You Can Call Him Al … But Al Won’t Call You Back
Al Gore won a Nobel Prize and an Oscar for his film, An Inconvenient Truth. But in the last three months, as global warming has gone from a scientific near-certitude to the subject of satire, Gore — the public face of global warming — has been silent on the topic.
The former vice president apparently finds it inconvenient even to answer calls to testify before the U.S. Senate. You can call him Al . . . but he won’t call back.
On Tuesday, Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe — a prominent skeptic of global warming theory and the Republican leader of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee — issued a request for Gore to come testify on global warming. In an interview with FoxNews.com, Inhofe said he wants Gore to appear because “it will be interesting to ask him on what science he based his movie,” a film the senator considers “science fiction.” Read more.
GOP touts throng of candidates
RALEIGH — North Carolina Republicans have entered races for congressional and legislative seats in big numbers, apparently spurred by recent GOP successes and the grass-roots activism of the Tea Party movement.
When the three-week period for candidates filing for 2010 ended at noon Friday, Republicans were boasting of having set modern records for fielding candidates against nearly every Democratic lawmaker in Raleigh or Washington.
Republican candidates will run in all 50 state Senate districts in North Carolina. “I think that is the first time that has ever happened,” said Senate Republican leader Phil Berger of Eden. “People sense an opportunity.” Read more.
Pelosi Not Prepared to Strip Rangel of Chairmanship After Ethics Violation
Rep. Charlie Rangel’s admonishment by the House ethics panel does not disqualify him from leading the chamber’s influential tax-writing committee, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday, even as she acknowledged the conflict doesn’t pass the smell test.
“No, it doesn’t. No, it doesn’t,” Pelosi said. “The fact is, is that what Mr. Rangel has been admonished for is not good. It was a violation of the rules of the House. It was not something that jeopardized our country in any way.”
The House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, better known as the ethics committee, admonished Rangel last week for taking corporate-sponsored trips to the Caribbean, which are a violation of House rules. Read more.
Supreme Court scrutinizes state, local gun control
WASHINGTON (AP) — Gun control advocates think, if not pray, they can win by losing when the Supreme Court decides whether the constitutional right to possess guns serves as a check on state and local regulation of firearms.
The justices will be deciding whether the Second Amendment — like much of the rest of the Bill of Rights — applies to states as well as the federal government. It’s widely believed they will say it does.
But even if the court strikes down handgun bans in Chicago and its suburb of Oak Park, Ill., that are at issue in the argument to be heard Tuesday, it could signal that less severe rules or limits on guns are permissible. Read more.
Why Obama is Good for America
You read that right. Now here is why:
He destroyed the Clinton Political Machine – Driving a stake thru the heart of Hillary’s Presidential aspirations – something no Republican was ever able to do.
He killed off the Kennedy Dynasty – The Kennedy’s say no to Obama rule. Read more.
Rangel stepping down from tax-writing chairmanship
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Charles Rangel announced Wednesday he will temporarily step down as chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, saying he didn’t want his ethics controversy to jeopardize election prospects for fellow Democrats.
The 20-term Harlem congressman held a news conference on short notice, telling reporters, “My chairmanship is bringing so much attention to the press, and in order to avoid my colleagues having to defend me during their elections, I have this morning sent a letter” asking House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “to grant me a leave of absence until such time as the ethics committee completes its work.”
The 79-year-old Rangel’s decision was another jarring setback for President Barack Obama and majority Democrats in Congress, coming at a time when the party is scrambling to save sweeping health care overhaul legislation that has been pending on Capitol Hill for well over a year and still assessing a surging anti-incumbent fervor among the voters. Read more.
Iran, Democracy, and Trade Keys to Successful Clinton Visit to Latin America
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is embarking on a tour of Latin America with the intention of shoring up flagging ties with U.S. partners in the region. During her five-day, six-nation trip, the Secretary should enlist key players–notably Brazil–in a campaign to convince Iran’s leaders to abandon their nuclear weapons ambitions.
Clinton should also deliver a strong message regarding the Obama Administration’s commitment to representative democracy and its readiness to put free trade back on its agenda. Finally, she should make it clear to the region’s leaders know that excluding the U.S. from regional organizations or polarizing the Organization of American States (OAS) will have a negative impact on inter-American cooperation. Read more.
Hot Flashes, Dead Bugs, and Cocaine for Monkeys: The 10 Worst Federal Stimulus Projects in North Carolina
Prior to signing his federal “stimulus” bill in early 2009, President Obama warned, “If we do not move swiftly to sign (the act) into law, an economy that is already in crisis will be faced with catastrophe.”
Here in North Carolina, Governor Perdue similarly declared that we were “facing the consequences of the national economic crisis,” and that failure to pass the stimulus bill would “jeopardize the education of our children and the health care of our citizens.” She further noted that the stimulus will help “create jobs, stimulate the economy, and provide relief to North Carolina’s families.”
One year later, the debate over the stimulus bill’s effectiveness rages on. A close inspection of stimulus grants and contracts awarded to North Carolina reveals a rather questionable strategy for the disbursement of stimulus funds. Many projects seem completely unrelated to avoiding an economic “catastrophe,” but rather an ad hoc satisfaction of countless dubious wish lists.
The Civitas Institute poured through the federal website charged with tracking stimulus spending, and created the following list – The 10 Worst Federal Stimulus Projects in North Carolina. Read more.
Obama backs plan to give health care overhaul fast track in Congress
WASHINGTON — Even after President Barack Obama gave them his blessing Wednesday to push ahead hard and fast on health care, congressional Democrats remained uncertain and divided over whether they can finally pass the legislation.
Liberals and moderates both expressed concern about “reconciliation,” the fast-track procedure Obama endorsed. It strips the Senate minority of the ability to filibuster, or conduct extended debate, which usually can be limited only after 60 of 100 senators agree.
“I don’t like the reconciliation idea,” said Rep. Baron Hill, D-Ind., one of the moderates. “It does give the appearance of trying to ram something through.” Read more.
McHenry’s initiative: Put Reagan on $50 bill
U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry wants to put former President Ronald Reagan on the $50 bill.
McHenry, a Cherryville Republican, has introduced a bill that would replace Ulysses S. Grant with Reagan.
“Every generation needs its own heroes,” McHenry said. “One decade into the 21st century, it’s time to honor the last great president of the 20th and give President Reagan a place beside Presidents Roosevelt and Kennedy.” Read more.
Freshman Congressman Won’t Run for Re-election, Denies Harassment Reports
The House Ethics Committee is reviewing allegations that New York Rep. Eric Massa sexually harassed a male member of his staff, Fox News has learned
Massa, after announcing Wednesday that he would not seek re-election because of a cancer recurrence, beat back reports on blogs and in other media outlets suggesting that charges of sexually harassing a male staffer were behind his decision.
“The allegations are totally false. I am a salty old sailor,” Massa, a Democratic freshman congressman, said at a news conference. “These are blogs that are saying that I am leaving because of charges of harassing my staff. Do and have I used salty language? Yes, and I have tried to do better.” Read more.
GOP takes it to Hackney
PITTSBORO — State Republican leaders and legislative candidates, looking to prove they can overcome 100 years of Democratic domination in the legislature, held a rally Thursday in the home district of Democratic House Speaker Joe Hackney.
Since the candidate filing period closed last week, Republicans have touted both the number and quality of candidates they recruited to run for state House and Senate seats. By appearing in Hackney’s district with the Republican candidate challenging him, GOP leaders made a show of their confidence and enthusiasm.
Republicans sought to underline that message by pointing out that they expect to ride a wave of national voter dissatisfaction. N.C. Republican Party Chairman Tom Fetzer said the party plans to wage a campaign focused on statewide and national politics, not local issues. Read more.
State polls show gathering storm
Congress, it turns out, isn’t the only institution held in low esteem by voters this year.
According to a POLITICO review of publicly available polling data, numerous state legislatures are also bottoming out, showing off-the-charts disapproval ratings accompanied by stunning levels of voter cynicism.
It all adds up to a toxic election-year brew for legislators inside and outside Washington.
The freshest example comes from Pennsylvania, where a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday surveyed the attitudes of residents and reported that just 29 percent of Pennsylvania voters said they approved of the job the state legislature is doing in Harrisburg, a slippage of 13 points since last May. Read more.
President to meet with key senators on immigration
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama plans to focus attention on immigration next week by meeting at the White House with two senators crafting a bill on the issue.
White House spokesman Nicholas Shapiro said Obama will meet with Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina on Monday.
The president is “looking forward to hearing more about their efforts toward producing a bipartisan bill,” Shapiro said Friday. Read more.
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