Sharyl Attkisson I Think I Know Who Hacked Into My Computer, Information might hurt Obama administration, Fast and Furious investigation, Bill O’Reilly interview

Sharyl Attkisson I Think I Know Who Hacked Into My Computer, Information might hurt Obama administration, Fast and Furious investigation, Bill O’Reilly interview

“At a lengthy hearing on ATF’s controversial gunwalking operation today, a key ATF manager told Congress he discussed the case with a White House National Security staffer as early as September 2010.”…CBS News July 26, 2011

“Why did Justice Department and White House staff yell and curse at CBS reporter Sharyl Attkisson over questions about Fast and Furious?”…Citizen Wells

“The Justice Department is trying to protect its political appointees from the Fast and Furious scandal by concealing an internal “smoking gun” report and other documents that acknowledge the role top officials played in the program that allowed firearms to flow illegally into Mexico, according to the head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Kenneth E. Melson, the ATF’s acting director, also told congressional investigators this month that the affidavits prepared to obtain wiretaps used in the ill-fated operation were inconsistent with Justice Department officials’ public statements about the program. Justice Department officials advised him not to raise his concerns with Congress about “institutional problems” with the Fast and Furious operation, Melson said.”…LA Times July 19, 2011

From Newsbusters June 17, 2013.

“Sharyl Attkisson: ‘I Think I Know’ Who Hacked Into My Computer”

“As NewsBusters previously reported, CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson announced last Friday that her computers had been hacked into “by an unauthorized, external, unknown party on multiple occasions in late 2012.”

On Monday, Attkisson told Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly that she thinks she knows who did it (video follows with transcript and commentary):”
“BILL O’REILLY HOST: Personal story segment tonight, CBS News announced on Friday that investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson’s computer was hacked into late last year. This combined with the James Rosen situation here at Fox News and the AP snooping causing a lot of concern. With us now in a Factor cable exclusive is Ms. Attkissoson. So when did you know that somebody was messing with your computer?

SHARYL ATTKISSON, CBS: Well there were signs probably around 2011, but I don’t think I recognized exactly what was going on until perhaps the fall of last year when so many things were happening in the Attkisson household, so many sort of strange electronic-related things that…

O’REILLY: Give me an example because I don’t know anything about computers. Give me an example.

ATTKISSON: I know very little too, but the computers coming on by themselves at night, my personal Apple desktop as well as my CBS-issued…

O’REILLY: Disappearing. You weren’t even there just popped on.

ATTKISSON: Right. I mean, I was sleeping, so they would come on in the middle of the night, sometimes one right after the other. By the time last fall came around they would sometimes both be starting up kind of a cacophony of computer music at night in the middle of the night.

O’REILLY: So you had a personal computer and you had a business computer and they both came on. Sounds like Poltergeist.

ATTKISSON: Right, right.

O’REILLY: So what were you working on that might have interested somebody to try to intrude on your computer? What were you working on?

ATTKISSON: Well you know the first thing I thought some time ago were my personal accounts, my finances, my passwords and so on. But nobody has intruded upon my finances although they had access to that material. So nobody stole my identity or got into my bank accounts which they could have. So I assume the reason they were in the CBS computer was something related to what I was working on.

O’REILLY: Which was what? What big stories were you working on?

ATTKISSON: Well, at the time I was doing Fast and Furious of course, some green energy debacle sort of stimulus spending stories, and then later on the Benghazi story.

O’REILLY: Alright, so they were all not complimentary to the administration. You weren’t working on why is Barack Obama so brilliant and ObamaCare is the best thing in the world?

ATTKISSON: I mean, that’s kind of what I do whichever administration is in office. That’s kind of what I do.

O’REILLY: I’m not saying you’re partisan, but I’m saying the stuff you were going after if the information came forth might hurt the Obama administration. Is that accurate?

ATTKISSON: True.”

Read more:

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2013/06/17/sharyl-attkisson-i-think-i-know-who-hacked-my-computer#disqus_thread#ixzz2WZhlqtMj

Thanks to commenter Observer.

Edward Snowden update, June 18, 2013, US government not able to cover this up by jailing or murdering me, Mainstream media ignores largest program of suspicion less surveillance in human history

Edward Snowden update, June 18, 2013, US government not able to cover this up by jailing or murdering me, Mainstream media ignores largest program of suspicion less surveillance in human history

“If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without bloodshed,
If you will not fight when your victory is sure and not too costly,
You may come to the moment when you will have to fight
with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival.”…Winston Churchill

“If I had my choice I would kill every reporter in the world but I am sure we would be getting reports from hell before breakfast.”… William Tecumseh Sherman

“And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed
–if all records told the same tale–then the lie passed into
history and became truth. “Who controls the past,” ran the
Party slogan, “controls the future: who controls the present
controls the past.”…George Orwell, “1984″

From the Canberra Times June 18, 2013.

“US government can’t stop the truth: Ed Snowden”

“NSA leaker Edward Snowden defended his disclosure of top-secret US spying programs in an online chat on Monday with The Guardian and attacked US officials for calling him a traitor.

“The US government is not going to be able to cover this up by jailing or murdering me,” he said. He added the government “immediately and predictably destroyed any possibility of a fair trial at home,” by labelling him a traitor, and indicated he would not return to the US voluntarily.

