Monroerising.com

A leaked letter that Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.) sent letters to federal Regulators asking them to more closely monitor the financial health of IndyMac, the thrift operator based in Pasadena, California, had helped create a run on that bank. Senator Schumer wrote:

Concerned that IndyMac’s financial deterioration poses significant risks to both taxpayers and borrowers and that the regulatory community may not be prepared to take measures that would help prevent the collapse of IndyMac

In the 11 days after this letter depositors removed billions of dollars from the bank. John D. Hawke, the U.S. comptroller of the currency, called the leak “reckless and grossly irresponsible.”

The Los Angles Times blog has a great post on this story.

Schumer attempts to write the story off as “Blaming the fire on the person who dialed 911″. However it must be understood that Schumer, while sitting on the Senate Banking committee has inside information on the situation. Just because he has it does not mean he should release it. If Schumer were on the board of directors of a private company and he released information on the health of a company while they were working out issues and as a result shares of the company were bought or sold based on the info, he would be indicted for insider trading.

Why would Schumer do this? Because he suffers from a situation that afflict many Democrats. The worse off things in America are the better it is for Democrats. Schumer did not think twice about doing this. He went for the political angle instinctively.

Tags: Chuck Schumer, New York State, Presidential Politics, Tiberius by tiberius
3 Comments »

Friends, I saw that Occam wrote a post on this topic and while he does a fine job analyzing it, this is my take of the event.

At a rally in Joe Louis Arena in Detroit on Monday, members of the Barack Hussein Obama campaign would not allow two young, Muslim women from sitting behind the stage during a broadcast on national television. 

These two women, who were invitied by different campaign staffers, were both wearing hijabs, traditional Musim head scarves.  The member of the Obama campaign who refused their entrance stated that it was because of a “sensative political climate.”  These two women came to the rally with other Muslims who were also invited to stand and sit behind Obama, and after the two women were not allowed they refused to stand behind in support.  CNN

Isn’t it strange that a man who prides himself of change, has members of his campaign team specializing in discrimination?  What does he have against Muslims? I know he’s been called a muslim at various points over the campiagn and refutted it each time, but why can’t two of his supporters who happen to demostrate their faith by wearing head scarves, stand behind the man that they wish to be the next commander and chief? 

The true irony of the story is that Barack Hussien Obama’s speech at the Joe was about unity among the races.  As Hebba Aref, one of the girls who was not allowed to be on camera, said: “As he’s saying it, I’m thinking, ‘Well, wait a minute, I was obviously … profiled and discriminated against an hour ago.”

Tags: Articles, Barack Obama, Lemon Lyman, Presidential Politics by Lemon Lyman
3 Comments »

I actually feel bad for Obama on this one.  I disagree with almost every one of his policies, and I think he would be a disaster as a president, but that doesn’t stop me from feeling sympathy for the guy.

Recently, two Muslim women with traditional head coverings attended an Obama rally in Detroit.  Apparently by chance, these women ended up sitting behind him in what would be full view of the television cameras.

Can you imagine the harried conversations between the Obama handlers:

“Crap!  Those Muslim ladies are right in camera shot.  Now everyone will think Obama really is a Muslim.”

 ”Well, what are you going to do?  Move them?  Because they are wearing religious head coverings?  That seems pretty dirtbag.”

 ”Crap! The rally is about to start.  Are we going to be bigots or are we going to go live with two Muslim ladies in traditional head coverings standing behind a presidential candidate named Barack Hussein Obama who attended a Muslim elementary school but is actually a Christian and who doesn’t like to wear a flag pin and whose wife says crazy things like ”for the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country” and whose pastor is a complete racist loon bag who thinks that 9/11 was an inside job and that the CIA invented AIDS to kill black people?”

“Send the intern over and get those women out of here!”

 And that is exactly what happened.  According to a story in today’s Daily News:

Campaign volunteers barred Hebba Aref and Shimaa Abdelfadeel from appearing behind Obama at a Detroit rally because they feared the women’s traditional head coverings would create a negative impression of the candidate on National TV.

Of course, this necessitated personal apologies from Barry himself.  That must have sucked.

 For the record, I do not buy into those stupid rumors about Obama being a closet Muslim who will change the Constitution to put the United States under Sharia law and ban all beer and stogies and make all the ladies wear crazy head scarves and make our sons grow Saddam Hussein mustaches, and make soccer that national pastime instead of baseball, or whatever it is that these idiots are worried about.  If I get one more email along these lines I am going to terrorist fist jab a puppy. 

