Video Awesomeness: Douglas Brinkley Goes After Congressman at Hearing

In front of the House Natural Resources Committee, liberal historian Douglas Brinkley was addressed by Rep. Don Young (R-AK) as "Mr. Rice." The exchange devolved from there. It's safe to say that although the issue of Brinkley's name was the excuse for arguing, it had little to do with the reason. It was great too because at one point, Brinkley channeled serious Tea Party sentiment after Young told him to "be quiet."

Brinkley responded with, "You don't own me. I work for the private sector; you work for the taxpayers."

The Tea Party has needed a shot in the arm for a while now. Though I'm not making any predictions, this is the kind of thing it needs until something like it provides that boost. In fact, with Brinkley being a liberal who rejected elitist treatment from a Republican, the Tea Party has the perfect opportunity to demonstrate further that it is against ALL establishment politics, regardless of what side of the aisle it comes from. Brinkley's showdown is with two Republicans, Young and Committee Chairman Doc Hastings:

Via Breitbart:



Brinkley appeared on Ed Schultz's show after that exchange. The difference between the Tea Party and partisan hacks like Schultz is that the former is honest enough to support Brinkley in an exchange like the one he had with Young while Schultz would never do that if Brinkley was a conservative who attacked a Democrat on the committee.

Videos: ACORN's Bertha Lewis Rips Her Mask Off

These are phenomenal pieces of video that show the true face of Bertha Lewis, the former head of ACORN. Both of these clips come courtesy of Verum Serum. In the first one, Bertha admits to using "dirty tricks" to influence the outcome of a vote. If we had an actual Justice Department, this woman would be investigated for illegal activities.



This next clip doesn't so much reveal possible illegal behavior so much as the real Bertha, who bemoans how she had to put on a polite face in television interviewers who wanted to know about all those undercover videos that showed her organization's offices near unanimously offering to facilitate underage prostitution.

She then says there will never be a "post racial" America. Does that mean she believes in black supremacy?

It would seem so. In the world of reality, we call that racism.

Keep talkin' Bertha. Please, just keep talkin'

Video: Newt Nails Romney in 14 Seconds

That headline is a bit misleading because the 14 seconds Newt nails Romney with consist of 14 seconds of Romney speaking in support of amnesty for illegal aliens.

This all stemmed from a point of view Newt communicated at the CNN debate relative to immigration policy. Newt argued that an illegal alien, who has been in the US for 25 years, should not be ripped away from his / her family and deported. Romney obviously saw this as an opportunity to appeal to the conservative base on the immigration issue.

Via the New York Times:

DES MOINES — An intense debate over immigration flared among the Republican presidential candidates on Wednesday as Mitt Romney declared that Newt Gingrich “offered a new doorway to amnesty” when he called for a “humane” immigration policy to avoid deportation for people who are deeply rooted in their churches and communities.

Mr. Romney, who is eager to stop the rise of Mr. Gingrich with the Iowa caucuses only six weeks away, signaled that he intended to go after his rival with the same vigor he used against Gov. Rick Perry of Texas two months ago when he said Republicans were “heartless” for standing in the way of offering education to children of illegal immigrants.

With the controversy likely to shape the next phase of the nominating fight, Mr. Romney repeatedly used the word “amnesty” during a campaign visit here to describe the position Mr. Gingrich outlined at a debate Tuesday night. While aides to Mr. Gingrich forcefully refuted the characterization of his plan as “amnesty,” a swift backlash erupted among conservative activists that could present the biggest test of his resurgent candidacy.

However, as Newt pointed out via twitter, Romney communicated a position not long ago (2007) that places him to the left of the view expressed by former Speaker at the debate. This couldn't have been better if Gingrich had done this intentionally.

This is a flip-flop that would make John Kerry blush:



For the record, here is what Gingrich said that Romney decided to seize upon while ignoring his own words:



h/t Weasel Zippers

Russian News Anchor Fired for Giving Obama the Middle Finger

Remember that Russian news anchorette, Tatyana Limanova, who flipped viewers 'the bird' right after uttering Barack Obama's name? She's been fired; yet another victim of the Obama economy apparently.