Congressional leaders have called Mr Snowden a traitor for revealing once-secret surveillance programs two weeks ago in the Guardian and The Washington Post. The National Security Agency programs collect records of millions of Americans’ telephone calls and Internet usage as a counterterror tool.

The disclosures revealed the scope of the collections, which surprised many Americans and have sparked debate about how much privacy the government can take away in the name of national security.

“It would be foolish to volunteer yourself to” possible arrest and criminal charges “if you can do more good outside of prison than in it,” he said.
Mr Snowden dismissed being called a traitor by former Vice President Dick Cheney, who made the allegations in an interview this week on Fox News Sunday. Mr Cheney was echoing the comments of both Democrats and Republican leadership on Capitol Hill, including Senate Intelligence committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein.

“Being called a traitor by Dick Cheney is the highest honour you can give an American, and the more panicked talk we hear from people like him, Feinstein … the better off we all are,” Mr Snowden said.”

“In answer to the question of whether he fled to Hong Kong because he was spying for China, Mr Snowden wrote, “Ask yourself: if I were a Chinese spy, why wouldn’t I have flown directly into Beijing? I could be living in a palace petting a phoenix by now.”
He added later, “I have had no contact with the Chinese government.”

Mr Snowden dismissed the US government’s claims that the NSA surveillance programs had helped thwart dozens of terrorist attacks in more than 20 countries, including the 2009 al-Qaeda plot by Afghan American Najibullah Zazi to blow up New York subways.

“Journalists should ask a specific question: … how many terrorist attacks were prevented SOLELY by information derived from this suspicionless surveillance that could not be gained via any other source? Then ask how many individual communications were ingested to acheive (sic) that, and ask yourself if it was worth it.”"

“Mr Snowden explained his claim that from his desk, he could “wiretap” any phone call or email — a claim top intelligence officials have denied. “If an NSA, FBI, CIA, DIA, etc. analyst has access to query raw SIGINT (signals intelligence) databases, they can enter and get results for anything they want,” he wrote in the answer posted on the Guardian site. “Phone number, email, user id, cell phone handset id (IMEI), and so on — it’s all the same.”

The NSA did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. But Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has said that the kind of data that can be accessed and who can access it is severely limited.”

“In one of his final replies, Mr Snowden attacked the “mainstream media” for its coverage, saying it “now seems far more interested in what I said when I was 17 or what my girlfriend looks like rather than, say, the largest program of suspicion-less surveillance in human history.”

Read more:

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/it-pro/security-it/us-government-cant-stop-the-truth-ed-snowden-20130618-2oexh.html#ixzz2WZAuqcXm

Thus far, I am inclined to believe Mr. Snowden.

Senator Rand Paul letter to Harry Reid on Immigration Bill vs national security, Boston Marathon bombings, Student visa review or suspension, Immigrations allowed from Islamic extremism hotbeds

Senator Rand Paul letter to Harry Reid on Immigration Bill vs national security, Boston Marathon bombings, Student visa review or suspension, Immigrations allowed from Islamic extremism hotbeds

” the FBI reviewed its records and determined that in early 2011, a foreign government asked the FBI for information about Tamerlan Tsarnaev. The request stated that it was based on information that he was a follower of radical Islam and a strong believer, and that he had changed drastically since 2010 as he prepared to leave the United States for travel to the country’s region to join unspecified underground groups.”…FBI press release April 19, 2013

“Saudi Arabia, which gave us 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 hijackers, will soon get the coveted “trusted traveler” status from the Department of Homeland Security.”…NY post March 21, 2013

“I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.”…Barack Obama

 

 

From Senator Rand Paul April 22, 2013.

“Sen. Paul Issues Letter to Majority Leader Reid Regarding Consideration of Immigration Bill

In the wake of the Boston Marathon Bombings, focus should be on National Security

Apr 22, 2013

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Sen. Rand Paul today issued a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid urging him to incorporate various national security concerns into the comprehensive immigration reform debate in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings. Sen. Paul believes that comprehensive immigration reform requires a strong national security and until we can fully understand the systematic failures that enabled two individuals to immigrate to the United States from an area known for being hotbed of Islamic extremism, we should not proceed.

TEXT OF LETTER:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid

United States Senate

Washington, DC 20510

Dear Majority Leader Reid,

As our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to those affected by the tragedy in Boston, I urge you to incorporate the following national security concerns into the comprehensive immigration reform debate. Before Congress moves forward, some important national security questions must be addressed.

I believe that any real comprehensive immigration reform must implement strong national security protections. The facts emerging in the Boston Marathon bombing have exposed a weakness in our current system. If we don’t use this debate as an opportunity to fix flaws in our current system, flaws made even more evident last week, then we will not be doing our jobs.

We should not proceed until we understand the specific failures of our immigration system. Why did the current system allow two individuals to immigrate to the United States from the Chechen Republic in Russia, an area known as a hotbed of Islamic extremism, who then committed acts of terrorism? Were there any safeguards? Could this have been prevented? Does the immigration reform before us address this?

There should be hearings in the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee that study the national security aspects of this situation, making sure that our current immigration system gives individuals from high-risk areas of the world heightened scrutiny.

In the wake of 9/11, there was a comprehensive reform of our intelligence gathering system, yet our improved intelligence gathering system did not adequately detect these extremists. We need to understand possible intelligence failures and craft solutions.

