New Poll from Public Policy Polling (PPP), released last night:

Debra Medina is fading in the Texas Republican race for Governor, and it continues to look like the contest is headed for a runoff where Rick Perry will be a strong favorite over Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Perry leads with 40% to 31% for Hutchison and 20% for Medina. Compared to PPP's look at the race two weeks ago Perry has gained a point, Hutchison has gone up three, and Medina's standing has declined by four.

Fair or not the issue of whether Medina is a 'truther'- someone who thinks the federal government was involved in the 9/11 terrorist attacks- seems to be hurting her. 21% of primary voters think she subscribes to that theory while another 29% are unsure.

The poll shows 9% undecided. Unless Perry wins a 50% majority, he will head to a run-off election six weeks later with Hutchison.

David Boaz, Vice-President of the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank based in Washington, DC, recently wrote an article in National Review, "Libertarian is not a Four-letter Word." The article was in response to an analysis of the ideological make-up of the electorate from famed pollsters John Zogby and Zeljka Buturovic.

Among the response, Boaz agreed that the vast majority of libertarian-minded voters identify with the Republican Party. Though, they wavered somewhat in 1992 with Ross Perot, and again in 2004, and 2006.

From NR The Corner:

yes, we’ve found that the 14-15 percent of libertarian voters we identify usually vote about 70 percent Republican. But not always. In 1992 half that libertarian Republican group jumped ship and voted for Ross Perot. In 2004 George W. Bush got only 59 percent of the libertarian vote, and in 2006 libertarians gave only about 54 percent of their votes to Republican congressional candidates.

The good news for the GOP, Boaz finds they've largely returned to the Republican fold. Continuing:

Facing a prospective Obama-Reid-Pelosi government during an economic crisis, they came back to the Republican fold in 2008.

by Clifford F. Thies

Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), ranking member on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, has called for a Senate investigation into "climategate." While the Democrats, who run the Senate, will probably not act on the request, the global-warming industry must be nervous since polls point to a Republican takeover of the House of Representatives and possibly also the Senate. Then, the issues of academic fraud, misrepresentation, and the over-statement of scientific evidence will be discussed in a forum open to the entire world.

From Pajama's Media, "Senator Inhofe to ask for DOJ investigation" Feb. 23:

Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) today asked the Obama administration to investigate what he called “the greatest scientific scandal of our generation” — the actions of climate scientists revealed by the Climategate files, and the subsequent admissions by the editors of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4).

Senator Inhofe also called for former Vice President Al Gore to be called back to the Senate to testify.

“In [Gore's] science fiction movie, every assertion has been rebutted,” Inhofe said. He believes Vice President Gore should defend himself and his movie before Congress.

It should not be a surprise that scientific disciplines include people with values ranging from the mainstream to any number of weird extremes. We might suppose that science is "value-free," but, this is a statement of the results of free inquiry, not a statement of individual scientists. The process of free inquiry should allow "the data to speak;" but, the domination of the academic world by the left and the arrogant assertion that certain matters are settled, threatens free inquiry.

We might also suppose that scientific findings are replicable, but, at the edges of scientific inquiry, controlled experiments may be impossible or nearly so. This is particularly true of disciplines that investigate global phenomenon, such as macroeconomics and the emerging field of climatology. When multitudes of variables are constantly changing, each potentially a cause and an effect of the other, distinguishing cause from mere correlation is a challenge.

As against free inquiry, we have the polemics of global warming. The evidence of human-induced global warming, the so-called Hockey Stick, we now know is bogus. The Hockey Stick has been massively contradicted by subsequent research. We know that there is a lot of natural variation.

What we don't know is to what extent man is contributing to variation in global temperature. I'm kind of persuaded by the climatologists who say that industrial emissions account for about one-fourth of the build-up of CO2 in the atmosphere, and this build-up of CO2 in the atmospheres accounts for about 3 percent of the increase of global temperature since 1970 of about 1 degree Celsius. But, I'm an economist, so what do I know?

When the Hockey Stick was found to be contradicted by subsequent research, the National Academy of Science reviewed the matter. It said that the Hockey Stick was not inconsistent with the data available at the time it was constructed. Such a thing is not uncommon in the advance of science. Somebody puts a finding out there; and, others follow-up, confirming it or challenging it. Either way, science advances.

