Adam Ulbricht of Radio America examines the role of the Tea Party in the upcoming 2012 November elections. FreedomWorks Josh Eboch and South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint weigh in, while highlighting what they believe will be another successful election for the movement.
Afghan Optimism
In the past few weeks, President Obama has outlined his vision for U.S. drawdown and eventual withdrawal from Afghanistan. His goal is to be done with our current mission by the end of 2014. In the past week, other NATO members have advocated leaving sooner or even immediately. South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson is a member of both the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees. He is confident that the U.S. will pull back responsibly and leave the Afghan government and security forces in the best possible position to fend for themselves. Wilson says he is not worried that rampant corruption in Afghanistan will sink the country’s future. He admires President Hamid Karzai, although he admits that’s an opinion not many others share. The congressman also chides Pakistan for sentencing a U.S. intelligence asset critical to the Bin Laden raid to 33 years in prison on treason charges. Wilson says it’s clearly in Pakistan’s best interest to ally with the U.S. and root out Al Qaeda, which is responsible for tens of thousands of deaths in Pakistan. However, Wilson says we should not be threatening to reduce foreign aid to Pakistan because less influence could mean greater instability in a nuclear nation. And Rep. Wilson shares his thoughts on Memorial Day and the incredible men and women who wear our nation’s uniform.
Small Biz Misery
You may have missed it, but we are now at the end of National Small Business Week. But as the economy continues to struggle and the jobless rate is still influenced more by people leaving the labor market than the number of hires, what hindrances remain to sustained growth? California Rep. Dan Lungren has talked with many small business owners in recent days and says the hurdles are clear. The congressman says uncertainty is keeping expansion plans on the sidelines for many small businesses – uncertainty fueled by greater government regulation and a tax code that could be bad news for entrepreneurs in the months ahead. Furthermore, Lungren says already tight revenues are now threatened by much higher fuel costs – which hikes prices throughout the economy. He openly wonders whether most Americans find the current economic conditions unacceptable or whether they see the current conditions as the new normal. Lungren also highlights some of the House Republican bills designed to removed red tape and make life a bit easier for America’s small business owners.
Three Martini Lunch 5/25/12
Greg Corombos of Radio America and Daniel Foster of National Review Online applaud Mitt Romney for stressing freedom in education and for slamming teacher’s unions while hailing teachers. They also cringe while learning America’s “real” deficit last year was actually $5 trillion. And they wonder why Mitt Romney is planning to have a high-profile campaign event with Donald Trump.
Who Won’t Talk with Whom?
Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert told us earlier in the week about his frustration with the Obama administration spending $20 million of taxpayer money on a marketing campaign to boost popularity of Obamacare. During that conversation, Gohmert also said President Obama has a habit of demonizing Congress on the campaign trail by claiming lawmakers (especially Republicans) won’t work with him. Gohmert says Congress is willing to negotiate with Obama but the president won’t sit down with them. The congressman explains where he thinks there could be – or at least should be common ground between the two parties. He discusses what we can expect the House to do with respect to Obamacare if the Supreme Court allows it to stand and he offers some strong comments on what he expects heading into yet another debt ceiling debate.
Democrats Getting Restless
Human Events Political Editor John Gizzi discusses the week in politics, starting with President Obama getting a strong rebuke from voters in his own party. Obama got less than 60 percent of the vote against no opposition in Kentucky and did only slightly better against a little-known challenger in Arkansas. Gizzi explains what message these voters are sending and whether this frustration will reappear in November. Gizzi also weighs in on the the early disagreements between President Obama and new French President Francois Hollande – especially on Afghanistan. We’ll also hear Gizzi’s take on whether longtime Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch will hold on in his GOP primary or become the next incumbent sent packing by the Tea Party.
Three Martini Lunch 5/24/12
Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review are happy but a bit stunned to learn that the mainstream media thinks Scott Walker’s win in the Wisconsin recall race is a done deal. They’re also shocked that Elizabeth Warren’s messy Cherokee ancestry controversy hasn’t stopped her from gaining on Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown in the polls. And they discuss President Obama’s claim that he is not a big spender and is actually cleaning up the spending mess of Republicans.
Obamacare ‘Insanity’
This week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced it is launching a $20 million ad campaign designed to boost public support for the Obama health care laws. Public opinion polls consistently show Americans opposed to the two-year-old law and a majority still favor repeal. Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert is furious that the Obama administration would spend more “money we don’t have” to convince people to embrace a bill they’ve already rejected. Gohmert also slams Obama for refusing to work with Congress on key issues while traveling around the country and “demonizing” Congress for not working with him.
All About the 1st Amendment
Earlier this week, 43 different Catholic institutions filed suit against the Department of Health and Human Services over the mandate that employers pay all contraceptive costs for female employees. After much outcry earlier in the year, the administration issued an “accommodation” that supposedly exempted organization that had a religious objection to covering contraception. The solution was to pass the costs along to the insurance provider. That adjustment is nowhere near good enough for the dozens of Catholic diocese, charities and hospitals that are filing suit. Bill Donahue is president of the Catholic League. His organization is not part of the lawsuit but Donahue has taken part in extensive conversations with New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan and others who are leading the legal challenge. Donahue says two major concerns are at the heart of the lawsuits. He says protecting religious liberties enshrined in the first amendment to the Constitution are at the heart of the case- but so is a little-known wrinkle in the Obama “accommodation”. Donahue says for an organization to qualify for the religious exemption, it must almost exclusively serve and employ people of the same faith. So Catholic universities, charities and hospitals that welcome people of all faiths do not qualify for the exemption. Donahue says he is confident that the Supreme Court will dismantle much of Obamacare in the coming weeks. If not, he believes the 43 Catholic groups will likely win their challenge on first amendment grounds. But Donahue says if all legal effort come up empty, some 600 Catholic hospitals and charitable organizations will close their doors before agreeing to subsidize abortion-inducing drugs. He claims this contraception mandate is just the “camel’s nose in the tent” and the Obama administration will soon want to mandate that all hospitals provide abortion services. Donahue says Catholics have overwhelming support from Evangelicals, Protestants, Mormons and Jews because, as he says, “They know they’re next”.
Three Martini Lunch 5/23/12
Greg Corombos of Radio America and Jim Geraghty of National Review enjoy primary results showing President Obama struggling whether unopposed or against supposedly token opposition. They also groan as the Iowa Republicans congratulate themselves for running a good caucus – even though we still don’t know who really won. And they discuss the South Carolina AFL-CIO chief slugging a pinata with Gov. Nikki Haley’s face on it.