Obama's Pork Pie In The Sky Package

Obama's $789 billion pork and pie in the sky dream rushed through Congress is being sold as an 'economic stimulus' when it is a spending bill which will saddle US taxpayers with massive debt for years to come. As Democrats embark on a huge spending spree for their pet projects, the measures have been slammed as a monumental waste of public cash. Now where have we heard that before? 

The package has been wrapped up in pretty pink ribbon and sold to the American people like soap powder, as the new president pushed through the spending spree with evangelical zeal. 

But disturbingly, there's no bi-partisan support, with Republicans and a handful of Democrats voting against it. As usual the devil is in the detail. 

The 1,071 page, 8-inch-thick stimulus/spending Bill has a welcome $281 billion in tax cuts but that's peanuts. More than a half-trillion dollars is earmarked for government spending on infrastructure, health care bureaucracy and state governments. 

At the heart is whether these measures will dig the US out of deep recession, create jobs and expand the economy. Some think it's garbage.

Borrowing from Winston Churchill, one Republican remarked: "Never have so few spent so much so quickly to do so little."

As the package did its rounds, the wording of the spinners on jobs carefully changed. Now it's 3.5 million jobs "that we look forward to saving or creating." 

The entire mess will eventually cost not $789 billion but $3.27 trillion when $744 billion in debt service and $2.5 trillion in spending over the next 10 years is included. And that will cost every US family almost $10,000 in added debt. 

The monster is full of pork-barrel politics.

$2 billion to Obama's favourite "community" group ACORN, that's accused of voter registration fraud, $30 million to Nancy Pelosi's pet project to restore wetlands and save the endangered salt marsh harvest mouse, another $1 billion for a Prevention and Wellness Fund.

Tens of billions will be spent on high-speed rail lines but only in key politically sensitive areas. And vote-catching broadband for everyone in rural areas

Take away the pork and the dollars left over for small-business tax relief amount to only "about one-third of 1% of the total bill," a mere $3 billion out of a $789 billion package. There are no tax cuts to boost investment.

The bulk of the spending comes not right away when the economy needs a boost, but in the dim and distant future. 

Japan, spent $6.3 trillion on infrastructure in the 1990s and racked up the biggest debt in the developed world. Yet all that spending failed to pull Japan out of its slump.

Sure as eggs is eggs, Obama will have to return to the trough, demanding more taxpayer cash. 

But the Obama administration is betting the relative small amount combining tax cuts with spending on unemployment assistance, social security and the Medicaid health program will stop the economy's spiralling decline. Sure that makes people feel better, but it won't boost the economy. 

Schools would receive $70 billion to prevent cutbacks and repair crumbling schools. There's about $50 billion for energy efficiency programs and renewable energy. It's all starting to sound eerily familiar. 

Many have already pointed out a whole raft of of questionable spending, including a massive Federal health care computer system - modelled on our own disastrous £12.7 billion NHS computer shambles - only bigger. 

Speaking for the first time since his presidential defeat, Republican John McCain said: "This measure contains much that is not stimulative and is nothing short—nothing short—of generational theft since it burdens future generations with so much debt."

Why should anyone care about a reckless spending spree across the Pond which will plunge the nation deeper in debt? Because that's exactly what Brown and his hapless chancellor are planning over here, as they face up to disaster in the June elections. 

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Obama Citizenship Lawsuits Sweep US

A wave of state lawsuits challenging Obama's claims to US citizenship are sweeping across the United States, as the campaign enters its final days. The surprise move comes after Obama and the Democratic Party refused to give any evidence to a Federal court, following legal action challenging Obama's citizenship and eligibility to run for president.

Lawsuits have been filed in nine states at the time of writing – Hawaii, Washington, California, Florida, Georgia. Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut and Ohio. Could this be McCain's 'October Surprise'?

All the lawsuits are: "Seeking to Require Barack Obama to Provide Certification of Birth in U.S. before the Presidential election Or Be Removed as Presidential Candidate on State Ballots."