But, we now know that the developer of the Hockey Stick filtered and truncated his own data. He discarded measurements that did not fit his preconceived views. Because of these new revelations, this fellow's colleagues at The Pennsylvania State University conducted an investigation. Here is their finding: "He did not add any false data to his sample."

They call that an exoneration?

Scientific inquiry, according to the academic community, allows excluding data inconsistent with your preconceived views. This standard is certainly a matter for the taxpayers who finance academic-based research to consider.

Editor's Note - Dr. Thies is a professor of econo-metrics and statistics at Shenandoah Univ. in Virginia.

by Ron Hart

Congress dragged Toyota, kicking and bowing, to Washington to testify this week in one of their indignant show trials they so love. I wish they would subpoena themselves and bring Congress before a Senate hearing under oath and the red hot lights of TV cameras. Then we might get to the root of most problems in America, which is too much government intervention, confusing rules, and second-guessing politicians.

Congress will say Toyota executives knew about a few break problems and just “drug their feet” on the matter.

It has been a tough year for Prius owners all around. It turns out there is no global warming.

It is so embarrassing for Prius owners that Toyota has also recalled that sanctimonious smug look drivers have on their face when they talk about how they are saving the world with their car. But on the bright side for liberals, they now are victims and they love that about as much.

The Democratic Congress’ poll numbers have plummeted so quickly that they should post them on the downhill Olympic race where they would be our best shot at a medal. They are trying to divert America’s dislike of them toward big bad business. It is what they do best.

In fact this problem with electronic braking came about because of Federal pressures on CAFE standards where manufacturers were attempting to make lighter cars. Politicians, as they often do, point the finger at big bad business. Then out comes a memo where Toyota cut a deal with their Washington regulators last year on the braking issue. Like with most finger pointing politicians do, usually at least three fingers are pointing right back at them.

The reality is that the businesses we have had the most difficulty with like banking, insurance and mortgage lending, and now car companies, are the ones most regulated. Less regulated businesses who are more free-market regulated have done fine like Wal-Mart, Coke, Google, Caterpillar and Home Depot.

Washington still does not get it; we are taxed and regulated to death. The lone Democrat Senator in Massachusetts and the man who was unable to beat George Bush, John Kerry still wants to push through cap and trade. This is the same man who had the insight and vision to tap John Edwards as his Vice Presidential choice (while Edwards was doing his own tapping of employees) ignores all the recent data uncovered saying that the “global warming” data is dishonest and agenda driven.

The fact that we are broke and man-made global warming has been a hoax does not seem to stop Kerry and other Democrats who do not let the facts get in the way of an opportunity to control and tax more of the economy.

Toyota has all the business incentive in the world to protect their reputation. It is what drives business to do the right thing. When plaintiff’s attorneys and their brethren in the Democratic Congress make it difficult to address a problem for fear of class-action litigation or humiliation then they stall.

And for an administration that is the new owner/operator of GM, but still aspires to get rid the world of the combustion engine, Obama finds it easy to jump on foreign owned Toyota. They must however remember, when U.S. Toyota sales go down they lay off employees at Toyota plants all across the South. The global economy has done more to tie the world together than any Kumbaya political rhetoric.

Clearly politicians do not understand economics or they would not be making all the bad long-term decisions they have of late for our country.

Editor's Note - our friend Ron Hart will be traveling today to see a speech in Florida, by libertarian humorist P.J. O'Rourke,sponsored by the Cato Institute.

Under Obama, Another One Bites the Dust

From Eric Dondero:

The Obama administration is shutting down yet another iconic American company: Hummer. An overseas acquisition sale fell through, and rather than choosing to save American jobs, mostly in the hardhit Mid-West, and keep the company afloat, the administration has selected a "slow scale down of operations."

Reports Bloomberg via Business Week:

Winding down the brand will take several months, Nick Richards, a GM spokesman, said yesterday. Some of the 3,000 people now employed at Hummer work on other vehicles, so GM doesn’t know how many jobs will be lost, he said.

