BREAKING NEWS...

Fox and various other Media are reporting this morning a bombshell of a political development.

State Senator Scott Brown, who had been as much as 30 points behind Attorney General Martha Coakley in the race for US Senate, for Ted Kennedy's seat, is now 1 point ahead in the latest poll.

From Fox News:

The race to replace Ted Kennedy in the U.S. Senate is looking like a toss up, with Republican Scott Brown up 48-47 on Martha Coakley.

Brown is benefiting from depressed Democratic interest in the election and a huge lead among independents for his surprisingly strong standing.

The crosstabs indicate that candidate Brown has a much higher favorable to unfavorable ratio than candidate Coakley. Brown is at 57/25, while Coakley is at 50/42. And voter intensity/excitement is much stronger among those who had voted for McCain over Obama in 2008.

From the summary by polling firm PPP:

Brown is benefiting from depressed Democratic interest in the election and a huge lead among independents for his surprisingly strong standing. Those planning to vote in the special election only report having voted for Barack Obama in 2008 by a 16 point margin, in contrast to his actual 26 point victory in the state.

That decline in turnout from Obama voters plagued Democratic candidates for Governor in Virginia and New Jersey last fall. Beyond that 66% of Republicans say they’re ‘very excited’ about turning out while only 48% of Democrats express that sentiment.

Public Policy Polling (PPP), is generally regarded as a left-leaning firm. Another poll conducted just last week had Brown down by 8, 49 to 41.

One convention to be held Inside the Beltway, the other Outside

Ron Paul often identified by the liberal media as an "outsider," has just confirmed his appearance at the ultimate insider conservative convention to be held in DC late February - the Conservative Political Action Conference.

Meanwhile, Sarah Palin, often chided for having shared a ticket with "moderate" John McCain, has just confirmed her appearance as the keynoter at the very anti-establishment Tea Party Convention to be held in Nashville, Tennessee in early Feb.

Paul, who has taken potshots at Palin in the past, was asked about her appearance at the Tea Party gathering on CNN by Anderson Cooper. The segment was dubbed it "Palin's Power Play," From CNN video (via GOP12):

COOPER: Sarah Palin has reportedly decided to skip the upcomming C-PAC conference, which is a major event for conservatives, especially those seeking the White House. Palin was asked to be a speaker, but turned it down. At the same time Palin has agreed to be the paid keynote speaker at the first ever national Tea Party convention, that's taking place next month in Nashville. She is apparently sending a message to her Party and her base... With us now is Ron Paul, Republican Congressman and former Presidential candidate.

Congressman... what do you make of Sarah Palin's decision to not go to C-PAC, but to instead go to this first ever Tea Party convention?

PAUL: (Chuckle) I don't think I could make a whole lot out of it. I guess we gotta wait and see what happens. I've been invited to C-PAC. I'm going to attend that. And I think that's a good function for a conservative Republican. But exactly what she's up too I don't know.

Paul went on to take another shot at Palin for being a paid speaker. See the full video at GOP12.

From Eric Dondero:

With polls showing him down in the mid-40 range for approvals, and under fire for his unpopular domestic policy and increasingly failed foreign policy agenda, Obama may be forced to look to Europe for some inspiration for the coming year. He may find it readily available, particularly in Germany. The much ballyhood musical "HOPE: The Obama Musical Story" will premiere in Frankfurt on January 17.

From Der Spiegel:

Jimmie Wilson who plays Obama, struts up and down, clasping his mike and leading a euphoric gospel chorus of "Yes We Can."

And there's an odd connection to the deceased Michael Jackson. Continuing:

“We had some trouble finding Obama but then we found Jimmie Wilson and that worked well,” he said, refering to the actor who had his first major lead role in “Sisterella,” a musical produced by Michael Jackson. “We took into account the appearance of the performers to get that likeness, but their musical ability was essential too.”

Of particular interest to American Republicans, an entire set is devoted to Sarah Palin. More:

Sarah Palin also has her own solo, surrounded by a troop of scantily clad dancers.

