Video: Ted Cruz Rips John McCain from Senate floor; does so without saying his name while also using the term 'Wacko Birds'

Another awesome Ted Cruz Senate floor speech. He packs a whole bunch of deliciousness into this one it's difficult to chronicle. First, the root argument. Essentially, at the heart of Cruz's argument is that a super majority threshold should be required to raise the debt ceiling.

Everything else includes the following:

1. Outing his Republican colleagues for engaging in a Kabuki dance.
2. Ripping John McCain more politely than anyone could have possibly done.
3. Getting even more mileage out of McCain's 'wacko birds' comment a few months ago in response to Rand Paul's filibuster.

Though you don't McCain in this video, he was obviously in the room and was likely quite red.

h/t Hot Air

Obama to Republicans on National Debt: Heads I win, Tails you lose

Every time we reach another national debt crisis fork in the road (debt ceiling, continuing resolution, fiscal cliff, etc.), Barack Obama flips a coin. Right before doing so, he sets the rules: heads I win, tails you lose. The problem is that his opponents accept the terms.

It's common knowledge that Obama is quite familiar with the Cloward-Piven strategy. In fact, he's been implementing it since he was first inaugurated in 2009. That strategy is to so overwhelmingly burden entitlement programs that the system eventually collapses. The strategy was originally created in the 1960's and the Obama administration has applied it in a 21st Century world (Obama phones just one example).

As the debt climbs higher and higher, Obama banks on two theorems he might see as a win/win situation (heads and tails):

1. The collapse of the society Cloward-Piven strategists want, gets closer.
2. Arrest / reversal of the process becomes increasingly more difficult as collapse approaches.

Theorem number one is precisely why Obama doesn't just appear to be disinterested in solving the debt crisis; his actions and demeanor clearly demonstrate that he's interested in furthering it (heads I win). The lavish vacations and runaway spending that seems ridiculously outrageous to clear-thinking individuals will never embarrass him because it's all part of his plan. The longer his opponents attempt to embarrass him, the more he spends because he knows he either has those opponents snookered or neutered (Boehner saying he 'absolutely' trusts Obama is a case in point). The reason he's behaving like a man who wants to collapse the economy is because he does.

The more debt the country goes into, the closer we get to the endgame of the Cloward-Piven strategy - collapse.

Yet, for some reason, Obama's political opponents who have the power to confront this problem (House leadership), refuse to admit the truth and, subsequently allow Obama to further test and reinforce his first theorem. This can be seen perfectly in Speaker John Boehner's refusal to attach an Obamacare de-funding mechanism to the Continuing Resolution, which means a monstrous steroid injection to both theorems. That Rep. Paul Ryan put forth a budget that de-funds Obamacare while also knowing it hadn't a chance of passing, demonstrates that Obama's opponents know what's right but refuse to do it.

The longer theorem number one can be tested before Republican leadership decides to arrest and reverse the process, the better it is for Obama because it will only strengthen theorem number two.

Sequestration gave us a look into what Obama would do if Speaker John Boehner, et. al. chose to test theorem number two on a more grandiose scale, like say, the upcoming CR (tails you lose).

Up until sequestration actually happened, the Republicans never really knew how Obama would handle things if the former never caved because... Republicans always seemed to cave. Whether it was the debt ceiling, CR's, or the fiscal cliff, in the end, Obama always got another blank check and the national debt has just continued rising. As such, the president has been able to further test both theorems.

When sequestration happened, we got our first glimpse at Obama's playbook if Boehner, et. al. ever made a serious attempt to reverse the country's self-destructive fiscal course. The cancellation of White House tours and the release of hardened criminals were indicators. In the first instance, American citizens were told to stay off their own property. It wasn't just unnecessary, political, petty, and punitive - it was also symbolic. More seriously, the decision to release thousands of hardened criminals was meant to threaten a much larger White House-sanctioned prison release if House leadership decided to finally deal with the debt crisis.

In essence, Obama was saying that if the opposition attempted to confront the real debt problem, he would hold America hostage. This communicates something else as well, namely, that Obama isn't as eager to test theorem number two as he is theorem number one. He's acting like a man who wants to reach the Cloward-Piven endgame by never having to win a game of chicken over theorem number two. The administration's handling of sequestration did more harm to Obama than it did to House Republican leadership, which is why the latter should ultimately force Obama's hand.

If this administration was so willing to use sequestration to so transparently harm Americans, what would it do if the government was shut down because House leadership decided not to pass that CR?

Perhaps Obama doesn't want us to find out because he knows his actions will finally be transparently his alone and that he will lose.

