Archive for the ‘Foreign Policy’ Category
Monday, November 25th, 2013
This was supposed to go up Friday, but Stuff and Things interfered once again.
Obama’s “deal” with Iran drops sanctions and lets them enrich uranium to their heart’s content. I guess Obama needs the Iran agreement as a disastrous fake achievement to distract from ObamaCare, his last disastrous fake achievement. I haven’t read all the details, so I can’t tell if it’s Madeleine Albright bad, or Neville Chamberlain bad, but it doesn’t appear to address Iran’s continued support of Assad, Hezbollah, or their other terrorist activities. Still to be decided: whether Obama personally plants the knife in Benjamin Netanyahu’s back, or has aide do it. (If Hillary Clinton wanted to put distance between herself and the Obama Administration, now would be a great time to denounce the Iran deal.)
Mother forced into Medicaid. “There was just one option—at the very affordable monthly rate of zero. The exchange had determined that my mother was not eligible to choose to pay for a plan, and so she was slated immediately for Medicaid.”
The real rationale behind ObamaCare was the redistribution of wealth. “The redistribution of wealth has always been a central feature of [ObamaCare].”
“Insurance is complex to buy”? Really, Mr. President? I’m pretty sure Forest Gump could have figured that out in less than 3 years…
The real reason behind Obama’s laughable deal with Iran is to shore up his shrinking liberal base, the only group that still supports him after the ObamaCare debacle.
John Bolton calls the deal “abject surrender”.
End result of the Iran deal? “War has now become a much more likely prospect.”
Given all that, Harry Reid nuking the Senate’s filibuster gets pushed further down the Stack of Perfidy. What it tells us is that Democrats believe they’re going to lose the Senate. “They think it’s very likely that they will lose their Senate majority in 2014. They are essentially writing off the last two years of Obama’s presidency, which means getting as much done as possible right now. They are going to spend the next year packing as many liberal justices and appointees onto the courts and various bureaucracies as they can.”
Democratic Rep mugged in DC. Does this mean she’ll turn Republican? (Hat tip: Ace of Spades.)
16 things people couldn’t believe about America until moving here. (Hat tip: Michael Totten.)
I wonder how John Carter feels about being labeled part of “the House’s own pro-amnesty gang”?
Related: How Amnesty dies: Part 1, Part 2.
Syrian Kurds declare autonomy.
Crystal Mangum, the central accuser in the Duke Lacrosse “rape” case (which wasn’t) has been convicted of murder. Somehow I managed to miss Nancy Grace’s wall-to-wall coverage of her trial…
Tags:amnesty, Benjamin Netanyahu, Border Controls, Crime, Crystal Mangum, filibuster, Harry Reid, Iran, John Bolton, John Carter, Kurds, Michael Totten, Neville Chamberlain, ObamaCare, socialism, Syria
Posted in Border Control, Crime, Democrats, Foreign Policy, ObamaCare | 1 Comment »
Monday, November 18th, 2013
Some links to start your week with, ObamaCare still looming as topic one:
Chao before Congress: ObamaCare is hunky dory! Chao in internal memo the day before: we are so farked!
Over four million Americans have their policies cancelled thanks to ObamaCare.
Less than 50,000 sign up for ObamaCare.
One of the Democratic Senators running as hard as she can away from ObamaCare is Louisiana’s Mary Landrieu. Too bad she already embraced 100% accountability for it.
Race-baiting provided a shield that allowed Obama to fail.
And remember that calling Obama’s critics racist was a deliberate strategy by MSM members wanting to boost and protect Obama.
Don’t expect Obama to bounce back.
So is Politico actually covering the dysfunction within the Obama cabinet, or are they trying to shield a favorite from the stink of failure engulfing same?
A look back at Communist genocide in Ukraine.
Fitch gives Chicago bonds three steps, yes they gave them a three step cut toward the floor.
Michael Totten: “The case for walking away from Egypt and dusting our hands off is sound.”
Antisemitism getting worse in Europe says notorious Zionist shill, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights.
Islamists in Nigeria doing what they do best: murder children.
Sex crime investigator arrested for sex crime with a minor. That’s really cutting out the middleman…
How the holy hell can Amtrack lose one BILLION dollars on food service? You could feed Ethiopia on that!