I didn’t intend for this article to turn into a rant about the moronic crap that people forward into my email box, but I have to get this off of my chest: BEFORE YOU FORWARD THE EMAIL, CHECK TO SEE IF IT IS MARGINALLY ACCURATE ON SNOPES.COM.  For instance, Snopes has a nice article debunking the Obama is a Muslim rumor.  Please read it.  (Also, Microsoft and/or AOL will not send you money for forwarding along an “email beta test.”  Sorry to burst your bubble.) 

The Republicans are going to have a hard enough time as it is this election.  It makes it worse when people waste their time on non-issues like Obama’s secret religious beliefs instead of the clear substantive problem with an Obama presidency:  HE IS A HOPELESS LEFTIST WHO WILL DRIVE THE ECONOMY INTO THE GROUND WITH NEW TAXES AND RIDICULOUS PROTECTIONIST TRADE POLICIES.

And if he really was a secret Muslim agent bent on destroying the country, don’t you think he would have come up with a better name? 

Tags: Articles, Barack Obama, Occam, Presidential Politics by Occam
5 Comments »

As Presidential hopeful John McCain addressed a crowd yesterday in Springfield Mo, he called for construction of 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030 and pledged $2 billion a year to “make clean cole a reality.”  There are currently 104 reactors  running in the U.S.  These reactors account for nearly 20% of the country’s electricity needs.

Every year, these reactors alone spare the atmosphere from the equivalent of nearly all auto emissions in America. Yet for all these benefits, we have not broken ground on a single nuclear plant in over thirty years,” he said. “And our manufacturing base to even construct these plants is almost gone.”

With the $2 billion in federal funds, he said, “We will build the demonstration plants, refine the techniques and equipment, and make clean coal a reality. This single achievement will open vast amounts of our oldest and most abundant resource. And it will deliver not only electricity but jobs to some of the areas hardest hit by our economic troubles.”

McCain has finally taken the step of of having a conservative stance on an issue.  This is exactly what this country needs not only right now but for the future.  He has laid out a plan for the short term of drilling offshore, and McCain has laid out a plan for the future by the construction of several nuclear reactors. 

I will say this however;  we should not be waiting for 45 nuclear reactors to be built by 2030.  We need to start production now.  Our country is already several years behind.  It has been over thirty years since the last reactor has been built on U.S soil.  The process needs to start now.  France satisfies approximately 75% of their electricity needs through nuclear power.  This should be the only page we take out of Frances’ playbook.

Tags: Articles, John McCain, Presidential Politics, Sherman by Sherman
1 Comment »

Tony (Antonin) Rezko, was a real estate developer who Barack Obama got a sweetheart deal from. They both bought identical pieces of property which were adjacent to each other. The deal was from the same developer and closed on the same day, for some reason Rezko paid a lot more for his land than the Junior Senator from Illinois did. Barack probably just used his superior charisma to negotiate a better deal

Last week it was reported in monroerising.com about Jim Johnson,who was Barrack Obamas VP Veter. Johnson was part of the sub prime mortgage debacle that Obama blamed for creating the mortgage crisis. As it turns out, not only did Obama get sweetheart real estate deals but so did Democrat North Dakota Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad. Conrad who got caught said:

Conrad said it also appears he was given special treatment on a mortgage when he was financing the purchase of a Bismarck, N.D., apartment building from his brothers. He said he would refinance that loan with another lender.

Wait it doesn’t stop there Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher J. Dodd Democrat Connecticut, got his own sweetheart deal. This story from MSNBC

Still, their involvement in a special program that awarded discounts and waived fees for “friends” of Mozilo — first reported by Conde Nast Portfolio magazine’s Web site — raised questions about whether lawmakers weighing a homeowner rescue themselves benefited from the actions of a leading offender in the mortgage meltdown.

So what we have is the Senate Banking Committee chairman Dodd and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Conrad saying they knew nothing of these deals and it was a surprise to them. One thing to always keep in mind is that when you close a mortgage you have a lawyer with you. These guys are also lawyers who claim to understand the U.S. economy well enough to raise your taxes!

This Sub Prime mortgage scam is starting to look a lot like another land deal down in Arkansas called White Water, remember that?

