Another Obama EPA Administrator tells the truth (in secret)

You might remember EPA Region VI Administrator Al Armendariz telling what he thought was a limited audience that his objective is to "crucify" oil companies to get other oil companies to fall in line. Now it's time to be introduced to EPA Region I Administrator Carl Spalding. During a speech at which he likely thought featured a limited audience as well, Spalding admitted that the job of the EPA is to put the coal industry out of business.

Via Jim Inhofe Press Office, h/t GWP:



Armendariz resigned after his comments, saying that he had become "a distraction." Now that we have Spalding on video expressing very similar sentiment - the crippling of energy industries, can we officially say that the EPA is engaged in an Obama administration conspiracy?

EPA Official resigns over his Crucifixion metaphor

What do Al Armendariz and Van Jones have in common? Both resigned from the Obama administration after revealing beliefs being so disturbing that they became radioactive to the administration. However, in Jones' case, he just hopped on over to a fellowship position in George Soros' Center for American Progress (CAP).

The Dallas News has the Armendariz resignation letter:

Dear Friends,

I have been honored to serve as your regional administrator for EPA's region 6 office the last 2 and ½ years. I never once forgot that the reason I was appointed was to serve you, to act as your voice, and to work day and night to better protect the environment and your safety.

Today I am resigning my position as regional administrator. This was not something that was asked of me by Administrator Jackson or the White House. It is a decision I made myself. I had become too much of a distraction, and no one person is more important than the incredible work being done by the rest of the team at EPA.

I leave with an incredible sense of pride for the things the Agency accomplished and it was fantastic to be a part of the effort. Administrator Jackson has overseen a renaissance in the Agency and it is again the global leader in environmental protection. President Obama has been incredibly supportive of me and my work and the Agency. He'll undoubtedly go down as the most environmental president we have ever had.

Thank you all for letting me into your homes and communities, and showing me the challenges you face every day from pollution and lack of infrastructure. Your stories are now part of my fabric and the fabric of the Agency.

Best always,
Al Armendariz

Something else Armendariz and Jones share in common. Both said they resigned of their own volition without any encouragement from the White House. In Jones' case, that meant the Obama administration was perfectly content with having an avowed communist and 9/11 Truther on its staff. In the case of Armendariz, the White House had no problem with a guy who viewed his job as one that involves "crucifying" oil companies. It also indicates that the administration has no problem with what Armendariz was doing - crippling oil companies over ideology.

Here is the video that led to Armendariz's resignation:



h/t Free Republic 

Video Outrage: EPA Official channels ancient Romans; advocates Crucifying Oil Companies

This video is from 2010 and it validates much of what we already know about the bureaucratic minions that operate inside the Obama administration but an extremely crude and graphic metaphor is used here by EPA Region VI Administrator Al Armendariz. While admitting that his analogy is "crude," Armendariz proceeds to repeat it here.

In this video, this pathetic EPA bureaucrat compares what he does to what the Romans did when they went into a town or village; they randomly captured five people and crucified them so that the rest of the town would fall in line.

Alinsky tactics on steroids. Perhaps a Nazi metaphor that describes what Armendariz is advocating is in order.



Since that video was released, Armendariz has made a feeble attempt at an apology.

Via the Washington Times:

A top official at the Environmental Protection Agency has apologized after being captured on video saying his agency’s method of enforcing oil and gas regulations was to find a few bad actors to “crucify” and hold up as examples.

“I apologize to those I have offended and regret my poor choice of words,” Region 6 EPA Administrator Al Armendariz said in a statement first provided to the Daily Caller. “It was an offensive and inaccurate way to portray our efforts to address potential violations of our nation’s environmental laws. I am and have always been committed to fair and vigorous enforcement of those laws.”

That was from the heart, wasn't it?

h/t Weasel Zippers 

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

Video: Energy Secretary Stephen Chu incoherent in Senate hearing

The Secretaries inside the Obama administration have become noticeably incoherent and incapable of answering very basic questions lately. Last week, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius appeared to be intellectually vacant in the face of very basic questions about the implementation and costs of Obamacare.

That leads us to Energy Secretary Stephen Chu, whose views about gasoline prices were highlighted in a Wall Street Journal article one month after Obama's election in 2008:

In a sign of one major internal difference, Mr. Chu has called for gradually ramping up gasoline taxes over 15 years to coax consumers into buying more-efficient cars and living in neighborhoods closer to work.

"Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe," Mr. Chu, who directs the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal in September.

Fast forward to yesterday. Amidst rising gasoline prices in a very down economy, Chu took questions from the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and was so incoherent in response to questions about gas prices from Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) that he almost appeared to be speaking a language other than english.

Yes, this is the guy whose fingerprints are all over Solyndra.

Via Breitbart:

Obama Energy Flip-Flop: High Gas prices good when...

...he's the challenger in an election year as opposed to being the incumbent. First up, here is Barack Obama fielding a question about rising gas prices from Ed Henry of Fox News.

h/t GWP:

Obama Rebukes Ed Henry's Comments And Questions

Got it? Ok, here is Obama circa the summer of 2008 on high gas prices when he was running for president. Note that he wanted higher gas prices but he wanted them to rise more slowly.



Of course, that's a nice compliment to this gem from 2008 in which Obama said that under his plan, energy costs would "necessarily skyrocket."



Perhaps lost in all of this is that the Newt Gingrich, the self-proclaimed "tortoise" in the race for the Republican nomination is beginning to own the narrative about gas prices. Like Herman Cain, he has come up with a very relevant and memorable slogan that is sticking with people. If he is elected, he promises $2.50 / gallon gasoline.

Video: Newt calls Obama 'President Algae'

Yeah, I know. Consecutive Newt posts but his one was too good to pass up. While speaking at Bowling Green University in Ohio, three days before Super Tuesday, Newt did what he typically does best - draw clear contrasts between himself and Obama. In this clip, he asks the audience a rather humorous rhetorical question that involves a reference to Barack Obama as 'President algae' compared to what kind of president Newt would be.

Worth the watch.



h/t Hapblog

Video: Newt's Declaration of Energy Independence

As high gas prices are becoming a central issue these days, the content of this ad is timed very well. From Winning Our Future, here's a montage of Newt's finer moments when it comes to talking about energy policy. It also contains a smack down of Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA). It's an ad that clearly highlights Newt's stronger points. As you watch, imagine what a debate between Newt and Obama on energy policy might look like.



h/t Free Republic

Obama on Gas Prices Then vs. Now

First up, Barack Obama on the Campaign trail four years ago, touting wind, solar, and bio-fuels. Note that he talks about not having to worry about high gas prices in future summers because of his promise to invest in alternative energy sources. More than three years into his term, which started with gas prices at about $1.85 / gallon, is the specter of $4 / gallon gasoline and $500 Million down the Solyndra money pit.



Contrast that with what White House press secretary Jay Carney said just yesterday about their being no magic solutions to high gas prices:

Via POLITICO:



Ok, so in 2008, we were told that because of our investment in solar panels, we wouldn't have to worry about high gas prices. In 2012, the administration admits failure without admitting failure by saying there are "no magic solutions."

So, then, who was the genius who told Obama to tout algae as an alternate energy source just this week in Miami. I'd say algae being the answer to high gas prices is rather magical:



Just a few months ago, in addition to touting "algae" as a solution, Obama suggested "wood chips" and "switchgrass" would be good too.

Again, pretty magical, eh Mr. Carney? Oh, if lies were switchgrass, just think of the possibilities.



h/t Hapblog

How Badly will this Video Harm Obama in November?

The Washington Post has posted a refreshingly very honest piece. The bad news? It was published on Christmas Day. Nonetheless, it seems to conclude that the White House decisions relative to Solyndra were political all along. Among those decisions was the one that led to a video posted to the White House website in May of 2010.

Via the Post:

Like most presidential appearances, Obama’s May 2010 stop at Solyndra’s headquarters was closely managed political theater.

Obama’s handlers had lengthy e-mail discussions about how solar panels should be displayed (from a robotic arm, it was decided). They cautioned the company’s chief executive against wearing a suit (he opted for an open-neck shirt and black slacks) and asked another executive to wear a hard hat and white smock. They instructed blue-collar employees to wear everyday work clothes, to preserve what they called “the construction-worker feel.”

Apparently, according to the Post's findings, this is a video the administration would like to have back. This should give the Republican Party an something to exploit. Whether they will or not remains to be seen but there seems to be sufficient concern among team Obama that this was a very bad decision.

Via GWP:



There is also a surprising number of futile attempts made by the Post to get comments from individuals who might be able to help with the story:

White House e-mails suggest that the original idea for “POTUS involvement” originated with then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel, now mayor of Chicago, did not respond to a request for comment from The Post.

