All efforts by President Obama to get Republicans on board for the economic stimulus package fell to pieces, but will one of his next efforts garner more support? It seems that he’s planning to grab hold of the third rail of politics and attempt to reform Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Depending how it’s handled, he might have the GOP in his corner on this one, unless they truly do plan to be nothing more than the Party of No. WASHINGTON — President Obama is eager to seek a...

With tonight being the annual gala of the Oscars, we’re unlikely to see many surprises. Rather than focusing on the current list of offerings, I thought we might take a moment and look back at one of the classic winners, Ernest Borgnine. He won the Best Actor award in 1956 for his title role in Marty. That year, he was up against some incredible competition, including Frank Sinatra and Spencer Tracy for Bad Day at Black Rock. (A film which Borgnine also appeared in.) It turned out to be the...

Stopping off in Canada, President Obama took time out of his busy schedule to meet with the Prime Minister and hold a joint press conference. Most of it consisted of the usual Miss Congeniality Contest pablum typical of these meetings, but when it came time for the Q&A, a member of the press dared to ask about NAFTA and America’s so called “free trade” agreements with our trading “partners” such as Canada. Despite what he told us on the campaign trail, Obama quickly...

The Albany Times Union throws down the gauntlet for Republican Assemblyman Jim Tedisco this week, asking why he won’t take a stand on the massive stimulus package. That Mr. Tedisco would suggest that his position on what just might be the most contentious issue in Washington is a “hypothetical question” raises serious questions about his qualifications to serve in Congress. Economic policy couldn’t be more critical in a congressional race. Mr. Tedisco needs to understand that...

It’s certainly looking like they might, since their House of Representatives has now passed a bill which is obviously designed to do just that. The House voted 51-41 this afternoon to declare that a fertilized egg has all the rights of any person. That means a fetus could not be legally aborted without the procedure being considered murder. Our friend Ed Morrissey of Hot Air, always a happy resident of the anti-choice – sorry… “pro-life” – camp, couldn’t...

After that C-SPAN poll of presidential historians came out I had my doubts about the entire process. Presidencies are not like hockey scores where you can stack them up on a point spread basis. But I give it some time to sink in and have now come up with a final verdict on the project which you can read in my latest column at Pajamas Media today. In this episode, we’ll explore some of the following questions: What was so great about Kennedy and Wilson anyhow? Why is Eisenhower so consistently...

The special election race in New York’s 20th Congressional District is heating up, with both campaigns releasing their first media ad buys in what is shaping up to be a well funded, hotly contested fight. The media spots come out just as more news breaks where the candidates are taking some serious swings at each other. Opponents of Republican State Assemblyman Jim Tedisco are questioning his past votes on taxes, such as the 2003 Warren County hotel occupancy tax. State Assemblyman James Tedisco,...

Today we take a sad look back at the dark day in 2006 when Kraft Foods made the horrible decision to change the recipe for Miracle Whip. In one fell swoop they destroyed a classic American tradition and pushed civilization one step closer to the abyss. We’ve never fully recovered. They took the soy oil out of the product and replaced it with a larger volume of water. This not only killed some of the flavor and thinned the consistency but also shortened its shelf life. At the time of the change,...

What do the following people have in common? - Jesse Ventura - Al Franken - Michelle Bachmann The answer is, they are all examples of curious selections by the voters of Minnesota. (Though to be accurate, the jury is literally still out on Franken, but even if he doesn’t wind up being seated he certainly came close enough to join the club.) Representative Bachmann may not seem like a natural fit on this list unless you’ve been paying attention to her increasingly bizarre mental lapses...

Next month NASA will launch the new Kepler Telescope and the goal is an ambitious one. We’re finally going to start the process of identifying stars with potentially Earth-like planets orbiting them. According to projections at a recent conference, they might not be as rare as once thought. There could be one hundred billion Earth-like planets in our galaxy, a US conference has heard. Dr Alan Boss of the Carnegie Institution of Science said many of these worlds could be inhabited by simple...

A short note on Steve Benen’s righteous indignation over at The Washington Monthly: TIME TO REFORM THE FILIBUSTER…. One of the striking aspects of the political process on the Hill is how quickly everyone has adapted to a once-rare tactic becoming routine. Senate filibusters used to be exceedingly rare — a dramatic challenge only to be used under extraordinary circumstances. Only recently has the political world accepted, without so much as a discussion, the notion that literally...

While the Republicans are busy pointing out questions over whether or not Scott Murphy paid his taxes, Democrats are countering by looking into what NY 20th Congressional District candidate Jim Tedisco did with some of the taxpayer dollars he received. At the center of the questions is a matter of more than $20,000 the Assemblyman received for gas and oil change expenses for his commute to work. After Years of Gaming the System, Will Tedisco Finally Reimburse Taxpayers Over $21,000 for his 20 Minute...

Well, that certainly didn’t take long. NY 20th congressional Democratic candidate Scott Murphy probably hasn’t had time to stock up pens and paper clips in his new campaign office yet and his opponents are raising questions about his history of paying taxes. Apparently, one of Murphy’s early business start-ups ran afoul of the IRS around the time he was selling it off. In the wake of recent tax flaps surrounding Obama administration nominees, Republicans are zeroing in on another...

Now that various New York Democratic Party chairs have selected Scott Murphy to run against Jim Tedisco in the March 31 special congressional election, the new candidate wasted no time in lining up some endorsements. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand,(D – NY) who previously held the seat, and Congressman Paul Tonko (D – Amsterdam) showed up to give Murphy the nod. Gillibrand, who returned to the state Saturday after working to try and approve the economic stimulus package in Washington, said...

You may have thought that the 2008 election cycle was nearly over, (well, as soon as that whole Coleman – Franken thing gets ironed out) but you would be incorrect. Like some sort of political Rube Goldberg machine gone awry, President Obama’s appointment of Hillary Clinton opened up a Senate seat, which was then filled by Kirsten Gillibrand, removing her from her previous office. That means that we have yet another special election coming up on March 31 to select the next member of Congress...

The year is starting off on a rough note, particularly for this Friday the thirteenth. Today we had to say goodbye to one of our oldest remaining cats, Sassy… better known to all friends and family as simply “Fat Cat.” (Pictured here in happier times doing her Yoda impersonation.) I first met Sassy and her sister Spider while volunteering at a Humane Society animal shelter in 1992. As happened to many of the volunteers there, a time came when the shelter was at its maximum capacity...

The battle over the Porkulus bill has claimed another victim, and one which will send some larger ripples across the political pool. New Hampshire Republican Senator Judd Gregg, selected by President Obama as our next Secretary of Commerce, has taken himself out of the running. Citing “irresolvable conflicts over the stimulus package and control of the 2010 census” the Senator has withdrawn. Gregg represented one of the chief areas of the President’s efforts to build a bipartisan...

Today we bring you the next in our continuing series on “old world thinking” which is thoroughly discredited and inappropriate for the modern era. Let’s take a moment and look at the concept of usury, both past and present. It’s an old word and carries an almost universally negative connotation. 19 ” You shall not charge interest to your brother — interest on money or food or anything that is lent out at interest. 20 “To a foreigner you may charge interest,...

While many celebrate the 200th birthday of Abraham Lincoln, it’s easy to forget that another historical figure shares the same anniversary. It’s also the birthday of Charles Darwin. (Pictured here in one of his lesser known research projects, “The Development of Insect Colonies in Really Bushy, Unkempt Beards.”) The celebration at the Darwin home might be a bit more muted today were they to read the headlines from a recent Gallup poll. On Darwin’s Birthday, Only 4 in...

Talis Colberg, the Attorney General of Alaska appointed by Governor Sarah Palin, has resigned his position. He was already in deep water over advising a number of his “clients” (including Todd “The First Dude” Palin) not to bother showing up when they were issued subpoenas to appear before the legislature to testify over Troopergate. Said clients have since been found in contempt. Follow the link for the details, but it’s a fairly cut-and -dried story. A quick look at...

It’s not quite as bad as the title might imply, but the more we look at the pending stimulus package, the more we see how much Congress needs to slow down and examine this more carefully. One provision tucked away in the bill could result in certain “housing groups and nonprofits” will be able to apply for funding from the package. The Albuquerque Journal has the details. (Subscription required) WASHINGTON — A low-income advocacy group that became controversial in New Mexico’s...

With a hat tip to Reason.com we find out from the CrimeProf Blog that there’s an ill wind blowing for Second Amendment enthusiasts from the Second Circuit Court. It comes in the form of Maloney v. Cuomo and brings the Incorporation Doctrine roaring back on the scene. The Second Amendment guarantee of the right to bear arms does not apply to override state firearms bans, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit declared Jan. 28. Under the incorporation doctrine, only certain provisions...

Did you watch the big shindig last night? I did. It had a few high points, but a lot more of it was dark comedy. You can catch up with my impressions of it and what lessons we can take in my latest column at Pajamas Media today.

I normally require some anti-depressants and vodka to think back on the New York Senate election of 2000, but enough time may have passed for me to now do so without breaking down sobbing and going to lie down in a dark room. At the time, I invested a fair amount of my time, energy and money in a futile effort to help Rick Lazio prevent our Senate seat from being carpetbagged by Hillary Clinton. The results were… well, it’s probably best not to delve too deeply even now. But the former...

With the stimulus package battle seeming to draw toward a close, President Obama is packing his bags and heading out for a town hall meeting in Indiana. The timing may seem spot on, but the venue raises some questions. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says Obama wants to go where the nation’s economic problems are “acute” as part of his “his effort to convince Congress to move swiftly.” This area did not vote for Obama in November, but The Elkhart Truth newspaper is...