John Boehner Projection: Obama has 'balls made out of marshmellows'?!

Caveat necessary. The video below does not consist of House Speaker John Boehner saying that Obama's balls are made out of marshmellows. However, it does include a man named John Mauldin who claims to have been present when Boehner said it and it's not at all likely that someone like Mauldin would falsely attribute those words to Boehner.

So, for the sake of argument, let's assume Boehner actually said it. According to Mauldin, the House Speaker made the charge during the debt ceiling debate, which took place in the summer of 2011. In a word, the charge meant that Obama lacked 'audacity', which is defined as:

boldness or daring, especially with confident or arrogant disregard for personal safety, conventional thought, or other restrictions.

Yep, that pretty much describes Obama. It's also the opposite of Boehner's assessment.

If we include the debt ceiling debate and every battle Boehner has been involved in with Obama since then, how many has Boehner actually won?

Uh, can't think of any.

When it comes to the most powerful Republican in elected office (Boehner) and the most powerful Democrat in elected office (Obama), there have been two kinds of battles.

1. Battles fought
2. Battles not fought

As for the battles fought...

• The debt ceiling
• The 2012 elections
• Fiscal cliff
• Tax cuts
• Spending cuts
• Sequestration
• Continuing Resolution
• Healthcare Debate
• Deficit / Debt Reduction

In all of the battles fought, it's hard to find one instance in which Obama has lost since the 2010 elections, which were actually won by the same Tea Party Boehner doesn't seem to have much regard for.

The debt continues to grow, despite the fact that the House is responsible for the purse strings; the 2012 elections were a major embarrassment for the Republican Party in general, to include Boehner as the House's gavel-holder. His lack of fight after the 2010 elections contributed to the base staying home in 2012. Boehner bemoaned making mistakes in the fiscal cliff talks by saying he shouldn't have negotiated with Obama and that he was 'full of regret' over how he handled it. Spending cuts? What spending cuts? Sequestration? Well, despite it being Obama's idea, Boehner is proving woefully inadequate when it comes to making the president own it.The continuing resolution debate will heat up in March. If the government is not allowed to shut down, Boehner will lose another round to Obama. Healthcare debate? Obama definitely didn't lack fortitude / audacity there.

As for debt / deficit reduction... Obama loves runaway debt and deficits. Let's assume for the sake of argument that Boehner wants to stem / reverse the tide. After the Republicans were swept into office in great numbers in the 2010 elections, Boehner had momentum (and the gavel). When it comes to the national debt / annual deficits, nothing has changed.

Advantage: 'Marshmellow' balls.

As for the battles not fought, two come to mind:

• Fast and Furious
• Benghazi Investigation

How about the battles not fought? Boehner REFUSED to make an issue of Fast and Furious; the Obama administration was wobbly in the knees for several months. Oversight Committee chairman Darrell Issa was essentially on his own. It was obvious Boehner wanted to avoid getting to the bottom of a scandal that demanded justice.

Marshmellows, Mr. Speaker?

How about the investigation into Benghazi? Boehner has been all but silent. Rep. Frank Wolf has twice formally asked the Speaker to form a House Select Committee to help get to the bottom of that scandal, which involves dead Americans and likely criminal activity on the part of the Obama administration.

Marshmellows, Mr. Speaker?

Really?! I believe Barack Obama is the worst president this country has ever had but to accuse him of having 'balls' of 'marshmellows' is rather audacious in light of your track record when it comes to fighting him.

Boehner's behavior smacks of projection. His entire record over the last two years reveals a man who is afraid to fight and is getting beaten like a drum. Yet, the guy who beats him is the coward? Mr. Boehner, with all due respect, the accusation you allegedly made about Obama 18 months ago appears to be an accusation you should be levying at yourself. Instead, you appear to be employing a psychological defense mechanism that is preventing you from making that admission.

Projection is a psychological defense mechanism which states:

Projection is the misattribution of a person’s undesired thoughts, feelings or impulses onto another person who does not have those thoughts, feelings or impulses. Projection is used especially when the thoughts are considered unacceptable for the person to express, or they feel completely ill at ease with having them. For example, a spouse may be angry at their significant other for not listening, when in fact it is the angry spouse who does not listen. Projection is often the result of a lack of insight and acknowledgement of one’s own motivations and feelings.

If Boehner is uncomfortable accepting the reality that it is he who lacks courage, he very well could be projecting that lack of courage onto Obama. The question that needs to be asked of Boehner is a simple one:

If Obama has 'balls made out of marshmellows' Mr. Speaker, how come he keeps beating you?