The Actress playing Palin is said to be dressed in knee high boots and hot pants.

Apparently the Germans haven't gotten the word that Palin's latest approval ratings are on the rise now at 46%, while approvals for Obama are on steep decline at 47%.

America on "perpetual duty" Overseas, not working

There's been increasing chatter on the Right that a purely defensive posture against Al Qaeda has not been working. Conservatives, and even some libertarians are beginning to argue that a return to the Bush doctrine of taking the fight to the enemy may be a more effective strategy.

Andrea Tantaros, a regular contributor on Fox News late night, and a known defender of Sarah Palin, goes after the Obama administration for foreign policy failures. Tantaros's new blog column, "America needs to match Defense with Offense," rips into Obama's lax policies over the Christmas Day bomber, Yemen, intelligence failures and Afghanistan.

From NewsMax:

he's been apprehensive about acknowledging the current jihad, or holy war... the approach of the Obama administration to terrorism: staid, backward-looking, largely passive, chock-full of blame-shifting and always on defense.

The President's agenda as it relates to keeping us safe is based on a laundry list of our problems: Guantanamo, the CIA, advanced interrogation. What's missing is the acknowledgment that al-Qaida is a problem, one that Obama is committed to fighting and defeating.

Liberals are mistakenly preoccupied with downplaying the threat of radical Islamic jihadism...

Obama may be a reluctant wartime president on matters of security policy, but being on defense means nothing without going on offense. America cannot be on perpetual duty, and we can't get where we need to be as a society by just playing defense; you've got to play both. And it can't be on our own.

Read her full column from Sunday, Jan. 10 at NewsMax.

Fox News Sunday

US Senate Minority Whip, Republican Jon Kyl of Arizona had some strong words for the Obama Administration over the Christmas Day terrorist attack on the US.

From NewsMax, "GOP demands Accountability on Christmas Day attack":

Another top Republican in the US Senate, Minority Whip Jon Kyl, said he puts the blame for the security breakdown squarely on Obama, not the people who work under him.

"I think the president was right when he said, 'The buck stops with me'," Kyl told Fox News Sunday.

"The problem is he can't be fired right now..."

He continued:

"I don't blame them [security officials] as much as I do him. And I don't blame the people in the CIA, for example, or the counterterrorism center as much as I blame the heads of those groups, who obviously are reflecting the sentiments of the president, which is, 'We can just treat these people as common criminals and forget the intelligence they can provide to us and still win a war'."

Kyl's remarks were made on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace.

Legendary Gods of Rock lived up to their libertine reputation

James Jackson of The Times on-line recently conducted an interview with Led Zeppelin lead guitarist, the legenday Jimmy Page. The lengthy piece, "Jimmy Page on Led Zeppelin's good times, bad times and reunion rumours" ran in The Times, Jan. 8.

Jackson discovered Page might be planning an autobiography. On a possible Zeppelin reunion tour in the coming months, Page took a somewhat pessimistic line:

"I don’t have any real answer, apart from that it doesn’t look like it."

Then Jackson delved into the past. Continuing:

However much he frowns about the more exotic speculations laid on him — that he was an occultist, that he carried a collection of whips for use on gleeful groupies, that he spent a tour living on nothing but daiquiris and heroin — they play a formidable role in Page’s irresistible mythos.

How much of those, ahem, libertarian days of yore can he even remember? “When I look back at it it’s still in focus. Most of it is clear.”

Stories of the band’s groupie-tastic, coke-fuelled, booze-binging exploits on tour have captivated the imagination of rock fans ever since. If their excess wasn’t really anything their peers weren’t doing too, then Led Zeppelin’s imperious, untouchable manner, their private jet, the accompanying chaos set them apart, evoking to this day the ultimate rock-stars-on-the-road fantasy. Anecdotes concerning Page being served on a room-service trolley to a room of nubile young women sound like any lusty young man’s dream. But Page has never and won’t substantiate — or deny, it should be said — any of the wild tales.

But Page said in the end "what's most important about Zeppelin is the music."