Media reports indicate that the deceased bombing suspect was interviewed by the FBI two years ago at the request of a foreign government. We need to know the details of this interview. We need to know if this interview might have given investigators any reason to conclude that this individual might be dangerous or at least worthy of further inquiry. If so, was there an intelligence failure? At the very least, it should be examined.

Media reports indicate that both the bombing suspects were legal permanent residents and one is reported to be a naturalized citizen.  We need to make sure that we have safeguards against this type of situation happening again.

In 2002, Congress set up the National Security Registration System (NSEERS), yet it was suspended in 2011 by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano.  That system had problems, yet was still based on the practical idea that extra screening is necessary from nations that have a higher population of extremists. Congress might need a similar system updated for current circumstances to be rolled into comprehensive immigration reform.

I would like the US-VISIT/OBIM program studied to see if it actually works, or at least study the process by which we collect and analyze biometric data on immigrants.

Our refugee programs have proven to be a problem. On, January 29, 2013, two Iraqi citizens living in Bowling Green, in my home state of Kentucky, were sentenced to long prison terms for participating in terrorism and providing material support to terrorists while living in the United States. How did this happen? Does the current immigration reform address how this might have happened? We may need more scrutiny when accepting refugees from high-risk nations.

I want to make sure that any new bill addresses the visa entry and exit programs, in addition to refugee programs that have proven problematic in Bowling Green and possibly, if media reports are correct, in Boston.

Finally, do we need to take a hard look at student visas? Should we suspend student visas, or at least those from high-risk areas, pending an investigation into the national security implications of this program?

I respectfully request that the Senate consider the following two conditions as part of the comprehensive immigration reform debate:One, the Senate needs a thorough examination of the facts in Massachusetts to see if legislation is necessary to prevent a similar situation in the future. Two, national security protections must be rolled into comprehensive immigration reform to make sure the federal government does everything it can to prevent immigrants with malicious intent from using our immigration system to gain entry into the United States in order to commit future acts of terror.

Thank you for your consideration of this request.

Sincerely,

Rand Paul, M.D.”

http://www.paul.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=776

NC unemployment rate drops .1 percent in February 2013, Labor Force Participation rate drops .2, Participation rate drops 1.7 percent since Obama took office, Charlotte Observer omits data

NC unemployment rate drops .1 percent in February 2013, Labor Force Participation rate drops .2, Participation rate drops 1.7 percent since Obama took office, Charlotte Observer omits data

“With a 63.7% labor force participation, “conditions in the labor market are considerably worse than indicated” in July’s report”…economist Joshua Shapiro, WSJ August 3, 2012

“Guilford (Large NC County) appears on it’s way to a third consecutive year with annual jobless rates in double digits. Economists say that likely hasn’t happened since the Great Depression.”…Greensboro News Record December 2, 2011

“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”…George Orwell, “1984″

 

As you may recall, the NC unemployment data for January was released about a week ago. On March 28, 2013 the unemployment figures for February 2013 were released by the NC Department of Commerce.

The NC report as well as media reports from NC fail to mention the drop in the Labor Force Participation Rate. That failure will not be carried over here.

From the Charlotte Observer March 28, 2013.

“NC jobless rate falls slightly to 9.4 percent”

“The state’s unemployment rate edged downward in February but remains just marginally better than it was a year ago.

“It was yet another month that didn’t really alter the status quo very much,” said John Quinterno of South by North Strategies, a Chapel Hill firm specializing in economic and social policy. “It’s very similar to the numbers we’ve seen on and off at least for the past 14 or 15 months.”

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate across North Carolina fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 9.4 percent in February, according to data released Thursday by the state Commerce Department’s Labor and Economic Analysis Division. A year ago, the state’s jobless rate was 9.5 percent.

Quinterno noted that since the beginning of 2012 the unemployment rate has moved up and down within a narrow band – never higher than 9.6 percent or lower than 9.4 percent.

The state unemployment rate continues to lag the national rate of 7.7 percent. The number of unemployed workers in North Carolina totaled 446,840 in February.

North Carolina added 3,300 jobs in February, a gain of one-tenth of a percent.

The state lost 327,800 jobs between December 2007, the pre-recession peak, and February 2010, Quinterno said. Since then the state has added 209,500 jobs.

“We actually have closed a significant part of the gap since then,” Quinterno said. “We shouldn’t ignore that. But on the other hand, it has been so slow that it doesn’t really feel like it is getting better for a lot of folks.””

Read more:

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/03/28/3946462/nc-jobless-rate-falls-slightly.html

It seems to me Charlotte Observer, et al in the media, that your readers should know that the Labor Force Participation rate in NC dropped .2 percent from January to February.

It seems to me that they should also know.

                         Labor Force Participation Rate

Jan 2007                                    66.1
Jan 2009                                    64.9
Feb 2013                                     63.2

The Democrats took control of Congress in January 2007 and Obama, of course, took the White House in January 2009.

Once again, as recently reported, that is an ugly picture and a picture is worth a thousand words.