There's really no reason to doubt the authenticity of what Mauldin attributed to Boehner as having said but it is truly unbelievable that Boehner - of all people - would be the one to say it:



h/t WZ

Mitch McConnell agrees to let Obama Fiscal Cliff Proposal come to vote; Harry Reid declines

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) proposed bringing the absurd fiscal cliff proposal brought forth by Barack Obama via Timothy Geithner. He was calling Majority Leader Harry Reid's bluff and it worked. Reid is refusing to vote on Obama's plan. This is precisely why I advocated such a position back on November 30th.

Via The Hill:

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Wednesday offered an amendment to force a vote on President Obama’s deficit-reduction plan, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) was having none of it.

“Last week [Treasury] Secretary [Timothy] Geithner brought up a proposal that was so unserious,” McConnell said on the floor, “I would like to see if my Democratic friends would like to support it.”

McConnell suggested that the Senate vote on what he called the president’s “ridiculous” plan as an amendment to the Russian trade bill that is being considered.

Here is McConnell's speech:



The reason for this is simple. If we are headed toward economic collapse regardless of these negotiations, giving Obama everything he wants will ensure that he owns the mess. Unfortunately, John Boehner doesn't see it the same way that McConnell does. Consequently, he's playing right into the hands of Obama's pseudo-negotiations and machinations, which illustrates perfectly the difference between caving and bluffing.

The more of these negotiations take place, the more opportunity Obama will have to blame Republican intransigence when the collapse happens.

In short, by negotiating with Obama, Boehner is playing right into his hands.

It'd be nice to see Republican leaders have as much spine when they're in the majority as when they are in the minority.

Video: Socialist US Senator Bernie Sanders channels Nathan Thurm

Despite the fact that the Democrats have not passed a budget in well over 1,000 days, Socialist Senator Bernie Sanders (the socialist moniker is official, not ad hominem) is living in a world where the Democrats passed one last year.

Via Breitbart:



I haven't seen that kind of denial since Nathan Thurm:

Video: How Illegal Aliens get big Tax Refunds from IRS

In short, illegal aliens are allowed to work in the U.S. Since they don't have social security numbers, they are issued another type of identification number. With that number, they are allowed to take advantage of what's called an Additional Child Tax Credit. They have figured out that the more children they list on their returns, the more money they get back.

So what do they do? They list nephews and nieces.... who LIVE IN MEXICO!

Via WTHR, h/t Lynn Woolley:

Video: If I wanted America to Fail

This video, courtesy of Free Market America, is in the spirit of the Paul Harvey clip from 1965 called, "If I were the Devil." FMA gets a little more specific, based on three years of Obama and nails it here.



h/t Jawa

Amazing Video of Dick Durbin at Press Conference

At a hotel in Chicago, Senator and communist Dick Durbin (D-IL) was conducting a press conference when a reporter named William J. Kelly with the Washington Times began asking him a question about both his comments regarding the Tea Party and whether or not Durbin bears any of the responsibility for the S&P downgrade. Durbin's refusal to answer says everything but perhaps the best line in this video comes from a guy standing next to the reporter.

"You can stand and listen but you can't answer questions during a press conference." Only a liberal could come up with that one.



h/t Fox Nation

Video: Latest Rick Santelli Rant - 'BBB' Rating without Tea Party

Some people just flat-out shine when times are toughest. CNBC's Rick Santelli is one of them. In February of 2009, his rant on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange birthed the Tea Party. He's had countless righteous rants since then. He's at his best when he's fed up. He seems to make more sense the angrier he gets. This one might actually be a cut above. Here, he sticks up for the Tea Party in response to people like John Kerry, David Axelrod, and MoveOn.org who call this a 'Tea Party downgrade.' Santelli asserts that if it wasn't for the Tea Party, our S&P rating would now be BBB instead of AA+.

He also makes easy work out of the guy who tries to debate him - Steve Lies. At the end, Lies looks apoplectic.



h/t Rebel Pundit

Video: George Will Smacks Down former Obama Car Czar

Former Obama car czar Steve Rattner appeared on ABC's This Week alongside George Will. In addition to the S&P downgrade, one of the things on the table was the increasingly incendiary rhetoric that has been used by the left when talking about the Tea Party (this is the new civility demanded by the left - they can smear, the right can't). Host Christianne Amanpour pointed out to Rattner that he called congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), who was sitting at the table, a terrorist (Chaffetz voted against the debt ceiling bill). Rattner then attempted to backpedal by saying he wasn't referring to Chaffetz specifically (nice try, Steve).

Then Will jumps in and refers to Rattner's appearance on Morning Joe, in which the former car czar referred to the Tea Party as being like a suicide bomber on Times Square. Rattner denied ever saying it but as this video shows, he lied.

