Drafting Hillary

"Who? Me???"

You know times are tough for President Obama when a bunch of Liberals are sitting around with Bill Maher contemplate the age-old questions:

a.) What would have happened if only Hillary had won?, and,

b.) Would we be better off than we are today???”

(HINT: ROCKET SCIENTISTS prefer Hillary -- I’m NOT making this up!)

A laugh riot caught live from Bill’s underground bunker. Although, you probably didn’t catch it then because Bill Maher’s ratings are just ‘lower than mine’.

Which is odd, because, I’m not even on TV...



Now I know why people like to ‘eye-ball’ the aftermath of car wrecks. 

Why? Because, “It’s so dang interesting to see someone else's misfortunes and BOY am I happy it’s not me over there… Hey, is THAT an arm?!?! Honey! Honey! I think I see that guy's spleen!!! Cool!!!  Hand me your iPhone!!!”

Enjoy the show as the loyal opposition (on the Left) continue to 'Eat each other alive'.

Drive safely folks!

Oh, and President Obama, you might want to have someone 'test your food for you' in the future. 

Hillary doesn't look happy, and if Hillary's not happy, NOBODY's happy...

Yikes! If looks could kill...

Your MoosWeek In Review!

Bossie's starting to look a 'bit ragged' as the
2011 Recovery Summer wanders aimlessly onward

As we close the books on another week of exciting news headlines, Bossie and I take a look back at last week in Review (or, if you're a purist, in 'ReMoo'). 

Ah, what a week it was!  Packed with Birthday wishes, NEW highs, NEW lows, and even a heaping helping of Carter-era Malaise!  Yeah baby, the 70's were groovy man! 

Dig it! 

Here come the moos, here come the moos, better get ready cause here come the moos...

Monday, August 1, 2011:  HAIR OF THE DOG: Just Another Sunday-- Dems Scare Seniors & Make up Facts about the Budget & Economy


Can't share any additional thoughts here, I'm greasing up the wheels of our 'Official National Debt Reduction Wheel Chair' and cruising the streets of Upstate New York for Seniors, the handicapped, and, in general, people who don't look like me (luckily for you, this is 'just about everybody'). Then I'm taking them all to a really big cliff while music plays in the background and tossing them one by one...

Tuesday, August 2, 2011:  Russia`s Post issues stamps to mark Obama`s 50th birthday

Yes, President Barack Obama, having reached his 50th Birthday has his very own stamp in circulation... 

Cash Value:  50 Kopeks!

In Russia.

Congratulations Comrade Obama!!! 

Perhaps you can do for Russia what you have done for US?!?! 

After all, even ONE SuperPower is 'one too many SuperPowers'...

Right, Birthday Boy?

Yeah, that's what I thought.  Sorry I missed your $36,000 a head birthday bash in Chicago - I was at home with my family.  I didn't have a spare $36,000 to listen to you drone on about what a great job you're doing.  I can sit at home and listen to you do this nightly from my $4 per day Time Warner Cable investment.

I'll keep that extra $35,996 for my kids' college fund - thanks. 



Wednesday, August 3, 2011:  U.S. eats up most of debt limit in one day

President Obama presides at a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday. In the background from left are Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Interior Secretary Kenneth L. Salazar, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the president, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. In the foreground from left are, Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. and Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner. (Associated Press)

The Washington Times was nice enough to report that the Obama Administration has yet again presided over ANOTHER milestone in GREAT AMERICAN HISTORY (please read the preceding very LOUDLY to yourself to give it the respect it deserves)... 

From the article linked above:  U.S. debt shot up $239 billion on Tuesday — the largest one-day bump in history — as the government flexed the new borrowing room it earned in this week’s debt-limit increase deal.

The debt subject to the statutory limit shot way past the old cap of $14.294 trillion to hit $14.532 trillion on Tuesday, according to the latest the Treasury Department figures, which are released on the next business day.

That increase puts the government already remarkably close to the new debt limit of $14.694, which means one day’s new borrowing ate up 60 percent of the $400 billion in space Congress granted the president this week.
Knowing that the day was a 'Record-Breaker' - how did the President react to the news?

We now rejoin the above article, already in progress for the 'Rest of the Story'...  

"The fight was so bruising that President Obama on Wednesday took his debt team out to celebrate by buying them hamburgers at Good Stuff Eatery, a well-known burger joint on Capitol Hill. The White House said it was a reward for their “nonstop” work over the past few months."

"Grease - It's What for Dinner" at the Good Stuff Eatery!
Michelle Obama says, "You can't have any - none of you!"

The meal's conclusion was delayed for twenty-minutes after Mitch McConnell's arteries hardened and collapsed.  Moments later he passed out face-down in the final course of the nutritionally robust meal -- a delectable selection of Ice Cream Sundaes (with sprinkles) wrapped in bacon and deep-fried in lard, served with cigarettes and Whiskey.  