Assault weapons ban dropped from Senate gun control bill, Harry Reid not in initial package, Senator Dianne Feinstein may offer amendment, Separate vote on assault weapons for incumbents

Assault weapons ban dropped from Senate gun control bill, Harry Reid not in initial package, Senator Dianne Feinstein may offer amendment, Separate vote on assault weapons for incumbents

“Liberals, lacking accountability for their failed policies, and reason for their irrational fear of guns, blame guns and conservatives for gun violence.”…Citizen Wells

“Germans who wish to use firearms should join the SS or the SA – ordinary citizens don’t need guns, as their having guns doesn’t serve the State.”…Heinrich Himmler

“The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference – they deserve a place of honor with all that’s good”…George Washington

 

From Fox News March 19, 2013.

“Assault weapons ban dropped from Senate gun control bill”

“The leader of the Democrat-controlled Senate on Tuesday dropped a proposed assault weapons ban from the chamber’s gun-control package – dealing a blow to supporters of the ban, though it could still come up for a vote.

The sponsor of the measure, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., revealed that Reid told her the proposed ban would not be in the initial package. Feinstein said she’s “disappointed” with the decision, and is expected to nevertheless offer it as an amendment.

But the move by Reid to cut it from the main bill signals a lack of congressional support for a proposal that would not only revive, but strengthen, the decade-long ban that expired in 2004. “

“Having a separate vote on assault weapons might free moderate Democratic senators facing re-election next year in Republican-leaning states to vote against the assault weapons measure, but then support the remaining overall package of gun curbs.”

“Feinstein said Reid told her there would be two additional votes. One would be on her assault weapons ban, which also includes a ban on ammunition magazines that carry more than 10 rounds. The second would just be on prohibiting the high-capacity magazine clips.”

Read more:

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/03/19/reid-cuts-assault-weapons-ban-from-senate-gun-control-bill-amid-waning-support/#ixzz2O1y76h00

Obama lies March 2, 2013, Obama lies hypocrisy exposed in NC, John Hammer Rhino Times, Sequester Bob Woodward, Does Obama have any Chicago friends not in prison?

Obama lies March 2, 2013, Obama lies hypocrisy exposed in NC, John Hammer Rhino Times, Sequester Bob Woodward, Does Obama have any Chicago friends not in prison?

“If the Bush tax cuts were only for the wealthy, as the media has been telling us now for years, why, if the tax cuts are allowed to expire, is it going to be disastrous for the middle class? Tax cuts for the wealthy are not going to affect the middle class whether they expire or not. Is it possible that the media has been lying to us all this time and the Bush tax cuts were for the middle class as well as the wealthy? It seems like even the Democrats would have to admit that is the case, if they were honest.”…John Hammer, Rhino Times

“I believe I’m more pristine on Rezko than him.”…Rod Blagojevich

“There is enough corruption in Illinois so that all it takes is someone who is serious about finding it to uncover it. If a U.S. attorney is not finding corruption in Illinois, they’re not seriously looking for it.”…Northwestern Law Professor James Lindgren

 

In print in NC.

From John Hammer of the Rhino Times February 28, 2013.

“I can’t believe the level to which President Barack Hussein Obama has
sunk with this whole sequester mess. First of all it was his idea. He
can blame it on the Republicans all he wants but this was his idea.
Even noted liberal writer Bob Woodward has written that it was Obama’s
idea.”

“The federal government is on line to spend $3.8 trillion this year.
The sequester will limit the federal government to spending $3.715
trillion, so apparently the only thing in that entire budget that can
be cut are air traffic controllers, Transportation Security
Administration agents at airports, Border Patrol agents, education
funding and other services that directly affect people.

The truth is that nobody is really talking about cutting anything. For
one thing the federal government doesn’t have a budget. It has not had
one since the first year Obama took over as president. There is no
budget, so federal agencies just keep growing. All the sequester does
is cut back on the rate of growth a little bit.

Why should the federal government grow every year? If all the federal
services that were provided in 2012 were provided at exactly the same
level by employees being paid exactly the same amount of money would
that cause massive problems for the people of the country?

The sequester doesn’t even come close to doing that. It just calls for
across-the-board cuts that reach a level of $85 billion. Last year the
federal government spent over $2 billion providing cell phones to
people who could not afford them. I didn’t know that owning a cell
phone was an inalienable right like life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness, but evidently it is important enough for the federal
government to spend $2 billion on Obama-phones. Of course, that was an
election year. The federal government might not have to spend quite as
much on Obama-phones since all those votes have been cast.

Imagine for just a moment if the sequester meant that the Air Force
One pilot would be furloughed and the Obamas could not fly anywhere
they wanted at any moment. Imagine if just one week a month the Obamas
couldn’t fly anywhere because they didn’t have a pilot.

Or what if the sequester caused Obama’s favorite golf course to be
closed on Sundays. Or isn’t it possible that with the sequester the
White House chef would be laid off?

In fact, it is somewhat amazing that the American people are going to
be so inconvenienced by the reduction in anticipated spending that
this sequester brings, but the president will not be inconvenienced at
all.

Imagine – according to Obama the federal government can’t survive on a
mere $3.715 trillion without making drastic cuts to services that many
Americans use.

In 2008, the last budget of the George Walker Bush administration
total federal spending was $2.9 trillion. Obama has increased spending
during his four years by nearly $1 trillion. If the federal government
went back to the 2008 budget that would cut almost $1 trillion from
the current spending pattern (as noted, there is no budget). But were
things really so bad in 2008? I remember flying in 2008 and there were
no long delays because of a lack of air traffic controllers. The
national parks were open, and children were being educated. So four
years ago Bush was able to run the country on $1 trillion less, but in
2013 Obama can’t run the country on $85 billion less?

