Richly
Hillary Rodham Clinton and her husband made at least $30 million over the last 16 months, mainly from giving paid speeches to corporations, banks and other organizations, according to financial disclosure forms filed with federal elections officials on Friday. (New York Times, 5/16/2015)
This will pose absolutely no problem for Hillary Clinton. Rich Democrats are just fine. John Kerry can run for president and the Liberal Media will never discuss his wealth - not even the fact that he married into it. But Mitt Romney's wealth was THE story of the last election. By the way, we note that Romney's former employer, Bain Capital, hired former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick, President Obama's bestest buddy. Now why didn't we hear more about that?
Bagged
Across the country, law enforcement agencies long accustomed to seizures of bagged, smokable marijuana are now wrestling with a surge in marijuana-infused snacks and confections transported illegally across state lines for resale.
Pot edibles, as they are called, can be much easier to smuggle than marijuana buds: They may resemble candy or home-baked goodies, and often have no telltale smell. And few police officers are trained to think of gummy bears, mints or neon-colored drinks as potential dope.
Some experts worry that smuggled pot edibles will appeal to many consumers, particularly adolescents, who are ill prepared for the deceptively slow high. Impatient novices can easily eat too much too fast, suffering anxiety attacks and symptoms resembling psychosis. Already, young children have eaten laced sweets left within reach. (New York Times, 5/17/2015)
Coming soon to Vermont!
Progressives here are now thinking to themselves: just think of the revenue we can raise via taxes on edible marijuana!
Person of the Day
Peggy Fahey, a lifelong Bostonian who was sipping coffee on a park bench in South Boston early Saturday, said she believed that Mr. Tsarnaev had been treated too gently since his arrest and that death was what he irrefutably deserved.
“Oh, please, let him die. Enough is enough,” said Ms. Fahey, 78, her blue eyes blazing. “Why send him to a fancy prison out there in Colorado and let him be coddled again and let him be interviewed by Diane Sawyer — you know what I mean? Just be done with it.” (New York Times, 5/17/2015)
Peggy Fahey is our Person of the Day. She receives a free one year subscription to RedStateVT!
Great Moments in Liberal Journalism
In 2007, in public, he ( George Stephanopoulos) asked Clinton if he might someday be remembered as “a philanthropist who happened to be president. You OK with that?”
Well, I suppose it’s better than being remembered as an accused rapist who happened to be president. (Howie Carr, Bostonherald.com, 517/2015)
Heartfelt thanks to the wonderful Howie Carr for reminding us of this moment of pure obsequiousness from ABC's unbiased and impartial newsman.
Virtuous
If there was a virtue in Mr. Obama’s speech, it’s that we can now retire the lectures on “responsible governing.” (Wall Street Journal, 1/21/2015)
Score!
Unification
But climate is a continuous process of incremental change. A unified theory of media idiocy on climate is beyond the scope of this column, but even someone with the apparently parched intellect of an AP editor should be able to look at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration charts and notice that cool years are grouped with cool years, warm years with warm years, and in-between years with in-between years. (Holman W. Jenkins, Jr., Wall Street Journal, 1/20/2015)
Did you read that 2014 was the warmest year in the history of the solar system and it is all the fault of Republicans who will not let us stop using fossil fuels? You probably did if you were breathing a couple of days ago. What you probably did not read were the science-based rebuttals. Here is one, you climate change-denier, you!
Zero
The cost of community college isn’t being lowered to zero, the costs will simply be shifted elsewhere. The AP estimates it would cost “an estimated $60 billion over 10 years to the treasury.” Furthermore, the plan would require states to contribute a quarter of tuition, and not all students would qualify. (Breitbart.com, 1/21/2015)
Finally, someone besides RedStateVT calls out President Clueless on the "free" concept. Nothing is free! Someone always pays. If you are a taxpayer then guess what? You pay for "Free!"
Unreal
MITCHELL: I think that on foreign policy, his projection of success against terrorism and against ISIS, in particular, as I said, is not close to reality. They have not come up with a strategy, and they’ve built a global coalition, but again, he’s talked about Ukraine, he’s talked about Putin being isolated. Yes, Putin is isolated economically and the falling oil prices have hammered his economy. But at the same time, there’s renewed fighting in Donetsk, and we haven’t figured out Ukraine, we haven’t figured out how the NATO alliance can push back. Sanctions have not really worked, and Ukraine is going to need more weaponry, and they have not reached that point. So you’re right, Chris, it doesn’t match the reality. (Hotair.com, 1/21/2015)
Andrea Mitchell and Chris Matthews from MSNBC (the Obama administration's in-house television network) practice a random act of journalism....
Messed Up
So here was Gov. Charlie Baker yesterday, confronting a totally predictable (except by the previous governor) budget deficit of $765 million, and he still couldn’t bring himself to mention who created the mess the Commonwealth now finds itself in. (Howiecarrshow.com, 1/21/2015)
The budget deficit in Vermont (a state with less than one million people) approaches $100 million. Now what do the governments of Vermont and Massachusetts have in common?
Yes, both governors were males and both had the letter "P" in their names.
Think harder, reader!
Of course, both states were run by Democrats! Deval Patrick and Peter Shumlin.
Democrats should not be entrusted with managing the finances of an ice cream truck.
Fueled
Months of investigation by The New York Times, centered on extensive interviews with Libyans in Benghazi who had direct knowledge of the attack there and its context, turned up no evidence that Al Qaeda or other international terrorist groups had any role in the assault. The attack was led, instead, by fighters who had benefited directly from NATO’s extensive air power and logistics support during the uprising against Colonel Qaddafi. And contrary to claims by some members of Congress, it was fueled in large part by anger at an American-made video denigrating Islam. (New York Times, 1/15/2015)
We knew that The New York Times was heavily invested in Hillary Clinton for president. We just did not realize how much. The Times conducts an "investigation" and concludes that Hillary's hands are clean on Benghazi. Incredibly, absent any other excuse they revert to "the video made them do it."
A video that no one saw.
Of course, the Times must neutralize any potential threat to Hill. Henceforth, any time a Republican challenger brings up Benghazi, the Times will be able to refer to their own article as "proof" and accuse the Republican of deceit. This is how journalism works in a Liberal world.
Abstract Thinking
In the abstract, President Obama’s proposal for making community college tuition-free seems a reasonable response to a troublesome fact: The American work force is less educated than it needs to be at a time when most jobs in the new economy will require some college education. But for such an idea to work, states and localities that have been starving community colleges for decades will need to begin holding them to higher standards and commit to sustained financing instead of using the new federal money to dodge their own financial obligations....the preliminary plans released last week call for an estimated $60 billion in new spending over 10 years to help cover tuition and fees for full-time and half-time students who maintain a 2.5 grade point average — about a C-plus — and who make consistent progress toward completion. (New York Times editorial, 1/15/2015)
Catch the logic here! Editors at The Times demand that states need to hold community colleges to higher standards...and give them more money. Students, of course, will not be held to higher standards. A C+ will be just fine! This is accountability in a Liberal world.
Our Favorite Quotes
Two weeks ago, the economist Thomas Sowell posed a question that I can’t get out of my mind: “Has anyone asked the question, ‘How could so many people across the country spend so much time at night marching, rioting and looting, if they had to get up and go to work the next morning?’ ” (quoted by Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 1/16/2015)
We're now in a situation where the Belgians are carrying out preemptive raids against ISIS terrorists. The Belgium police are now taking a harder line than the White House. (former U.N. ambassador John Bolton, quoted on Foxnews.com, 1/16/2015)
Yeah, liberals hate bullying all right, but they’re not opposed to using it. When they casually throw out words like ‘bigot’ and ‘racist,’ it does cow people into avoiding this debate. And if you’re doing that, you don’t get to wear the ‘Je Suis Charlie’ button, the button you should wear says, ‘Je Suis Part of the Problem.’ (Bill Maher quoted on Breitbart.com, 1/17/2015)
Hat tip to Bill Maher, someone we have been highly critical of in the past...and will be again in the future. For now, however, we will note that he has been incredibly brave in exposing both Liberal hypocrisy on the issue of free speech and on calling out Muslims on the intolerance and violence that plague their religion.
Fruitless
Wall Street may be growing anxious about the negative impact of falling oil prices on energy producers, but the steep declines of recent weeks are delivering substantial benefits to American working-class families and retirees who have largely missed out on the fruits of the five-and-a-half-year economic recovery.
Just last week, the federal Energy Information Administration estimated that the typical American household would save $750 because of lower gasoline prices this year, $200 more than government experts predicted a month ago. People who depend on home heating oil and propane to warm their homes, as millions do in the Northeast and Midwest, should enjoy an additional savings of about $750 this winter. (New York Times, 1/18/2015)
Given lower energy prices Liberals will seek to raise taxes on oil and gas. That is basic economics in a Liberal world.
Drop Outs
When Colorado legalized marijuana two years ago, nobody was quite ready for the problem of exploding houses.
But that is exactly what firefighters, courts and lawmakers across the state are confronting these days: amateur marijuana alchemists who are turning their kitchens and basements into “Breaking Bad”-style laboratories, using flammable chemicals to extract potent drops of a marijuana concentrate commonly called hash oil, and sometimes accidentally blowing up their homes and lighting themselves on fire in the process. (New York Times, 1/18/2015)
Coming soon to Vermont when Governor Shumlin realizes his dream of legal dope. This is logic in a Liberal world.
Beans
Last week, in the side room of Java Joe’s coffee shop here, the liberal group MoveOn.org took the first step to propel Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, on a similar path, holding a rally to encourage her to get into the 2016 race. (New York Times, 12/20/2014)
When Chris Christie announces for president we will get a thousand word article from the New York Times detailing the Bridgegate "scandal", Christie's brusque "unpresidential" demeanor and a thousand other sins. Meanwhile, if you want to learn about any of Lizzie Warren's baggage you will have to read Howie Carr's columns. Just as a reminder, Warren is a multi-millionaire who decries the 1%; who lied about being native American in order to get a teaching position at Harvard; and, who claimed to be the "intellectual" godmother of the Occupy movement.
Suggestion
If, as all signals suggest, Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor and brother and son of presidents, is about to get in, the race quickly intensifies. (New York Times, 12/21/2014)
Question: How long until the New York Times runs an article citing unnamed sources talking about an alleged Jeb Bush extra-marital affair?
Answer: Six months, tops.
Irrespective
Moreover, when two of the six people who “allegedly” attacked two cops on the Brooklyn Bridge a week ago Saturday night turn out to be, respectively, a CUNY professor and an organizer for a union that placed five one-time senior union leaders in top de Blasio administration posts, it’s clear that New York isn’t dealing with bearded Bolsheviks living in caves. (Bob McManus, New York Post, 12/21/2014)
Good to know....
Let the Heeling Begin
Yet on the heels of the police deaths, the long-simmering tensions between Mr. de Blasio and the department he has pledged to reshape have reached an extraordinary nadir. Officers, led by union leaders, turned their backs on the mayor and Commissioner William J. Bratton on Saturday night as the two walked through a hospital to address the public about the deaths.
...
Even when trying to defend officers, the mayor has, at times, been criticized by them. After reports of an attack on two police lieutenants during protests on the Brooklyn Bridge on Dec. 13, union leaders lamented that the mayor’s statement condemning the episode included the qualifier that police were “allegedly assaulted.”(New York Times, 12/22/2014)
How dishonest is the New York Times? Plenty! Does anyone think for a nanosecond that police officers were turning their backs on Police Commissioner Bratton? Of course not. By all accounts he is beloved by fellow officers. The Times purposefully softens the intended rebuke to de Blasio by mentioning Bratton.
Furthermore, the Times never says that the December 13th assault on police officers was captured on video. This turns it from an "alleged assault" to an "actual assault." Liberals only consult the video when it serves their purpose.
And finally, a random thought..... where is the Liberal outrage over gun control when two cops are shot?
Speaks for Itself
In a statement, Goddard College Interim President Bob Kenny said the college holds 20 commencement ceremonies annually to provide personalized graduation ceremonies in each degree program.
"As a reflection of Goddard’s individualized and transformational educational model, our commencements are intimate affairs where each student serves as her or his own valedictorian, and each class chooses its own speaker," Kenny said in a statement. "Choosing Mumia as their commencement speaker, to me, shows how this newest group of Goddard graduates expresses their freedom to engage and think radically and critically in a world that often sets up barriers to do just that." (foxnews.com, 10/1/2014)
This is what happens when Liberals are unconstrained.
Shop Til Ya Drop
President Obama said healthcare costs are rising for Indiana steel workers because employers are not “shopping” correctly for insurance plans during an event at Millennium Steel Service in Princeton, Ind., on Friday. (freebeacon.com, 10/3/2014)
Well RedStateVT's must REALLY be shopping incorrectly. Our premiums tripled!
Bananas
By the weekend, Typhoid Barry will be blaming the epidemic on YouTube videos, like he did with Benghazi. Or he’ll claim it’s not a disease, it’s “workplace violence.”
Other African countries have closed their airports to flights from Ebolaland. But not the U.S. – we are now out-banana-republicing the banana republics. Obama has gotten his wish. The nation is fundamentally transformed, and we don’t even have the fiasco of amnesty yet. (Howiecarr.com, 10/5/2014)
Every once in a while we think that Howie Carr spends too much time beating the drum on illegal aliens. Then we realize...he is right and we are wrong.
