said Dana Johnson, the clerk of courts, told the Herald-Tribune. “This one says they want info on bonds and oaths. There are further demands. I’m concerned about my safety. The local sheriff has alerted (the Florida Department of Law Enforcement) and the FBI. Anytime they come up on our public agenda we have security with us at all times.”

Terry Trussell, who helped organize the failed Operation American Spring rally to drive Obama from office, has been charged with 14 counts of impersonating court officials.

“Once Trussell got selected to serve on a legitimate grand jury, it became the perfect storm,” Johnson said. “From that point, he’s taken it on his own authority to create a sovereign citizen board of common law grand jurors. I am constantly scared.”

The Dixie County sheriff, who said he’s known Trussell all his life and is acquainted with Dowdell, said the anti-government activists had asked him to help with their indictments.

“I said any order has to be signed by a judge — whether it’s a warrant or whatever — it’s got to be a legal court document,” said Sheriff Dewey Hatcher. “They ‘indicted’ everyone from the governor and (Attorney General) Pam Bondi on down to the president of our school board, and they said the school board attorney should be fired.”

The sheriff said he has not arrested anyone in connection with those indictments.

[crossposted from the raw story]

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

BEN CARSON CAN’T SAY WHETHER OBAMA IS A REAL BLACK PRESIDENT OR NOT

Neurosurgeon and Republican wing-nut presidential candidate Ben Carson told CNN on Thursday that he supports News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch, who controversially tweeted earlier this week, comparing the authenticity of Carson and President Barack Obama’s black identities.

Murdoch later claimed he was referring to a New York Magazine article detailing the various ways President Obama has fallen short in helping communities of color, and followed up on the tweet saying, “Apologies! No offense meant. Personally find both men charming.”

In a Thursday interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, who said he found the comment “pretty shocking” and “ugly,” Carson defended the Australian mogul:





Carson began by assuring viewers that Murdoch is “not a racist by any stretch of the imagination,” and said those outraged at the suggestion that President Obama is not a “real black president” are making “much ado about nothing.”

“Everybody’s entitled to their opinion,” he said. “I believe what he was making reference to was the fact that here was a man who was a black president that the black community was very excited about who came in and whose policies have not really elevated the black community. He has not been beneficial. There’s more unemployment, more poverty, and I believe that’s what he was really referring to.”

Though the percent of Americans living in poverty has ticked up by about 1 percent, it has gone down every year since 2010. The president’s 2009 stimulus created millions of jobs and kept 6 million people out of poverty. During Obama’s first six years in office, the U.S. has added nearly five times more jobs than it did during the entire eight years under President George W. Bush. The unemployment rate is currently lower than when President Obama took office in 2009.

However, as the New York Magazine article emphasizes, millions of Americans continue to struggle financially — especially people of color.

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

MOTHER OF OREGON SHOOTER FEARED PRESIDENT WAS COMING FOR HER GUNS AND THEN STOCKPILED THEM

The mother of the Roseburg, Oregon shooter stockpiled firearms because she feared stricter gun laws. Laurel Harper, the mother of the shooter, shared an apartment with her son. She was aware that he had mental problems, but chose to stockpile guns in her home because she feared the Obama administration was going to pass laws making it more difficult to get guns. She would seek the least restrictive gun ranges to take her son so the two of them could shoot as they desired. She had purchased several guns just weeks before her son killed nine innocent people.

For more on this story, click New York Daily News EXCLUSIVE: Mom of Oregon mass killer stockpiled firearms out of fear of stricter gun laws, took son to shooting range.

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STAFF WRITER

We Took Turns Fucking A Replica of Reagan’s Eye Socket

Jon Stewart opened The Daily Show on Wednesday by addressing the media furor over his “secret” meetings with President Barack Obama, while mocking Fox News and Politico for hyping the encounters.

