Talk About Insane

Three news stories have come to light which cause me to shake my head and wonder if any sane person is currently running our country or our foreign policy.

First, it is being reported by various non-partisan news sources that the Marines assigned as security detail for our embassy in Egypt were under orders by our Ambassador to Egypt not to carry live ammunition. Instead, we were relying upon Egypt security (run by the Muslim Brotherhood) to guard our sovereign territory, i.e. the embassy and its personnel. The idea of having unarmed Marines guarding our embassy in Egypt, especially given the current political climate there, is absolute lunacy.

A former Democratic elected official (Zell Miller) once said at the Republican National Convention in 2004 that he was concerned that national Democrats were planning to weaken our national defense. He asked whether our country was to be defended "with spitballs". Apparently, this was the case for our Marines in Egypt.

Second, it is now being reported that the White House was informed of dangerous protests and violent outbursts against our embassies in Egypt and several other countries 48 HOURS BEFORE IT HAPPENED.  Yet, NOTHING was done to protect our embassies or our citizens.  Now, one of our ambassadors is dead along with an aide and 2 marines.

Why was nothing done?  

Third and finally, the official initial response from our country after these attacks was an apology for offending the Islamist terrorists and attackers.  The media did not criticize this at all.  Yet, when Governor Romney expressed his outrage over this abysmal response, the Obama pocket media attacked Romney while giving Obama a pass. 

Sometimes, with this administration, I feel like I am in the Twilight Zone.  Right is deemed wrong and a proper objection is deemed treasonous.  It was bad enough when there was no white or black, just grey.  Now, it has been completely reversed so that anything pro-America is deemed politically incorrect and wrong.  If I say the pledge of allegiance, I am apparently offending people.  If I say God Bless America, I am anti-atheist or anti-agnostic.  The majority of people at the Democrat Convention booed God.  The majority of the media did not criticize this, but instead criticized those who objected to the booing.

After all of this, I am forced to ask some questions.  What's wrong with people?  Has the whole country gone mad?  Am I, as a proud and patriotic American, in the minority?  Is the United States not the greatest country in the world?  Or am I somehow a racist, "Europhobe", or "Middle Eastphobe" for believing that America is the best?

Man, do I need a beer!!

SSDD

Gibson Counters His Opponent's Lies

 We have already documented the lies being spewed against Congressman Gibson by his obviously desperate opponent.  The response from the Gibson camp is set forth below.  You may also click HERE to go directly to the link which sets forth the response with better graphics and fonts.

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SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT
Why our opponent has a credibility problem

PAID FOR BY CHRIS GIBSON FOR CONGRESS

Our opponent routinely uses false attacks and distortions to advance his partisan narrative. Devoid of vision and inspiration, his campaign represents all that is wrong with American politics.

Here are just a few of the most egregious and oft-repeated false attacks.

False claim: “[Gibson] quickly began supporting the Tea Party’s radical agenda.” [Julian for NY Press Release, August 14, 2012]…“And his voting record is not one of a moderate.” [Timestamp: 3:30]

Fact: Congressman Gibson enjoys broad support across the political spectrum, from conservative Republicans and pragmatic Independents to moderate Democrats. The Washington Post ranks him as the 3rd most independent Republican in the House of Representatives [U.S. Congress Votes Database, Washington Post, Accessed August 30, 2012] and he was ranked at the center of the House by National Journal in 2011. [Members in the Middle: House Members with Centrist Records, National Journal, March 2, 2012].

False claim: “Congressman Chris Gibson has voted to effectively end Medicare as we know it by turning it into a coupon program.” [Julian for NY Website, Accessed August 30, 2012] “Guaranteed coverage is gone” [Politics of Fear Target Elderly, Times Union, August 22, 2012]