Dwight has an EarthQuest update.
Julian Castro to force streetcars down the throats of San Antonians despite votes against them.
Another super-genus criminal. Just click the link and look at the pics.
Tags:Communism, Crime, Democrats, EarthQuest, Egypt, Foreign Policy, Guns, Jihad, LinkSwarm, Mary Landrieu, Media Watch, Nigeria, ObamaCare, Texas
Posted in Communism, Crime, Democrats, Foreign Policy, Guns, Jihad, Media Watch, ObamaCare, Texas | No Comments »
Monday, October 28th, 2013
Well, this should break the story wide open. If you haven’t already, see the whole thing.
And here’s the transcript.
Tags:60 Minutes, Benghazi, Jihad, Libya, Media Watch, Obama Scandals
Posted in Foreign Policy, Jihad, Media Watch, Obama Scandals | No Comments »
Friday, September 13th, 2013
My schedule is finally close to getting back to normal after Worldcon, so here’s the latest Friday LinkSwarm:
Greek unemployment hits 27.9%. Remember: For all the mentions of “austerity measures,” they’ve never balanced a budget.
Why we were in Benghazi. Short answer: Smuggling arms to Syrian rebels. Remember: No Americans died in Iran-Contra.
Syrian rebels do what they do best: kill women and children.
Obama’s Syrian policy is “is an unmitigated cl*st*rf*ck.” And that’s from his friends at The New Republic.
Charles Krauthammer calls it epic incompetence.
Today is the 20th anniversary of the Oslo Accords, which, as we all know, finally brought long-lasting peace and stability to the Middle East. “Decadal stasis points to the sterility of the Arab-Israeli diplomatic process.”
Mark Steyn on ObamaCare.
Mickey Kaus is worried that Republicans can still snatch amnesty defeat from the jaws of victory.
How often does Defensive gun use occur? “From about 500,000 to more than 3 million per year.”
PPP’s poll data showed Giron was in trouble, but they didn’t release the poll, ostensibly because they didn’t believe it. That may be the case, but their explanation is suspect, given they actually testified in court as part of the effort to get the recall effort thrown out. Also, they didn’t do Giron and the gun-grabber side any favors by suppressing the results (the Liberal Reality Bubble strikes again). Bonus: Pollster Twitter slap fight!
Is the House Republican leadership actually stupid enough to kill the sequester in a deal with Obama? Let’s hope not…
Jihadi rapper killed by fellow jihadis. And you thought Vanilla Ice’s reviews were brutal…
To a visitor from India, America looks like a classless society. “I’ve noticed that most Americans roughly have the same standard of living. Everybody has access to ample food, everybody shops at the same supermarkets, malls, stores, etc. I’ve seen plumbers, construction workers and janitors driving their own sedans, which was quite difficult for me to digest at first since I came from a country where construction workers and plumbers lived hand to mouth.” (Hat tip: Ace.)
How can Newspapers make money these days? How about by selling off their old photo morgues?
UK’s NHS: Now With Added Death.
Million Muslim March falls a mere 999,970 marchers short of their goal.
Rep. Peter King of Long island is running for President. Expect GOP voters to greet his campaign with the same enthusiasm with which they greeted Jon Huntsman’s.
Super-genius astronomer wants to name an asteroid “Trayvon”.
New Jersey police: hate crimes don’t happen to white people.
Police Chief meeting with Sheriff Joe Arpaio on his own time and money? That’s a suspension.
Austin: 13 murders in 8 months. “Otherwise known as a slow weekend in Chicago.”
Holly Hansen takes a look at Williamson County judicial races.
Tags:amnesty, Angela Giron, Austin, Border Controls, Charles Krauthammer, Chicago, Colorado, European Debt Crisis, Foreign Policy, Greece, gun control, Guns, Holly Hansen, Israel, Jihad, Joe Arpaio, LinkSwarm, Mark Steyn, Mickey Kaus, Oslo Accords, Peter King, Syria, Williamson County
Posted in Austin, Border Control, Foreign Policy, Guns, Jihad, Republicans, Texas | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, September 11th, 2013
It looks increasingly like a moot point, but since I previously mentioned it, I wanted to confirm that my own Representative, John Carter, is a firm “No” on bombing Syria, as per this letter from him:
Dear Mr. Person:
Thank you for contacting me about President Obama’s proposal to launch a military strike against Syria.