“It was a roundtable meeting with the President, Elvis — still alive — Minister [Louis] Farrakhan, and the Area 51 alien,” Stewart quipped. “We opened with the traditional Saul Alinsky prayer, sucked on the blood of the righteous, and took turns fucking a replica of the Reagan eye socket. The real Reagan eye socket is kept in the Smithsonian and is only fucked on Christmas.”

While Politico misidentified Stewart’s executive producer, Steve Bodow, as “Scott Budow,” Stewart said, Fox went out of its way to describe the meetings as Stewart being “summoned” clandestinely, despite the host’s visits being recorded on the official White House logs.

“Something is not a secret just because you don’t know about it,” Stewart chided, saying he agreed to meet with Obama because “If the president tells you to and you don’t, who the f*ck knows what would happen?”

The Daily Show
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In reality, the host said, his discussions with Obama played out not unlike his final interview with the president last week: spending the majority of the time arguing over issues like the Affordable Care Act website or the Veterans Affairs Bureau over salmon dishes.

Stewart did confess that, during his tenure leading the show, he had been approached by individuals ranging from “tech giants, to financial captains, to Billy Joel,” all basically asking, “Jon, why are you such an assshole?” — and the meetings with Obama were no different. Among those people, he noted, was Fox News chief Roger Ailes.

“In fact, in my entire tenure here of being yelled at by some very influential and powerful individuals — and Billy Joel — only with one of those people has a phone call ever ended with, ‘This conversation never happened, and if you say it did, I’ll deny it.’ And it wasn’t the fucking president,'” he said, while looking toward a graphic representing Ailes.





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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

“BYE BYE BUGGIE”

Jon Stewart mocked lawmakers and President Barack Obama for trying to scare Americans into supporting the Patriot Act.

He played clips of several senators blasting Sen. Rand Paul, who forced the expiration of some provisions of the legislation passed in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“I’ve run for president twice, but I would never stoop to something like this,” said Sen. John McCain, in one video clip.

Stewart showed a photo of Sarah Palin and wondered how McCain had not yet learned not to set himself up for jokes about his former running mate.

“I imagine McCain out jogging with an out-of-shape friend, and he’s like, you’re the most useless running mate I’ve ever had – what, why are you laughing?” Stewart said.

To celebrate the break in the collection of bulk metadata by phone companies, Stewart decided to call an old friend – John Oliver.

“Penis, penis, penis,” he shouted into the phone to a bewildered Oliver.

Stewart pointed out that the surveillance provisions had not prevented terrorist attacks at Fort Hood, the Boston Marathon, and the anti-Islam comic show in Garland, Texas – even though the government was tracking each of those suspects.

“If the Patriot Act is acting so poorly, why do we have to keep it?” he said.

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STAFF WRITER

B-ROCK EXPECTED TO ENDORSE POT REFORM

President Barack Obama is expected to express his support for medical marijuana, and a drug policy that deviates from incarceration, in a CNN documentary to air on Sunday night.

In the television special, “Weed 3”, CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta will explore the politics of medical marijuana research. In an interview with Obama, Gupta probes the President about a bipartisan Senate bill that, if passed, will change marijuana’s classification from Schedule I — the most stringent category for regulating drugs — to Schedule II.

Obama, who admitted to smoking marijuana as a youth, reiterates a position that he took earlier his presidency, according to a Huffington Post preview of the show. He tells Gupta that he endorses a policy solution that has a foundation in science and focuses on treatment more than punishment of drug users.

“You know, I think I’d have to take a look at the details, but I’m on record as saying that not only do I think carefully prescribed medical use of marijuana may in fact be appropriate and we should follow the science as opposed to ideology on this issue, but I’m also on record as saying that the more we treat some of these issues related to drug abuse from a public health model and not just from an incarceration model, the better off we’re going to be,” Obama reportedly says during his interview with Gupta.

Nearly two dozen states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana and residents of 13 states can use extracts of the plant to treat certain medical conditions. The debate about the plant, specifically its healing properties, has intensified with the release of scientific research that confirms the plant’s ability to treat certain cancers, confirming what proponents of legalization have argued for years.