Unfortunately, it appears she was actually using the gesture to communicate to studio technicians who were trying to get her to mess up her lines. Thinking she was off-camera as footage was being run over her voice, she was a split second too soon and appeared to communicate sentiment shared with about 40% of Americans.

It appears this situation is a lose/lose for Limanova. By not flipping Obama the finger, she lost the support of a lot of Americans. By flipping the finger right after saying Obama's name, she lost the support of her employer.

Via the Telegraph:

Sources close to the channel had previously tried to defuse the row by claiming that the newsreader had believed she was off camera at the time and merely providing a voice-over for a report. She had raised her middle finger as a jokey retort to studio technicians who had been trying to put her off her stride, they said.

Here is the video.

Is Obama Setting the Table for War in Syria?

As bad as the dictators in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Syria have been, the vacuum that has been filled in the first three instances is proving to be far worse. The Muslim Brotherhood has all but taken over. Al-Qaeda flags are flying in Egypt and Libya today. In each instance, the Obama administration's policies have been in favor of the Brotherhood. The same thing is transpiring in Syria right now and Bashar al-Assad appears to be the next dictator targeted for removal. The US is sending an aircraft carrier to the region under the auspices of helping American citizens leave the country.

Via Daily Caller:

The USS George H.W. Bush, the Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, has reportedly parked off the Syrian coast. The move comes as the U.S. embassy in Damascus urged Americans to “immediately” leave the country. 

“The U.S. embassy continues to urge U.S. citizens in Syria to depart immediately while commercial transportation is available,” began a statement released Wednesday on the embassy website. “The number of airlines serving Syria has decreased significantly since the summer, while many of those airlines remaining have reduced their number of flights.” 

In addition to urging citizens to leave the country, CBS News reports that Ambassador Robert Ford, who was recalled from Syria last month due to what the Obama administration called credible threats to his safety, will not return to the country later this month as planned. 

Syria’s government has been strongly condemned by the international community following months of state-sponsored violence against political activists protesting the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The violence is said to have left thousands dead in the country, which is a close ally of Iran and a sponsor of the Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah.

The next paragraph in the story should be one of great interest:

Adding to the sense of danger, Turkey, a NATO member and fierce critic of Assad’s government, recently warned its citizens to avoid traveling through the country after Syrian troops fired on at least two buses carrying Turkish Muslims returning from the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. 

Again, Turkey is the proposed site of a return to a global caliphate. Yes, the Ottoman Empire, which is what the Muslim Brotherhood was created to reestablish. Of course Turkey is critical of Assad.

With all the talk of instituting a "no-fly" zone over Syria, coupled with a US aircraft carrier being sent to the region, don't be surprised if American fighters end up being tasked with enforcing that no-fly zone. We are, after all, living through an administration who claims it has to issue Executive Orders because Congress is not acting.

The saddest part about all of these uprisings is the amount of money the United States is spending in support of them while all Turkey has to do is sit back and watch us do their bidding.

More at DC

Audio: Rush Limbaugh Introduces Michelle Obama with Sir-Mix-a-Lot

As a response to how Michele Bachmann was treated by the house band as she was introduced by Jimmy Fallon, Rush Limbaugh returned fire by introducing Michelle Obama as a guest on his program to the music of Sir Mix-a-Lot's 'I Like Big Butts.'

Vintage Rush:



Here is what prompted what you just heard:



h/t Hapblog

Video: RNC Ad Torpedoes Obama's Record Using Liberal Commentators

Ever since the mid-terms, it's been obvious that the strategy of the Obama administration is to paint Republicans as obstructionists and that the Congress is doing nothing, which is why Obama has to act using Executive Orders. This is egregiously false. It is a premise based on a lie. The Republican-led house has been passing countless pieces of legislation - as well as a budget - that have been dying in the Democratic-controlled Senate. Taking this even further, there has been wide-spread sentiment among DC insiders that Obama has been disengaged from the entire process.

This ad highlights that reality while using liberal commentators to do it. The best part is that the words of those commentators were not taken out of context.



h/t Hapblog

Is Gingrich in the Lead for Palin Endorsement?

