We all know about the vetting problems with Timothy Geithner, Tom Daschle and Nancy Killefer. Today was a new day, and yes, we have another tax problem for an Obama nominee, this time Rep. Hilda Solis, Obama’s would-be labor secretary.
I guess it really is that hard to find Democrats who have as much enthusiasm for paying taxes as they do imposing them.
Moving on from taxes, how has Team Obama been doing on the foreign affairs front?
We all know he delivered on a promise to close GITMO. Of course, no details or plans in place on what to do with the terrorists, but that’s for another day. Second thing President Obama did in the foreign policy front, give a pathetic blame-America-first interview to a Saudi-based TV network.
For the foreign policy trifecta, how about disrespecting and throwing four-star Marine General Anthony Zinni under the bus?
Zinni had been offered the position of Ambassador to Iraq, accepted it, and had even received a congratulatory phone call from Joe Biden. While he made arrangements to live in Iraq, though, Obama and Hillary Clinton changed their minds — and never bothered to tell him
Moving on to domestic policy, Obama is losing the stimulus battle. I guess that means the taxpayers are winning?
How is that “ethics and transparency” thing working out for the Obama administration? Well, let’s just say it hasn’t gotten off to a great start,
The event announcing the new openness was closed to all reporters except the handful who are in the White House pool.
The very first WH press briefing of the Obama administration brought howls from the press corps over a lack of promised trasparency,
A growing media frustration with Barack Obama’s team spilled into the open at Thursday’s briefing, with reporters accusing the White House of stifling access to his oath re-do and giving Obama’s first interview as president to a multi-million dollar inauguration sponsor.
As we said, Obama (so far) has kept his promise to close GITMO. What about some of his other promises?,
Promise of candidate Obama: Ending the revolving door between government and lobbyists.:
President Obama signed an executive order doing just that, then, he nominated a Raytheon lobbyist as his number 2 person in the Pentagon! Even the New York Times is scratching their heads,
Obama’s Pledge to Reform Ethics Faces an Early Test
WASHINGTON — During almost two years on the campaign trail, Barack Obama vowed to slay the demons of Washington, bar lobbyists from his administration and usher in what he would later call in his Inaugural Address a “new era of responsibility.†What he did not talk much about were the asterisks.
The exceptions that went unmentioned now include a pair of cabinet nominees who did not pay all of their taxes. Then there is the lobbyist for a military contractor who is now slated to become the No. 2 official in the Pentagon. And there are the others brought into government from the influence industry even if not formally registered as lobbyists.
But besides that, everything is cool, right?
Here is what candidate Obama promised with regard to bill signings,
“Too often bills are rushed through Congress and to the president before the public has the opportunity to review them,†the Obama-Biden campaign website states. “As president, Obama will not sign any non-emergency bill without giving the American public an opportunity to review and comment on the White House website for five days.â€
Here is what Obama did as President
President Barack Obama kept one campaign pledge Wednesday afternoon and at the same time violated another when he signed into law the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, which extends health care coverage to 11 million low-income children.
But Obama’s 5 p.m. signing came barely three hours after the House approved the bill, breaching Obama’s promise to have a five-day period of “sunlight before signing,†as he detailed on the campaign trail and on his website.
Remember that promise not to raise taxes on anyone making over $250,000/year. Already broken.
Yesterday, Victor Davis Hanson wrote the following about White House press secretary Robert Gibbs,
Gibbs as press secretary is a Scott McClellan nightmare that won’t go away, given his long McClellan-like relationship with Obama (McClellan should have been fired on day hour one on the job). Blaming Fox News for Obama’s calamities is McClellan to the core and doesn’t work. He already reminds me of Reverend Wright’s undoing at the National Press Club—and he will get worse.
Today, Gibbs did all he could to prove Hanson’s point,
Holy training wheels Batman! I’m too exhausted to continue the parade of horribles, but I know I’m missing about another dozen examples from the first few weeks. “Hope and Change” has already morphed into “I hope he can change!”
Buffett cancels annual event with biographer
Author of detailed Buffett book says he has ended annual event and distanced himself from her
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Billionaire Warren Buffett worked closely with Alice Schroeder during the five years that she researched his life story, but the author says her relationship with the investor has cooled since the book’s release last fall.
And Schroeder says Buffett told her last month that he would no longer attend a dinner she’s hosted since 1998 on the eve of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s annual meeting in Omaha each spring.
“We’ve had very little contact since the book has been published. A few e-mails, and that’s it,” Schroeder said Wednesday in an interview from her home in Greenwich, Conn.
…Buffett’s assistant Debbie Bosanek said the cancellation of the dinner event shouldn’t be interpreted as a reflection of Buffett’s opinion of the book.