Since California legalized medical marijuana in the mid-1990s, public opinion about the issue has become more positive, with a recent survey showing that more than 70 percent of Americans favor medical marijuana. Support for legalization has increased among voters in the swing states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida. Some lawmakers in Illinois want to expand the disease list for the state’s medical marijuana program to include anxiety, migraines, insomnia, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Congressional lawmakers are also mulling over policy that would allow doctors to prescribe medical marijuana to war veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Earlier this month, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, a government drug abuse and addiction organization, acknowledged research that showed medical marijuana’s potential to treat tumors.

However, some hurdles remain for those in the medical marijuana business. For example, dispensaries in California are fighting the efforts of U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag, an employee of Obama’s Department of Justice, to shut down their operations, in a case that is still winding its way through the courts. Rather than arrest them, Haag has tried to seize properties. Across the United States, marijuana’s legal status has caused a dearth of federally regulated studies about the plant, ultimately impeding scientists’ efforts to understand its potential as a healing agent. Earlier this year, the American Academy of Pediatrics urged the government to downgrade marijuana to a Schedule II drug, which would allow for more research into its potential uses to treat sick children with seizures.

Despite the lack of policy changes, Obama has gradually expressed his support for a marijuana policy that’s rooted in science and doesn’t unfairly punish users. In February, he voiced his approval for the removal of criminal penalties for nonviolent drug offenders. In the past, the president predicted that more states would follow Washington and Colorado’s lead in legalizing recreational marijuana and said that though marijuana is legal on the federal level, the Justice Department will not interfere in state medical marijuana programs.

But Tom Angell, chairman of the Marijuana Majority, a marijuana advocacy organization, told the Daily Caller News Foundation that endorsing medical marijuana won’t suffice, saying that President Obama should use his executive powers to reschedule marijuana and protect dispensaries.

“If the president means what he says about following science, then there’s no question he should support legislation to move marijuana out of Schedule I, a category that’s supposed to be reserved for substances with no medical value,” Angell said. “And, since it’s so hard to get anything through Congress these days, he should even do more than that. He should exercise his power under the Controlled Substances Act to administratively reschedule marijuana right away. The only thing stopping him from doing that is his own reluctance to follow through on his stated principle of letting science dictate policy.”

[h/t thinkprogress]

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STAFF WRITER

HEY RUDY, YOU DON’T OWN 9/11

RUDY GIULIANI PHOTO COURTESY OF JOSH PERRIN

Jon Stewart of the Daily Show railed on Ex-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for claiming the President has no love for his country.

For weeks Giuliani has been on the war path of how much Obama hates America. The “Call of Rudy” tour has been relentless right-wing gibberish – Giuliani not just doubling down on his ludicrousness, but tripling down without stopping for a breath.

Stewart explained that “Giuliani was so far out on the deep end on this that even running to the usually loving arms of Megyn Kelly didn't work out so well and he had to turn to Fox's Hannity instead to have his hatred validated.

VIDEO COURTESY OF COMEDY CENTRAL

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Stewart, in his final synopsis of the issue mocked Rudy for pretending Obama doesn't love America because he wants to "transform it" - just like the former New York mayor once said he wanted to do with his city.

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

TUCKER CARLSON, NO ORDINARY IDIOT

TUCKER CARLSON PUNCH CLOWN

Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Sunday declared that all slavery in the world had been eradicated thanks to the Christian faith.

At the National Prayer Breakfast last week, conservatives accused President Barack Obama of comparing Christianity to the Islamic terrorist group ISIS when he observed that many religions had been used to justify violence throughout history.

"So we're responsible for the Crusades a thousand years ago?" Carlson complained. "Who's 'us' anyway? And by the way, who ended slavery and Jim Crow? Christians. The Rev. Martin Luther King. Christians."

"Christianity is the reason we don't have slavery in the world today," he added. "I mean, talk about a historical."

Co-host Ainsley Earhardt said that Obama's remarks were "completely inappropriate" because there were many evangelical Christians at the National Prayer Breakfast.

"Know your audience," she recommended. "No one expected the Inquisition to be mentioned at the National Prayer Breakfast."

"What's so striking though is his mention of the Crusades as a way to make the point, 'Before you judge ISIS, keep in mind that that Christians did it too,'" Carlson asserted. "The Crusades is a fixation among jihadis. There's not a press release from ISIS or from al Qaeda that doesn't call us Crusaders."

"And so for the president to use that specific word, aping the language of the jihadis is ominous and bizarre."

According to the 2014 Global Slavery Index, there are an estimated 35.8 million slaves in the world.

Late last year, leaders of the largest religions in the world -- including Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths -- met to sign a declaration of commitment to end slavery by 2020.

At the time, Pope Francis called slavery an “atrocious scourge present on a large scale throughout the world."

It's difficult for mentally challenged sociopaths such as Tucker Carlson to find any level of success in this world. I guess he is to be congratulated for coming as far as he has, even if his methods are less than admirable.

NFTOS 

Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS 2015 GOP PWNED!

PRESIDENT QUICK WITS REPUBLICANS IN AD-LIB FEST AT SOTU ADDRESS

In front of the new, Republican-controlled Congress, a forceful and determined President Obama used his State of the Union speech on Tuesday night to push for a program of “middle class economics.” With his pitch, also came a slew of zingers – some scripted and some ad-libbed – that received applause, laughter and some GOP scowls. Here’s a look at his five best lines:

1. “I know because I won both of them.” Towards the end of his speech, Obama called for Republicans and Democrats to work together, acknowledging “I have no more campaigns to run.” But when Republicans began to clap, the commander-in-chief shot back, off-the-cuff: “I know because I won both of them” he said, to applause and laughter from Democrats.



2. “Let’s set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline.” Obama zinged Republicans for focusing too much on the controversial Keystone XL pipeline – which he has voiced opposition to – and instead urged them to focus on a long-term infrastructure bill. “Twenty-first century businesses need 21st century infrastructure — modern ports, stronger bridges, faster trains and the fastest internet. Democrats and Republicans used to agree on this. So let’s set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline. Let’s pass a bipartisan infrastructure plan that could create more than thirty times as many jobs per year, and make this country stronger for decades to come,” said the president.

3. “Well, I’m not a scientist either.” President Obama took a jab at climate change critics, arguing, “I’ve heard some folks try to dodge the evidence by saying they’re not scientists; that we don’t have enough information to act. Well, I’m not a scientist, either. But you know what — I know a lot of really good scientists at NASA, and NOAA, and at our major universities. The best scientists in the world are all telling us that our activities are changing the climate, and if we do not act forcefully, we’ll continue to see rising oceans, longer, hotter heat waves, dangerous droughts and floods, and massive disruptions that can trigger greater migration, conflict, and hunger around the globe.”

4. “It’s time to try something new.” Obama addressed his controversial decision to thaw relations with Cuba and asked Congress to begin to lift the embargo against the communist country. “In Cuba, we are ending a policy that was long past its expiration date. When what you’re doing doesn’t work for 50 years, it’s time to try something new,” he said.

5. Congress: You try living off the minimum wage. In his continued push to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10, Obama challenged members of Congress who are against the proposal. “And to everyone in this Congress who still refuses to raise the minimum wage, I say this: If you truly believe you could work full-time and support a family on less than $15,000 a year, go try it. If not, vote to give millions of the hardest-working people in America a raise,” he said.

Things the Republican Party could not bring themselves to clap for last night - a short condensed list.

· An improving economy

· A soaring stock market

· Americans getting health insurance

· Mention of "solar power"

· Tax cuts for working families (A tax cut Republicans don't like?)"