If Obama wanted to he could cut $85 billion from projected federal
spending and no one would notice except for the overpaid, underworked
administrators who would be laid off. The federal workforce is a huge
pork barrel. You have employees who work really hard and do an
outstanding job, and you have entire departments who do nothing
useful. Obama doesn’t want to eliminate the entire departments who do
nothing useful because that would be evidence that the federal
government doesn’t need to raise taxes. He is going to do everything
in his power to make the reductions in projected spending as painful
as possible.

One report said that although Air Force One will not be touched by the
reduction in the rate of growth that the Air Force might stop
providing planes for congressional junkets.

It is extremely hard to write about the sequester without writing
about cuts, but in reality there are no cuts. Imagine a child who
really wants a pony for Christmas and begs and pleads for a pony for
months. Christmas morning comes and there is no pony. Now can that
child say that she lost a pony? Can she say that she had a pony and it
was taken away from her? Not according to most people. But if a
federal department is expecting an increase and that increase is
reduced that is considered a cut.

Only in government can someone get 10 percent more than the previous
year and call it a cut in spending.”

“Most people in the country don’t read Under the Hammer, and far too
many simply take what is presented in the mainstream media as fact. It
is a sad day for journalism but, just like ABC editing Michelle
Obama’s comments, the reporting on the Obama administration is as much
fantasy as fact.

Even Bob Woodward felt the need to step up and remind primarily
reporters that Obama was the one who came up with sequester idea and
supported it.”

“Jackson was co-chairman of the Obama presidential campaign in 2008,
but if you are reading articles about Jackson going to prison you
don’t often see that job mentioned or any reference to what a close
relationship Jackson and Obama had at one time.

Jackson’s sister and Michelle Obama were good friends when they were
growing up. Jesse Jackson Sr. has said Michelle was over at his house
all the time as a teenager.

Does Barack Obama have any friends left in Chicago who aren’t in
prison? Obama’s close friend Tony Rezko, who was kind enough to help
Obama buy his house in Chicago, is in jail for fraud. Former Gov. Rod
Blagojevich is also in prison. Obama claimed credit for getting
Blagojevich elected governor. He used to say that he ran the campaign.
However, now Blagojevich is just some guy from Chicago that Obama may
have bumped into a few times.

Really, you look at Obama’s friends and you have to wonder what kind
of man we have elected as president. One of his best buddies is Bill
Ayers, who is an unrepentant domestic terrorist. Ayers participated in
bombings in that killed people and got off on a technicality. Back
when Ayers was running from the law, I’m sure he had no idea that one
day he’d be a good friend with the president of the United States.

Consider also that Obama’s brother, George Obama, lives in abject
poverty in Kenya. George Obama lives in a hovel made of old pieces of
metal and cardboard. In an interview he said he lived on $1 a month.
His brother is the most powerful man in the world and privately worth
millions of dollars, yet Barack Obama won’t send his brother George
$10 a year to double his income. It’s frightening to think of what
kind of man is running the country.”

Well worth reading more:
http://greensboro.rhinotimes.com/Articles-Columns-c-2013-02-27-214943.112113-Under-the-Hammer.html

Sequestration impact on Federal Education Programs, Automatic across the board reductions in discretionary programs, Obama stimulus and failed energy spending helped create huge deficit

Sequestration impact on Federal Education Programs, Automatic across the board reductions in discretionary programs, Obama stimulus and failed energy spending helped create huge deficit

“Why was Obama in constant contact with Tony Rezko in 2004 when Rezko was conspiring with William Cellini to use TRS, Teacher Retirement Fund, assets for political gain and personal enrichment?”…Citizen Wells

“What do you think a stimulus is? It’s spending – that’s the whole point! Seriously.”…Barack Obama

“…and Socialist governments traditionally do make a financial mess. They [socialists] always run out of other people’s money. It’s quite a characteristic of them.”…Margaret Thatcher

Much is being said about the impact of sequestration on federal education spending.

From the NEA.

“Impact of Sequestration on Federal Education Programs – State-by-State

Across-the-board cuts known as “sequestration” are scheduled to go into effect on March 1, 2013 unless Congress acts.  These cuts – nearly $3 billion for education alone –  would result in:

• Services cut or eliminated for millions of students.
• Funding for children living in poverty, special education, and Head Start slashed by billions.
• Ballooning class sizes.
• Elimination of after-school programs.
• Decimation of programs for our most vulnerable—homeless students, English language learners, and high-poverty, struggling schools.
• Slashing of financial aid for college students.
• Loss of tens of thousands of education jobs—at early childhood, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary levels.

http://www.nea.org/home/52610.htm
Sequestration defined.

From Idea Money Watch.

Q. What is sequestration? (Pronounced se″kwes-tra´shun)
A. Sequestration is a fiscal policy procedure adopted by Congress to deal with the federal budget deficit. It first appeared in the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Deficit Reduction Act of 1985.

Simply put, sequestration is the cancellation of budgetary resources — an “automatic” form of spending cutback. (Learn more here.)
 Q. Why is sequestration important now?