Tags: Articles, Barack Obama, Presidential Politics by tiberius
1 Comment »

At what point will Senator Obama and the Democrats have to accept that we and the Iraqi government are winning the war? Does Obama and the Democrats not know about about developments in Iraq? Below are many successes happening in Iraq in the last few months that we are not hearing. These are from well respected sources such as the New York Times and PBS News:

1. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki sent the Iraqi army into Basra to quell the Mahdi Army. The Mahdi’s are led by Iranian Backed Muqtada Al-Sadr. Al-Sadr is responsible for much of the Iraqi civilian, Iraqi Military and American deaths. The Iraqi army drove out the Mahdi Army and seized the ports from Iranian-backed militias. This article from the New York Times
2. Defeated the Mahdi Army in Najaf, Karbala, Hilla, Kut, Nasiriyah and Diwaniyah
3. With no American ground forces, the Iraqi army entered and occupied Sadr City suburb of Baghdad. Sadr City is a Mahdi Army stronghold. This article from PBS
4. The Iraqi parliament enacted de-Baathification This was one of the Items that Democrats would we needed beside military success, that Iraq needed political reform and reunification was what was needed. De-Bathification has happened with vetted ex Saddam Hussein military. These skilled well vetted officers who were Iraqi Patriots and not Saddam henchmen can once again serve Iraq.
5. Parliament passed reconciliation benchmarks a pension law, an amnesty law, and provincial elections and powers law. The highly important Oil sharing is now happening by a parliamentary government budgeting process. This article from the New York Times

So why do the democrats and Obama refuse to recognize this? The answer is that they have no political advantage to do so. Senator Harry Reid claimed the war was lost. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi called the war a failure. Barrack Obama on his own website still says we need to turn a page in Iraq and leave regardless of the drastically improving situation

If Obama were to declare that the war has turned and we are winning it discounts everything he believes. In 2006 the Democrats won with a theme of ending the war, not winning it. It is going to be interesting when General Petraeus reports in July 2008 that the surge has met its military goals and most of it’s political goals.

Tags: Articles, Barack Obama, Presidential Politics, Tiberius by tiberius
3 Comments »

I’m new to this site, and I was perusing the archived postings and observed that Monroe Rising didn’t have any posts that spoke about John McCain. As the GOP’s next standard bearer I thought this was strange. I emailed Cincinnatus and alerted him to this fact and he told me to go ahead and write a post on John McCain.

I’m an Independent Rochester resident who has been utterly outraged and disgusted by the Democratic Party of the past year and a half. They took control of Congress and progress slowly grinded to a halt. They control 2/3 of New York State’s government and our standard of living is steadily decreasing. And then to boot, they take 6 months to nominate a presidential candidate and come to find out he’s a dyed in the wool socialist. All of these reasons are driving me closer and closer to understanding why Republicans are in power here in Monroe County. It also leads me to understand why many believe John McCain will be our next Commander in Chief; and to tell the truth, this Independent voter thinks so too.

For the first time in long while, Republicans have nominated a true moderate as the next leader of the party. In today’s increasingly global world, someone who still carries traditional American values but is willing to work with the party system is truly important. Not like how the Democratic Party nominating a gentleman who wishes to emulate the European philosophy of socialism. Americans are not ready for socialism. It goes against everything the American dream stands for. I’m hoping I never wake up from my “American dream.” [Read more →]

Tags: Articles, Federal Officials, John McCain, Presidential Politics by El Guapo
7 Comments »

Friends, as promised, here is Part 2 of 2 in previewing the 2008 Vice Presidential selection field. Today, I’ll tackle the Republican possibilities. Once again, I’ll give a brief summary of their resume, a few of my own comments, followed by the Lemon Lyman Rating of VP Appeal. As with Part 1, this is just a list of the top-tier candidates and if you feel there is any others don’t hesitate to mention them in the comments.

Charlie Crist: Governor of Florida
Crist has been Governor since the beginning of 2007 when he succeeded Jeb Bush. Crist endorsed McCain in the Florida primary and has joined him at numerous campaign events. While his white hair may say otherwise, Crist is only 51 years old. Crist on the ticket puts Florida solidly in the red column and its 27 electoral votes in the McCain total. Crist has been called the first Black Florida Governor based on his relationship with the NAACP and many black Democratic Florida legislators. He was one of three possible VP candidates to be invited to McCain’s home for Memorial Day. There has been concern from conservatives regarding the divorced, never re-married Crist. Crist is the unofficial pre of Lemon Lyman to be McCain’s running mate.
       Lemon Lyman Rating-9.0 (out of 10)