President Obama has asked Congress to authorize a U.S. military strike in the wake of President Bashar al-Assad’s forces use of chemical weapons on August 21, 2013.
My constituents and the majority of Americans have voiced their opposition to this ill-conceived proposal and I stand with them. The President has not provided a solid reason as to why he believes the United States should attack the sovereign nation of Syria or how this action would deter al-Assad in the future. A political agenda is no reason to put our sons and daughters in danger or involve our country in another costly war while dealing with a budgetary crisis, the President’s damaging sequester and reduced troop levels.
The lack of a legitimate foreign policy since the beginning of this administration has placed America into the situation we face today. I believe the President’s decision to attack Syria is not based on defending the security of our nation, but is based on defending his political agenda and his ‘red line’. The administration’s plan to support and aid the rebel faction which include members of Al Qaeda and the assumptions that they will call America their friend after attacking President Bashar al-Assad is a misguided strategy at best. There are many issues that the country should be focused on and kicking a hornets’ nest is not one of them.
Nothing has proven President Obama’s proposal would be effective and he has not given specific timetables for a resolution to the crisis. I believe we should work with the world community through diplomatic measures that will protect others from the deplorable use of chemical weapons. The central question for policy makers remains how best to bring the conflict in Syria to a close before the crisis consigns the region to one of several destructive and destabilizing scenarios.
You can be sure I will keep your strong views in mind as I monitor developments in Syria and surrounding regions. If given the opportunity to vote on this matter, I will oppose the President’s dangerous request. I appreciate having the opportunity to represent you in the U.S. House of Representatives. Please feel free to visit my website (www.house.gov/carter) or contact me with any future concerns.
Sincerely,
John Carter
Member of Congress
Yes votes to bomb Syria seem mighty hard to come by…
Tags:Foreign Policy, Jihad, John Carter, Military, Syria
Posted in Austin, Foreign Policy, Jihad, Military | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 10th, 2013
Who knew stopping a war could be so easy?
Not the Syrian war itself, of course; that grinds on unabated. But Obama’s ill-advised attempt to directly involve the U.S. in it seems to have been derailed.
Now, instead of the fig leaf of an unbelievably small attack on Syria to assuage Obama’s wounded ego over Assad waltzing all over his red line with a chemical weapons attack, now he gets to climb down thanks to the fig leaf of what will be a laughable, easily circumvented UN supervision of whatever chemical stockpiles Assad wants to turn over to them. We’ve seen how ridiculously ineffective UN oversight was in Iraq even with US force to back it up; there’s no reason to assume it will be any more effective in Syria.
But make no mistake: This is a better outcome than an attack that would be various parts ill-advised and laughable, depending on the size. Now Obama gets to accomplish exactly as much as he would before (namely nothing) without the risk of going to war.
It’s a win-win solution.
Tags:Foreign Policy, Jihad, John Kerry, Military, Obama, Syria, UN
Posted in Foreign Policy, Jihad, Military | No Comments »
Friday, September 6th, 2013
Obama’s call for attacking Syria is meeting such heavy opposition that he already has a domestic quagmire on his hands getting it approved. Here’s a mini-roundup of Syria news:
I can’t really start quoting this Charles Krauthammer takedown of the incoherence of Obama’s Syrian policy, because there’s so much good stuff here that it will be hard to stop. OK, one quote: “There’s no strategy, no purpose here other than helping Obama escape self-inflicted humiliation.”
There’s a word for what Obama and Kerry want in Syria: War.
Iran wants to attack us if we attack Syria. If this is Obama’s masterful scheme to jujitsu Iran into giving him cover to take out their nuclear program I may have to revise my opinion of him. But how likely is that?
Obama’s serial Syrian blunders. “The only nation contemplating joining the United States in military action is France. That’s 38 fewer allies than joined the United States after the supposed unilateralist George W. Bush, with congressional authorization, ordered troops into Iraq.”
Obama has changed the military’s strike plans against Syria 50 times. Does he think he’s planning the perfect Zerg Rush in Starcraft?
The world set a red line in Syria? Well then, let the world enforce it.