The Hummer brand was iconic of Americanist values; Strength, vitality, even patriotism. The vehicle was a favorite of surivalists concerned over increasing Islamic attacks on the United States and incursions on the US border from illegal aliens. Continuing:

Hummer sales began in 1999 with the $140,000 H1, a 7,600- pound SUV (3,400 kilograms) patterned after the all-terrain military vehicle popularized for road use by actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, now California’s governor. The 6,600-pound H2 debuted in 2002, followed by the 4,700-pound H3 in 2005.

From CarandDriver.com:

the company first catapulted into the spotlight for the unflinching, survivalist nature of its military vehicles...

Regulations and massive oversight with Approval Process may have finally killed Hummer

There are subtle indications of a direct link to the Obama administration's policies and big bureaucracy at government-owned General Motors. Jared Gall of CarandDriver opines this morning:

We also wouldn’t ignore the fact that the history of the Chinese auto industry suggests that, if a company really wants to build a Hummer, it will just go ahead and build something that looks exactly like a Hummer without going through the convoluted process of buying rights and proper tooling.

From the HummerGuy.net:

news reports were indicating that there were obstacles in the approval process, but offered no official statements from GMnews...

Naturally Hummer fans are distraught. From HummerGuy.net comments:

* Yeah, and that obstacle is our magical Kenyan. But don’t feel singled out, Hummer-lovers, Obama is f**king things up all over this great country.

* F*****g Obama! and F**K GENERAL MOTORS!

* It is sad that so many American workers are going to lose their jobs.

Photo of Hummer HX model premiered in 2008, to attract young customers and first time buyers.

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush gave a stunningly frank assessment of the Obama presidency to the libertarian-conservative site NewsMax yesterday.

From NewsMax:

"instead of trying to solve that problem [jobs, economic growth] with common-sense American solutions, [he] is trying to take advantage of it to redefine who we are as a nation."

Bush said he tries to avoid such labels but went on to say: "If he believes that government ought to consume 40 percent of the economy, of the economic output, I don’t know what you’d call that, but it’s not American."

"If he believes that redistributing wealth will create more prosperity for more people, that’s been tried and it’s failed. What he should believe is that the interaction of millions of people freely pursuing their dreams will create more prosperity for more people than any government program. That’s the American way."

Bush went on to call Obama's inner circle of advisors in the White House, "all academics and political hacks."

No Birth Certificate: No Ballot Status for AZ

From Conservative American News (via AP report):

Nearly half of the Arizona Legislature wants to force President Barack Obama to show his birth certificate to state officials if he runs for re-election. A state House committee on Tuesday approved the measure sponsored by 40 of the state's 90 legislators. It would require presidential candidates who want to appear on the ballot in Arizona to submit documents proving they meet the requirements to be president.

All 40 of the House co-sponsors are Republicans. The initiator of the bill is Skull Valley Republican Rep. Judy Burges who commented:

"If people have to prove their citizenship to apply for a job or get a passport, they should have to prove it to run for president."

Rep. Burgess is best known for having recently sponsored and helped to pass a bill "stipulating that the State of Arizona claim sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution."

New Rasmussen numbers released last night, show Texas Governor Rick Perry with a commanding lead against his two GOP primary rivals. What's more, Perry's gain has come at the expense of his nearest rival Kay B. Hutchison who has seen her poll numbers decline.

From Rasmussen:

Just days before Texas Republicans pick their nominee for governor, incumbent Rick Perry has his biggest lead yet.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely Republican Primary voters finds Perry leading Senate Kay Bailey Hutchison 48% to 27%, with Tea Party activist Debra Medina earning 16% of the vote. Nine percent (9%) of Texas GOP voters remain undecided.

Hutchison was at 29% in the last poll conducted last month.

Additionally, Debra Medina who had been surging in previous polls, appears to have suffered a serious set-back:

Just 35% now have a favorable view of Medina... This includes nine percent (9%) with a very favorable regard for her. Forty-seven percent (47%) view her unfavorably, with 18% very unfavorable.

New from Dan Mitchell

Is there any financial privacy left now that new banking regulations have taken effect?

Sending these free to our troops is our small way of saying THANK YOU!

ANGRY PEASANT RECORDS will send CDs FREE to active military at US/ APO/FPO address. Will send to the first 70 who write us. (NO FAKERS. REMEMBER, STOLEN VALOR IS A CRIME AND WE WILL CHECK

email your name, rank and address to us and we’ll mail it out promptly!

