The Patriot's Flag

Today I’m flying the South Carolina Flag … a patriot flag I fly when politics are relatively quiet.  Today’s post is for people who are wondering what all the “noise” is about concerning the recent Supreme Court Decision on McCain-Feingold.  Here’s come background and commentary that will bring you up to speed.

Relatively Quiet

McCain-Feingold … What is it? The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA, McCain–Feingold Act, Pub.L. 107-155, 116 Stat. 81, enacted March 27, 2002, H.R. 2356) is United States federal law that amended the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, which regulates the financing of political campaigns. Its chief sponsors were Senators Russell Feingold (D-WI) and John McCain (R-AZ). The law became effective on 6 November 2002, and the new legal limits became effective on January 1, 2003.  This week, the Supreme Court gave a ruling that “guts” many of the key parts of McCain-Feingold … and of course there is a controversy!

CATO Institute Explanation of McCain-Feingold

Here is a 5 minute video that will give you most of the information you need on this subject:

The Reasoning for McCain-Feingold

The McCain-Feingold legislation was designed to discuss two issues:

1. Control of Soft money in campaign financing, by prohibiting groups from raising or spending any funds not subject to federal limits.
2. Prohibiting political ads that named a federal candidate with 30 days of a primary or 60 days before a general election. and also prohibiting any such ad paid for by a corporation (including non-profit issue organizations or paid for by an unincorporated entity using any corporate or union funds. (Wikipedia)

Previous Rulings:

Never mind that the Supreme Court in Buckley v. Valeo (1976) said “As long as persons and groups eschew expenditures that in express terms advocate the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate, they are free to spend as much as they want to promote the candidate and his views.” The Supreme Court that had clearly warned Congress to stop toying with the First Amendment. (CATO)

The controversy

McCain-Feingold does nothing to reign in the huge sums of money extracted without consent from union members’ paychecks. Much of that money flows into union political action committees (PACs) that are not subject to any limits in two key areas. PACs are not bound by the limits on either independent expenditures.That’s OK, say McCain-Feingold supporters, because neither unions nor corporations are permitted to give to PACs, except to pay for administrative expenses. There was a difference between the treatment of corporate and union PACs. A corporate PAC may request voluntary contributions from executives and shareholders, but not from most other employees. Union PACs have greater flexibility because they can expropriate an involuntary part of their members’ dues for political purposes.  Advantage Unions! (CATO)

The law gave the government control over whether or not a statement was “political” and therefore subject to being banned.  This was in direct conflict with the 1st Amendment of the Constitution of the United States!

Also, under McCain-Feingold, the NEWS MEDIA was EXEMPTED (by the First Amendment).  Now people like the New York Times and Huffington Post will not have the “high perch” of the bully pulpit … they must share it with the rest of us! (TheNewAmerican)

The Lawsuit:

Citizens United is a nonprofit corporation set up to engage in conservative advocacy — an assemblage of people working for a political agenda. As people, they have the right to spend money to spread their opinions. But when they form a corporation for that purpose, some people think the same activities should be illegal. But Citizens United claimed the rule violated its free speech rights. And last week, the Supreme Court agreed. (TownHall)

Assent:: “The text and purpose of the First Amendment point in the same direction: Congress may not prohibit political speech, even if the speaker is a corporation or union.” – Chief Justice John Roberts

Dissent: “The court’s ruling threatens to undermine the integrity of elected institutions around the nation.” – Justice John Paul Stevens, in the dissent.

The Fallout from the Decision:

By and large, Democrats were outraged at the decision and Republicans were pleased.  Although, there were a few interesting revelations.(Examiner). Most Republicans, led by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who fought the bill from the beginning, are celebrating.(Politico)

Feingold: (BigJournalism) The American people will pay dearly for this decision when, more than ever, their voices are drowned out by corporate spending in our federal elections. In the coming weeks, I will work with my colleagues to pass legislation restoring as many of the critical restraints on corporate control of our elections as possible.

McCain, whose party leaders praised the court decision, wasn’t as tough as Feingold. “I am disappointed by the decision of the Supreme Court and the lifting of the limits on corporate and union contributions,” he said. (Politico)

Obama (WashPost) “With its ruling today, the Supreme Court has given a green light to a new stampede of special interest money in our politics. It is a major victory for big oil, Wall Street banks, health insurance companies and the other powerful interests that martial their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans. … We are going to talk with bipartisan congressional leaders to develop a forceful response to this decision.” – President Barack Obama.