A. The Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA) established a 12 member Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction  (or “super committee”)  charged with reducing the deficit by an additional $1.2 – $1.5 trillion over ten years. The BCA also included a sequestration hammer should the super committee fail, a provision intended to “force” the super committee to act.

Despite the threat of sequestration, the super committee failed. Announcing its inability to reach an agreement on November 21, 2011, the members of the bipartisan committee stated  that “after months of hard work and intense deliberations, we have come to the conclusion today that it will not be possible to make any bipartisan agreement available to the public before the committee’s deadline.”

So, as established in the BCA, sequestration was triggered when the super committee failed to reach an agreement. Sequestration generates automatic cuts for each of nine years, FY 13-21, totaling $1.2 trillion. Sequestration was originally scheduled to take effect on Jan. 2, 2013. However, it was delayed for two months – until March 1, 2013, by the deal struck on New Year’s Eve, called the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012.

Now, without Congressional action to prevent sequestration, the first round of cuts will take place on March 1, 2013.

The 2013 cuts apply to “discretionary” spending and are divided between reductions to  defense ($500 billion) and non-defense ($700 billion). 

Q. What must occur in order to avoid sequestration?  

A. Sequestration can only be avoided if Congress passes legislation that undoes the legal requirement in the BCA and that President Obama will sign before March 1, 2013.

While advocacy efforts to prevent sequestration are beginning to spring up, the strongest efforts focus on preventing the deep cuts to defense spending.

Q. Can the Executive Branch reconfigure sequestration cuts?

A. No. The cuts are automatic, across-the-board reductions to all discretionary programs unless exempted by the BCA. (A list of exempt programs is available here.) The Executive Branch will have no authority or ability to redistribute the cuts.

http://www.ideamoneywatch.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=60&Itemid=72

$ 3 billion in education cuts because our spending is out of control.

How did that happen?

Here is part of the reason.

A $840 billion Obama stimulus program.

From The Foundry October 18, 2012.

“The 2009 stimulus set aside $80 billion to subsidize politically preferred energy projects. Since that time, 1,900 investigations have been opened to look into stimulus waste, fraud, and abuse (although not all are linked to the green-energy funds), and nearly 600 convictions have been made. Of that $80 billion in clean energy loans, grants, and tax credits, at least 10 percent has gone to companies that have since either gone bankrupt or are circling the drain.”

“So far, 34 companies that were offered federal support from taxpayers are faltering — either having gone bankrupt or laying off workers or heading for bankruptcy. This list includes only those companies that received federal money from the Obama Administration’s Department of Energy and other agencies. The amount of money indicated does not reflect how much was actually received or spent but how much was offered. The amount also does not include other state, local, and federal tax credits and subsidies, which push the amount of money these companies have received from taxpayers even higher.

The complete list of faltering or bankrupt green-energy companies:

1. Evergreen Solar ($25 million)*
2. SpectraWatt ($500,000)*
3. Solyndra ($535 million)*
4. Beacon Power ($43 million)*
5. Nevada Geothermal ($98.5 million)
6. SunPower ($1.2 billion)
7. First Solar ($1.46 billion)
8. Babcock and Brown ($178 million)
9. EnerDel’s subsidiary Ener1 ($118.5 million)*
10. Amonix ($5.9 million)
11. Fisker Automotive ($529 million)
12. Abound Solar ($400 million)*
13. A123 Systems ($279 million)*
14. Willard and Kelsey Solar Group ($700,981)*
15. Johnson Controls ($299 million)
16. Brightsource ($1.6 billion)
17. ECOtality ($126.2 million)
18. Raser Technologies ($33 million)*
19. Energy Conversion Devices ($13.3 million)*
20. Mountain Plaza, Inc. ($2 million)*
21. Olsen’s Crop Service and Olsen’s Mills Acquisition Company ($10 million)*
22. Range Fuels ($80 million)*
23. Thompson River Power ($6.5 million)*
24. Stirling Energy Systems ($7 million)*
25. Azure Dynamics ($5.4 million)*
26. GreenVolts ($500,000)
27. Vestas ($50 million)
28. LG Chem’s subsidiary Compact Power ($151 million)
29. Nordic Windpower ($16 million)*
30. Navistar ($39 million)
31. Satcon ($3 million)*
32. Konarka Technologies Inc. ($20 million)*
33. Mascoma Corp. ($100 million)

*Denotes companies that have filed for bankruptcy.”

http://blog.heritage.org/2012/10/18/president-obamas-taxpayer-backed-green-energy-failures/
WE warned you.

Obama is doing to the US education system what he and his cronies did to Illinois.

From Citizen Wells March 29, 2012.

“Obama, Blagojevich and their cronies used the citizens of Illinois, Teachers Retirement System, hospitals and taxpayer dollars for their own benefit.”

“2003: “Of the five funds, the one in the sorriest shape is the Illinois Teacher Retirement System, which provides the pensions for suburban and downstate teachers. Its ratio of assets to liabilities stood at a mere 52 percent last year, so poor that it was considered among the five worst-funded plans in the country.”

“In 2002, the year after Obama made the pitch, the Illinois Teacher Retirement System reported an 18% increase in assets managed by minority-owned firms. Ariel’s share grew to $442 million by 2005.

