Day: March 11, 2009

What Happened To The Maverick?

Think back about a decade ago, or at least it seems to be that long, to the last presidential election.  McCain was billing himself as a maverick willing to take on Washington and even his own party.  What happened?

Since that election McCain has been the picture perfect Repub and conservative.  I guess aan election loss will beat the “maverick” out of you, that is if there was ever a true maverick in there.

That maverick is long gone people!

Take a moment and think back to the campaigns, McCain had to cancel a lot of stuff and rush back to Washington for the banks were too large and important to fail.  The truth is he was not that much of a player in the original handout, but it made for good press.

What a difference an election loss makes.  Not only is the maverick a thing of the past, but now he wants some of the large banks to fail.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” echoed his colleague’s sentiment and criticized the new administration’s response to the banks. (Reuters)

“I don’t think they made the hard decision and that is to let these banks fail,” McCain told “Fox News.”

McCain also expressed dissatisfaction toward the Treasury Dept. accusing it of avoiding the “hard decision to let these banks fail.” Asked what should be done about banks, McCain said: “You’d sell off their assets and.. unfortunately, the shareholders and others will take a beating.”

So now that it will not benefit him to save the banks, it is time to fall in line with the rest of the GOP and join the obstructionists club.

Those who voted for the “maverick” should feel betrayed by this lack of integrity on his part.  If they do not…then that could explain why they voted for him…..ignorance.

Break A Leg, Bubba!

Smugglers are the most innovating individuals.

A 66-year-old passenger who arrived at Barcelona airport in a wheelchair and with a leg cast made entirely of cocaine was arrested on Friday as he tried to get through customs.

The man, flying from Santiago, Chile, also had cocaine stashed in six cans of beer and two folding stools in his luggage, the Interior Ministry said. Police confiscated nearly 5 kilograms (11 pounds) of the drug in total.

Police believe the man, or his accomplices, may have broken the leg on purpose so as not to arouse the suspicions of customs officials. Spain is the primary entry point for cocaine into Europe and is the largest consumer of the drug in the European Union.

How much is the leg worth?  If he broke the leg to be more authentic, I hope he got a good price for the leg.

The GOP Alternate Housing Plan

They, Repubs, hated Obama’s housing plan saying that it would not help and in turn they have offered their own housing plan.

Days after House Democrats advanced a bill to address foreclosures, House Republicans will present their own ideas on how to confront the housing crisis, Minority Whip Eric Cantor told USA TODAY this morning.

The GOP plan, which Cantor said would be released this week, will include changes to the tax code’s provisions on gifts and capital gains, including changes that would make it easier for owners to sell investment properties, he said. The proposal will also include an idea Republicans pitched as part of the stimulus debate to give any home buyer who puts 5% down an immediate tax credit

Republicans shift their focus to housing a week after Democrats passed a bill largely on their own that would allow bankruptcy judges to change the terms of mortgages on homes. Seven Republicans out of 174 voting supported the measure, now pending in the Senate.

Notice anything about the GOP proposal?  Read it careful and you will see that it is just a “Tax Cut”…seems that is ALL Repubs have in the game plan…the tired old mantra from the 80’s.

This is the best the GOP can do…..their Plan B is tax cuts….

Obama’s Trade Policy

During the campaign, Obama said he generally supports free-trade policies but also signaled a tougher approach that is only now beginning to be outlined. Both in Kirk’s testimony yesterday and in a policy statement issued by new Obama appointees at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the administration vowed to make tougher labor and environmental standards prerequisites for trade deals. Rather than stressing the signing of new agreements, the administration indicated that it will instead prioritize stricter enforcement of existing ones before the World Trade Organization — the Geneva-based body that arbitrates global trade.

The Obama administration is aggressively reworking U.S. trade policy to more strongly emphasize domestic and social issues, from the displacement of American workers to climate change.

Even as world trade takes its steepest drop in 80 years amid the global economic crisis, the administration is preparing to take a harder line with America’s trading partners. It will seek new benchmarks before supporting already-written trade agreements with Colombia and South Korea and is suggesting that it will dig in its heels on global trade talks, demanding that other countries make broader concessions first.

Those divides appear to be more unbreachable than ever as world leaders move to protect their domestic industries from the ravages of the financial crisis, embracing new trade barriers aimed at imported goods and other measures meant to restrict the flow of capital outside their borders. In the United States, more Americans are blaming cheap imports for job losses at home and congressional leaders pressed successfully to include a “buy American” provision in the $787 billion stimulus program to give an edge to U.S.-made products.

Yet the administration still appears to be toeing a line, saying it will move to address the concerns of American workers while also carefully avoiding words and deeds that directly smack of protectionism.

Though Obama said before the elections that he would seek to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, he has since backed away from that statement, vowing during his recent trip to Canada to avoid protectionism. Obama’s opposition to a stronger version of the “buy American” provisions added to the stimulus bill last month by congressional Democrats is also viewed as a major reason it was eventually watered down before the bill reached his desk for signing.

How Many Czars Do We Need?

There is a drug czar, an inel czar, economic czar, auto czar, health czar, on and on and on…..just how many do we need?

As President Obama names more policy czars to his White House team — high-level staff members who will help oversee the administration’s top initiatives — some lawmakers and Washington interest groups are raising concerns that he may be subverting the authority of Congress and concentrating too much power in the presidency.

The idea of these “super aides,” who will work across agency lines to push the president’s agenda, is not a new one. President Nixon may have named the first “czar” with his appointment of William E. Simon to handle the 1970s energy crisis. Other presidents have followed suit.

The confusion about competing roles played by czars and their Cabinet counterparts was on display Monday as White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs tried to explain how authority would be divided between DeParle and Sebelius as they steer health reform through Congress.

Now that the White House is launching the system, aides are refining the description a bit. Messina emphasized that the czar positions rank below Cabinet positions.

He said the confirmation-free appointments do not violate the Constitution because the czars are aides to the president and his team. “They’re super-staffers and report to the president and to Rahm,” he said, referring to Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. “I meet with them. I don’t meet with Cabinet secretaries; they’re above me.” Czars mainly will do their coordination work behind the scenes, and secretaries will serve more as what Messina calls the “public faces” of the administration.

Somewhere this sounds like the job those committee heads in Congress should be doing…but what do I know?