The lawsuits are similar to the action brought by Democrat lawyer, Philip Berg, reported by the Orange Party in August, which has failed to force Obama to produce official documentary evidence in court. 

Now lawyers and Berg on his website argue because Obama has not responded to the lawsuit with evidence to the contrary, that legally means the allegations are true.

Obama's claim to US citizenship may have been blown out of the water with a radio revelation that his own grandmother said she was there at his birth in Kenya, not Hawaii. 

That revelation came in an interview with Berg by controversial Republican talk-radio host,  Michael Savage, on his The Savage Nation radio show last week.

Obama has always maintained he was born in Hawaii to support his claim for US citizenship. 

Berg first filed the lawsuit in the Federal Court in Philadelphia ahead of the Democratic convention in August, in an effort to force the evidence. But the judge held off until after the official nomination of the Democrat candidate. 

The lawsuit came to a head last week, when, it seems, the judge threw out the Berg case and Obama and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) "failed to respond to the court."  

Obama and the DNC continually delayed providing certifying documentation of Obama’s birth and blocked the move, trying to prevent any further disclosure of evidence, as court records, outlined here disclose. 

The Berg lawsuit threw up some interesting assertions, noted on court documents. These include:

• Obama was born in Mombassa, Kenya in 1961 while his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, was married to Barack Obama Sr., a Kenyan. 
• When his mother, divorced from Obama Sr, moved to Indonesia and married Lolo Soetoro, an Indonesian, Obama was adopted by Soetoro and became an Indonesian citizen. 
  
• While in Indonesia, Obama had his name changed to Barry Soetoro. 
• Obama travelled to Pakistan in 1981 under an Indonesian passport when Pakistan was a no travel zone for Americans. 
  
• Obama had “admitted” to receiving illegal contributions in his campaign for president. 
  
• There is also the allegation that Obama’s Kenyan grandmother claims that Obama was born in Kenya. 
  
• Libya leader, Muammar Gadhafi, has publicly claimed that Obama was born in Kenya and studied in Muslim schools in Indonesia. 
• Obama has also “admitted” to hold citizenship in another country while the US Constitution forbids dual citizenship.
  

The issue of Obama's citizenship was highlighted by the Orange Party, when US bloggers revealed an alleged copy of Obama's birth certificate, posted by his campaign team on the internet showing his birth place as Hawaii, was a fake. 

Later revelations centred on Obama's Indonesian school record which, as Barack Soetoro, showed Indonesian citizenship and a muslim religion.

The current spate of lawsuits, with details of the plaintiffs, is being reported by a number of US websites and bloggers, including African Press International (API) and most notably Yid with lid, Radar and Atlas Shrugs.

The US Constitution (Article II, Section 1) requires presidents to be "natural born citizens" of the US. 

Much of the US Main stream media has refused to investigate the Obama citizenship claims, with only passing references to his 'exotic' background. 

Now Andy McCarthy, of the influential National Review Online (NRO), has raised the whole issue and  concludes: 

"Instead of simply clearing up any questions — which you would think would take about five minutes — Obama's lawyers moved to dismiss the suit and failed to file a timely answer, meaning that, under the applicable rules (according to Berg), Obama is legally deemed to have admitted Berg's allegations that he is constitutionally ineligible to be president. Is it a serious issue, and why does Obama seem to be so squirmy about it?"

The Orange Party has long held the view, now supported by an increasing number of commentators, that doubts over Obama's eligibility should centre on legal and constitutional issues. 

These lawsuits and claims would be dropped and the matter cleared up once and for all, if Obama would simply provide the requested official, original, paper documents, supporting his claim of being born in Hawaii.

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Is McCain Planning An October Surprise?

Much of the media think the US election is a done deal. Politicians and newspapers are falling over themselves to throw their weight behind Obama. This may be the new Independence Day for liberal America but both sides know it's not over until the fat lady sings and McCain could spring an October surprise. 