In 2006, after the federal investigation became public, the teacher pension board severed its relationship with Ariel, concluding that Ariel’s investment returns were insufficient.”

“In addition to lining their own pockets, the money gained through the scheme was funneled to the campaigns of Blagojevich and Obama. Prosecutors have identified two $10,000 payments that were made to Obama’s US Senate campaign through straw donors Joseph Aramanda and Elie Maloof, which originated from a kickback paid by investment firm, Glencoe Capital, to secure approval for a $50 million deal.
Aramanda and Maloof also each gave Obama $1,000 for his failed run for Congress in 2000. Once Obama became a US Senator, Aramanda’s son was granted a coveted intern position in Obama’s Senate office in Washington during the summer of 2005, based on a request which the Obama’s camp has admitted came from Rezko.”

“Mr. Obama also recently pointed to his work on the Illinois pension issue as a model for what he would do as president to promote minority-owned companies.”

Read more:

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/tag/obama-doing-to-us-what-he-did-to-illinois/

Obama Democrats destroy Black employment, African American unemployment up 6 percent since Democrats took congress, Over 1 percent in Obama admin, Numbers don’t lie Obama does

Obama Democrats destroy Black employment, African American unemployment up 6 percent since Democrats took congress, Over 1 percent in Obama admin, Numbers don’t lie Obama does

“The United States economy has lost more jobs than it has added since the recovery began over a year ago.”…NY Times Sept. 20, 2010.

“With a 63.7% labor force participation, “conditions in the labor market are considerably worse than indicated” in July’s report”…economist Joshua Shapiro, WSJ August 3, 2012

“Numbers don’t lie, Obama does.”…Citizen Wells

Rush Limbaugh had a black caller from Georgia today. The caller voiced his frustration with blacks supporting Obama and the Democrat Party even though unemployment has gotten worse under their regimes. He made the example of blacks leaving unemployment lines to vote for Obama and then returning to the unemployment line.

Here are the numbers from the US Labor Dept.

In January of 2007 when the Democrats took control of both houses of Congress the unemployment rate for blacks was 7.9 percent.

In January of 2009 when Obama took control of the White House the unemployment rate for blacks was 12.7 percent.

In January of 2013 the unemployment rate for blacks was 13.8 percent.

That is a 6 percent increase since the Democrats took control of Congress and over 1 percent increase since Obama took control of the White House.

http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab2.htm
From Citizen Wells  July 21, 2012.

“Citizen Wells: I smell a rat. A NC Democrat Convention rat.

Also significant from the report are the following unemployment increases from April to June 2012.

Blacks: From 13.0 to 14.4 percent.

Asians: From 5.2 to 6.3 percent.

Hispanics: From 10.3 to 11.0 percent.”

https://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2012/07/21/july-21-2012-obama-economy-and-jobs-bleak-27-states-recorded-unemployment-rate-increases-black-unemployment-up-1-4-percent-in-2-months-nc-rate-suspect/
From Citizen Wells October 21, 2012.

“California has the third highest unemployment rate in the country at 10.2 percent. CA has been getting a lot of press recently for suspicious reporting the prior week that skewed the US Labor Dept. unemployment claims report. What you are probably not getting from the media is the fact that since February 2012, the labor force participation rate has dropped more than the unemployment rate.”

“The following data is taken from the California Labor Market Review for September 2012.

There is more than suspect reporting in initial unemployment claims from CA. On Page 7 we find the changes in unemployment rate and labor force participation rate from February to September 2012 under seasonally adjusted.

February 2012.

Unemployment rate 10.9 %    LF Participation rate 63.3 %.

September 2012.

Unemployment rate 10.2 %    LF Participation rate 62.4 %.

The Labor Force Participation Rate dropped more than the unemployment rate. 

So the following claim:

“The California unemployment rate was 10.2 percent in September, down 0.4
percentage point from August.”

is very misleading.

The following facts are also interesting.
“By race and ethnicity, the September 2012 unemployment rate for blacks was 18.1 percent, Hispanics 13.2 percent, and whites 10.5 percent.””

http://citizenwells.wordpress.com/2012/10/21/california-data-skewed-labor-dept-unemployment-claims-report-ca-data-reveals-real-unemployment-rate-labor-force-participation-rate-62-4-dropped-more-than-unemployment-rate-since-feb-2012/

Obama Hillary Clinton revealed, February 3, 2013, Truth in print in NC, Clinton testimony exposed, Obama stupid gun comment, Rhino Times Obama administration truth

Obama Hillary Clinton revealed, February 3, 2013, Truth in print in NC, Clinton testimony exposed, Obama stupid gun comment, Rhino Times Obama administration truth

“But Crowley and Obama had it wrong. the Post’s Glenn Kessler explained:

What did Obama say in the Rose Garden a day after the attack in Libya? ”No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this nation,” he said.
But he did not say “terrorism”—and it took the administration days to concede that that it an “act of terrorism” that appears unrelated to initial reports of anger at a video that defamed the prophet Muhammad.”…Washington Post Oct. 17, 2012

“The question that I had in my mind, was why did we not do something to protect our forces?”…Charles Woods, father of slain Navy Seal

“I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.”…Barack Obama

 

 

Yesterday it was reported here that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway had just bought the Greensboro News Record. The impact of that transaction may have already resulted in biased wording. This will be watched closely and counteracted to the extent possible.