Well beyond the details of the factory photo op, raw political considerations surfaced repeatedly in conversations among many in the administration.

Just two days before the visit, Obama fundraiser Steve Westly warned senior presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett that an appearance could be problematic. Westly, an investment fund manager with stakes in green-energy companies, said he was speaking for a number of Obama supporters in asking the president to postpone the visit because Solyndra’s financial prospects were dim and the company’s failure could generate negative media attention.

It is interesting that the decision to publicly align Obama with Solyndra was pushed by Emanuel, who left the administration a few months after that May 2010 video. He also claims to be ignorant of the Solyndra deal.

Read it all.

Video: Republicans are Winning the Keystone Pipeline Debate

The Keystone oil pipeline extension from Canada to Houston would create tens of thousands of jobs and the Obama administration is blocking its construction while publicly saying more analysis needs to be done. Canada is threatening to re-direct the pipeline westward.

While on Meet the Press, House Speaker John Boehner clearly demonstrated that the Republicans are winning this debate. The only people who don't want the pipeline built are the Eco-wackos in Obama's base; we all know that's the reason for the delay.

It's very clear what's going on and even NBC's David Gregory knows it, despite his attempts to run interference for the Obama administration here.

h/t Hapblog

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

House Passes Bill that Mixes Tax Cuts with Keystone Pipeline Construction

One of the most egregious narratives Barack Obama has been putting forward is that he has to do things on his own because he would otherwise have to deal with a 'do-nothing' Congress. It's fallacious because it's a 'do-nothing' Senate that is to blame for legislation not reaching his desk. Here's another example. The House has passed a bill that would extend the payroll tax cuts while tying it to the mandated construction of the Keystone pipeline from Canada to Texas.

Via MSNBC:

Passage, on a largely party-line vote of 234-193, sent the measure toward its certain demise in the Democratic-controlled Senate, triggering the final partisan showdown of a remarkably quarrelsome year of divided government. 

The legislation "extends the payroll tax relief, extends and reforms unemployment insurance and protects Social Security — without job-killing tax hikes," Republican House Speaker John Boehner declared after the measure had cleared. 

Referring to the controversy over the Keystone XL pipeline, he added, "Our bill includes sensible, bipartisan measures to help the private sector create jobs." 

On a long day of finger pointing, however, House Democrats accused Republicans of protecting "millionaires and billionaires, " and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., derided the GOP-backed pipeline provision as "ideological candy" for the tea party-set.

Not only does this provide another example that the House continues to pass legislation the Senate lets die but this bill was bi-partisan in both its support and opposition.

Voting in favor of the legislation were 224 Republicans and 10 Democrats, while 179 Democrats and 14 Republicans opposed it. 

At its core, the measure did include key parts of the jobs program that Obama asked Congress to approve in September.

This bill will do two things Obama says he wants to do. First, it will create jobs. Second, it will keep taxes from rising on the middle class. Despite this, Obama has pledged to veto the bill and the Eco-whacko vote has a lot to do with it.

Interestingly, the number of jobs that will be created as a direct result of the pipeline will be over 100,000 according to Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI). The State Department says it will only total 6,000. That last figure is laughable but even if we assume it's accurate, the economy is in a state where beggars can't be choosers. The figure is on the positive side of zero.

h/t to Hot Air for providing this incredibly ridiculous line of reasoning for not supporting the pipeline construction.

h/t Freedom's Lighthouse

Ruh Roh: Chevy Volt Batteries Catching Fire, 21st Century's Version of Ford Pinto?

Some might argue that the crowning achievement of the Obama administration so far has been the Chevy Volt. The bad news is that it appears the batteries in these vehicles may be at risk of catching fire after the car is involved in an accident. The good news? There aren't many on the road.

Via the AP:

WASHINGTON — New fires involving the lithium-ion batteries in General Motors Co.'s Chevrolet Volt have prompted an investigation to assess the risk of fire in the electric car after a serious crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday. 

One Volt battery pack that was being closely monitored following a government crash test caught fire Thursday, the safety administration said in a statement. Another recently crash-tested battery emitted smoke and sparks, the statement said. 

GM, which was informed of the investigation on Friday, said in a statement that the Volt "is safe and does not present undue risk as part of normal operation or immediately after a severe crash." The latest fires are in addition to a battery fire in a crash-tested Volt six months ago. 