Corporate Campaign Flooding? Critics fear that freed from constraints, giant corporations will burn vast sums to help or hurt politicians. In reality, most business people are not about to plunge into divisive election campaigns, for fear of antagonizing customers. If Starbucks comes out “for” or “against” Obama, they will risk losing 47% of  their customers,  (according to Gallop’s Presidential Approval Poll). Corporations won’t take that risk.

First Amendment Upheld: After looking at all the information, this seems to me a rather clear case for First Amendment rights.  The government was in a position, with McCain-Feingold, to control what they deemed was or was not political in nature. They could have banned books because such a book mentioned a candidates name and was read within 60 days of a federal election.  As I look back at the original decision, it is easy once again to see McCain leaning far to the left … and he “blew it” on this bill which is clearly a socialist, government-control tactic. The 5 minute video above explains the entire controversy best.

Corporate Funding, I doubt it. I doubt (having worked at the top-level of a corporation) that a CEO today is going to risk profit because s/he wants to promote one candidate over another.  If you look at the sales for GM and Chrysler … they are far down and Ford is up. My reasoning?  People don’t want to buy a car from GM or Chrysler knowing they are supporting unions … so, personally, I would buy a Ford.  But where does Ford stand politically?  You don’t know, and they are not about to take a position … and neither will any other corporation, especially retail.  I wouldn’t taste a Ben and Jerry’s ice cream cone if it was free, I would never spend money for a Danny Glover movie, I refuse to buy tires at Goodyear (gun-free zone), and I tore up my AARP card!  Little (perhaps silly) buying decisions on my part.  But I will not support, with my personal money, people or corporations who do not believe what I believe.  A savvy CEO knows this … and stays “mum” on politics.  So I doubt there will be huge contributions from corporations.

However: The only exception I could see would be CitiBank or Bank of America contributing a few dollars to Obama’s defeat in 2010 … keep picking on them and they just might react!   Obama has decided corporations are “the enemy” … he keeps up his attack on them, he might cause it to be true.  Would I buy from a corporation that was trying to ensure his defeat? 

You betcha’.

Will Corporations Strike Back?

1. Townhall.Chapman: Free Speech for Corporations
2. Wikipedia: BiPartyisan Campaign Reform Act
3. HotAir: Supreme court Strikes Down McCain-Feingold
4. NewAmerican: The Coming Small Biz revolution 01.25.10
5. ContraCostaTimes: Supreme Court Decision a Victory for Free Speech 01.25.10
6. YouTube: Americans Sign Petition to Repeal the First Amendment 01.25.10 (Amazing!)

S.C. Flag - Relatively Calm

Today I am flying the South Carolina Flag … a patriot flag I fly when politics are rather quiet. Waking up this morning, I expected “Gitmo” to be a relic of the past. It was “ordered” to be closed by Obama yesterday! But alas, nothing has changed in spite of an executive order by a naive President a year ago.

Relatively Quiet

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Promising to return America to the “moral high ground” in the war on terrorism, President Obama issued three executive orders Thursday to demonstrate a clean break from the Bush administration, including one requiring that the Guantanamo Bay detention facility be closed within a year. The date was January 22, 2009.

During a signing ceremony at the White House, Obama reaffirmed his inauguration pledge that the United States does not have “to continue with a false choice between our safety and our ideals.” The president said he was issuing the order to close the facility in order to “restore the standards of due process and the core constitutional values that have made this country great even in the midst of war, even in dealing with terrorism.”

And lest we forget … (McCain and Graham)

Time: “We support President Obama’s decision to close the prison at Guantanamo, reaffirm America’s adherence to the Geneva Conventions, and begin a process that will, we hope, lead to the resolution of all cases of Guantanamo detainees,” said Senator John McCain and Senator Lindsey Graham. “The executive orders issued today constitute an important step in the right direction but leave several major issues unaddressed.”

What have we learned? He looked so “presidential” … so “in control of the situation.”  The News Media was raving about the strength and bravado of this new “historical” president. He also had strong “across-the-isle” support from the likes of McCain and Graham.  But it is now one year later … what have we learned since that day a year ago?