YOU GET: TWO (yes, 2!) copies of the CD of feisty libertarian gun-nut punk rock/industrial music, CLING TO OUR GUNS by Right Arm of Wyoming. Check out the music at http://www.rightarmofwyoming.

Extra copy of the CD is to “spread the love”, makes a perfect gift for that leftie relative who needs some modern “school house rock” to educate them on the error of their ways!

STYLE: PUNK ROCK, HARDCORE PUNK ROCK, INDUSTRIAL ROCK, ROCK ‘N” ROLL

SONG LISTING:

1. GET OFF MY PROPERTY!
2. MY GUN KEEPS YOU HONEST
3. REDISTRIBUTION OF THEFT
4. GOVERNMENT IS A COLLECTIVE HALLUCINATION
5. GUN CONTROL GETS WOMEN RAPED
6. LIBERTY IN SHARDS
7. FREAKY LIBERAL MAMMAL SEX
8. FAKIN’ THE RACE CARD
9. SINGLE CRACKLING BLUE FLASH
10. WE ARE THE GOOD GUYS!
11. US Bill of Rights (read by Mrs. Dean)
12. LETTER TO A YOUNG ME (SPOKEN)
13. MY GUN KEEPS YOU HONEST – CLEAN VERSION FOR RADIO
REVIEWS:

—”Fox News – the band” – Bridge Nine punk forums

—”As refreshing as a gunshot to the head…” – children’s book author Eric B. Anderson

—”You rule! I listened to your CD. It’s AWESOME!” –Pat Kim (head honcho at ConservativePunk.com)

—”WOW, you do not pull any punches. Great! The movement needs music which will strike a cord with all different kinds of people. Thanks for all you are doing to preserve our freedoms, liberty and culture.”

– Patriotic singer Lloyd Marcus

—”I threw up watching this crap. Talk about trying to indoctrinate! Pure propaganda set to music.”

–Some Michael Moore fan, commenting about Right Arm of Wyoming on YouTube

CD is factory glass mastered (not burned).

NANNY-STATE WATCH

Democrats now outlawing Cool

Skatboarders, Rollerbladers, Bikers, and even Scooterers, will all be required to wear helmets that pass state inspection if a bill under consideration in the Colorado legislature gets passed this month.

From ABC 7 News, Denver:

Colorado lawmakers are considering legislation to require helmet use for all kids younger than 18. Kids would be required to wear a helmet on bicycles, scooters, skateboards or any other non-motorized device with wheels... Violators would be given an educational card that explains the risk of not wearing a helmet and where to find a free or low-cost helmet.

The legislation is sponsored by two liberal Democrats, both from Fort Collins.

From BikeMonkey:

“I will pursue any legislation in order to protect children as best I can,” says Colorado state senator Bob Bacon of Fort Collins. To that end, Senator Bacon and Represenative John Kefalas (also of Ft Collins) are sponsoring legislation to mandate helmet use for children under age 18

Libertarians in the State are mounting an opposition. Colorado Libertarian Party Chairman Dave Williams was quoted:

"It's kind of humorous, in that you're going to have cops handing out little safety cards to kids... Whose responsibility is that? It's the parents’ responsibility, and the government is going to spend taxpayer money to do something here that isn't going to have any real benefit?" Williams said.

Governor-run health care may be the primary motivation. From the legislation:

Colorado has an interest in preventing and mitigating the severity of such injuries as the economic cost to an individual and to society of a single severe nonfatal brain injury can exceed $2 Million.

Indianapolis, IN -- The Libertarian Party of Indiana will hold its nominating convention April 23-25, 2010. The convention will serve as a time to nominate libertarians for the party's ballot, workshop on topics such as fundraising and campaign tips, noted speakers and a time to meet Libertarians from around Indiana. Saturday night will also feature a debate for candidates seeking the chairmanship of the national Libertarian Party.

The convention will be held at the Drury Inn Suites at 82nd & Shadeland in Indianapolis. Registration and hotel information will be posted at LPIN.org by March 1, 2010.

Speech last weekend at C-PAC, Washington, DC

"A Nation goes to War against an ideology. We are talking today about a theocratic, totalitarian ideology, and it is called Islam." -- Allen West, Republican candidate for the US House, Florida

Accompanied by Pro-America accoustic guitarist Jon David of California.

by Denise Clark

Noor al-Maleki was a gorgeous, young woman living in Arizona with her family. She loved Western culture and the freedom that this country offers. Unfortunately, her muslim father felt otherwise. The Iraqi-American father decided that his family's "honor" was more valuable than his own child and killed Noor by running over her with his car. She lingered for a short time after being struck.

Now, nearing trial for her MURDER in Arizona, prosecutors have shown to be reluctant in sentencing Faleh al-Maleki to death. Why? Because the scumbag's public defender that you and I are paying for have pitted Christians against muslims to avoid having his client pay with his own life.

From pajamasmedia.com, the Chesler Chronicles:

"[Public Defender] Billy Little asked the judge to “take special precautions to ensure the County Attorney’s Office wouldn’t wrongly seek the death penalty because Almaleki is a Muslim.” Little called for an “open process (to) provide some level of assurance that there is no appearance that a Christian is seeking to execute a Muslim for racial, political, religious or cultural beliefs,” referring to County Attorney Andrew Thomas’ Christian faith."

I'd love to meet this worm of an attorney. Is he kidding? He's asking a judge, most likely a believer in Christ, to make sure that no one from the D.A.'s office seeks the death penalty because of an appearance of religious intolerance?? How dare he. His client took the life of his own daughter because he hates Western civilization.

Does Mr. Little realize how intolerant his client's religion can be? Does he truly believe that a Christian would be given the same consideration under Sharia Law? If he does, he's an idiot, and no village would want him.

Faleh al-Maleki didn't kill a Christian; he killed a muslim. So why is his attorney so hell-bent on painting Christians as biased? Because it's the politically-correct thing to do. Period.

And the D.A.'s office equally shares the blame for not having the spine to stand up and say that this "custom" will NOT be tolerated in this country. Shame on them for not representing the safety and concerns of the people of Maricopa County. I'd guarantee that Sheriff Joe Arpaio wouldn't back down, and he represents the same people as the D.A. If they're going to back off of the death penalty in what is clearly a capital murder case, then why even have a frickin' trial?

Noor al-Maleki will never again enjoy the blessings of this world because her father chose to impose his beliefs on this young woman. Now, just as he felt he was doling out justice, he must stop being a coward and face the justice of the people of Maricopa County.

by Eric Dondero

It is difficult to imagine a more perfect candidate for Libertarian Republicans than Marco Rubio. The Florida Republican Liberty Caucus has had friendly relations with him since his days as a newly elected State Rep. representing a Miami-area district in 2000. Then in 2006 he took over as State House Speaker and Libertarian Republicans worked with him on property rights and tax limitation legislation. Rubio has spoken to local RLC meetings, and sent one of his top aides to address the 2009 RLC National Convention held in Jacksonville.

He's solid free enterprise/low tax on economic issues. On social matters, he's a pro-life Catholic, but he's also a big tent Republican who recognizes that fiscal matters take precedence and are the issues that unite all GOPers.

But it's in the area of foreign policy where he most shines. A son of Cuban immigrants, Rubio is a passionate anti-Communist. From his speech at C-PAC:

"It's easy to forget how special America is... I was raised by exiles, people who lost their country to socialism. They came to America with virtually nothing -- no English, no money, no friends. They know how different America is from the rest of the world."

Most assuredly he recognizes that there's little difference between the totalitarianism of the likes of Casto, and Chavez, and the ruling Mullahs in Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Al Qaeda.

From Larry Thornberry of the American Spectator:

Obama may have difficulty understanding that America is in a fight with radical Islam. Not so Rubio.

"We will do whatever it takes, for however long it takes, to defeat Islamic terrorism," Rubio said to cheers. "We will punish their allies like Iran. We will stand with our allies like Israel. We will target and we will destroy terrorist cells and the leaders of those cells. The ones that survive, we will capture. We will get useful information from them."

Rubio paused here for more applause before adding, "And then we will bring them to justice in front of a military tribunal in Guantanamo, not a civilian courtroom in Manhattan."

There was a time, early on in his term, when Charlie Crist had some libertarian potential. But he got too chummy with Obama, gladly soliciting stimulus funds for Florida. He then made matters worse for many in the freedom movement by allowing 17-year old escapee from a radical islamist household, Rifqa Bary to be extradited to Ohio.

Now Rubio's the darling of the Libertarian Right. Our friends at Right Pundits put it best:

Marco Rubio is the second coming of Scott Brown, politically speaking. He’s in a lot of ways better than Brown. He’s younger, he’s good looking, he’s more conservative and he’s not afraid to take on the “establishment republicans” as he’s shown in taking on Crist. While Brown facilitated a miracle in Massachusetts, what Rubio is doing is no less miraculous.

Bottom line though, it's Florida that counts. And on that score he seems to be winning over just as many adoring fans as he now has nationally.

A new Rasmussen poll finds:

Former state House Speaker Marco Rubio continues to lengthen his lead over Governor Charlie Crist in the contest for Florida’s Republican Senate nomination.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely Republican Primary voters finds Rubio leading Crist by 18 points, 54% to 36%.

The August primary is still quite a ways away. But who would have ever thought a year ago, when Rubio was first making noises of running, that he'd be this far ahead, let alone in the lead at all?

Wilder's PVV, a "rightwing, mostly libertarian party"

Dutch Libertarian leader Geert Wilders is featured in the UK First Post this morning. And reporter Tim Edwards, declares his chances to ascend to the highest office in the Netherlands look good. From UK First Post:

Geert Wilders... Dutch politician banned from the UK last year for being a threat to race relations, could soon be prime minister of the Netherlands following the collapse of the Dutch coalition government at the weekend.

The government's fall, following a disagreement between the dominant Christian Democrat party and its coalition partner, Labour, over extending the country's Nato commitments in Afghanistan, means that a general election will have to take place within the next three months.

The most recent opinion polls suggest Wilders... Party of Freedom, will claim up to 25 seats in the new parliament, making it the second largest party after the Christian Democrats. Labour would get around 21 seats.

He also notes Wilders current trial for producing a producing a film critical of Islam could propel him even more:

The controversial Wilders, meanwhile, has reason to believe two high-profile brushes with authority over the next three months could increase his popularity among voters.

Pro-Liberty; anti-Euro & Islamo-Fascism

Wilders began his parliamentary career as an MP for the centre-right People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, before leaving... at odds with the party line that Turkey should be allowed to begin accession talks with the EU.

Wilders went on to found the PVV as a right-wing, mostly libertarian party. Policies include a smaller state and lower taxation... The party proposes the ending of immigration from non-western countries – along with official recognition of the primacy of Christian, Jewish and humanist traditions... he sees [Islam] as fascistic. He spent two years in his twenties working in Israel, during which time he travelled widely in the Arabic world, where he was reportedly deeply affected by the absence of democracy. In contrast, he sees Israel as a "true friend" and admires its Counter-terrorism policies.

Two years ago he told the Guardian: "I have a problem with Islamic tradition, culture, ideology. Not with Muslim people."

Despite seemingly sharing many beliefs with far-right European parties, such as the BNP, Wilders rejects fascism. His criticism of homophobia, at least, sets him apart from such organisations.

Note - Wilders is a close friend and ally of U.S. libertarian columnist and blogger Pamela Geller (photo), of the Ayn Randist website Atlas Shrugs.

Editor's Note - we are currently headlining a piece by Snr. Editor Cliff Thies which is an extensive analysis of the coming Dutch elections at our sister site WorldwideLiberty.

Sean Bielat for Congress Massachusetts CD 4

Meet Sean Bielat. He's a former active duty Marine officer, and served 7 years in the Marine reserves with the rank of Major. He has an MA in public policy from Harvard. And he's currently an IT consultant. From his Bio:

Sean, 34, and his wife are residents of Brookline, MA where they are expecting their first child in August. They are members of St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church in Brookline. Sean currently works as an independent consultant. Until recently, Sean worked at iRobot Corporation where he ran the company's largest defense robotics program. Prior to that, he worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company.

And like many in the IT field, Bielat holds very libertarian views on the issues of the day.

Jobs

Stimulus spending has put politics over policy, and the result has been handouts to special interests, inefficient spending, and far too much debt.

It is clear that real economic growth comes from businesses working to compete and grow in the free market. Government cannot create jobs (aside from government jobs); only business can create jobs and sustainable economic growth.

Taxes

We need a tax code that doesn’t penalize success but also doesn’t punish the working poor. Some emerging democracies have learned lessons from the failed tax systems of other nations. These countries have had great success with a system in which an individual pays no income tax on earnings up to the poverty line and pays only a relatively low flat tax above that level.

Spending

President Obama’s proposal to cut non-defense, discretionary spending by 10% is a meaningless gesture—it would only apply to 12% of the total federal budget, meaning that there would be only a 1.2% cut in total spending over a 10-year period. This “cut” will have no real impact and serves only to provide the appearance of action.

Cutting earmarks and wasteful spending are obvious solutions and a good start.

National Security

American military might keeps the peace. Some on the left fixate on the exceptions to this statement, but the period of American pre-eminence has had fewer major conflicts than any other period since the rise of nation-states. U.S. strength creates stability across the globe... Many people believe that we should focus on non-state actors (i.e., terrorists, jihadists, etc.) rather than nation-states. I believe that we can, and must, do both.

With great power comes great responsibility. As the world’s sole superpower, we must be slow to undertake military action. We must only employ our military might when it is clearly in the national interest to do so.

Our founding fathers wisely gave the power to declare war to the representatives of the people; if the people do not believe that a conflict is in their national interest, then it is not. We should adhere to the Constitution and only fight in conflicts that receive a majority vote in Congress via a Declaration of War.

A Republican Against the War on Drugs

While all the above issue stances fall comfortably within the mainstream Republican view, Beilat takes a differeing approach on the War on Drugs. In a recent interview with Huffington Post reporter Ryan Grim, Beilat said the following:

"I'm a conservative, but I would say on drug issues I tend toward libertarian," he says, arguing that the war on drugs has been a total failure and that policy should focus on reducing the harm associated with drugs.

It makes no sense, he says, that coffee and alcohol are legal when other drugs aren't.

"Barney's not bad on those issues," offers Bielat, saying he won't make it part of his campaign. "I don't need to beat my head against that particular wall."

Barney can be Beat

The Republican adds, Barney's no friend of freedom on taxes and spending:

"I'm not emphasizing social issues. I'm here to talk about economic issues. That's what people care about this year," he says. "He's hardly libertarian on economic issues, though. I'm going to be talking about the deficit; I'm going to be talking about job creation; I'm going to be talking about economic growth; I'm going to be talking about taxes."

Bielat's cautiously optimistic of his chances:

"I think he's going to be arrogant about this. I don't think he's going to pay attention. And I don't want him to," he says.

"If we can't do it this year, this guy's going to be in there till he retires."

SeanBielat.org

From Eric Dondero:

It's been the hottest rumor for weeks out of the Crab State. Longtime entrenched incumbent Democrat Senator Barbara Mikulski was planning on announcing her retirement. The rumors were hot and heavy for a day or two. Then the major media squelched all speculation.

From the Washington Post, Post-Partisan blog, "Mikulski retire, not likely" Feb. 16:

The Maryland political blogosphere has gone berserk in the last 24 hours with the rumor that Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D) is planning to retire, adding to the Democrats’ headaches about keeping control of the Senate...

The senator, who will turn 74 this summer, broke her ankle badly last summer. She had a plate and screws inserted in surgery.

A Democratic source close to Milkulski says she is definitely running for reelection, and her actions seem to support that -- raising money, setting up a campaign office, making appearances.

But now a new twist has arisen.

Rumors are spreading that Obama and Reid convinced the Senator to run for reelection, then resign, so that Democrat Governor (and longtime Mikulski ally) Martin O'Malley can immediately appoint a replacement.

The stakes couldn't be any higher.

Moe Lane of RedState opines on the possible Mikulski retirement:

the real problem for the Democrats... they cannot have any more bad luck if they want to be assured of keeping their Senate majority.

We are almost at the point where everything has to go right for them, from now until November, for them to preserve their Senate majority.

Caution; the Obama, Reid part is just at the rumor stage, eminating from various Maryland political blogs.

From Eric Dondero:

Pin-up Gal Gina Elise was interviewed by both Stars & Stripes and the American Legion magazine last month.