The misguided line taken by much of the Obama supporting media was encapsulated well in yesterday's Guardian. Obama is riding high in the polls, his campaign fund is breaking all records and to top it all, Colin Powell has final come out in support. Victory is now a forgone conclusion, champagne has been ordered and the party invites sent out. 

Sorry to be a party pooper, but all three gleefully seized on by the media were not seized upon by the Obama campaign team. All three show Obama's weaknesses. His campaign team know this and were quick to play them down. 

A lead of 5.8% as shown by the RCP average does not spell victory with 14 days still to go. Al Gore was down by 5.5 points on October 21. Still down on election day, Gore went on to win the election but lost the presidency. By this polling day, it could well be neck and neck.

Swollen campaign funds is not a sign of support, it just means Obama has been much sharper. While both camps signed up to use public funds for the campaign, Obama tore up the agreement and used private funding sources instead, something Obama has admitted, putting him at a huge financial advantage. 

Obama is already on dodgy ground over his private funding which does not come under the same close scrutiny as using taxpayers cash, except funds which are suspected of coming from outside the US. 

Powell's support was greeted with a strange sort of glee by the media. Powell is a dove not a hawk but, as Bush's poodle, he helped take the US and UK to war on a lie and lied to the UN over Saddam's weapons of mass destruction, based on dodgy photographs, discredited yellowcake and a debunked Iraq dossier. 

His support for Obama was seen by some as a black American brotherhood, something Obama has been very careful to avoid and that may galvanise some support for the Republicans. 

Obama's task between now and November 4 is to keep his cool, drive home the simple and consistent message of change and hope and make these remaining undecided voters comfortable with his background. 

Obama has a few tricks up his sleeve to assuage voters, like the publicity stunt taking time out to "visit his sick grandmother" in Hawaii.

McCain of course will try to do the opposite. Make voters feel uneasy and uncomfortable, while casting himself as a safe and trusted pair of hands. This has been drip-fed, ratcheted up and ratcheted down throughout the campaign.

Until recently, it suited McCain to be the underdog. After all, there are two in this Republican marriage and Palin is the attack dog. 

The line of attack on links with ex-domestic terrorist, William Ayers, and other dodgy characters from Obama's Chicago past, may have run their course. 

There's still some mileage left in his links with black power pastor, Jeremiah Wright, but voters can be turned off by too much negative campaigning so close to the finishing line. 

McCain's October surprise will focus on Obama's inexperience, credibility and background, probably all three rolled into one. Sowing the seeds of that unease with the millions of undecided voters to make them throw a wobbly before they finally have to make up their minds. 

What will McCain use as the hook to hang this on? The McCain team is not giving the game away but it may have something to do with Berg's lawsuit over Obama's citizenship which is currently being blocked by Obama and the DNC.

Many think and hope it's a done deal and this election's outcome is set in stone. Both Obama and McCain know that nothing could be further from the truth. 

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Joe The Plumber Wins Final US Debate

Joe the Plumber won last night's crucial TV debate, as McCain and Obama got up close and personal and McCain tried to remind voters, yet again, that he wasn't George Bush. 

McCain kicked off the final debate, accusing Obama of waging a class war with tax increases that would "spread the wealth around" and led to a constant battle about what's best for Joe the Plumber, that shaped the debate and could decide the result of the election. 

McCain at times looked angry and got under Obama's skin. Obama tried to keep his customary cool, calmly sipping his water but the unflappable mask and charming smile slipped on a number of occasions. 

It was McCain, not Obama, who needed to win last night's debate and launch a political comeback. 

McCain finally had some fire in his belly as he brought up Obama's relationship with former Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers. 

He demanded to know the full extent of Obama's relationship with Ayers, a violent 1960s terrorist and the Democrat's ties with ACORN, a liberal group accused of violating federal law over registering voters. But he allowed Obama to parry the Ayres attack without driving his point home.