Democrats in congress will be dragooned into voting for war to “save the president’s hide.”
Was Samantha Powers really dumb enough to think that Iran would abandon Syria over chemical weapons? (Hat tip: Ace.)
Obama’s road to Damascus. The goal of the POTUS: “ultimately we have a transition that can bring peace and stability, not only to Syria but to the region.” Peace and stability in the Middle East. Well, nothing too naive or ambitious about that goal, is there?
When John Kerry says that the Syrian rebels are “mostly moderates,” he’s using the rhetorical device know as lying.
The New York Times has some disturbing intelligence on some of Kerry’s “moderates.”
Lindsey Graham continues his downward spiral into irrelevance by declaring that failure to bomb Iraq would mean an Iran-Israel war within 6 months. Honestly, I’m a lot more enthused about that possibility than us bombing Syria, if only on the off-chance an Israel-Iran war might actually accomplish something.
As I’m not one who credits the left for, well, much of anything, really, let’s give credit where credit is due and give the anti-war types some points for consistency: Moveon.org opposes a strike against Syria.
George Mitchell of The Nation says no thanks as well, citing Obama and Kerry’s many Syrian lies.
Even Obama’s own OAF is twiddling its thumbs rather than voicing support or opposition.
Syria’s war spills into Lebanon.
Tags:Charles Krauthammer, Foreign Policy, Iran, Israel, Jihad, Lindsey Graham, Military, MoveOn.org, Obama, Samantha Powers, Starcraft, Syria
Posted in Democrats, Foreign Policy, Jihad, Media Watch, Military | 1 Comment »
Friday, September 6th, 2013
It’s taking a while to get back up to speed after Worldcon, but here’s a little content to prove I’m not dead (just dead tired). And it’s proven a moving target that took longer to put together than I expected
The Hill has an an ongoing whip count on those who oppose or support a strike against Syria. Huffington Post has another count. This is shaping up to be a case of actual Americans on both the left and right opposing Obama’s Big Adventure, while the Permanent Party of Washington Insiders is supporting it.
Texas Congressmen On Record Opposing A Strike On Syria
(if no link from their name, they’re on the Hill or Huff Puff lists)
Republicans
Sen. Ted Cruz
Rep. Joe Barton
Rep. Kevin Brady
Rep. Michael C. Burgess
Rep. Mike Conaway
Rep. John Culberson
Rep. Blake Farenthold
Rep. Bill Flores
Rep. Louis Gohmert
Ralph M. Hall
Rep. Sam Johnson
Rep. Kenny Marchant
Rep. Michael McCaul
Rep. Randy Neugebauer
Rep. Ted Poe
Rep. Lamar Smith
Rep. Mac Thornberry
Rep. Roger Williams
Rep. Randy Weber
Democrats
Lloyd Doggett
Texas Congressmen On Record Supporting A Strike On Syria
Republicans
None.
Democrats
Rep. Joaquín Castro (Huff Puff says neutral, The Hill says leaning yes)
Rep. Henry Cueller
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee
Rep. Marc A. Veasey
Here’s a list of Texas Republican Congressmen who were listed as undecided in the Huff Puff piece, along with contact info:
Sen. John Cornyn (Contact form, 202-224-2934, additional office contact locations)
Rep. John Carter (Contact form, (202) 225-3864, Round Rock (512) 246-1600, Temple (254) 933-1392)
Rep. Jeb Hensarling (Contact form, (202) 225-3484, Athens, (903) 675-8288, Dallas (214) 349-9996)
Rep. Kay Granger (Contact form, (202) 225-5071, Fort Worth (817) 338-0909)
Rep. Pete Olson (Contact form, (202) 225-5951, Pearland (281) 485-4855, Sugar Land (281) 494-2690)
Rep. Pete Sessions (Contact form, (202) 225-2231, Dallas (972) 392-0505)
Steve Stockman (Contact form, (202) 225-1555, Cleveland (409) 883-8028 Orange, TX 77630, (409) 883-8075, Pasadena (281-478-2799)
Contact information for Texas congressional critters from Dwight’s blog.
So, for those of you playing along on the home game: Both Ted Cruz and Lloyd Doggett oppose attacking Syria. That’s a pretty broad coalition.