As I think about it, why is catching a leftwing socialist in a lie newsworthy? Oh, well. Just watch.

Via Breitbart:

Video: David Axelrod Sounds like Charlie Brown's Parents

Obama adviser David Axelrod looks like Nathan Thurm in this exchange with CBS's Bob Schieffer while sounding like any adult in a Charlie Brown cartoon. In between the nervous, rambling lines of incoherence, Axelrod manages to spit out his belief that this is a 'Tea Party downgrade,' in reference to S&P downgrading us to AA+. Aside from that, there wasn't much he said worth reporting. He looked shaken, nervous, and like a man whose entire belief system is crashing down. More than once, Axelrod said 'compromise is not a dirty word.' Uh, Dave, it's a dirty word when it involves socialists.





As an added bonus, John Kerry also called this a 'Tea Party downgrade.'

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

h/t Verum Serum and The Blaze

Video: Rick Santelli School's Washington Post's Golden Boy

Ezra Klein is a writer for the Washington Post who many consider to be the leftwing media's rising star - the next Paul Krugman perhaps. He supported single-payer and was the founder of Journolist which essentially was a way for all of the leftwing media types to get together online and collude on how best to attack the right and come up with the best narratives each could use in furtherance of that effort. Anyway, on Morning Joe, Klein went up against the man credited with starting the Tea Party with his righteous rant on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange back in February of 2009, Rick Santelli.

It's easy to spot Klein's elitist smugness but what makes this great is his elder - Santelli - thoroughly schools him.

Via The Blaze:



Here is the legendary Santelli rant referred to in the exchange with Klein:

USA Credit Rating Downgraded, Geithner said 'No Risk' of Downgrade in April

At some point, the track record of lies and just being plain wrong should catch up with this administration. We were told that unless the debt ceiling was raised, the stock market would crash. The debt ceiling was raised and the stock market dropped over 500 points in one day. We were also told that unless we raised the debt ceiling, we risked our AAA credit rating. The debt ceiling was raised and less than one week later, our credit rating has been downgraded to AA+. For added measure, here is Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner in April saying there is 'no risk' that America loses that AAA credit rating.



Here's more on the S&P downgrade.

h/t Weasel Zippers

Video: ABC's Jake Tapper Grills Jay Carney

At yesterday's White House press briefing, ABC's Jake Tapper wanted specific answers from press secretary, Jay Carney about what Barack Obama is doing to help fix the economy. Though Tapper never got a sufficient answer, the answers he DID get from Carney were very revealing. Carney used a lot of words to essentially say that the president is doing nothing to help fix the economy. Toward the end of this clip, Carney comes up with nothing more than saying Obama is working with is economic advisors but offers absolutely ZERO specifics.

Amazing



h/t Hapblog

Video: Best Way to Solve Debt Problem?

The federal government increases its spending each year by between 6% - 7% and when you hear politicians talk about spending cuts, they're talking about reducing the amount of future growth in spending that grows government by a slightly less amount. It's Washington logic. Only there could increases in spending be called spending cuts. True spending cuts would involve freezing the amount of government spending so that the 6% - 7% figure actually becomes 0%. Reductions in spending should be done from that because well, that would be an actual spending cut.

That brings us to the plan of Rep. Connie Mack (R-FL). Basically, if you cut spending by 1% each year, the budget will be balanced in eight years. Instead of growing government spending by 5% instead of 7%, and calling that a cut, we'd actually be at -1% growth in spending. In many ways, this plan would be like applying the Wisconsin model - which is already working - to our federal government.

If the results of the 2012 election is able to usher in a plan like this, there could be some good to come out of a Barack Obama presidency.



h/t Hapblog

Video: Palin Delivers Best Line in Debt Ceiling Debate

It'd really be nice if we saw Republican presidential candidates show this kind of fire. Apparently, reports that Vice President Joe Biden referred to the Tea Party as a bunch of 'terrorists' was all Sarah Palin needed to come up with one of the best lines in this whole debate. She makes a darn good point, to boot. In reference to the latest label being applied to the Tea Party by the left, Palin suggests that if the Tea Party really was made up of terrorists, Obama would see them as his friends. This was an obvious reference to Obama's relationship with Bill Ayers.

Gotta love this.

Part 1



Part 2



h/t to Weasel Zippers

Video: Al Sharpton's Incoherence on Display in Debt Ceiling Debate

Even if you overlook the fact that every time Al Sharpton says, 'Potty,' he means 'Party,' this exchange between him and Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-KS) completely reveals Sharpton's lack of ability to understand the debt ceiling debate. His questions and comments reveal not a scintilla of cogent thought. Note that Huelskamp's argument is that the cuts in the final deal are so insignificant that he believes we will have a downgrade in our credit rating. Sharpton's apparent premise is that our credit rating will be downgraded if we don't raise the debt ceiling.

The line of the exchange comes shortly after the 4:00 mark when Huelskamp responds to Sharpton's assertion that people in Kansas 'run around in yachts and corporate jets.'

Said Huelskamp: 'I'm in western Kansas. There aren't many yacts out there.'

Via Breitbart:

Video: Rappin' 'bout the Debt Ceiling

Well, now that you've done all you could by telling your Representatives to vote 'no' on the Boehner / McConnel sandwich, it's time to move on to the next fight and remember the names of those who didn't listen so you know how to vote in 2012. In the meantime, why not enjoy this rap from Remy? It's called 'Raise the Debt Ceiling.' If you haven't been following the debt ceiling debate and are mildly confused by all the fuss, this might help explain it.



h/t Impeach Obama

DeMint to Back Primary Candidates Seeking to Replace Incumbents who Voted for Boehner / McConnell Sandwich?

It is no secret that the Tea Party isn't the least bit happy with the debt ceiling deal that was agreed to by Speaker John Boehner. Now, the group's most powerful advocate - Jim DeMint - appears to be poised to do something he pledged he said he wouldn't do; the Senator from South Carolina is hinting that he will back Tea Party candidates seeking to unseat incumbents who voted for the debt ceiling deal passed by the House. If this is true, any Republican who ultimately got in line behind Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Boehner should take notice; DeMint became quite the Tea Party kingmaker in 2010.

Via the Hill:

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) might back primary challengers to incumbent Republican senators after all.

DeMint had promised after last year’s election that he would not endorse any opponents to his fellow GOP lawmakers in the 2012 cycle. But now he is angry enough with the debt-ceiling compromise that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) struck with President Obama that he might back serious challengers to Republican senators who support the plan, according to a source close to the senator.

“He’s already opened the door to changing that policy in terms of supporting people in primaries — this deal could bring him to the point where he says he’s not going to make any guarantees,” said the source, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitive nature of intraparty relations. “It’s not a threat that he’s going to oppose anybody, but ... if he does, nobody should be surprised.”

Without DeMint, the Senate would likely consist of Charlie Crist and Mitch McConnell's choice for the seat ultimately won by Rand Paul:

DeMint, whose Senate Conservatives Fund helped finance several right-wing Republican candidates last election, angered Republican leaders when he backed a handful of conservative challengers to candidates backed by the establishment.

He supported Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) over McConnell’s favored candidate in Kentucky and helped give Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) an early boost in his primary against then-Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (I).

After the 2010 elections, DeMint promised his colleagues he would not endorse any primary candidates, but the debate over raising the debt ceiling has changed his mind. DeMint said in mid-June at the Republican Leadership Conference that “if we have folks who go the wrong way on [the debt-ceiling vote], it’s going to be pretty hard for me to sit still” and stay out of primaries.

One thing is for certain. The 2010 elections were monumental and Republicans that were either sent to Washington for the first time or reelected, were sent a very clear message that came with a short leash. The Tea Party is in no mood to look the other way when it comes to the recent debt ceiling vote.

h/t Hot Air

Biden's Most Despicable Gaffe?

Vice president Joe Biden has said some extremely dumb things over the last several years. He instructed a man in a wheel-chair to stand up; he identified j-o-b-s as a three letter word; he somehow thought Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president during the 1929 stock market crash and then went on television, which didn't exist at the time, to talk to the American people; he infamously said that the United States needs to keep spending money in order to prevent bankruptcy. There are many, many more but on the night that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords returned to Congress, Biden officially made his worst gaffe... ever.

Via ABC News:

Escorted by her husband and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., Giffords exited the House floor slowly, giving a small wave to people as she left. She left the Capitol in an SUV shortly thereafter.

"It's been an emotional few hours," Wasserman Schultz told ABC News' Diane Sawyer on "World News." She said Giffords decided to make the trip to Washington because she "wanted to make sure that her district had a voice in this important vote."

Her appearance on the floor "melted even the hardest hearts," Wasserman Schultz told Sawyer.

"I've never seen more electricity on the floor erupt than when she triumpantly walked up those stairs," she said.

When Biden was asked about what he spoke with Giffords about, he joked, "She's now a member of the cracked head club like me."

The debt ceiling bill passed the House 269-161. The Senate will vote on the measure on Tuesday.

I think that one may even trump his referring to the Tea Party as a group of 'terrorists.'