McCain then accused Obama of not levelling with the public over his decision to forgo public financing for his campaign in favour of raising his own funds.

"He signed a piece of paper earlier in the campaign pledging to accept federal financing", McCain said, adding that Obama's campaign has spent more money than any since Watergate. Obama let that one go.

Negative TV ads and accusations are all part of the cut and thrust of any US presidential campaign and the jury's out on whether they sway the undeciders or just harden the views of hard-line Obamakins and McCanines.

The economy dominated the headlines before the debate even started and dominated the debate. The election will be decided on who best to trust with that withering economy. 

Struggling to escape being tarred with the same brush as Bush, McCain ran with the line and sound-bite: "Sen. Obama, I am not President Bush. ... You wanted to run against President Bush, you should have run four years ago."

With parallels to the Nixon-Kennedy TV debate in 1960, if you didn't listen to the words, Obama, on the whole, just looked much better than McCain and he came across again as a better debater. 

Obama leads in the national polls and surveys in many battleground states, since the economic crisis gripped the nation.

McCain has a steep hill to climb. But he needs now to stop freaking people out about their jobs. Harping on about Joe the Plumber's small business problems won't help in the final days. McCain needs a game change. Obama, just to keep his cool and a level head.

Obama holds a 7.3% lead in the Real Clear Politics polls average but the latest Gallup tracking poll reveals there are nearly twice as many undecided voters this year than there were in the last presidential election. 

The financial crisis has taken an enormous toll on the McCain campaign over the past month but Obama hasn't closed the deal yet. 

In the campaign's final days, it will be that vast swathe of millions of undecided voters, not the already committed, who will take a last serious look at both presidential candidates and finally make up their minds. 

The outcome of this race isn't cast in stone yet, as much of the media desperately hopes and would have us believe.

And what did Joe 'the plumber' Wurzelbacher make of it all?

He said Obama's reaction on the tax question left him feeling uneasy. "I didn't think much of it the first time I heard it," Wurzelbacher said, adding that he still thinks Obama's plan would keep him from buying the business. About McCain: "He's got it right as far as I go."

And which candidate would get Joe's vote on November 4? "That's for me and a button to know," he said.

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A Bad Case Of Economic Fatigue

There's nothing like a world economic crisis to get the heart a-throbbin' and the brain a-tickin' and this was nothing like the economic meltdown we were led to believe as today everything is looking hunky dory, according to the BBC.

It was scary but it's all over. You can come out from behind the sofa. What do you mean it wasn't real? You should have read the warning. This was fantasy violence with some strong language and no sex. Everyone had a headache and now a bad case of economic fatigue. 

Traders were shouting frantically on the floor and those computer screens turned red. But that's what market traders do - shout and make big bucks for their clients. And red, why red, danger? If you had a wad of cash you'd be looking out for the gorgeous red bits to buy up and make a killing. 

But Bush and Brown said this was really important. Important for them maybe. Still, two losers on their way out,  making a mountain out of a mole hill, is better than starting a war to boost the poll ratings. 

What started out as a 'rescue package' soon turned into a 'bail-out', despite the best efforts of the Bush administration and Brown's BBC to keep everyone on message.

'Rescue package' just doesn't have the same cute ring about it. A bail-out, handing a fat blank cheque to Paulson, does and it's more accurate. 

Democrats and Republicans were spitting blood - well, spitting at each other. With an election around the corner and some of their seats up for grabs soon, who can blame them for making some capital out of it on Capitol Hill. 

And it couldn't have been all that bad - they all skipped off on holiday yesterday.

Elton John would be proud. Stock markets crumbled but Wall Street didn't tumble - they're only made of clay. But the love-in between the government and the City is here to stay. 

Journalists had a field day. Was this the worst time since Black Wednesday, the Great Depression or the South Sea Bubble? And how do you spell Armageddon?

A chance to make up some good headlines though. Though nothing can beat "Bush's Bummer Bail-out Bill Bombs" - that's because it won't happen again.

Did we get the Great Depression? The only people depressed were the public having to listen to all the crap night after night. Still, we got a wartime spirit going with Cameron's call for a coalition government. 

And the political big wigs were summoned to Downing Street for a summit. Only they forgot to invite Vince and he was left out in the rain and made it late. That's a shame. He's the only one worth listening to and the only economist. 

And the media? TV personality anchors were summoned to Brown's bunker - how could they refuse in a time of global warming - to suffer the Great Man droning on and on. Then they had to spoil it all and broadcast it on TV news. 

Still it did give everyone a chance to catch up with some bedtime reading. JK Galbraith - now there's a smart guy, a bit of a liberal economist but worth reading.

Let's face it, no-one on Main Street or the High Street gives a bugger. Soaring prices, rampant inflation, debt coming out of your ears, looming unemployment - now you're talking. 

But a bunch of fat cats who are just getting their comeuppance after years of living on the back of other people's misery and a couple of so-called 'world leaders' who just sat back and let it all happen, now that's something to make your blood boil. 

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Brother Bush, Can You Spare A Dime?

As Bush's $700 billion bail-out bombed and stock markets took a dive, Democrats and Republicans were quick to point the finger of blame at each other. 

With an election round the corner, few want to get too close to Bush and his years of letting the Wall Street fat cats get away with it. And no-one wants to hand Bush and his treasury secretary a blank cheque.

Both Republicans and Democrats have been inundated with outraged voters telling them bluntly, they don't want the cash going straight into the pockets of Wall Street.

Bush's bail-out strikes deep at the heart of the elections, with both sides making political capital out of Capitol Hill.

It must be hard for the Republicans to change the habit of a lifetime. But voters know Bush lied over Iraq, so why should they trust him over this.

And this is America - the Land of the Free - Enterprise. If you can make a fast buck you are a hero. If you screw up, brother Bush, then no one will spare you a dime.

Democrats can sit pretty. It's not their fault. They're in opposition and knocking the administration is their job. The stock market may crumble, Wall Street may tumble but as long as Main Street doesn't squeal too much, they're happy to let Bush sweat.

Ever since US treasury secretary, Hank Paulson, unveiled the bill, as a 'rescue package' it helped buoy financial markets. But it was quickly seen as a bail-out and that would go against the grain with an unprecedented government intervention in the private sector.

And all sorts of deals, buy-outs and fundings have been earmarked in the bill, to give political advantage. 

House Republicans blamed the bail-out failure on Democrat House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, accusing Pelosi of being too partisan and “poisoning” the Republicans in a pre-vote floor speech, where she blamed the economic crisis on years of Republican economic policies, saying: "It has created not jobs, not capital; it has created chaos."

As the House of Representatives sent the historic bill packing, the stock market went into a tailspin and added to fears that the US will nose-dive into recession, unless the legislation is revived.

But this is one show that could run and run until everyone has had their two cents worth.

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Brown Comforts Bush In Bail-Out Breakdown

Bad-boy Bush is taking time out from digging himself out of his economic hole, later today, to pose with Brown for the Downing Street family album. Meanwhile, wife Sarah has already got her picture taken with the sisterhood.

Brown's aides must have called in a few favours yesterday, as it became clear no-one wanted to meet up with him, so they tried to fix up a hastily arranged photocall at the White House.

Bush is having to wriggle hard as it becomes clear the US economic meltdown was the result of years of him letting the fat cats in Wall Street trouser billions of dollars with few checks or balances.

Brown isn't even bothering to wriggle - instead he cut a lonely figure as he wandered aimlessly around the UN, talking about mosquito nets and "Millennium Development Goals". 

The Democrat-controlled Congress won't let Bush get away with it that easily and are stalling for time over the $700 billion bail-out deal to buy up the bank's 'toxic' bad debts. 