He calls himself a "Libertarian Republican"

California is moving towards full legalization of marijuana. 2010 will see a ballot iniative to allow small amounts to be sold for recreational as well as medicinal use. It has the full backing of Republican Governor and former pot smoker Arnold Schwarzenegger. Moreover, the individual leading the ballot initiative is a Schwarzenegger friend, and is also a Republican.

From SF correspondent Richard Paddon, Sphere @ AOL:

Richard Lee, the founder and president of Oaksterdam University, is a veteran activist who also is sponsoring a statewide ballot measure that would allow adults 21 or older to possess and grow relatively small amounts of marijuana. The initiative also would allow cities and counties to tax and regulate marijuana sales and cultivation.

Lee calls himself a "Libertarian Republican." He owns several other businesses in the neighborhood, [Oakland] including a medical marijuana dispensary. He has donated more than $1 million to the initiative campaign.

Supporters of the measure have collected 680,000 signatures, far more than the 433,971 required. Lee plans to submit the petitions this month and hopes to qualify for the November ballot. The university's old building a block away will become campaign headquarters.

Lee, who suffers from an illness that leaves him wheelchair bound, is a legal medicinal marijuana user.

Hitler, Stalin and Mao from an empathetic view

Jonah Goldberg's best selling "Liberal Fascism," released two years ago sought to link the origins of American liberalism with the progressive era of the early 20th century. Goldberg wrote that it was progressives who helped to ignite movements overseas for Fascism, European style Socialism, Communsim and even Naziism.

Legendary film producer and iconic "new era progressive" Oliver Stone gives an emphathetic view of Stalin, Hitler and Mao, in his upcomming documentary series on Showtime. The film series is called, "The Secret History of America." Stone attempts to tell the story of the rise of the three dictators from their perspective. And in an ironic twist actually ends up agreeing with Goldberg's assertions by emphasizing America's role in helping to spawn the dictorial regimes. Though Stone, unlike Goldberg, puts the blame more on American corporations such as GM and IBM, rather than Democrat politicians of the time.

Stone is quoted by The Live Feed:

"Stalin has a complete other story," Stone said. "Not to paint him as a hero, but to tell a more factual representation.

As for Hitler, Stone sees him as an "easy scapegoat," and adds:

I've been able to walk in Stalin's shoes and Hitler's shoes to understand their point of view.

Stone says when it comes to Fascism and Communism, Rightwingers just don't get it

As if on cue, Stone admits that "conservatives" will not like his portrayal.

"Obviously, Rush Limbaugh is not going to like this history and, as usual, we're going to get those kind of ignorant attacks," said Stone.

And in order to have a greater understanding of Naziism and Communism Stone asserts:

We're going to educate our minds and liberalize them and broaden them. We want to move beyond opinions ...

A Chronology of Failure

3 hours to respond.

24 hours later off to the golf course.

Then more relaxing and yucking it up with friends in Hawaii.

3 days later, brief tie-less press conference.

Then back to the golf course.

by Ron Hart

Another Muslim extremist, finding it hard to pick up chicks here on earth, tried his best to win the 72 virgins promised him by his religion by attempting to blow up a Detroit-bound plane. Obama was playing golf in Hawaii. For the first time in any 48-hour period since taking office, he did not appear on TV.

The heroic passengers on the plane took care of this guy, because our PC government did not. Besides, anyone willing to go to Detroit is certainly not scared of some idiot fumbling with explosives in his pants. It is as if they said, Nigerian Please!

Obama has a weak cabinet. It's almost like he got it at IKEA and assembled it himself. The Secretary of Homeland Security should be a job for a hard-nosed, ex-police chief with a nervous tick. Instead, Obama went with Janet Napolitano, a politically correct former lawyer for Anita Hill. She is a leftie Obama-nite who dresses like a small-town lesbian and calls terrorism a "man-caused disaster" — which is a better description of the Obama cabinet.