· Affordable childcare

· Tax cuts for families with children (Another one?)

· Equal pay for women

· "America has put more people back to work than Europe, Japan, and all advanced economies combined."

· A "free and open internet"

· Rewarding companies that "invest in America" (C'mon, really?)

· "Working Americans"

· A resolution for the use of the force against ISIL

· "Trying something new" with Cuba

· Acknowledging that climate change exists

· Prohibiting Torture

· Not persecuting "people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender."

· Closing Guantanamo

· Making "voting easier for every single American"

To be fair, many of right wing neocons last night seemed confounded at the zingers lobbed their way by Obama - which probably made them incapable of showing support for above short list.

With the freak show that is the republican congress - one never knows what makes them tick.

It was a fun show to watch as far as the SOTU goes, with their sarcastic applause for Obama’s being unable to run again - that Obama’s quick wit left them stewing and fuming for the remainder of the evening, was priceless and a very pleasing sight to this ‘lazy shit bag liberal”. Call it cocky, call it swagger, but I like my President standing up to - and verbally bitch slapping the green slimy toed sloth [GOP] into reality.

It’s a great day when the conservatives are all in a tizzy. Good job Mr. President!

NFTOS

Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

FREE COLLEGE FOR ALL?

Today President Obama will announce a plan to make community college free for students who maintain their grades.

The program would be available for both half-time and full-time students who maintain a 2.5 grade point average (GPA) and apply to community colleges that offer occupational training in high-demand fields or credit toward a four-year degree. Tuition costs would be covered up front.

While Obama isn’t expected to discuss how much it would cost or how to fund it, the federal government would share it with states, covering three-quarters of the average cost of community college with states that participate covering the rest. The government already provides about $9.1 billion in aid to community colleges. If all states were to participate, as many as 9 million students could partake and would save an average of $3,800 a year.

Obama will announce the proposal in Tennessee, which has already launched a very similar program. State residents who graduate from high school, maintain a 2.0 GPA, attend mandatory meetings, work with a mentor, and do community service can get the costs of community college tuition that aren’t covered by other programs like Pell Grants paid for. Its program is expected to cost about $34 million a year and has already attracted 58,000 applicants, nearly 90 percent of Tennessee high school seniors and more than twice as many as expected. There is also a higher proportion of Black and Hispanic student applicants for the program than are currently enrolled in college.

Chicago has also launched a program this year that will give students with a 3.0 GPA waivers for tuition, books, and fees at community colleges. Other states, such as Florida, Mississippi, and Oregon, are considering similar plans, while some have looked at “pay it forward” programs that allow students to attend community college or public university at no cost with the requirement that they repay a certain portion of their income after graduation.

If President Obama truly wants to transform the cost of higher education, however, he could make college free for all students without having to lay out more money to pay for it. That’s because the federal government could take the $69 billion it currently spends to subsidize the cost of college through grants, tax breaks, and work-study funds and instead cover tuition at all public colleges, which came to $62.6 billion in 2012, the most recent data. (The government spends another $197.4 billion on student loans.) That would give all students who want to get a college degree a free option to do so. It could also put pressure on private universities to compete with the free option by reducing their costs, which have risen 13 percent over the last five years.

Eliminating college tuition with the money spent on subsidies could also make the system more equal. Currently, the government’s tax-based aid mostly flows to wealthy families instead of low- and middle-income ones. And Pell Grants, which do go to low-income students, have been cut in recent years and cover a small percentage of the cost of college.

[h/t thinkprogress]

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STAFF WRITER

RIGHT WING NUT JOBS HYPOCRISY TO THE OBAMA CUBA POLICY

OBAMA MEETING CUBA'S RAUL CASTRO

Republicans and at least one senior Democrat swiftly condemned President Barack Obama’s announcement on Wednesday of a normalization of relations between the United States and Cuba.