• We learned Obama’s “image” which seemed “presidential” was actually bravado growing out of naivety, we now know that Obama was wrong and could not accomplish what he ordered.
• We have learned our safety was not increased … by restoring our American “ideals” and by restoring the “moral high ground” … the terrorists, one year later, are still trying to kill us… Obama was wrong.
  • There have been 2 terrorists attack during this past year … peace and love didn’t alter the terrorists determination to kill us, apologies are a demonstration of weakness and we became more vulnerable … Obama was wrong.
• We learned the Bush system for Gitmo was probably the most efficient way to handle the problem, the inability of Obama to close Gitmo speaks for the integrity of the system in place … also that Obama now moves toward the Bush position on Gitmo is proof that this was the best system for this situation … Obama was wrong.
• We see our government giving “USA rights” to terrorists, allowing them to “lawyer up” within hours of trying to kill hundreds of people on an airplane over Detroit.  When the next terrorist hits us, and it could have been prevented by interrogating the Underwear Bomber … then Obama will again be proven wrong … and this time should be held liable and fully accountable for a decision that will have killed innocent Americans.
• We find out a year later that our intelligence agencies had no means of interrogating a terrorist caught in the act on our own soil … A YEAR LATER!  Obama’s leadership of his administration didn’t work … so he was wrong again. (Powerline)
• And now we are going to try the mastermind of 911 in New York City in a civil proceeding … giving him full rights and protection under the United States Constitution. This is morally wrong and a slap in the face of any United States citizen. Obama is making another bad decision (don’t tell me it is Holder, Obama appointed Holder!) … so he was wrong, in appointing Holder or by taking this position on terrorists.(Krauthammer’s take here).
• This president has apologized to the world for the bad behavior of the United States … in a hope the world would love us and we would be more secure as a result. Quite the opposite has happened, the world now sees us as weak and our allied friends do not know if they can trust us to stand beside them in a crisis. Obama didn’t gain the respect of the world, he lost it … in his naivety, he again was wrong.

We must conclude that this president, on this signature and now an example issue, was simply catering to his radical left base rather than doing what was right for the safety and security of the country. Politics were placed ahead of national security.  How often is this happening … is he putting politics and himself above the security of the United States? This president is demonstrating his naivety and his inability to lead and keep us safe.   The FACT that he is unable to close the Guantanamo Bay terrorist detention facility with the promised year is all the proof we need that this man, far from being “in control” … he has no control. He is demonstrating he is all “talk” (still giving speeches from the teleprompters daily on TV) but doesn’t understand the “walk” that a president must demonstrate to keep us secure. This requires TOUGH decisions putting the Constitution and US Security above his political aspirations.  That jis why, a year later, he continues to be a “campaigner” and has not fulfilled his promise to be a strong and historical president…. and he never will. He is what he is, an agitator and  [community] organizer not a leader. (He is still following Alinksy’s Rules for Radicals).  (See LINK)

And lets not forget McCain and Graham. It is easy to maintain focus on President Obama and forget  about the moderates (Republicans!?) who were also supporting his ideas at the time. McCain and Graham both supported this president’s decision on the closing of Gitmo, making them complicit in jeopardizing our national security and stance in the world.  We should not forget that these two “moderate Republicans” were also NAIVE and WRONG and are therefore still dangerous to our national security regardless of what they may say now.  We must judge by action, not by words.

President Obama’s signature, like his campaign promises, defies credibility …

… it is the Signature of his Naivety and His Inability to Lead!

This signature carries the same weight as his Campaign Promises!

Why would you have a “zero” in your signature anyway?

1. Sweetness and Light: Obama on organizing after Saul Alinsky (Obama’s agitator roots)
2. Washington Post: Charles Karuthammer, Travesty in New York
3. Free Republic: Why would you have a zero in your signature?

S.C. Flag - Relatively Calm

Today I am flying the Title of Liberty Flag. This has been the best week for Conservatives in the past “Year of Obama.” McCain Feingold gutted, Corporate Money back on the political table, not just Union Money. Scott Brown (R-MA) wins in Massachusetts, the Health Care bill is declared “dead” by Nancy Pelosi.  What a difference a week makes! However …

Liberty Winning

Forty Nine out of Fifty States report job losses … and in the month of DECEMBER which usually causes jobs to increase because of the Holidays.  South Carolina with 12.3% unemployment! Ohio with 10.9% unemployment! You can see the full list of job losses HERE … it is devastating! However, when Obama runs into a problem, his solution is to run out and give a speech or have a beer summit.  The poor people of Ohio just got the speech … no beer!

But the White House says:

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is trumpeting a new White House estimate that his top economist calls “stunning”: His stimulus plan has already created or saved up to 2 million jobs. The analysis is part of the administration’s quarterly report to Congress on the controversial $787 billion package of spending and tax cuts he signed weeks after taking office.

And today in Ohio, Obama was campaigning again … for increasing JOBS?

Elyria, Ohio: A combative President Barack Obama exhorted Congress Friday to pass a new job-creation bill with tax breaks for small business hiring and people making their homes more energy efficient. Hitting the road at the end of a week in which the White House was stung by the election of a Republican to a U.S. Senate seat in trditionally liberal Massachusetts, Obama hammered away at the theme of putting people back to work.

Neither the tax breaks nor the energy incentives, both backed by Obama, was included in a jobs bill the House passed in December. The $174 billion stimulus package now is before the Senate, where it faces a tougher test, in part because it is financed with deficit spending.

So is somebody lying again?  How could the White House be claiming all those SAVED jobs when we are seeing record unemployment in 49 out of 50 states?

A Jobs Bill? Surely the people of Ohio and the rest of this country aren’t going to swallow the Kool Aid AGAIN are they?  We already had a jobs bill this year it was a $3.7 TRILLION STIMULUS Job Bill! and it didn’t work … it failed and now he wants another jobs bill?  And not one person at the “campaign rally” today stood up and said “We already tried your ideas, they didn’t work!“  Are these people totally asleep?     zzzzzzzz      zzzzzzzz     zzzzzzzz

Obama is Obama, but the people at the rally? The claims of the White House are totally refuted by the actual job numbers coming from the individual states. Looking at the people “behind” the President as he gave this speech made one wonder about what kind of people would go to a rally like this and cheer this man who now is a documented failure.  I expect Obama to make the usual “campaign” promises (none of which he has kept except getting a dog for the kids). But I shake my head in wonder at the people who would show up and applaud this man … who is RESPONSIBLE for millions of job losses, who’s policies have only caused MORE job losses and who now proposes a “jobs bill” to fix the problem.  What could be wrong with such people?

What Kiind of People Go to an Ohio Town Meeting? How could you have an “open” Town Hall type meeting in Ohio with 10.9% unemployment and make “MORE” promises to people that you will provide jobs …. and yet not have one protester jump up and say “You Lie!”  What is the matter with these people?  Or was this a hand-picked crowd for another Obama photo op? Regardless, how could those people stand to be there and be a part of this travesty when their friends and neighbors are jobless and struggling because of this man?

Obama I understand … Ohio Puzzles me. Obama is going to be Obama. He’s an ideologue that will continue to spout the socialist rhetoric he was taught by his lefty friends and preachers … he won’t change, he is who he is. But were the people in that Town Hall meeting just a bunch of trained robots or will they eventually wake up, like the folks in Massachusetts did and start saying “ENOUGH!”?  I “muted” the TV because I’ve heard all the BS from Obama before … (and I can always read a version of it in the NY Times later). But the fascination to me was watching the faces and expressions of the people nodding and cheering behind him … so many still-delusional people … people who will see the video tape someday and wonder what they were thinking by cheering this man on. I would think  most people in Ohio would have had enough of Democrats … especially when you look at their chances for recovering from this disaster before 2015! (See above graphic).

The failure will continue: His failures will continue, most of the country is waking up from the Obama-induced coma that lured everyone into a deep sleep of unaccountability.  Lets hope next week brings more good news for Conservatives.  It has been a long year and watching this President and the Democrat congress fail is an event long past due.

1. CNN: In Ohio, Obama vows never to stop fighting
2. USNews: Mort Zuckermann: How to get Americans Working Again.
   

Title of Liberty Flag - Liberty Wins one!

Today I am flying the Title of Liberty Flag … one I fly when Liberty and Freedom are “winning.” It was a “shot heard round the world” … proof? Look at this Times of India report:

Liberty Winning

Times of India: Scott Brown’s victory was heard loudly and clearly in Washington. The proof of this is the Democrats are dropping the health care legislation like it was a very hot potato.