Rest assured, the "mainstream" media give you both sides of the story — Obama's and Janet Napolitano's. They came out and said, "The system worked" after the crotch bomber managed to smuggle explosives onto the plane but was too dumb to set them off. How is this not a Bush/Katrina-like "You're doing a heckuva job, Brownie" moment?

I'm not some neo-con. Long ago I called for us to withdraw and just protect our borders. I do believe in a strong national defense, preferably run by someone like Dick Cheney who is mean and has that scary, faraway look in his eyes, like someone who is replaying a water-boarding interrogation in his mind. It really sends a message to our enemies when he shoots his hunting buddy in the face. I am just redneck enough to like that.

Even al-Qaida is recruiting women. Realizing that their Islamic men would have to drive them to the airport to suicide bomb a plane, they would not want 72 virgins — just one man who likes to cuddle and might actually pick up after himself.

The Obama administration is too afraid of offending any other nationality to protect us. The crotch bomber will probably get a big show trial in New York City, with Alec Baldwin and Neal Patrick Harris hosting from the red carpet. Trials where we offer terrorists their own soapboxes will be big business. I suggest that Atlanta bid for the Sheik Ali Tupac trial.

Despite its ineptitudes, the government continues to grow. The government agencies did not even communicate with each other when they had specific information. Kudos to Hillary Clinton who obtained the information from the Nigerian's father and turned it over to authorities. Lord knows Hillary is experienced with a man whose crotch could explode at inopportune times.

The TSA is too busy confiscating my bottled water to fret about a man on the terrorist who paid for his one-way ticket with cash and had no luggage. Maybe a study funded by airport concession operators determined that my $1 bottle of water purchased outside the airport is more likely to cause trouble on the plane than the $6 bottle of water they sell once I am in the concourse.

What lies at the core of the liberals' thought process is the notion that, aside from knowing what is best for poor people, they consider themselves more open minded and smarter than anyone else. Day in and day out they endeavor to prove this to anyone willing to listen who can vote, all the while putting our country at risk by imposing their self-aggrandizing, "Kumbaya" world view on us. When they test it on other countries, they call it foreign policy.

Sadly, our government, founded on liberty and tasked with "providing for the common defense," is being slowly taken down by deluded notions of political correctness while bestowing rights on our sworn enemies. It sacrifices common sense - and our safety - in doing so.

Ron Hart is a southern libertarian columnist. Contact him at RevRon10@aol.com.

by Eric Dondero

Libertarian groups such as the Libertarian Party, Americans for Limited Government, Sam Adams Alliance, and various statewide taxpayer groups have had to deal with enormous legal challenges and fees over the years for their petition gathering efforts. Allegations of signature fraud and illegal gathering methods have been lobbed at these groups. Naturally, the challenges have come from mostly Democrat and Democrat-allied groups.

That makes the following story especially sweet.

It's seems a Democrat State Rep. from the Dallas area, used some "creative" methods for signature gathering in order to qualify for the ballot. Texas law allows major party candidates to qualify by peition signatures - approx. 600 - or by paying a filing fee. Filing closed on Jan. 6.

Ironically, the news comes from a liberal-leaning alternative publication in the Dallas area. The Rep. has a Democrat primary opponent. And its easy to speculate that perhaps that's where the news originated.

From The Dallas Observer:

Good grief: Buzz just loves shenanigans, so it's no wonder we found ourselves roped in by claims from Eric Johnson's campaign that some of the petitions attached to state Representative Terri Hodge's ballot application didn't pass the smell test. It appeared as though Hodge, who submitted 610 signatures from registered voters (500 are required) just prior to Monday's filing deadline in lieu of paying the $750 filing fee, might have been circulating petitions with Dallas County Clerk Gary Fitzsimmons' name on them, nabbing the signatures, whiting out his name and then replacing it with hers.

"I was able to hold the petition up to the light, and by looking through it, Gary Fitzsimmons was typed under the whiteout," said Ben Setnick, one of Johnson's two campaign operatives dispatched to Dallas County Democratic Party headquarters.

No Republican or Libertarian filed for this south Dallas seat. However, Texas law does have a provision for write-in candidacies. Which could certainly be an important consideration, particularly for the GOP, if Rep. Hodges somehow manages to prevail over her primary opponent.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on Jan. 6, that Georgia Congressman Nathan Deal has sent a letter to the White House formally requesting a copy of Obama's birth certificate. Deal is the first Congressman to take such a step. Earlier last year, Rep. Bill Posey of Florida introduced legislation requiring future Presidents to produce birth certificates as proof of eligibility. Deal and 6 other Republican Congressmen have signed on as co-sponsors.

Deal is currently a candidate for the Republican nomination for Georgia Governor. He is often identified with the Tea Party movement, and is a relatively high scorer on pro-taxpayer and libertarian voting indexes. (He's received 5 awards as a Taxpayer friend from NTU).

Deal told the AJC:

"I have looked at the documentation [birth certificate] that is publicly available and it leaves many things to be desired."

Additionally, AJC columnist Jim Galloway reports:

The White House on Thursday confirmed receipt of a letter from U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal that formally asks Barack Obama to address questions about his place of birth – and thus, whether he is qualified to be president.

The letter arrived Dec. 10. Beyond that, no one is willing to say much.

The Post & Email blog, which was one of the first to report on the story, comments:

Now, what does this mean? This is probably the first time in 233 years of American history that a sitting member of the House of Representatives has officially challenged the legitimacy of a sitting president….one full year into his term.

This forever changes the public discourse.

From Eric Dondero:

Republican State Senator and nominee for US Senate in the special election to replace Ted Kennedy, Jan. 19, appeared on Fox's Hannity show last night. Among the topics discussed Health Care reform. Sen. Brown vowed to be the 41st vote against the measure when it comes up for final passage, thus blocking the bill.

"I would actually stop it, and ask them to go back to the drawing board..."

During his comments he brought up an issue that has been highlighted here at Libertarian Republican in the last couple days - Military TriCare. Said Brown (approx. 2 minutes in):

"It's not good for Massachusetts. We already have 98% of our people insured. We're going to cut a half a trillion from Medicare, and then cut TriCare for Military people, and then have higher taxation, about a trillion-plus to pay for it..."

Lt. Col. Brown is a 30-year Veteran of the Massachusetts National Guard.

The Boston Herald is reporting that no matter what the outcome of the January 19 special election to fill the Senate seat of the deceased Ted Kennedy, Democrats will still pass the Health Care legislation.

From the Herald:

It looks like the fix is in on national health-care reform - and it all may unfold on Beacon Hill.

At a business forum in Boston today, interim Sen. Paul Kirk (photo behind Kennedy) predicted that Congress would pass a health-care reform bill this month.

“We want to get this resolved before President Obama’s State of the Union address in early to mid-February,” Kirk told reporters at a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce breakfast.

The longtime aide and confidant of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, who was handpicked by Gov. Deval Patrick after a controversial legal change to hold Kennedy’s seat, vowed to vote for the bill even if Republican state Sen. Scott Brown, who opposes the health-care reform legislation, prevails in a Jan. 19 special election.

This smacks against precedent in the Bay State. In 2007, Rep. Nick Tsongas was sworn in two days after she had been elected in a special election for the seat of Rep. Martin Meehan. She was hurriedly sworn in to beat the threat of a Presidential veto by George Bush, ironically over expansion of the Children's State Health Insurance plan.

The delay is being pushed by both the Democrat-controlled Secretary of State's office, and from the office of Acting Senator Paul Kirk. Continuing:

Today, a spokesman for Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin... said certification of the Jan. 19 election by the Governor’s Council would take a while.

Another source told the Herald that Galvin’s office has said the election won’t be certified until Feb. 20 - well after the president’s address.

Since the U.S. Senate doesn’t meet again in formal session until Jan. 20, Bay State voters will have made their decision before a vote on health-care reform could be held. But Kirk and Galvin’s office said today a victorious Brown would be left in limbo.

The possibility of Democrat Martha Coakley being sworn in immediately if she prevails in the election, has been left open.

Transportation Security worker called a "model employee" by TSA Union Official

From Eric Dondero:

His name is Ruben Hernandez. No other information has been released yet on him, except that he lives in Newark. An unofficial representative from the Union seeking to represent TSA employees commented that he's been a "model employee."

Hernandez has been identified as the TSA Agent at Newark International Airport who left his post, and allowed an immigrant Chinese man to breach security. The incident led to a 6 hour lock-down of the busy airport during the Holiday Season. Flights were delayed. Passengers were stranded.

One report found that Hernandez was "talking on his cell phone," when the breach occured. Another media source described Hernandez as "chatting" with some ladies while the Chinese man lifted up the security rope and "hotfooted it" into the secure area.

From the NY Post:

The stunning breach was missed by TSA guard Ruben Hernandez, who left his post, but was called a "model employee" by a union official.

The NY Daily News reports:

The air-headed TSA guard who left his post was identified as Ruben Hernandez. He reportedly is on administrative leave and faces possible disciplinary action.

Grad Student Chinese Immigrant to US identified as Culprit

The Post and other news sources are also reporting this morning on the Chinese man who caused the altercation:

Cops have caught the notorious kissing bandit who caused a major security scare at Newark Airport Sunday when he strolled through a checkpoint the wrong way to give his girlfriend a smooch goodbye, sources said.

Haisong Jiang, a 28-year-old Rutgers bio-medical research grad student, brought the busy airport to a standstill and sparked a weeklong manhunt, sources said.

Turns out he's a biology molecular "grad student," at Rugers University. He's been in the US for 5 years. His roomate said, he didn't "think it was such a big deal," so he purposely avoided turning himself in.

Then this priceless comment:

Hui said Jiang was giving a goodbye kiss to his girlfriend Qianqun, who was visiting him for Christmas break and was heading to LA to work as a statistician.

"We know that he's very excited to have a real woman," Hui said. "His girlfriend is very upset. I think she will be here in two days to face this with him."

Jiang is now facing a $500 fine for "defiant trespess."

Illegal Aliens working for TSA?

Curiously, the TSA has been completely silent on the immigration and/or citizenship status of TSA Employee Hernandez.

TSA has been criticized recently for hiring illegal aliens from Mexico and Central America. And the problem appears to be particularly accute in airports up in the Northeast.

From The Thinker blog:

In the latest of many shameful lapses, the federal agency in charge of securing the nation’s transportation system approved background checks for a dozen illegal immigrants working in sensitive areas of a busy U.S. airport.

The illegal aliens, from Central America and Mexico, worked in operational areas of Stewart International Airport, a 2,400-acre facility located about 60 miles north of New York City. Stewart is a major passenger airport for the state’s mid-Hudson region that also handles large quantities of cargo and serves as a military field.

The illegal aliens all had security badges approved by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the agency created after the 2001 terrorist attacks mainly to protect airlines. The TSA’s national background check failed to detect the fake Social Security numbers and other bogus documents provided by the illegal immigrants to obtain clearance.

Unionized, TSA empoloyees would be better protected from background searches and immigrant status. Republican Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina believes it would be disastrous to allow TSA to Unionize, for precisely this reason. On a recent segment of CNN the Senator commented:

"And many other federal employees, including those who deal with national security like border patrol agents and customs officers, have the right to collectively bargain..." And later added, "We do have 12 million undocumented aliens in our country..."

CNN's longtime crumudgeon commentator one year ago (via Newsbusters):

"I like him a lot. I think he's a bright guy...

...I'm pulling for the guy. I like him. I think he's terrific."

Jack Cafferty today (also from NB), commenting on Obama's decision not to allow C-SPAN cameras to cover the behind closed doors health care deliberations:

"President Obama hasn’t even made a token effort to keep his campaign promises of more openness and transparency in government. It was all just another lie..."

[I hope] "the voters remember some of this crap when the midterm elections roll around later this year."

Ironically, Cafferty ranted against the "decline of civil discourse in this country," back in September when Congressman Joe Wilson shouted out "You lie," to Obama during a Presidential address in the House chambers, on health care.