NHTSA learned of a possible fire risk involving damaged Volt batteries when a fire erupted in a Volt that was being stored in a parking lot of a test facility in Burlington, Wis. The fire was severe enough to cause several other vehicles parked nearby to catch fire as well. 

The car had been subjected to a side-impact crash test more than three weeks earlier, on May 12, during which the battery was punctured and its coolant line ruptured.

For some reason, I was reminded of the Ford Pinto case, a huge black eye for Ford. Design flaws caused gas tank explosions during rear-end collisions.



h/t Hapblog

Solyndra: Rahm Emanuel, Emails, and Energy Secretary on Hot Seat

For those who are eagerly awaiting the December 8th grilling of Attorney General Eric Holder by members of the House Judiciary Committee - of which Rep. Darrell Issa is one - there is another hearing tomorrow that may tide you over a bit. Energy Secretary Steven Chu will be testifying in front of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on November 18th about his role in the Solyndra scandal. Two days before the scheduled hearing, the White House released emails that show Solyndra was pressured by the Energy Department to delay layoff announcements until after the 2010 elections and the committee is combing through them.

Via Washington Post:

The Obama administration, which gave the solar company Solyndra a half-billion-dollar loan to help create jobs, asked the company to delay announcing it would lay off workers until after the hotly contested November 2010 midterm elections that imperiled Democratic control of Congress, newly released e-mails show.

The announcement could have been politically damaging because President Obama and others in the administration had held up Solyndra as a poster child of its clean-energy initiative, saying the company’s new factory, built with the help of stimulus money, could create 1,000 jobs. Six months before the midterm elections, Obama visited Solyndra’s California plant to praise its success, even though outside auditors had questioned whether the operation might collapse in debt.

As the contentious 2010 elections approached, Solyndra found itself foundering, and it warned the Energy Department that it would need an emergency cash infusion. A Solyndra investment adviser wrote in an Oct. 30, 2010, e-mail — without explaining the reason — that Energy Department officials were pushing “very hard” to delay making the layoffs public until the day after the elections.

The announcement ultimately was made on Nov. 3, 2010 — immediately following the Nov. 2 vote.

E-mails describing the events were released Tuesday as part of a House Energy and Commerce Committee memo, provided in advance of Energy Secretary Steven Chu’s scheduled testimony before the committee’s investigative panel on Thursday. As a result of the 2010 elections, that committee is now controlled by Republicans, whose aggressive nine-month investigation into Solyndra has focused partly on whether politics played a role in the company’s selection to receive a federal loan.

It isn't just Chu's Department that is implicated in these emails either. Former Obama Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel is as well. In fact, he should be called to testify about what he knew at some point because his lack of memory relative to Solyndra may be more suspicious than Eric Holder denying any knowledge of Fast and Furious until a "few weeks" before May 3rd.

Unlike Holder, there are emails that apparently implicate Emanuel directly in the decision to press the president into publicly announcing the Solyndra loan. What makes this even more explosive is Emanuel repeatedly pleading ignorance when it comes to his role.

Click HERE to hear Emanuel say in September of this year that he doesn't "know" or "remember" the Solyndra deal. WLS confronted Emanuel again relative to these new revelations in emails that named him. Click HERE.

h/t Michelle Malkin

SunPower: Is this Solyndra on Steroids?

The SunPower deal is really starting to reek. In addition to shady dealings, it smacks of a disgusting level of crony capitalism involving the son of Rep. George Miller (D-CA). As Solyndra was in the process of declaring bankruptcy last month, another company in the same line of work - SunPower - was in the process of securing a loan more than twice that of what Solyndra received. Though the company that bought SunPower, which was reportedly sold right before the Obama administration signed the loan guarantee that wasn't supposed to put taxpayer dollars at risk, hasn't declared bankruptcy, it appears to be headed for triage. SunPower and the company that had purchased a 60% interest and was exposed to the most risk - Total S.A. - both sold SunPower to NRG Energy right before the Obama administration signed the deal that put taxpayers on the hook.

Via Daily Caller:

In April of this year, Chu offered SunPower a conditional commitment for the loan guarantee. At that point, there was no taxpayer money on the line per se.

Less than a month after SunPower received the conditional commitment from the Obama administration, a French oil giant, Total S.A., bought majority ownership — 60 percent — of the company. SunPower investors backed the move. A Total S.A. executive told the New York Times the company believed in solar energy, and its move was an attempt to capitalize on it.