Tags:Jeb Hensarling, Jihad, John Carter, John Cornyn, Kay Granger, Lloyd Doggett, Military, Obama, Pete Olson, Syria, Ted Cruz
Posted in Democrats, Foreign Policy, Jihad, Military | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, August 27th, 2013
At least that’s what the tea leaves say.
So we’re going to fight a proxy war against a Russian client in Asia. What could possibly go wrong?
Are we now the World’s Policeman again? When did that happen? Was there a memo?
Ted Cruz notes that it’s not in our national interest.
Reason gives us 8 reasons not to bomb Syria.
Even ultra-lefty ex-congressman Dennis Kucinich says that bombing Syria is a bad idea.
And if Syria counterattacks against Israel, well, Isreal is not going to take it lying down.
And Joe Biden calls for impeachement of the President if he attacks without congressional approval.
Stay tuned…
Tags:Dennis Kucinich, Foreign Policy, Joe Biden, Military, Obama, Syria, Ted Cruz
Posted in Foreign Policy, Military | No Comments »
Friday, August 23rd, 2013
Another Friday LinkSwarm on Friday, to make your Friday seem more like Friday:
Why work when welfare pays better?
Europe’s Jews fear that their days are numbered.
Ted Cruz: traitor to his class. From the number of MSM attacks on Cruz, they obviously see him as the biggest threat to derail Hillary’s coronation in 2016.
And since there was a little mini-boomlet of “Ha, conservatives must hate that Cruz’s given name is Rafael!” stupidity from the leftosphere, here’s a video that reminds you that Ted Cruz’s father Rafeal is all kinds of awesome as well:
Surprise, surprise, surprise! Greece will need another bailout.
Hospital called LICH just can’t seem to die. (Hat tip: Dwight.)
Well, this is lovely: The Department of Homeland Security employees a black supremacist preparing for a race war against white people and gays.
Forced sterilization of “mental defectives” returns to the UK.
Dear Jeff Bezos: Maybe the Washington Post could make more money if they didn’t alienate half their potential audience by hyping anti-Republican witch hunts.
Fail to wear a veil when you leave the house? That’s a dismembering.
“Bradley Manning Is Not a Woman. Pronouns and delusions do not trump biology.”
Foreign aid is destructive.
To improve the socio-economic development of Africa, the continent desperately needs private innovations, empowered by rule of law and an ambience of free enterprise, free of restrictive government regulations.Economic growth and development is indeed a vital ingredient towards achieving prosperity and a free society. However, it takes a spontaneous market driven approach without state interventionist barriers to achieve the noble aim, not foreign aid.
Remember folks: Partisan redistricting is perfectly constitutional. And Texas Democrats of it were masters of it for decades.
Sears posts $194 million loss. In other news, Sears is still in business.
Basketball statistician kills himself, and leaves behind meticulous suicide website explaining why he did it. One reason (among many others): “Economic collapse is inevitable (see U.S Financial to the left). The United States’ annual debt and cumulative deficit is way beyond the “out of control” label usually associated with it. It’s spiraling into oblivion and it will take society with it. Today the deficit is $16.9 trillion dollars with another $125 trillion of unfunded liabilities such as social security, medicare, prescription drug and federal pensions. It’s hopeless.”
What happens when rats have all their food needs met and are allowed to breed without restrictions? Social death followed by physical death. Though usually interpreted as an indictment of overpopulation, it could just as easily be about the the pitfalls of a purposeless life…
State Rep. (and Appropriations Committee chair) Jim Pitts will not seek reelection. Pitts, one of Speaker Joe Straus’ allies, recently was accused of seeking preferential treatment of his son at UT law school. Pitts was also one of the legislators pushing for…
The Impeachment of UT regent Wallace Hall for the crime of actually investigating wrong-doing, such as the law school slush fund.
Tags:DHS, European Debt Crisis, foreign aid, Foreign Policy, Greece, Jews, Jim Pitts, Joe Straus, LinkSwarm, Media Watch, Rafael Cruz, Sears, slush fund, suicide, Ted Cruz, Texas, University of Texas, video, Wallace Hall
Posted in Austin, Elections, Foreign Policy, Media Watch, Texas, video | No Comments »