Bobby Jindal: Governor of Louisiana
Jindal is youngest Governor in the history of the United States at 36 years old, the first Indian American ever to be elected Governor and the second Asian American to be elected Governor in the continental United States. He is a former Congressman and former Assistant Secretary for Health and Human Services. He is regarded as one of the future leaders of the conservative faction of the Republican Party. While a conservative, Jindal has previously been endorsed by New Orleans Democratic mayor. He was one of three possible VP candidates to be invited to McCain’s home for Memorial Day. Jindal is touted as a possible second coming of Ronald Reagan.
       Lemon Lyman Rating-8.0

Mike Huckabee: Governor (former) of Arkansas
The former Governor and Baptist minister was one of the last of the 2008 GOP presidential candidates to withdraw from the race. Huckabee vowed to stay in the race until McCain reached the necessary number of delegates. He is a favorite of the Evangelical branch of the party and as seen as an olive branch to the conservatives so that they do not stay home on election. He has a tendency to not think before he speaks, often times using his sense of humor to speak his mind and sometimes insult people. Huckabee is seen as a Washington outsider.
       Lemon Lyman Rating-6.0

Mitt Romney: Governor (former) of Massachusetts
As the former Governor of a quite liberal state, Romney presents McCain with an interesting scenario. As one of his most vocal and bitter rivals during the primary season, Romney has jumped in full support of McCain for President and has already stated that he would accept the VP if offered. In West Virginia however, McCain was encouraging conservative’s voters, not voting for him, to vote for Huckabee rather than Romney. As a Mormon, Romney would face some amount of ire. As a millionaire, Romney was able to finance his own campaign and his widely regarded as a political outsider who is especially gift in areas of the economy. While Romney is a former Governor of Massachusetts, he would not put it back in play for McCain. He was one of three possible VP candidates to be invited to McCain’s home for Memorial Day.
       Lemon Lyman Rating-5.0

Joe Lieberman: Senator from Connecticut
Lieberman, a former Democrat and present Independent who caucuses with the Democrats, would be an interesting choice by McCain. McCain and Lieberman are old friends who have been colleagues in the Senate for years. Lieberman is the most prominent Democrat to endorse McCain. He was Al Gore’s Vice Presidential nominee in the 2000 election and ran for President in 2004 but withdrew on after Super Tuesday. As Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, he would add to an already sizeable reputation McCain has regarding security issues. Lieberman would be no help putting Connecticut back into play. He has stumped for McCain dozens of times and often appears on 24 hour news channel touting McCain.
       Lemon Lyman Rating-7.0

Colin Powell: former Secretary of State
Colin Powell is one of the few Americans, who never served as POTUS, who can be called an “American Institution.” He is a former National Security Advisor, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and former Secretary of State. As a General, Powell was the youngest and first African American to ever be named Chair of the JCS. While a Republican, he is as a moderate and has immense popularity, more so than either candidate in the race. Powell fought for President Bush’s Iraq War Doctrine while at the State Department but later stated that intelligence the Administration used for the invasion was “wrong.” However, McCain may find a harder task than getting Powell on the ticket will be to stop him from endorsing Obama.
       Lemon Lyman Rating-10.0 *in a perfect world*

Tags: Federal Officials, John McCain, Lemon Lyman, Presidential Politics by Lemon Lyman
2 Comments »

Friends, now that the Democrats and Republicans have their presidential nominees, its time for the next horse race within the parties to begin. Vice Presidential selections are due at some point in the next month. I feel it is my duty to show some potential Veeps for each party with a little bit of their resumes and some of my own comments on them and the Lemon Lyman Rating on VP Appeal.

Today, I’ll lead of with the Democrats as part 1 of 2. I will tackle the Republican field tomorrow. With the Democratic field, I’ll ignore Hillary Clinton because you can hear about her chances on CNN anytime. This is obviously not an all-inclusive list of contenders for the VP slot but a listing of those who I feel who are most likely to be named. Feel free to comment on your thoughts and any additional names that would be appropriate.