“We believe the winners in the solar industry will be fully integrated, financially solid, advanced technology and worldwide,” Total Gas & Power President Philippe Boisseau said. “SunPower has the technology. We already have some of the technology, but we’ve also got the market and the finance. It’s a full industrial combination.”

The Obama administration — which says it was continuing to vet SunPower after it granted the company a conditional commitment for the $1.2 billion loan guarantee — saw the company as promising and continued to move forward.

Then, right before the Obama administration signed the deal giving SunPower its $1.2 billion loan guarantee, SunPower and Total S.A. sold the project — which taxpayers are now responsible for — to NRG Energy, Inc. The loan guarantee still went through, despite the sudden pullout from Total S.A.

Sure looks like a shell game with $1.2 Billion of your money at stake, doesn't it? Why did SunPower and Total S.A. pull out right before getting a huge infusion? Who is NRG Energy? Is it a company of suckers or hucksters?

How about that crony capitalism involving the son of a US Congressman?

How the company got the loan guarantee, and the players involved paint a picture of what at least appears to a combination of political favoritism and crony capitalism.

Last October, President Barack Obama’s Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and California Democratic Rep. George Miller toured SunPower’s plant in California. Both touted the company. Miller said SunPower was an example for “renewable energy” production and “America’s future economic growth.”

But, Miller failed to mention how his son, George Miller IV, is SunPower’s top lobbyist in California. Miller’s son was pushing for the $1.2 billion loan guarantee taxpayers are on the hook for now. Miller is a powerful Democratic congressman, and currently serves as the ranking minority member of the House Education and Workforce Committee.

Miller’s congressional office has not returned TheDC’s requests for comment on what role he and his son had in securing the loan guarantee. SunPower has not returned TheDC’s requests for comment on that revelation or any others.

The tour of SunPower by Miller and Salazar was only the beginning.

While the company formerly known as SunPower hasn't yet declared bankruptcy, the circumstances surrounding its deteriorating state should anger taxpayers far more than what happened with Solyndra. This administration continues to sham and scam the American people, whose anger still doesn't match the level of anger that's warranted.

Neil McCabe at Human Events has even more.

Rahm Emanuel Pleads Ignorance on Solyndra

At some point, plausible deniability becomes undeniably implausible. If ever there was a case in point, it's with former Obama Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel who is now denying any recollection of Solyndra's $535 million government loan. There are some denials that leave one wondering but this isn't one of them. The Obama administration's mantra as it pushed the stimulus bill was green energy. Now, Emanuel would have us believe he doesn't remember giving half a million to Solyndra, despite a groundbreaking ceremony that included vice president Joe Biden, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, and California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Via Daily Caller:

Chicago mayor and former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel said he doesn’t recall anything about the Obama administration’s $535 million loan to the recently bankrupt solar company Solyndra.

Speaking to Chicago radio station WLS 890AM at a news conference about a new wellness initiative, Emanuel said he didn’t remember anything about the failed investment loan by the Department of Energy, which critics say was fast-tracked to fit the White House’s political agenda.

“Ya know, I’m focusing on a major announcement today for the City Of Chicago,” Emanuel said. “I don’t actually remember that or know about it. So, what I’m dealing is with what I’m dealing with here today.”

Emanuel was Obama’s chief of staff during the administration’s green energy initiative in 2009, when the Solyndra loan was finalized.

E-mail communications from the White House obtained by the House Energy and Commerce Committee point to more involvement in the deal than perhaps Emanuel would care to remember.

There comes a point when claims of plausible deniability should be met with charges that you should have known. This is a quintessential example.

Until people like Emanuel face a greater backlash when claiming ignorance than when they accept responsibility, people like Emanuel will continue to pretend we're stupid.

DC

'Arab Spring' Update: Egyptian Gas Pipeline to Israel Bombed

...and the Liberal media just keeps on truckin'. As the Muslim Brotherhood and its willing accomplices continue to seize power in Egypt, bad things continue to happen. There was Lara Logan's sexual assault at Tahrir Square; Coptic Christians continue to be persecuted, tortured, and killed. Now, we're seeing an increase in gas pipeline blasts. For some reason, the mainstream media continues trumpeting the Islamist uprisings as Democracy in Action. At some point, even they will have to admit that Mubarak was nowhere near as bad as what Obama's media minions helped to usher in.

Via ABC News:

Masked assailants blew up the Egyptian pipeline that carries gas to Israel and Jordan early on Monday, starting a fire that burned for hours and disrupting the flow of the gas, security officials said.