“Mr. Buffett likes Alice, likes her book and has received a number of glowing letters from friends about it,” Bosanek said. “But at some point, like the charity golf outing he once hosted, an event runs its course.”
I’ve read all 800+ pages of The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the business of life and I can tell you it is a very tough book. If Buffet is pissed about the book, I’m not surprised. As I said when I was fortunate enough to interview author Alice Schroeder,
“This is no fawning profile of a sainted figure. This is the warts and all story of a very complex human being. As much as there is to admire about Warren Buffett the investor, his personal life leaves a lot to be desired.”
I highly recommend the book. It is really fascinating. Here is my interview with Alice Schroeder,
What is Pundit Review Radio?
Pundit Review Radio is where the old media meets the new. Each week we give voice to the work of the most influential leaders in the new media/citizen journalist revolution. Called "groundbreaking" by Talkers Magazine, this unique show brings the best of the blogs to your radio every Sunday evening from 8-10 pm EST on AM680 WRKO, Boston's Talk Station.
Rep. Rangel (D-NY) at his beachfront villa in the Dominican Republic, where he failed to report rental income for years
Without question, the Democrat Tax Cheat Champion is Charlie Rangel, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. You know, Ways and Means, the committee that decides where and how to spend our (not his) tax money. The Sunlight Foundation has looked at Rangel’s various tax problems and determined that he failed to report taxable events 28 separate times. Here is what they found,
We took a look at his filings going all the way back to 1978, the first year members were required to disclose information on their personal finances, and found 28 instances in which he failed to report acquiring, owning or disposing of assets. Assets worth between $239,026 and $831,000 appear or disappear with no disclosure of when they were acquired, how long they were held, or when they were sold, as the operative House rules at the time required.
Congratulations Charlie, here’s what you’ve won,
Remember Charlie, make sure you report this gift! We’ll be watching.
A sincere congratulations to John Gonsalves, founder of Homes for Our Troops. This amazing group is celebrating their 5th anniversay today. I have had the pleasure of meeting John and his family on a few occassions and he is a personal hero of mine. What he has accomplished in these past five years is nothing short of inspirational.
From a Someone You Should Know from April, 2007,
In 2004, after watching a news report of a severely injured service member who had returned from Iraq, John Gonsalves thought to himself, “what now, what happens to this person nowâ€. He searched for an organization that he assumed was already in place where he could donate his building expertise for a few weeks. When he found out that none existed, he quit his contractor job and started Homes for Our Troops.
Homes for Our Troops builds specially adapted homes for our most severely injured service members. To date, they have built thirty homes, and have pledged to build another thirty.
Homes for Our Troops has plans to build another 35 homes for our wounded warriors in 2009 alone. What an amazing group.
Dear Friend,
Today marks a true milestone in our history. It was five years ago today that Homes for Our Troops was incorporated. For me it has been a truly incredible journey.
I have been honored to have traveled across the country and see thousands of my fellow Americans come out to our projects and give back to the next greatest generation. It has been humbling to share laughter and tears with so many military families who have sacrificed so much. Their stories of dedication to country and the long road to recovery are remarkable to say the least.
To date we have helped more than three dozen families from Massachusetts to California. Our past accomplishments are the result of you – our generous supporters. We could not have done this without your generosity and compassion.
Although the economic future for many Americans is uncertain, your support for our mission remains strong. Because of this we have been introducing many more military families to the compassionate spirit of the American people. Through your generosity we have been able to make our biggest commitment to date. In 2009 we have put a plan in place to take on 35 more home building projects. It is our hope that we will continue to inspire people of all ages and backgrounds to support our mission.
I recently attended a groundbreaking ceremony for Corporal Visnu Gonzales in New Jersey. In attendance was a high school student named Kristin Kosch from the Mahwah High School who got her whole school district involved in a fundraiser for Homes for Our Troops that raised $22,000. It is people like her and all of you that have allowed Homes for Our Troops to make a difference to so many injured service members.
I wish that every American could experience the emotions I feel when we turn over the keys to a specially adapted home to someone like Matt Keil, who was shot by a sniper and is now a quadriplegic. To see him wheel through his home with no barriers in his way. To watch him be able to use technology like the voice activated controls that control his heat, lights, doors and the audio and video components that for most of us are effortless. To see him smile.
Thank you everyone for believing in us and for helping us. But most of all thank you for supporting the greatest volunteers in the world. The men and women of the United States military.
With warmest regards,
John Gonsalves
Congratulations John!