WASHINGTON: The leader of the House of Representatives said today she lacks the votes to push the Senate’s sweeping health overhaul bill through the House, a potentially devastating blow to President Barack Obama’s top domestic priority issue.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi made the comment to reporters after her House Democrats held a closed-door meeting at which participants said lawmakers vented frustration with the massive version of the legislation. House and Senate Democrats had been trying to reconcile different health care bills passed by both chambers. They hoped to reach a compromise that the House and Senate would vote on again.

Those plans were upended by their surprise loss of a Massachusetts Senate seat this week. That cost them the 60-vote super majority needed to overcome Republican procedural obstacles, meaning they would be unlikely to get a health care compromise through the Senate.

DemocRATs

Rats know when to sink or swim! Pelosi cannot get the votes, because the liberal, Obama-following Democrats got the message.  They now know that if they continue with this leftward course for the nation, they will ALL BE UNEMPLOYED.

This is only the beginning. An avalanche often starts with a tiny pebble or a single melting snowflake.  The avalanche has started, Health Care will go down, ClimateGate stopped Cap and Trade and now the DemocRATs are seeing the light an jumping ship on Obama’s leftist … and not American-Shared … radical ideas.

It is amazing that it took Scott Brown’s victory to wake up the Liberals in Congress and in the Administration. They didn’t seem to see this coming.  All you had to do was stand among 1.750,000 other patriots at the 912 March on Washington and you would KNOW something was happening.  (Obama said he was “unaware” of the 912 March?) To look the other way when these indicators of great magnitude are all about you is a sign of either ideological blindness or just plain stupidity.  Either way, anybody who supported Obama’s left wing radical views should be thrown overboard in their next election cycle. They almost were party to wrecking this great nation.  It may not be political homicide, but they certainly are guilty of political manslaughter!

Thank you Massachusetts Every conservative in this country should look toward the northeast and give a “nod of thanks” to the courageous and independent-thinking people in Massachusetts for going against “Democrat tradition” and giving a sharp cry of “STOP IT” to the President and to Congress.  Well done, Massachusetts … The first American Revolution started in your back yard and it looks like you haven’t lost your touch … you’ve ignited the 2nd American Revolution. Those of us “out here” in fly-over country thank you.

Thank you for your Courageous Independent Thinking

Title of Liberty Flag - Liberty Wins one!

Today I am flying the Title of Liberty Flag.  This is a “new” (as in “not historic”) flag that I fly when Liberty wins.  Today an “Independent Republican” won Ted Kennedy’s senate seat  (which now again is the People’s seat!) and  broke the 60 vote supermajority in the Senate. This blows out the bridge of the hysterical march toward Obama’s Socialism.  If there was ever a signal that the tide has turned and is going the other way … this is it!

Liberty Wins One!

An “Independent Republican” has won the Senate Seat in Massachusetts in a stunning upset. It is worth a moment to pause and reflect on the causes of the upset. First, lets look at the recent polling graph (below/right).

Democrat Electile Dysfunction? We must now have to support the premise that the Democrats have a severe Democrat Electile Dysfunction happening. Ted Kennedy’s seat to a Republican? The same Ted Kennedy that had supported the “Health Care Reform” bill and almost convinced the Democrats to name it after him? And is this the Democrat seat, held for 40 years in the DEEP BLUE state if Massachusetts that is referred to as “Kennedy’s Seat”?  If a Republican can beat a Democrat with this kind of severity in a relatively “safe” location … what about the chances for Democrats nationally in 2010?

Electile Dysfunction:

• Symptoms:  Losing major elections (Va, NJ, MA) … highly contageous!
• Causes: (1) Disregarding will of the people (2) Dirty Deals
• Cures:
  • Democrats: Move away from Obama, Listen to the people, Move to Center
  • Republicans: For those who didn’t …Vote next time!
  • Independents: Think with your HEAD next time not your HEART!

• Prevention: Always disregard the Main Stream Media that led most people astray

Democrats have caught the Electile Dysfunction Syndrome …and  they need a quick cure!  The most obvious cure is to move away from Obama and the radical left … that means leaving Health Care, Gun Control and anything else “smelling” of the left as far behind and as quickly as possible.  They’ve only got 9 months to apologize, say they “didn’t mean it” and give their electorates positive signals they have changed their ways. It is doubtful they can do this, the perception they have created may be permanent.