The blast was the third to hit the strategic pipeline since an uprising overthrew Egypt's longtime leader Hosni Mubarak in February.

No one claimed responsibility for the explosion but disgruntled Bedouin tribesmen in the area have been blamed for attacking the pipeline in the past. Islamists opposed to Egypt's 1979 peace treaty with Israel have also been suspected.

Is it me or does it look like they're describing the Muslim Brotherhood perfectly while refusing to acknowledge that's who they're describing.

The security officials said the attackers, armed with assault rifles, arrived in two pickup trucks without number plates and forced the three security guards on duty to leave before placing the explosives and shooting the pipeline's valves to release the gas.

The explosion triggered a blaze that took firefighters at least seven hours to extinguish, they said.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration, along with his media minions, continues to support a repeat of what happened in Egypt - in Libya.

h/t Free Republic

Kate Walsh: Another Hollywood Genius

This one has been on the internet for a few days but it's got staying power because of its sheer lunacy. While on Capitol Hill to observe the first anniversary of the BP Gulf oil spill, actress Kate Walsh was polite yet indignant over the fact that drilling is still taking place in the Gulf. She actually wants Obama to repeal all drilling permits. Walsh supported Obama's election in 2008 and defended his performance to this point by saying, 'he's been lowered into a pit of a mess.'

Liberals, in general, do not know where money comes from. This brilliant Hollywood celebrity doesn't know where energy comes from. She obviously has no clue how much oil she's personally responsible for consuming. I'm sure all the petroleum that's used in all of the shoes she's purchased would make quite a puddle.

Via CNS News:

Obama Pledges to Cut Oil Imports by One Third / No Drilling Permits Issued

After visiting Brazil, where he pledged American assistance there relative to oil exploration and drilling, Barack Obama is now pledging to reduce oil imports to the United States by one third over the next ten years. Not only does that mean there will be less Brazilian oil being imported from a country we will have helped drill for it, but the Obama administration continues to hamstring the oil industry here by not issuing permits. The moratorium in the gulf has already caused rigs to move elsewhere.

Via the New York Times:

WASHINGTON — With gasoline prices rising, oil supplies from the Middle East pinched by political upheaval and growing calls in Congress for expanded domestic oil and gas production, President Obama on Wednesday will set a goal of a one-third reduction in oil imports over the next decade, aides said Tuesday.

The president, in a speech to be delivered at Georgetown University, will say that the United States needs, for geopolitical and economic reasons, to reduce its reliance on imported oil, according to White House officials who provided a preview of the speech on the condition that they not be identified. More than half of the oil burned in the United States today comes from overseas and from Mexico and Canada.

Mr. Obama will propose a mix of measures, none of them new, to help the nation cut down on its thirst for oil. He will point out the nation’s tendency, since the first Arab oil embargo in 1973, to panic when gas prices rise and then fall back into old gas-guzzling habits when they recede.

He will call for a consistent long-term fuel-savings strategy of producing more electric cars, converting trucks to run on natural gas, building new refineries to brew billions of gallons of biofuels and setting new fuel-efficiency standards for vehicles. Congress has been debating these measures for years.

At what point will it become clear to Americans that this man's actions are destroying their country? It first became known about Obama's plans to fund Brazilian oil drilling back in 2009. Just last week, Gulf Oil CEO Joe Petrowski blasted Obama for his hypocrisy about helping Brazil while placing moratoriums on domestic drilling.

Read it all.

h/t Free Republic

Video: Nuclear Expert Thinks Texans are Nazis?

Chalk this one up to a 'WTF' moment for alleged nuclear 'expert' David Kraft who, during his interview with WGN, apparently forgot to take down the sign he had posted at his desk that referred to Texas as a Nazi state by replacing the 'X' with a swastika. As a result, the gaffe actually made the news report. The good news? He will likely be in demand for more interviews. The bad news? It won't be because of his expertise on nuclear energy.

If someone thinks an entire state comes under the Nazi umbrella, such a person is necessarily 'racist.' Moreover, isn't it amazing how someone as supposedly intelligent as Kraft can be so incredibly sophomoric? He's exhibiting the character traits Norman Lear wanted to portray Archie Bunker as possessing. Oh, the irony.

As a Texan, I take offense. However, unlike the left (and Nazis), I encourage Dr. Kraft to continue telling us how he feels.

Big h/t to Doug Ross: