political roundup

Super Boots

Just how many jobs has the "stimulus" created?  Today's Wall Street Joural points to an interesting claim by the Obama administration...

"...how many Americans does it take to make nine pairs of work boots? According to the White House's recovery.gov site, an $890 shoe order for the Army Corps of Engineers, courtesy of the stimulus package, created nine new jobs at Moore's Shoes & Services in Campbellsville, Kentucky. ..."

Yep.  Super Boots.  Able to create multiple jobs in a single laceup.

Guess who's not arresting illegal aliens...

Well, I'll give you three guesses, and the last two don't count.

(Via the WashTimes) It seems that arrests, indictments and/or convictions of illegal immigrants have fallen by over 50% since this time last year.  And we all know what happened about a year ago.

GOP Representative Lamar Smith points out that lax enforcement on illegal alien workers means less jobs for Americans - in a time when (ahem) jobs are getting harder to come by. 

CNN forced to admit the truth  read more »

Interesting tid-bits in the wake of Tuesday's election...

Election already having consequences for Obamacare?

Maybe.  The Hill reports that Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) on Wednesday indicated that he was opposed to the House version of Obamacare: "I oppose the creation of a new government-run public option and continue to have serious concerns about its unintended consequences for Missourians who have private insurance plans they like. I remain concerned about the bill's impact on rural hospitals and doctors."   The dominoes may be starting to fall.

Super stimulus...saves more jobs than actually exist!

Beware all ye who doubt the power of the super stimulus.  The Associated Press documents the proof. 

President Barack Obama's economic recovery program saved 935 jobs at the Southwest Georgia Community Action Council, an impressive success story for the stimulus plan. Trouble is, only 508 people work there.  read more »

Spending, schmending...

The Wall Street Journal has a great op-ed out today looking at government spending, as in how high it already is, and how much more the DC crowd wants to pile on top of it.

"The White House disclosed the other day that the fiscal 2009 budget deficit clocked in at $1.4 trillion, amid the usual promises to do something about it. Yet even as budget director Peter Orszag was speaking, House Democrats were moving on a dozen spending bills for fiscal 2010 that total 12.1% in more domestic discretionary increases. "

Yep, you read that right.  12.1%  And how much of that do you think is "one time only" spending, instead of "systemic"?  (hint: none)

They point out that from 2001-2008, the GOP raised spending at about double the rate of inflation...while the current crop of Democrats are besting inflation by six to one.

Quote of the Week:

The big spending ways of Congressional Democrats brings us to this quote of the week from New York's Church Schumer on Meet the Press.

He stated that:  "Barack Obama and we Democrats-this is counterintuitive but true-are really trying to get a handle on balancing the budget and we're making real efforts to do it."

No shame.

Poll: 33% Say U.S. Is Heading In The Right Direction (67% really paying attention...)  read more »