Brown Coakley Polls

The Massachusetts Race: You can see from the polling data graphed on the right that Brown came from 30 points down become a front runner in the polls by Jan 17, 2010.  This is spite of the big Democrat guns coming out to campaign for Coakley … among them Kerry, Clinton and Obama himself.

So what happened?

• Democrat-proposed transparency was a lie
• Democrats disregarded founding principals
• Democrats made fun of Tea Party Patriots
• Democrats supported Socialism in the USA
• Giving Terrorists Rights? Trial in NYC?
• Poor Handling of Underwear Bomber!
• Democrats supported a failed stimulus
• Democrats showing worst numbers ever …
  • 13 million—Number of people 16 and older unemployed as of January 2009.
• Democrats least fiscally responsible EVER!
  • 787 billion—cost of stimulus
  • $12.3 trillion—public debt
  • $296.4 billion—Federal spending
  • $173 billion—financial crisis bailout
• Democrats created greatest national debt EVER!
• Democrats support UNpopular Health Care Reform instead of focusing on Economy and Employment
• Closed Door “negotiations” on key legislation (the Democrat lie of  “transparency”)
  • Democrats do not allow Republicans into the negotiations (no bipartisanship as promised)
• Democrats are now openly using tax dollars for political payoffs
  • Payoffs to Unions
  • Democrats pushing a Health Care bill that is only a government takeover, not health care
  • Payoffs for Votes (Nebraska and Louisiana)
• Earmarks that are OUT OF CONTROL
  • Obama promised to stop earmarks … now there are more than ever (another lie)
• In Massachusetts, people already have a “government-run” health cares system that costs them more.
• In Massachusetts, people don’t hate “big oil” and “Wall Street” and “Banks” and “Insurance companies.”
• Pelosi is adding 111 bureaucracies within the health care bill (GOP.gov)

Openly Currupt

Open Corruption by Democrats:  Senator Mary Landrieu s0ld her vote to Harry Reid for $100 million in aid for Lousiana.  Senator Ben Nelson sold his vote to Harry Reid to get $100 million in Medicare reductions for only people in his state.  Bribes used with our tax dollars to buy votes for the Health Care bill which, on its own, would not pass.  And then  look at the $60 billion dollars in payoff to the unions, costing the rest of us $90 billion … this being an outright payback for the unions for voting for Obama.   The Democrats are not hiding it any more … and it is not “pretty” to see … and it is UNAMERICAN.

And the Result? Another “Safe” Democrat seat lost, Deomcrat power lost, the Senate “Supermajority” was lost … and that may mean Health Care “reform” is lost!  This is the American public screaming, “Enough!”  The Democrats, out in the open, have now shown what they really are … basically cheats and liars … anything for power regardless of the cost to the country.  So Enough is Enough for most Americans and the results of the election is the proof the tide has turned.

Can you hear us now? This was the cry at the 912 rally in Washington, DC.  And they didn’t hear us, Obama said he was “unaware” of the gathering … a gathering of 1.750,000 people who disagreed with him and his policies.  But instead of listening to the people and acknowledging a change of course was needed, the Democrats continued on in a straight line toward socialism. And the result is a strong voice from the people:

• Virginia Governorhsip lost
• New Jersey Governorship lost
• Massechusetts Senate Seat lost (at 9:21 pm EST 7 point [landslide] margin for Brown!)

Continue to disregard the will of the people, and we’ll replace every one of you!

One Election at a Time!

1. Yahoo: GOPs Scott Brown Wins Mass Senate Seat in Epic Upset 01.19.10
2. SCF: (DeMint): Scott Brown Wins U.S. Senate Race  01.20.10
3. NY Post: Huge Kick in the Mass for Prez 01.20.10
4. National Review: Why the Great and Growing Backlash (Excellent read…Why!) 01.20.10
5. WSJ: The Boston Tea Party 01.20.10
6. WSJ: The New Political Rumbling 01.21.10
7. UsNews: The Incredible Deflation of Barack Obama 01.22.10 (Amazing Read)
8. CommentaryMag: The Once-appealing Barack Obama

Title of Liberty Flag - Liberty Wins one!