Wrote Cafferty in a Cafferty File column, Sept. 10:

A Republican congressman from South Carolina made a complete fool of himself during a presidential address to a joint session of Congress last night, and in the process confirmed a lot of what the American public can't stand about politicians...this was pretty low - even with our reduced expectations for our lawmakers.

Though, Cafferty did concede that Wilson might have had a point on coverage for illegal aliens.

Battle for Number Two Spot pits Liberty forces vs. Liberty foes

From Eric Dondero:

We reported on Tuesday, that it appeared that the Libertarian Party may actually have more candidates on the ballot for state legislature in Texas than the State's Number Two Party, the Democrats. We even asked, could the Libertarian Party replace the Democrats as the Number Two Party in the Nation's Number Two Biggest State?

Results for legislature are still not in. But there's a pretty good indication that the LP is beating the Dems on two other highly important fronts: Congress and Statewide offices.

Just breaking late last night from Texas's Number One political blog (which is stridently Pro-Democrat), Burnt Orange:

Texas has always been a strong state for the Libertarian Party and this year they are proving that there is no stopping their growth in the Lone Star State, filing a record breaking 193 candidates for office. While the Libertarians do not have primaries (they have nominating conventions), they have filed candidates for every single statewide office and every single congressional district. That's something the Democratic Party has failed to accomplish for multiple cycles now, including this year where it skipped the Comptrollers office, a couple statewide judicial seats, and over a half dozen congressional seats.

Another Democrat blog, Booman Tribune wimpered:

The filing date closed for federal offices in Texas yesterday and the Democrats left seven Republican-held house seats uncontested. That is no good... We should not be seeing things like this.

Of course, Republicans may not rejoice at the prospect of all these 3rd party candidates taking away potential votes from the GOP. However, the other consideration is the momentum lost by the Democrats knowing that they're starting to show signs of sinking below a minor party in Texas.

Obama's Hard Left Agenda in DC pushes them over

From Eric Dondero:

Cherokee County is located deep in the heart of East Texas. It is a County full of a rich history, from the original Texas pioneers to America's Civil War. The population is roughly 46,000. The County seat is Jacksonville, but also includes the towns of Rusk and Gallatin, and is considered suburban Tyler.

The County is part of a growing trend of rural southern Democrats who have ties to that Party dating back to the Civil War, bolting to the Republican Party.

From the Jacksonville Daily Progress, Jan. 6:

Five Cherokee County politicians have changed parties in the last 60 days.

And all five are incumbents seeking to once again win their government positions.

From the local state representative to county-level seats, they have left behind the Obama-led Democrats and joined the Republican side of the aisle.

“It’s never happened in Cherokee County,” said Cherokee County Republican Chair Josie Schoolcraft. She said in her 12 years of involvement in county politics, there has never been such a high number of political party defectors.

“I attribute it to what’s going on in Washington, D.C.,” Schoolcraft said of the exodus of Dems to the GOP. “East Texas has always been conservative. From what they (the people who switched parties) tell me, the Democratic Party went off and left them because of their liberal agenda. The Democratic Party isn’t a conservative party at all anymore.”

Texas Democrats... "a series of setbacks..."

Some of the Switchers cited Property Rights, Gun Control, Death Penalty and Illegal Immigration as some of the reasons for their Switch.

One of the Switchers, Precinct 1 Justice of the Peace Brenda Dominy, specifically mentioned Obama as the cause of her leaving the Democrats.

She sais President Barack Obama's leadership does cause her concern, also.

“I don’t agree with a lot of the Democrats’ views and takes on things,” she said. “I might be more conservative than I thought, but the agenda the Democrats have, I find I’m not in agreement with..." she said.

Also switching a County Commissioner, and the County Surveyor.

Concludes assistant editor Lauren LaFleur:

Although Texas Democrats have been trying to work their way back into statewide political contention for a decade (Republicans have held all statewide offices since 1999 and both chambers of the Legislature since 2003), the party has suffered a series of setbacks to their strong position on the national front.

