Archive for June, 2010

The contrast is stunning! Across the Delaware River in Trenton, the fresh face and straight talk of Governor Chris Christie leaves no doubt in the minds of New Jersey citizens about where he stands on any issue of substance. As a result, he is on the verge of closing a budget gap of $11 BILLION (yes with a B).

Meanwhile, on our side of the Delaware, freshman-faced congressman Cong. Patrick Murphy, D-PA08 continues to ignore important issues on a daily basis. His non-verbal response to the Gulf oil disaster, followed by an ill-conceived, job-killing, drilling moratorium? — a “Job Fair” at a local mall.

Well, silence means consent: Therefore Murphy must support the drilling moratorium by the Obama administration.

In 2009, over 42,000 metric tons of petroleum crude came into Delaware River ports.

It is far and away the largest commodity brought into our region.

That crude is refined here to heat our homes, fuel our transportation among a myriad other uses.

That commodity supports thousands of jobs here in our region.

Decisions on energy production by Interior Secretary Ken Salaszar, while making salacious soundbites for the Sierra Club, will not help in the dead of winter when shortages drive the cost of heating oil through the roof for thousands of Bucks County families.

Yet, Patrick Murphy has NO COMMENT on President Obama’s decision to place a moratorium on drilling. No one likes what is happening in the gulf, but quality of life depends on a job as much as a clean environment.

Murphy thinks silence is a safe harbor from answering hard questions about these balancing acts. So far he has been right: To twist one his favorite issue – If he “Don’t Tell”, the Bucks County media “Don’t Ask”!!

Silence means consent, so why isn’t the Bucks County media helping their readers understand whether and how much consideration Murphy has given to supporting this decision.

Politically, Murphy may believe silence is golden, but that’s what a free press is supposed to override!

Shortly after President Obama signed the health overhaul law, several major corporations reported it would take a bite out of their future earnings. This group included AT&T, Caterpillar, John Deere, Verizon and several other large employers.

Convinced these businesses were cooking their books to cast the new law in a bad light, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) promptly subpoenaed documents and demanded executives testify to defend their announcements. But after combing through 1,100 pages of corporate documents and e-mails, Waxman’s staff canceled the hearing – and announced that “the companies acted properly and in accordance with accounting standards.”

In other words, even though some lawmakers don’t want to believe it, Obamacare is already proving costly to American businesses. And ironically, the new law could cause many workers to lose the health benefits they get through their jobs.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/06/17/2010-06-17_a_bad_omen_on_obamacare_fears_about_health_reforms_costs_are_coming_true.html#ixzz0rZrINmkx

Patrick Murphy, D-PA08 voted FOR this massive centrally-planned, Soviet-style healthcare blueprint.

When will the Bucks County Media start to hold Murphy and his inside-the-beltway cronies Specter & Casey accountable for this growing mess – the healthcare equivalent of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico??

White House budget director Peter Orszag, a top lieutenant on President Obama’s economic team, will be leaving his post next month, administration officials said Monday.

Orszag, 41, the first senior cabinet official to resign, helped steer the $787 billion economic stimulus bill through Congress.

While perhaps a small victory for conservatives and pragmatic people across the board, it is telling that while we the people have been plunged into record levels of debt, we finally have a “change” worth believing. The downside is who will replace him… “the devil you know vs. the devil you don’t…”

It will also be interesting to see who hires Orzag and where. Will he continue to live in the “Beltway Wonderland”, or some other Fantasia environment.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/06/22/2010-06-22_obamas_budget_boss_is_quitting.html#ixzz0rZnVK1xQ