Fact: The non-partisan fact-checker organization, Politifact, called the claim that the Republicans voted to end Medicare the 2011 “lie of the year.” With the nonpartisan Medicare trustees estimating Medicare will go broke in a little over a decade, what ends Medicare is the status quo. That is not an option – Congressman Gibson believes we owe it to those who built this country to fulfill our pledges and commitments we made to them. He has supported two different proposals to date that ensure we honor those pledges. The premium support proposal in the Republican budget would allow future seniors -those 54 and younger - to choose between a variety of federally pre-approved plans (like 25 percent of Medicare beneficiaries already do) to pick the coverage option that best meets their needs. Plans would be required to offer coverage to every senior (they could not cherry pick beneficiaries), and lower income seniors and the chronically ill would receive more money from the government while the wealthiest seniors would receive less. Anyone 55 or older would have absolutely no change in their benefits. The most recent iteration of the premium support model would have the option to choose between traditional Medicare or a pre-approved plan, with the government paying the full cost for at least two plan options. This year Congressman Gibson supported the bipartisan budget proposal (Cooper-LaTourette) that incorporates an accountable care approach, broader access to discount drugs, and additional measures to combat fraud, waste, and abuse. Congressman Gibson has demonstrated a willingness to work together with Democrats to ensure we save Medicare from bankruptcy and strengthen it for future generations. [Additional Resources: “Republicans Voted to End Medicare is 2011 Lie of the Year, Politifact; “$6,400 Myth,” Wall Street Journal, August 19, 2012; “Despite Democrats’ Warnings, Private Medicare Plans Find Success,” New York Times, August 25, 2012]

False claim: “…one area where a majority of Republicans went one way and [Gibson] broke with them was support for the small business innovation research fund....He was against it when even a majority of Republicans supported it.” [Timestamp: 3:39]

Fact: Congressman Gibson voted four times (H.R. 366, H.R. 2608, S. 1082, and H.R. 1540) to extend and reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program. [Library of Congress THOMAS]

"The Lie of the Year" being spread by Julian Schreibman

It would appear that Julian Schreibman, the Democrat candidate for Congressman, is either out of ideas, desperate, or just following the "Mediscare" play book. Perhaps it is all three.

Over the last 4 days, I have received fliers at my home from or on behalf of the Schreibman campaign containing a massive lie.  The ads accuse Congressman Gibson of "gutting Medicare" and "ending Medicare as we know it".  Now, there is a front page story in the Daily Freeman.

This is of course the lie liberal Democrats have been spreading about Paul Ryan and is plan to save Medicare.  The Albany Times Union, which is a very strong Democrat paper, recently ran an article stating that Julian Schreibman is playing "Mediscare politics". (http://bit.ly/RgFUxB).  When a Democrat rag like the Times Union says that about a Democrat or frankly says anything negative about a Democrat, it is saying something.

It should also be noted that PolitiFact examined the claims of Schreibman and his fellow left wingers that the Romney-Ryan plan would "end Medicare as we know it".  These non-partisan fact checkers concluded that the claim was the "Lie of the Year".  Imagine that. Schreibman is continuing to spread the "lie of the year".  That speaks volumes about his credibility.  What is next?  Will Schreibman and his supporters run an ad depicting Congressman Gibson throwing an old lady in a wheelchair over a cliff like the national democrats did to Paul Ryan?  Here's an idea for Mr. Schreibman.  Try to campaign honestly and stop spreading the "lie of the year".  Stop trying to scare seniors and offer some real plans for the future.  If you do not support the Ryan-Romney plan, then what is your plan to keep Medicare solvent?  Finally, stop sending lying and negative attack ads to my home and the homes of other voters.

In German, "Schreibman" means writing man.  Perhaps we should refer to him as "Schreibliegen" which means writing lies.

The Line of the NIght From Paul Ryan

Here's a Doozy

Marc Benioff, a national campaign co-chair for President Obama's reelection campaign, donated $10,000 to Ryan's political action committee earlier this summer.

Asked about the donation by Cr. Benioff said that the nation's fiscal difficulties must be addressed and Ryan's ideas offer "a lot of the right long-term thinking for the country."

I bet the President was not happy about that quote, especially since it came from his national campaign co-chair.

Which is it?

On a conference call with the Boston Globe, Obama deputy campaign manager Stephanie Cutter suggested that Mitt Romney was a criminal and a felon.

When asked about the comment, President Obama said, "Well, first of all, I am not sure that all of those characterizations that you laid out there were accurate. For example, nobody accused Mr. Romney of being a felon."

So, either the President is not being truthful or he has no idea what his campaign operatives are doing and/or saying.  Either way, it is a sad commentary.