Massachusetts is blessed with some great charities focused on the needs of veterans of the war on terror. Dylan DeSilva’s Cape Cod Cares for Our Troops and Dick Moody’s Operation Troop Support are two other local charities that we recommend 100%. If you are ever looking for a way to give back to the brave men and women serving us in the military, you cannot go wrong with any of these great local organizations. Also, don’t forget Soldiers Angels, a great national organization.
Disgraced aging malcontent Manny Ramirez hasn’t been able to pick himself a winner of a contract this offseason. After quiting on the team and stealing $20 million from the Red Sox last season, Manny went to the Dodgers and tore the cover off the ball. This only served to remind baseball owners that Manny’s talent is like a faucet, something that can be turned off at any time. Manny entered the offseason with dreams of another $100 million contract. When the Dodgers offered him 2-years for $45 million, he didn’t even dignify the offer with a no. He never responded. One can only speculate what Manny’s reaction was to the Dodgers latest offer, which is the only one he has on the table two weeks away from Spring Training,
Dodgers make Ramirez a one-year offer
The Los Angeles Dodgers made Manny Ramirez a one-year, $25 million offer Monday, according to a baseball source, a substantial departure from the two-year, $45 million offer they extended in November at the general manager meetings.
Schadenfreude never felt so good. This guy is the biggest insult to fans in all of sport. Rumor has it that agent Scott Boras is working on an application to create a new set of TARP funds, the Troubled Athlete Relief Program.
UPDATE: From the Herald, “Cardinals slugger and friend Albert Pujols, who told reporters in the Dominican on Thursday that Ramirez felt unwanted, “I speak with Manny every three days and he tells me, ‘Man, no one wants to sign me,’.
UPDATE II: Welcome Hub Blog readers.
UPDATE III: From an emailer, “The only way this gets better is if we learn Manny was an investor with Bernie Madoff.”
Pundit Review Radio will be back on WRKO next Sunday from 8-10pm with authors Bernard Goldberg and Eric Maddox and as always Bruce McQuain with another edition of Someone You Should Know.
8pm hour
Bernie Goldberg: A Slobbering Love Affair: The True (And Pathetic) Story of the Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media
A blistering takedown of the media’s slavish support for Obama, A Slobbering Love Affair highlights how the mainstream media has not only surrendered its integrity and objectivity, but could even endanger our democracy.
9pm hour
The Someone You Should Know radio collaboration began as an extension of Matt Burden’s series at Blackfive. In addition to having spent 28 years in the U.S. Army, Bruce is an incredible story teller and does an amazing job with the series every week. We are lucky to have him as part of the show.
Eric Maddox, author of Mission: Black List #1
Everyone has seen the footage: a heavily bearded Saddam Hussein blinking under the bright lights of infantry cameras, dazed to find himself in U.S. Army custody. Yet while the breaking news was broadcast around the world, the story of the remarkable events leading up to that moment on December 13, 2003, has never before been fully told. Mission: Black List #1 offers the complete, behind-the-scenes account of the search for Saddam Hussein, as related by the Army interrogator whose individual courage and sheer determination made the capture possible.
What is Pundit Review Radio?
Pundit Review Radio is where the old media meets the new. Each week we give voice to the work of the most influential leaders in the new media/citizen journalist revolution. Called “groundbreaking†by Talkers Magazine, this unique show brings the best of the blogs to your radio every Sunday evening from 8-10 pm EST on AM680 WRKO, Boston’s Talk Station.
Red Sox Nation has been loving the controversy caused by the new Joe Torre book that rips many of his formers players, especially A-Fraud. Schadenfreude indeed.
Here’s the best story yet from the book, and it involves the one and only Roger Clemens. Remember the NY City World Series in 2000 that had the Yankees facing off against the Mets? In one of the games Clemens started, Mike Piazza swung and broke his bat, a big piece of which went towards the pitchers mound. Clemens inexplicibly picked up the hunk of wood and threw it at Piazza. Clemens said he thought it was the ball. At the time, sports pundits said it was just Roger being Roger. Well, thanks to Joe Torre’s book, that bizzare incident now makes perfect sense.
If You Ever Wondered Why Roger Clemens Always Looked So Angry, Tom Verducci Has The Answer
The story comes courtesy of Yankee trainer Steve Donahue who told Verducci about what Roger Clemens did as part of his usual routine to get ready for facing the Mets in Game 2 of the 2000 World Series. Donahue said Clemens’ usual pregame preparation included taking a whirlpool bath at the hottest temperature possible.
“He’d come out looking like a lobster,†Donahue said.
But here’s the money quote:
Then Donahue would rub the hottest possible liniment on his testicles.
“He’d start snorting like a bull,†the trainer said. “That’s when he was ready to pitch.â€
Man, talk about way too much information. That must be why Roger was such a crotchety bastard on the mound. Well, that and the steroids.