This makes the role of the Rhinoceros Times, also based in Greensboro, NC, even more important. It too is in print and on the internet.

From the Rhino Times January 31, 2013.

The senators who finally got Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to testify had a lot of fun speechifying instead of asking questions. Sen. Rand Paul made his point that Hillary Clinton should have been fired, but why didn’t any senator ask her the question that should have been at the top of the list — why didn’t she know what happened in Benghazi, if not while it was going on, shortly after?

The ambassador and three other State Department employees were killed, but most of the State Department employees who were there were still alive on Sept. 12 and are alive today. Does Hillary Clinton not know how to use a telephone? Why didn’t she simply call one of the survivors and ask what happened.

If she had she would have known that it was not a spontaneous attack caused by a video or by people out walking around who decided they wanted to kill Americans. Hillary Clinton may not know that few people bring mortars and heavy machine guns to spontaneous rallies or take them on walks, even in the Middle East, but if she had simply talked to some of the survivors she would have known that it was not a spontaneous demonstration.

Rand was right that Hillary Clinton should have been fired for dereliction of duty for not reading the emails from her ambassador in Libya, but what was worse is that, according to what Clinton said, she took no action to find out what did happen at the US compound in Benghazi and at the CIA compund where the ex-Navy Seals were killed.

For what possible reason did it take weeks for the US government to find out what happened? Why wasn’t the compound sealed off? Why did it take weeks for the State Department to send the FBI to the scene to investigate?”

, , ,
“A statement thet rivals Hillary Clintons in outrageousness is Obama’s statement about gun control legislation: “If it saves only one life, it is worth it.” That is so stupid it is hard to believe that Obama’s speech writers allowed him to utter that phrase.

Lowering the national speed limit to 45 mph would save thousands of lives. Putting a trauma center in every little town in this country and in every neighborhood in cities would likewise save thousands of lives. One of the major causes of death in homes is falls, particularly in the bathroom. Ladders and bathtubs have no constitutional protection. So if Obama outlawed ladders and bathtubs thousands of lives could be saved.”

I would provide a link to this article, but I could find none.

Federal budget deficit explained in common sense terms in NC, John Hammer Rhino Times, January 24, 2013, Obama and congress increased spending 40 percent

Federal budget deficit explained in common sense terms in NC, John Hammer Rhino Times, January 24, 2013, Obama and congress increased spending 40 percent

“only 2 percent of the 3.5 million jobs gained since the recession ended in June 2009 are midpay. Nearly 70 percent are low-paying jobs”…AP, Kitsap Sun January 22, 2013

“We tried our plan—and it worked. That’s the difference. That’s the choice in this election. That’s why I’m running for a second term.”…Barack Obama

“the Times of the nineteenth of December had published the official forecasts of the output of various classes of consumption goods in the fourth quarter of 1983, which was also the sixth quarter of the Ninth Three-Year Plan. Today’s issue contained a statement of the actual output, from which it appeared that the forecasts were in every instance grossly wrong. Winston’s job was to rectify the original figures by making them agree with the later ones.”…George Orwell, “1984″

 

Common sense in print in NC.

From John Hammer of the Rhino Times January 24, 2013.

“If you listen to Democrats, and even some Republicans, for the federal government to balance its budget would require draconian cuts that would decimate the Defense Department and put major social welfare programs in bankruptcy. But the truth is that the federal government will take in $2.9 trillion in revenue this fiscal year. If the federal government would simply reduce spending to what it was a mere five years ago it would have a surplus instead of a trillion dollar deficit.

In 2007 the federal government spent $2.7 trillion. That was during the presidency of George Walker Bush and the budget deficit was about $200 billion, because the revenue that year was $2.56 trillion.

What Congress and President Obama have managed to do since then is increase spending astronomically. The projected spending for 2013 is $3.8 trillion. So even though revenue has increased to $2.9 trillion the deficit is still right around a trillion dollars.

It is an unbelievable increase in spending. The problem is not, as Obama continues to say, that the rich aren’t paying their fair share. The problem is that Obama and Congress have increased spending by 40 percent in the past five years. This is during a period of almost no inflation.

Since 2007 the federal government has increased its spending by $1.1 trillion. It is an incredible amount of money and it would be nice to blame it all on Obama, but Obama is a co-conspirator. Spending bills have to originate in the House, which the Republicans have controlled since 2011. Obama in his first term had pretty much free rein in Congress. The Democrats controlled the House and for almost a year had a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Spending skyrocketed and in Obama’s first year in office, 2009, the budget deficit increased to $1.4 trillion.

What could only be done in Washington – where reality left the building decades ago – is that the budget deficit has remained over $1 trillion. The reason for the budget deficit in 2009 was the $1 trillion stimulus plan that Congress passed and Obama signed as soon as possible. That was supposed to spike up the spending, but then it was supposed to come back down.

It never has.

But the country ran pretty well in 2007. We were fighting the War on Terror in Iraq and Afghanistan, Social Security was being paid, as were Medicare and Medicaid. The federal government was throwing money at local governments, as it does, but evidently to go back to those years would be a tremendous hardship. It’s hard to believe.”

Read more:

http://greensboro.rhinotimes.com/Articles-Columns-c-2013-01-23-214571.112113-under-the-hammer.html