The endorsement of Sarah Palin is like getting Boardwalk and Park Place in a game of Monopoly; everyone wants it. To this point, the former Alaska governor hasn't yet tipped her hand as to who she's going to endorse but the stars may be aligning for Newt to pick it up.

Via RCP:

Almost immediately upon Sarah Palin's announcement that she would not seek the Republican nomination for president, the phone calls from almost all of the GOP candidates began pouring in. They wanted her endorsement. 

While Palin has characteristically kept her cards close to her chest, advisers suggest that the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee is likely to endorse before someone emerges as the inevitable nominee -- and that Newt Gingrich appears to be best-positioned to secure her support. 

"They speak very favorably of Newt and what they see as his credentials as compared to Perry and Romney," one member of Palin's inner circle said of the former Alaska governor and her husband, Todd, who has long served as her unofficial chief adviser. Gingrich has been particularly effusive in expressing his admiration for Palin over the last few months, and she has returned the favor by heaping praise on the former House speaker. 

"Newt Gingrich again, I think, did the best because he seems to be above a lot of the bickering that goes on," Palin said on Fox News after a Republican debate in Las Vegas last month, adding that Gingrich would “clobber” President Obama in a general election debate.

The Obama media (mainstream media) wants Mitt Romney to win the nomination, just like it wanted McCain to win in 2008. The reason is three-fold. He is the candidate team Obama thinks it has the best chance to beat; he is the candidate least likely to generate an energetic conservative base; and as a liberal, Romney would be the left's best option if Obama were to lose.

That should tell every Republican voter that Romney is not the best candidate. He, in fact, might be the worst based on those reasons alone.

As for Gingrich, any debate he were to have with Obama would be something the Obama administration desperately wants to avoid. That should be obvious after watching Gingrich against his primary opponents. It is his debating that has got him where he is right now in the polls. The more debates, the better he does.

Assuming Palin is ready to endorse Gingrich and assuming that she has concerns about his D.C. establishment credentials, she's probably right to hold out her endorsement until she gets more of a public commitment from Gingrich - or whomever she chooses to endorse - that crony capitalism will be a thing of the past. That's been her hot-button issue and she should get as much as she can in return for her endorsement.

h/t Drudge

Occupy Buffalo Leader Left Army Before 9/11, says he Served in Afghanistan and Iraq

Occupy Buffalo leader Christopher Simmance has been touting his military record as one that includes tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as claims that he was badly wounded by an RPG. There's a big problem that he has, to this point, not been able to resolve. All of Simmance's military paperwork says he left the Army months before the 9/11 attacks. There are also multiple holes in his story. Via Buffalo News:

The claims of a dedicated member of the Occupy Buffalo movement that he saw combat in Iraq and Afghanistan are not supported by Army records.

Christopher M. Simmance has told several media outlets, including The Buffalo News, that he served as many as three tours of duty in those war zones and that he was severely injured in Afghanistan.

Service records obtained from the Army, however, show he was stationed at Fort Lewis, Wash., for three years and he left the active-duty Army in January 2001 -- before the 9/11 terror attacks.

Simmance insists his Army records are incomplete. He told The News he stands by his claims of seeing combat.

"Everything I've told you is completely true; I've got nothing to hide," Simmance said in one of three interviews.

People close to Simmance told The News they initially believed his claims of wartime deployments but they grew disenchanted when they discovered he was exaggerating his military service.

"I cannot confirm any of what he said," Denise Simmance, his mother, told The News.

There are other discrepancies like the locations Simmance lists as places he served. For example, his claim that he served in the Valley of Efah in Afghanistan is belied by the fact that the Valley of Efah is where David slew Goliath; that battle did not take place in Afghanistan.

These exaggerations haven't just caused problems for Simmance at Occupy Buffalo:

Christopher's mother gave an interview to a News columnist in November 2008 in which she shared details of Simmance's experiences in Iraq, including the horrific task of pulling body parts out of the rubble of a bombed home. Now, she doesn't believe any of it.

When she challenged him on his assertions, Christopher Simmance became defensive.

"Our relationship is severely damaged," his mother said.

Denise Simmance said she believes his need to exaggerate his service stems from a mental illness, and she worries for him.

A leader of the Occupy Buffalo movement has a mental illness? Really?

h/t Weasel Zippers