The announcement came after the Cuban government released Alan Gross — a prisoner who was being held on espionage charges for trying to establish a telecommunications network outside of government control — and another U.S. intelligence agent. The United States sent back three Cuban spies in exchange. The U.S. will also begin the process of removing Cuba from the list of states that sponsor terrorism. The new approach represents the largest policy change since the U.S. imposed its embargo against Cuba in January of 1961 in the aftermath of the communist revolution led by Fidel Castro.

Republicans expressed enthusiasm for Gross’ release but spoke out against the administration’s new approach. House Speaker John Boehner argued that America’s policy toward the island nation “should not be revisited…until the Cuban people enjoy freedom — and not a second sooner” and characterized the move as “another in a long line of mindless concessions to a dictatorship.”

Sen. Marco Rubio — who is of Cuban descent — gave interviews to every news organization promising to “make every effort to block this dangerous and desperate attempt” as the Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Western Hemisphere subcommittee. He argued the “new policy is based on an illusion, on a lie” and sets a “dangerous precedent” that “will only cause other tyrants from Caracas to Tehran to Pyongyang to see that they can take advantage of President Obama’s naiveté during his final two years in office.” Sen. Bob Menendez , the outgoing Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair, generally echoed Rubio’s criticism.

But the Republicans’ outcry against the new policy contradicts their own faith in the power of free market economies. Under the administration’s policy, the U.S. will restore full diplomatic relations, ease travel in 12 existing categories, allow the U.S. to import more goods, expand exports to Cuba, among other changes. Opening up trade and investing opportunities will likely push Cuba toward a more American-style economy — the kind Republicans argue leads to freedom.

“We will end an outdated approach that for decades has failed to advance our interests and instead we will begin to normalize relations between our two countries,” Obama said. “These 50 years have shown that isolation has not worked. It’s time for a new approach.”

The Castro government in Cuba — led by Fidel’s brother Raul — has also adopted significant reforms in recent years. Cuban citizens can now work in private-sector jobs and own property, engage in some degree of criticism against the government, and prominent dissidents can travel abroad. The government also encourages foreign investment and has released political prisoners. It estimates that the embargo has cost the economy more than $975 billion.

In his remarks, Obama argued that the 50-year embargo has failed to upend the Castro regime, only “providing the Cuban government with a rationale for restrictions on its own people” and pointed out that the United States has long ago re-established diplomatic relations with China, “a far larger country also governed by the Communist Party” that is similarly responsible for squashing dissent and other human rights abuses.

“I am convinced that through a policy of engagement, we can more effectively stand up for our values and help the Cuban people help themselves as they move into the 21st century,” he said.

Polls have consistently found that a majority of Americans, Cuban Americans, and even Republicans support normalization of relations with Cuba. According to a survey poll conducted for the Atlantic Council, 56 percent of Americans and 52 percent of Republicans support “normalizing relations or engaging more directly with Cuba.” More than half of Cuban Americans in Miami agree.

The deal came after 18 months of secret talks with Cuba that were encouraged by Pope Francis. Obama and President Raúl Castro held a 45-minute telephone conversation on Tuesday to finalize the details. It was the first time leaders of the two countries had spoken directly in more than 50 years, administration officials claimed.

NFTOS

STAFF WRITER

DAMN OBAMA, THE ECONOMY IS FLOURISHING

DON"T LOOK NOW BUT THE ECONOMY IS BOOMING

Rachel Maddow last night reported on the litany of positive economic indicators, including significant job growth, lower gas prices, higher wages, and a lower number of uninsured, and the difficulty that right wing nuts are having formulating a response.

Video Courtesy of MSNBC




Nothing to see here America, move on! 

NFTOS

Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

TEABIRCHER BEN STEIN

BEN STEIN SAYS OBAMA IS MOST RACIST PRESIDENT EVER

As a rule of thumb, whenever a conservative right wing nut job tries to make a point about racism in America that defends the GOP - you should either ignore them, laugh at them, or like I do call them out on their lies.