From American Legion Troop Support website:

Since 2007, Gina Elise has raised tens of thousands of dollars for military and VA hospitals in the western United States through sales of her "pinup girl" calendars, posters and T-shirts. She's generated $5,000 for the VA medical center in Loma Linda, Calif.; $15,000 for the naval hospital in San Diego; and $15,000 for the VA medical center in Portland, Ore.

With a background in theater and a nostalgic appreciation for Betty Grable and other World War II-era pinup girls, Elise decided the best way she could raise funds for wounded warriors was by hearkening back to the days of Grable, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman and Jane Greer - and becoming a 21st-century pinup girl, herself. American Legion Post 360 in Lake Arrowhead, Calif., sponsored her efforts and soon she was off and posing.

But in the new politically correct era does Gina Elise still gain support for her efforts?

Continuing from AL:

Q: Do you ever hear that what you're doing is somehow inappropriate or politically incorrect?

A: I can honestly tell you that I can count on one hand the number of negative letters I've gotten compared to thousands of e-mails that support my project. People see this project as a really fun cause they can support. So many wives and girlfriends support my project, too.

It's a very tasteful calendar, really. Bathing suits and fun costumes. It's nothing too provocative.

I have so many amazing e-mails from veterans and from our troops serving overseas, thanking me for what I'm doing.

It's a unique project, and maybe some people are a little bit shocked that someone in my age group is doing this.

Read the full interview at American Legion.

To support Gina's efforts with a contribution, to purchase a calendar or to view her entire Photo Gallery visit PinupsforVets.com

Editor's Note - Proud US Navy Veteran and current Member of both American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

Partisan lines are clearly drawn: Democrats in favor, Republicans opposed

From Eric Dondero:

As state budget woes increase during the deep recession, and state worker lay-offs loom, legislators are looking to a familiar "bad guy," to pound even harder in an effort to help balance budgets. Democrat legislators are proposing massive increases in tobacco taxes. While Republicans, somewhat oddly, have been thrust in the role of defending the "little guy."

From Fox News, "States' Budget Woes Ignites Debate Over Raising Tobacco Taxes," Feb. 21:

Just a year after smokers were slapped with the single largest federal tobacco tax increase ever, public health advocates are urging states to follow up with their own cigarette tax hikes to offset declining revenues lost in the recession and to press more people into giving up smoking.

critics say a cigarette tax increase would be "foolish" and that the taxes are now "way too high" and target the poor.

"When you raise it a buck, you're taking it out of the hands of people with not much disposable income, and $1 buck a day is significant income," said William Ahern, the director of policy and communications for the Tax Foundation.

He added that since smokers can avoid tax by buying cigarettes on the black market, the increase is "criminalizing the population."

"Cigarettes are being sold on street corners like illegal drugs," he said. "There's a lot of crime associated with this now."

Republicans defending the rights of the Working Class

At least four states are already moving fast to implement an increase: New York, New Mexico Oregon and Maine.

Here's an example from one state.

From the Bangor Daily News, Feb. 21:

Public health advocates and some Maine lawmakers are supporting a proposed $1 state tax increase on a pack of cigarettes... But the proposed tax, estimated to generate about $26.6 million annually, faces opposition from Republican legislators...

Emily Cain, D-Orono, House chairman of the Legislature’s Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee, said the tax proposal has been presented to her committee “along a partisan divide,” with support from Democrats and opposition from Republicans.

Sen. Peter Mills, R-Cornville, said the proposed tax wouldn’t generate enough money to meaningfully offset the devastating cuts the Legislature is charged with making. Mills, who is running for governor, predicted that legislative Democrats will push through not only the tobacco tax but also other liberal initiatives

In fairness, it should be noted that Republicans legislators are being joined in opposition to the tax increase, surprisingly, by outgoing Democrat Governor John Baldacci.

The libertarian-leaning group Freedom Works, headed by former Republican Congressman Dick Armey released a statement on the proposed nationwide tax hikes:

Those who don’t smoke won’t be paying this tax directly. Instead, this tax will fall disproportionately on the poor leaving less money for food and other essentials at a time when so many are hurting. At the same time, cigarette taxes hurt small businesses as profits from cigarette sales are lost across state lines, over the internet, or the black market. This means lost jobs, more economic pain, increased crime, and soon the state will be looking for the next group to tax to make ends meet. The collective bad fiscal policy of a state can’t be pawned off onto one unpopular minority.