Remains of the Day
Adolescents also try to truncate arguments by saying that nothing remains of any arguments against their arguments. Regarding the ACA, Obama said the debate is “settled” and “over.” Progressives also say the debate about catastrophic consequences of man-made climate change is “over,” so everyone should pipe down. And they say the debates about the efficacy of universal preschool, and the cost-benefit balance of a minimum-wage increase, are over. Declaring an argument over is so much more restful than engaging with evidence. (George Will, Nationalreviewonline.com, 4/23/2014)
Apologies for recycling this old point from Will. On second thought, no apology necessary!
The Purge
Hours after President François Hollande purged leftist members of his government last month for opposing his economic policies, Manuel Valls, France’s combative prime minister, climbed a stage before hundreds of cheering French executives and called for a new relationship with business to lift France from its malaise.
He admonished the left wing of the French Socialist Party to stop posturing against capitalism, then launched into a lengthy pro-business discourse that drew a standing ovation. “France needs you,” he told the bosses at the annual summer conference of the Medef, France’s employers’ union. “And I love business!” (New York Times, 9/16/2014)
No 'Occupy Le Wall Street' in France. The French suddenly love capitalism. And remember, Liberals believe that we need to emulate the French in every way!
Zoned Out
Even as momentum builds against the austerity policies that Germany has pushed on the eurozone, the question remains whether Europe can afford the welfare systems that have defined the left for generations and that critics blame for ushering in the debt crisis in the first place. But if the left now backs away from its ideological touchstones, then what does it stand for? (New York Times, 9/16/2014)
What does the Left stand for, if not building bigger and bigger social welfare programs?
Well, nothing , really. It is their raison d'etre.
The Mix
Mr. Obama, seeking to allay fears of another Iraq war, has promised that American ground troops will not be involved in fighting the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. In a sign of the administration’s mixed message, the president pointedly did not call it a war, while his advisers later did. (New York Times, 9/17/2014)
RedStateVT did not say 'mixed message.' The New York Times said 'mixed message.'
Crying Out Loud
The Democrats’ strategy of making an increase in the minimum wage a midterm election rallying cry has been drowned out by world events. The party continues to talk about it, but it appears that few are listening. (New York Times, 9/17/2014)
We at RedStateVT just cannot get our head around a minimum wage increase. Liberals want companies to pay their workers more...which means they will need to raise their prices...which means everyone will pay more for the goods and services that these companies provide. So really, it is just another form of higher taxation.
Actually that does make sense because there is really nothing that Liberals like more than higher taxes. Got it now.
Quote of the Day
ObamaCare has become his Ukraine. (Holman W. Jenkins, Jr., Wall Street Journal, 9/17/2014)
Also Obama's Ukraine?
Ukraine.
Truthfully
Whatever happened to Cindy Sheehan? Where is Code Pink? I haven’t seen an “EndLESS War” bumper sticker in years, since 2009 to be exact.
The anti-war movement is MIA as this war, er counterterrorism operation, begins. Back when Bush was waging war, dissent was the highest form of patriotism. Now it’s “racism.” If you speak truth to power in the Obama era, they call it hate speech. The IRS will audit you. (Howiecarrshow.com, 9/16/2014)
Do you listen to Howie Carr's radio program? You should!
Overtly
After Mr. Tsarnaev’s visit to Dagestan and Chechnya, signs of alienation emerged. One month after he returned to the United States, a YouTube page that appeared to belong to him was created and featured jihadist videos.
Posting such videos alone, without overt threats of violence, should not necessarily sound alarms, some counterterrorism specialists said Monday. (NYT, 4/22/2013)
Because lots of ordinary folks post jihadist videos?
Maybe some "retraining" of our counterterrorism specialists is in order.
Issues
Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont and the chairman of the committee, took issue with conservative commentators and Republican lawmakers who suggested that any debate about an immigration overhaul should take into account that the two suspects in the Boston bombing emigrated to the United States from Kyrgyzstan.
“Last week, opponents of comprehensive immigration reform began to exploit the Boston Marathon bombing,” Mr. Leahy said. “Let no one be so cruel as to try to use the heinous acts of these two young men last week to derail the dreams and futures of millions of hard-working people.” (NYT,4/22/2013)
"Last week, proponents of gun control began to exploit the Newtown massacre. Let no one be so cruel as to try to use the heinous act of one young man last week to impugn the reputations of millions of law-abiding gun owners."
Oh Happy Day!
The trustee overseeing MF Global Holdings Ltd.'s bankruptcy sued former Chief Executive Jon S. Corzine and two other executives for their role in the brokerage's collapse. (WSJ, 4/23/2013)
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren railed at Ben Bernacke recently about the lack of prosecutions of financial executives. Problem solved! Or was she not thinking about Democrats....
Bumper Crop
Howie Carr noted today that the car hijacked by the Boston bombers had a "COEXIST" bumper sticker. That's too funny!
