Saturday, September 27, 2008

The Presidential Debate and the Bracelet Moment

Senator McCain talked, as he has previously, about Matthew Stanley and his family of Wolfboro, NH, and the bracelet Senator McCain wears in his honor.

Senator Obama reading the name off 'his bracelet' was tacky, and poorly done.

The story of John McCain, Matthew Stanley, and the bracelet.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Acorn and the Economic Rescue Bill

The Hot Air article The Democratic ACORN bailout reports that a clause in the write-up for the Senator Chris Dodd's rescue bill allocated money for the Housing Trust Fund and consequently the controversial group Acorn.
"TRANSFER OF A PERCENTAGE OF PROFITS.

1. DEPOSITS.Not less than 20 percent of any profit realized on the sale of each troubled asset purchased under this Act shall be deposited as provided in paragraph (2).
2. USE OF DEPOSITS.Of the amount referred to in paragraph (1)
1. 65 percent shall be deposited into the Housing Trust Fund established under section 1338 of the Federal Housing Enterprises Regulatory Reform Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 4568); and
2. 35 percent shall be deposited into the Capital Magnet Fund established under section 1339 of that Act (12 U.S.C. 4569).

REMAINDER DEPOSITED IN THE TREASURY.All amounts remaining after payments under paragraph (1) shall be paid into the General Fund of the Treasury for reduction of the public debt.

Profits? We’ll be lucky not to take a bath on the purchase of these toxic assets. If we get 70 cents on the dollar, that would be a success.

That being said, this section proves that the Democrats in Congress have learned nothing from this financial collapse. They still want to game the market to pick winners and losers by funding programs for unqualified and marginally-qualified borrowers to buy houses they may not be able to afford — and that’s the innocent explanation for this clause.

The real purpose of section D is to send more funds to La Raza and ACORN through housing welfare, via the slush fund of the HTF. They want to float their political efforts on behalf of Democrats with public money, which was always the purpose behind the HTF. They did the same thing in April in the first bailout bill, setting aside $100 million in “counseling” that went in large part to ACORN and La Raza, and at least in the former case, providing taxpayer funding for a group facing criminal charges in more than a dozen states for fraud.

Statement from Senator Lindsey Graham,

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbVrCkviitk]

Hot Air article The Democratic ACORN bailout is worth a read.

Acorn and the Economic Rescue Bill

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Scheiffer: Paulson Pleaded for McCain to Return to Washington

NewsBusters reports Schieffer: Paulson Pleaded for McCain to Save Bailout (follow link for video).
Here was Schieffer speaking with the Early Show's Maggie Rodriguez at 7:05 AM EDT today:

BOB SCHIEFFER: I am told, Maggie, that the way McCain got involved in this in the first place, the Treasury Secretary was briefing Republicans in the House yesterday, the Republican conference, asked how many were ready to support the bailout plan. Only four of them held up their hands. Paulson then called, according to my sources, Senator Lindsey Graham, who is very close to John McCain, and told him: you've got to get the people in the McCain campaign, you've got to convince John McCain to give these Republicans some political cover. If you don't do that, this whole bailout plan is going to fail. So that's how, McCain, apparently, became involved.

Continued Schieffer . . .

SCHIEFFER: He has gotten what he wants, he's going to have this meeting, kind of a summit today with the president and Barack Obama. I'm told that the leaders of both parties are getting close to having some kind of a bill. The question, though, is whether rank-and-file Republicans, especially, are going to vote for this.

...And that's where McCain comes in.

This certainly contradicts the spin that Senator McCain was motivated by politics. The fact remains that no one really knows how this will all play out. No one knows how much of the current events in Washington are influenced by politics. What is known is that there is an economic crisis that needs to be addressed, and the role Senator McCain is playing is significant.

Scheiffer: Paulson Pleaded for McCain to Return to Washington

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

John McCain Bold Leadership

With the markets in turmoil and a bill and a bailout package up for debate in Congress, Senator McCain has suspended his campaign and returned to Washington to work on the bill. Last night prior to Senator McCain's decision to return to Washington ABC's George Stephanopoulos reported,
ABC News' George Stephanopoulos reports: If Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain doesn't vote for the Bush administration's $700 billion economic bailout plan, some Republican and Democratic congressional leaders tell ABC News the plan won't pass.

"If McCain doesn't come out for this, it's over," a Top House Republican tells ABC News.

A Democratic leadership source says that White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten has been told that
Democratic votes will not be there if McCain votes no -- that there is no deal if McCain doesn't go along.

With the ball in Senator McCain's court, and concerns about the President's current proposal, Senator McCain is heading back to Washington. The debates and future campaign events are in limbo, as this bold decision has put a priority on the economic package.

Bold Leadership from John McCain

Speak Out Against Media Bias

The McCain Palin 2008 blog is sponsoring a petition protesting media bias with the support of groups/sites across the political spectrum. While many have witnessed a decisive pro-Obama slant in this news reporting during this election, this bias became glaringly apparent when Governor Palin was selected as the vice-presidential nominee. Whether it is an organization like the New York Times having to retract stories about Governor Palin because they printed rumor and not fact; networks investigating the children of the Governor; or network pundits questioning the Governor's 'mothering' skills, this over-the-top behavior and blatant bias is unacceptable. With over 1200 people having already signed we urge all readers to speak out against an irresponsible media by signing the following petition.

Petition - Speak Out Against Media Unfairness and Sexism

Petition Founder - McCain Palin 2008 Blog

Co-Sponsors -
Grizzly Groundswell
Free Me Now
Hillary Clinton Forum
Lets Get This Right
McCain Now
Nobama
Palin for America
Puma Truth is Gold
Purple People Vote

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Positive Signs for the McCain Campaign

1. Base united and energized with Palin pick.

2. Strong support from both Independents and Democrats.

3. Obama's money advantage is shrinking. Party money combine with campaign money makes the money race extremely close.

4. During primaries Obama tended to poll better than he performed except in blowout situations. McCain tended to perform better over even with polls.

5. The youth vote is fickle, the senior vote is not. While no one knows who will turn out in the end, stats say the person who has consistently voted over the years will show up on election day, while first time voters don't have a strong turn out record.

6. The debates are coming. Question and answer is McCain's strong suite, and not Obama's.

7. Volunteer efforts are improved. State volunteer info - Phone from home volunteer info.

8. Energy - Winter's coming and as Dems stall on the energy bill, and people have to pay for heating oil, gasoline, and electricity; the 'do everything' approach of Republicans, already popular, will likely gain more traction as the days get shorter and colder.

9. McCain is a closer. Looking at the primaries as a guide McCain was behind almost the entire election except for election day. Obama, on the other hand, had a burst at the beginning, but had trouble closing out the race even when the numbers were decisively in his favor.

10. The VP picks. Palin brings excitement and energy, no one pays any attention to Biden except when he sticks his foot in his mouth.

Positive Signs for the McCain Campaign

Friday, September 19, 2008