Allen West, Frank Guinta and Ryan Frazier, Tea Party Patriots likely heading to Congress

From Eric Dondero:

The rabidly Pro-Democrat news site FiredogLake by Jane Hamscher, has an unusually blunt analysis of most likely Dem losses for 2010, resulting from votes for ObamaCare. The most vulnerable Democrat identified by FiredogLake - Rep. Vic Snyder, in Arkansas 2nd District. Two Ohio seats are then identified as most likely to go Republican - Cincy area 01 with GOPer Steve Chabot, and OH 15 with Steve Shivers running on the GOP ticket. Then coming in at Number 4 is a longtime favorite of libertarian Republicans, Allen West who lost 55 to 45% in 2008.

Writes FDL:

4.FL-22 Allen West ran against Klein last time and lost decisively, but he has now turned into a good fundraiser with a national profile after this video. His ability to get himself national TV attention on Fox means he’ll probably be able to reach the district’s high percentage of seniors this time around. SCORE: 7

Next libertarian-leaner coming in at #9 is the very outspoken and sometimes even quirky Tea Party Patriot, Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta of the Live Free or Die State:

9.NH-01 Carol Shea-Porter vowed to vote against any bill that does not have a public option, so she looks to piss off both liberals AND conservatives with a “yes” vote. Frank Guinta has raised $236,164 against her, which is pretty prodigious. SCORE: 6

Finally, there's Aurora City Councilman and Tea Party Patriot Ryan Frasier. Note - Frasier was originally in the race for the US Senate seat but switched to Congress. Continuing:

19.CO-07: Perlmutter is facing libertarian Ryan Frasier, who has raised $213,857. Same top-of-ticket problem as Salazar. WILD CARD

Hamscher also lists another seat in Colorado, two in Arizona, two in California, another one in Florida, Virginia, Georgia and Texas as possible pick-ups for the GOP.

Breaking News...

Universal Health Care for civilians, to be partially funded on the backs of the US Military?

From Eric Dondero:

Active duty and Retired Military Veterans, are about to see a significant jump in their monthly premium payments for TriCare. This is the insurance company fro which Military personnel receive health care coverage.

One popular Military site has already given a hint as to what is to come.

From Military.com, , week of Jan. 4:

The monthly premium for an active duty family member single plan will increase from $12.12 to $12.69 and the monthly family plan premium will increase from $30.29 to $31.72. The National Guard and Reserve monthly sponsor premium will increase from $12.12 to $12.69. The monthly single premium rate for an Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) sponsor plan and the separate IRR single family member plan will increase from $30.29 to $31.72.

Our partners at RightStuff, who originally broke this story, point out that Retired Military are already starting to question whether this is being done to help pay for ObamaCare.

Writes Denise Clark this morning:

One definitely has to ask about the timing of all of this. Legitimate questions have been raised about how Obamacare is going to be paid for, and it appears that this is going to be the start.

If ANYONE deserves to have free, outstanding healthcare for life, it is our veterans who served and continue to serve honorably. Instead, they are being hit to help give healthcare to illegals and fund abortions... [not too mention] adds up to millions of dollars going to pay for Medicaid increases in Nebraska.

In addition, TriCare payments to providers are directly linked to MediCare. Senator McCain recently pointed out on the Senate floor that expected cuts in provider reimbursements will lead to a severe shortage of physician care givers accepting TriCare patients. (See YouTube video of Sen. McCain speech.)

Clark also reports on how the COLA for Military Personnel is set to drop this year, adding additional struggles for Military families.

We always sensed that Obama, Pelosi, Reid, and their ilk always had some axe to grind with our military, and now it appears that they're ready to make our brave soldiers the first casualty in their fight for socialized medicine.

For the full story and explanation of the coming cut-backs visit RightStuff.

Note - US Navy Veteran, 1981-85 (hon.), USS Kittyhawk CV-63 & USS Luce DDG-38. Member both the American Legion & Veterans of Foreign Wars.