Joe Biden: Senator from Delaware
Biden was a candidate in the early stages of the 2008 election cycle and dropped out the night of the Iowa caucuses where he received very little support. He is seen to be a liberal lion within the Senate. As Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relation Committee, he would give Obama a running mate with some experience with affairs of state, a position where he is notoriously weak. He is also mentioned as a possible Secretary of State. However, far too often Biden has trouble thinking before he speaks. Last fall he attracted attention after calling Obama “articulate.” It was seen by some, Rev. Al Sharpton included, as a shot that most black people weren’t articulate whereas Obama broke the mold.
Lemon Lyman Rating-6.0 (out of 10)

Chris Dodd: Senator from Connecticut
Dodd was also a candidate in the early stages of the 2008 election cycle and also dropped out of the race the night of the Iowa caucuses where he received the lowest totals of all Democratic candidates. He has served in the House and the Senate since 1975. His father was also a Senator and is one of the few members of the Senate to ever be censured. He is the Chairman of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, as well as a member of the Committee on Foreign Relations. His campaigns are heavily funded by the financial services industry, a group in which he regulates in his Chairmanship. He has also told the Federal Election Commission that he will not be seeking re-election in 2010. Dodd is a Lemon Lyman personal favorite despite his Liberal ways.
Lemon Lyman Rating-6.0

Wesley Clark: General (retired) from Arkansas
Clark has experienced every American conflict from 1965 till his retirement in 1999. Clark is the former Supreme Allied Commander Europe for NATO. He ran for President in 2004 and dropped out of the race on February 11, 2004. For this election, he had endorsed Hillary Clinton and is a friend of the Clinton family. His selection could bring some Hillary supporters along with those who are not pleased with Obama’s foreign relations credentials. Clark is regarded as one of the foremost American experts on foreign affairs. He is seen by many as a person who has lived outside the political spectrum and is not popular with many in the party due to his pro-Republican views.
Lemon Lyman Rating-9.0

Bill Richardson: Governor of New Mexico
Richardson is a former Congressman, Ambassador to the United Nations, and Secretary of Energy under the Clinton administration. He ran for President in 2008 but dropped out after poor showings in Iowa and New Hampshire. He endorsed Obama on March 21, 2008. That move, after such close relationship with the Clintons, was highly criticized by members of the Democratic Party. James Carville has compared him to Judas. He identifies himself as a Hispanic, a group in which Obama has had trouble courting. He has lied in his autobiography about being drafted by Major League Baseball’s Kansas City Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Lemon Lyman Rating-5.0

John Edwards: Senator (former) from North Carolina
Edwards, who ran for President in 2004 and 2008 was seen to be one of the top three challengers for the Democratic nomination for this cycle. Was the Vice Presidential nominee of John Kerry in his losing effort of 2004. Was quickly out spent by Clinton and Obama and never gained a prominent following. He suspended his campaign shortly after the South Carolina primary. He endorsed Obama on May 14 after being courted by both the Obama and Clinton camps. He campaigned on the plight of the working middle class, a group Obama struggles to gain. He campaigned vigorously on ending poverty despite being a multi-millionaire.
Lemon Lyman Rating-7.0

Jon Powers: Guy from New York
Powers is apparently a fast rising star amongst the Liberal/Progressive/Socialist factions of the Democratic Party. He is running for the 26th Congressional District of New York and has been carrying on the campaign since shortly after the 2006 election. The current substitute teacher has been cited lately for questionable campaign ethics after paying his rent with campaign donations and politicizing a Memorial Day event. The Iraqi War veteran also claims to have founded the War Kids Relief organization but the website no longer exists and seems to be a created resume builder for his congressional run. Many of his aides and supporters say that he is “super…” which is the most compelling reason for why someone should be elected to office. He is also apparently the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Lemon Lyman Rating-0.0 *would be in the negatives if the LL scale allowed for it*

Tags: Articles, Barack Obama, Federal Officials, Lemon Lyman, Presidential Politics by Lemon Lyman
3 Comments »

Barack Obama has chosen a group of people to help him select his vice president. Two of them have serious issues. One of them is Eric Holder who was deeply involved in the scandalous Clinton pardons of Marc Rich the Associated Press states:

The last time Washington attorney Eric Holder participated in a high-profile vetting, it was for fugitive financier Marc Rich

Many on the left believe that Obama is vetting Holder himself for Attorney General. Very Liberal columnist James Oliphant writes:

Given Holder’s credentials, it isn’t outside the realm of possibility to suggest he could wind up the nation’s first African-American attorney general should Obama win the White House

The other VP veter is Jim Johnson from disgraced sub prime mortgage lender Countrywide Financial. He is also the former CEO of mortgage giant Fannie Mae. Johnson may not have done anything illegal at Country Wide, but Obama accuses them of being the cause of the mortgage crisis. So why would he pick him to help select his VP? The answer is Johnson is a huge fund raiser for Obama. So where is the change Barrack? Looks like politics as usual.

Tags: Barack Obama, Presidential Politics by IrondequoitEagle
1 Comment »