Thursday, February 7, 2013

The Sequester-The Ultimate Betrayal Of The GOP Base

 (Image credit: AFP/Getty Images via @daylife)
By all historic accounts, the actual idea for the sequester—the massive front-loaded cuts to the federal budget designed to rip a hole in spending programs near and dear to both Republicans and Democrats—originated in the Obama White House.

By creating a mechanism that would result in huge cuts to a defense budget that has long been sacrosanct to modern day Republicans, along with equally large cuts to the entitlements that Democrats feel duty bound to protect, the Obama Administration believed that it had created a tool that would force a negotiated solution in the effort to get a grip on our debt situation through the balancing of spending cuts with revenue increases.

As a weapon to drive compromise—a concept that has become a four letter word in today’s extreme environment— the sequester wasn’t such a bad idea. Surely, any rational legislator in Congress would understand that reaching a negotiated deal was far preferable to the unacceptably painful results of allowing the sequester to take hold.
Or would they?  READ MORE

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Who Just Made a Billion Dollars?

Our Real-Time Billionaires scoreboard tracks the biggest holdings for 50 of the world’s wealthiest people. See who's up & who's down right now »
 
 
 

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

No thank you, Karl Rove

David Goldman/AP
Karl Rove failed to deliver during the 2012 elections,
despite the millions poured into his Super PAC.
The Republican establishment must give way to new leadership

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Wednesday, February 6, 2013, 4:11 AM

 Republicans were sent to the woodshed in 2012. And when you’re sent to the woodshed, you sit there quietly and think about what you’ve done.

But somehow, Karl Rove doesn’t think he played a part in all that. Despite more than $170 million spent through his American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS super PACs, and nearly nothing to show for it, Rove believes the simple solution is to slap a new label on his outfit and go rake in some more dough.

“The Conservative Victory Project, which is backed by Karl Rove and his allies who built American Crossroads into the largest Republican super PAC of the 2012 election cycle, will start by intensely vetting prospective contenders for congressional races to try to weed out candidates who are seen as too flawed to win general elections,” reported The New York Times over the weekend.

But there are plenty of Republican donors who are furious at Crossroads for wasting their money and aren’t going to be fooled by Rove’s rebranding strategy — or his promises that he will get better results the next time around.
READ MORE
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Hillary Clinton is not just sleeping in as new website indicates desire to stay in the spotlight

If she’s planning on a presidential run there are few clues to be gleaned from Clinton’s freshly launched website HillaryClintonOffice.com.

www.HillaryClintonOffice.com
Hillary Clinton’s 2008 campaign website now redirects
visitors to her new site: HillaryClintonOffice.com.
 By Celeste Katz AND Jonathan Lemire / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Tuesday, February 5, 2013, 10:53 AM
Updated: Wednesday, February 6, 2013, 5:03 AM

 She's the picture of presidential ambition.

Just days after becoming a private citizen, Hillary Clinton is stoking speculation about running for President in 2016 by launching a mysterious new website that boldly features her in an attention-grabbing photo....

 A mass e-mail sent Tuesday by her husband Bill Clinton and their daughter Chelsea is adding to the speculation: It urges recipients to “thank Hillary for making our country and our world, stronger, safer and better.”

PHOTOS: HILLARY CLINTON'S BEST MOMENTS

“She inspires us every day — and we hope she inspires you, too. Please take a moment to send Hillary your personal note of thanks,” it adds, providing a link for fans to do just that.

When Hillary Clinton stepped down Friday after four grueling years as secretary of state, it was assumed that she would relax and recharge while contemplating her next move. READ MORE