Instead they are insisting tax-payers cash doesn't go straight back into the pockets of the Wall Street executives, proper checks are in place and the cash will also be used to help out the thousands of people caught up in the sub-prime housing misery.

But no-one has stopped to ask just where did the figure of $700 billion come from? Apparently it was plucked out of thin air, because it's a really big number.

Apart from comforting each other over the economic mess they've both created, today's meeting with Bush will have another agenda. Bush could tell Brown just when he can pull troops out of Iraq and just how many more troops he's got to send to Afghanistan. 

Meanwhile wife Sarah is having a ball, having her picture taken with Sarah Palin and Wendi Deng Murdoch (Sarah B is the one on the left). What do these three fine looking gals have in common? They all have links to the Tony Blair fan club. 

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Is Obama Set To Dump Biden For Clinton?

Obama's running-mate, Joe Biden, branded a campaign ad mocking McCain's ignorance of computers as "terrible", during a CBS interview. Another gaff, fuelling further speculation that Obama could be laying the groundwork ready to dump his running-mate for Hillary Clinton.

The ad attracted widespread criticism for not mentioning that MCain's Vietnam war injuries actually prevent him from using computers for an extended period.

The speculation of a switch is swirling around the internet and is not going away. Like all rumours, it was probably first placed to test the waters. 

Biden's criticism of the McCain ad is the latest to question the judgement of the Obama campaign strategy. Biden has done little to help the Obama machine since he was picked four weeks ago, even admitting on one occasion that Clinton might have been a better choice, "and quite frankly, it might have been a better pick than me."  

With the formidable McCain-Palin ticket looking increasingly strong, despite the MSM attempts to discredit them, many Democrats now believe that Obama-Clinton is the only way to beat them.

Syndicated columnist, Jack Kelly in the Washington Times, reports that "my friend Steve Maloney says his sources in the Democratic Party tell him Barack Obama is being pressured to dump Sen. Joseph Biden from the ticket and replace him with Hillary Clinton, the switch to come just after the vice presidential debate Oct. 2." 

Kelly asks: "What might prompt such an act of desperation? The answer is clear - the polls". 

Obama's poll results, which indicate the race is a statistical dead heat, should always be taken with a pinch of salt and are reckoned by pundits to be four to six points lower than they appear. And, taken with the more significant trends from the State Electoral Colleges, where 270 votes are needed to win, Obama’s chances suddenly don't look that good.

The Obama campaign has only one objective and that is to put their man in the White House. If that means ditching Biden, swallowing their pride and sucking up to Clinton, then that is the price they are prepared to pay. 

Speculation about such a switch has emerged on several US blogs, including Andy Ostroy on the Obama supporting Huffington Post, who believes replacing Biden with Clinton makes perfect sense for Obama. 

"It's time to dump Biden and replace him with Sen. Hillary Clinton," said Ostroy. "I'm starting to think that if Team Obama doesn't do something dramatic fast, it's gonna lose this election."

"Shake things up. Be unconventional. Roll the dice. Out-McCain McCain. Who cares how it looks. Who cares what the media thinks. One thing's certain: there's an 18-million deep pot of gold out there waiting to be mined. An Obama/Clinton ticket would slam the door shut on this election."

There is a deeper reason for suspecting this may be more than just speculation. 

A lawsuit, brought by Philip Berg over Obama's eligibility to stand for president, first reported in the UK here, comes to a head in the next few weeks. 

Berg, a Philadelphia attorney, has filed a lawsuit in the Pennsylvania District Court against Obama, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and the Federal Election Commission (FEC), claiming Obama is constitutionally ineligible to run for and hold the office of President.


If anything should happen to scupper Obama's chances, that would leave Biden to automatically assume the mantle of presidential nominee. 

That would spell disaster for the Democrats in the election. Far better to have Clinton take the heat out of the situation and give the media a new focus away from McCain-Palin and the court case. 

And if Obama was forced out, now or later - Clinton would be more than happy to step into his shoes.

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