Any American with a positive IQ, who follows politics knows about the Southern Strategy that Reagan and Nixon used and which was later honed to perfection by the late Lee Atwater. So whenever Democrats point out how racist the GOP and the Tea Party are, their new hole card is to call that racism.





Maybe more importantly, this blog should be about Stein's expertise at being a womanizing pervert instead of his "political intellect" [snark]. When did this "D" grade actor, "F" grade conservative speech writer become someone who we should listen too with regards to racism?

Stein made his name as one of "the president's men" writing speeches for Nixon and Ford. In a sane world that would have translated to a lifetime bagging groceries but in typical conservative "famous" stature, Stein went from writing speeches for Mr. Watergate to peddling eye drops and bogus credit reporting websites. Conservatives shill for dollars, its what they do best, peddle bullshit.

Stein is just another of - Fox News's parade of:

Fools,
Idiots,
Scoundrels,
Tarts,
Clowns,
Asshats,
Robbers, and
Slanderers

Reminder in all this, we have had Presidents who have owned slaves, and how this tidbit of facts eludes this asshat - Ben Stein proving yet again, that Ben Stein is a colossal Dick. [and no I don't mean his name is Dick]

- the FISTERS brigade (for what they continue to do to our country)--continues to roll on and on and on.

Congratulations Ben Stein, you are both today's worst person in the world and today's asshat of the day. Wear your awards with pride numbnutz.

NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief

Roger West

VOTING SCARES REPUBLICANS

GET OUT AND VOTE LIBERALS

And this is why they make so hard to do.

See Bill Maher's New Rules from last night. Maher last night called out liberals for distancing themselves from Obama

Video Courtesy of HBO







NFTOS
Editor-In-Chief
Roger West

"GATECRASHERS" SYSTEMIC FAILURES WITHIN THE SECRET SERVICE

UPDATE BREAKING: 15:30 10/1/14 Secret Service Director Julia Pierson Resigns.

Last night Rachel Maddow dissected the systemic problems within the elite units of the Secret Service.

Video Courtesy of MSNBC




Facing blistering criticism from Congress, Secret Service Director Julia Pierson acknowledged on Tuesday the agency fell short in executing its plan to protect the White House when a man with a knife entered the mansion and ran through half the ground floor before being subdued.

Despite the extraordinary lapses in the Sept. 19 incident, Julia Pierson asserted: “The president is safe today.”

Hours later, reports emerged of yet another failure in Secret Service protocol, this time in President Barack Obama’s presence.

On Sept. 16, an armed federal contractor rode on an elevator with Obama and his security detail while the president was visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, the Washington Examiner reported. The Washington Post reported similar details and added that the man had three convictions for assault and battery. The office of Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, who has helped lead Congress’ investigation, said a whistleblower had provided him the same details.

The gun was discovered only because the contractor was questioned after he persisted in taking video of Obama on the elevator, the reports said. The contractor was fired immediately by his employers.

A Secret Service official confirmed the incident reported by the newspapers but declined to comment further, citing an ongoing investigation of the event.

Was Obama informed? It was unclear. But Pierson, under questioning at the hearing, said she is the one who briefs Obama on threats to his personal security and that she had briefed him only once this year, “for the Sept. 19 incident.”

At the Capitol, Democratic and Republican lawmakers alike expressed the view that the Sept. 19 breach of White House security had blemished the storied agency, and several pressed for an independent inquiry into what went wrong. They were not assuaged by Pierson’s vow that “I’ll make sure that it does not happen again” or by the agency’s own investigation.

“I wish to God you protected the White House like you protected your reputation here today,” Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts told Pierson at a public hearing that was followed by a classified, closed-door briefing. Rep. Chaffetz said afterward: “The more I learn, the more it scares me.”

It's time for Ms. Pierson to resign, and its time to put some six sigma efforts into why Secret Service processes are failing.

NFTOS

Editor-In-Chief

Roger West