Onlookers, shocked that Mr. McConnell recovered from his arterial overload, were heard to say, "Dang, that was a close.  Quick, someone hand him a sausage burrito - that ought to put him down." 

President Obama left the meeting suddenly, having been called back to the White House by his wife, Michelle.  She, apparently was NOT amused with the President's Healthy Meal Choices for the celebration. 


Thursday, August 4, 2011:  Chevy Volt Sales Plummet as the Electric Car Market Slumps

Yes, the 230 MPG is a lie...

Yes, hard as it is to believe, an American-made Hybrid vehicle whose selling price is 'about the same' as Mercedes-Benz C350 (see photo)

is not selling so well.  Yes, in spite of the Federal Government's involvement in manipulating the Free Market, people are staying away from the Volt 'in droves'.  Since its introduction in late 2010, an estimated 2,029 Volts have been sold nationwide. 

These incredible sales results come after "President Obama vowed in his 2011 State of the Union Address to "break our dependence on oil" and "become the first country to have one million electric vehicles on the road by 2015."

The U.S. government has invested $2.4 billion in research and development to improve EV batteries and another $300 million in grants for communities that are reducing petroleum use — not to mention, hundreds of millions of dollars in consumer subsidies."



Interestingly enough, the high-mileage Hyundai Elantra sold 2,059 units in April, 2011.  The difference here, of course, is that the above sales figure of 2,059 vehicles is stated in DAYS.  The cost-effective high-mileage Elantra sold 61,873 vehciles in April, 2011.  The Elantra number is just slightly ahead of the robust Volt's monthly sales volume of almost 180 vehicles per month.

In the Marketplace of ideas, dollars vote.  Volt vs. Elantra, Hyundai wins big.  And [shock!] with no government dollars involved...


Thursday, August 3, 2011:  Dow’s losing streak now in ninth day

Flashback - February 22, 1978

The Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch online reported today that the Dow Jones has fallen for the past nine days in a row.  The last time it did this was under the watchful guidance of President James Carter.

When contacted for a comment, President Carter said, "As President Obama begins my Seventh Year in the White House, I'm proud that he continues to bolster the legacy which I left behind.  He makes ME look good.  I never thought it possible - but I'm no longer the worst President in US History..."


Friday, August 5, 2011:  Food stamp use rises to record 45.8 million

15% of All Americans now rely on Food Stamps
(Another Obama Record)

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Nearly 15% of the U.S. population relied on food stamps in May, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

The number of Americans using the government's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) -- more commonly referred to as food stamps -- shot to an all-time high of 45.8 million in May, the USDA reported.

That's up 12% from a year ago, and 34% higher than two years ago.

Yet another Milestone for the Obama - Biden Administration!
Really, there's nothing more I can add - it's getting late.

I'm gonna go upstairs and hug my dog and pet my wife, or, um, never mind.

I sure do hope that you get a chance to enjoy the remainder of 2011's Recovery Summer!

Hey, perhaps you can play golf with your friends? 

Sure, that sounds like an excellent idea!!!

'Clubbing' the Economy Daily...
Team Obama - Biden
Winning!

Things I STILL Do Not Understand: The Debt Ceiling 'Deal' (Part II)

"Let me be clear, there are things in life which I simply do not understand. Perhaps I do not understand certain concepts because they defy logic, or perhaps, more likely, other people who understand them less than I do - keep trying to explain them to me 'incorrectly'..."  

-- Mike Kane 08/03/2011

I've been listening to the TV and radio for the past week trying to get a handle on the whole 'Debt Ceiling Deal' thing. After five days of almost constant-exposure to the 'Smartest People' in the room pontificating about the deal, I have still MORE questions than I did yesterday. Some go back to BEFORE the deal, some DURING the deal, and a few AFTER the deal.

Not wanting to over-burden my already-pounding head, let me ask my questions in no particular order - if you have answers to any of the following, please chime in, if these you leave you scratching your head too, well, I'm sorry...

Question 1:  Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told us that August 2nd was the 'Absolute Drop-Dead-Default-Date' to getting a deal together to avoid a technical DEFAULT of the Federal Government.  The original first-ever 'Absolute-Drop-Dead-Default-Date' was May 16th, as outlined in my original post:  Raising the Roof, Or 'Lowering the Floor'?  

Luckily for us, the Obama Administration (working diligently with the Treasury, SEIU, and Martha Stewart's Tax Advisor), FOUND '$136 BILLION' between the White House couch cushions resulting in the date being pushed back to early August.   

So I guess what I'm really wondering is this:  Was August 2nd a REAL date, or merely a Marketing Ploy to scare the Bejesus out of old people, the sick, the handicapped, and the un-informed?  I'm thinking that it was a scam, but hey, what do I know?  If YOU know for sure please get back to me so I can let the President know the next time I'm at the White House helping him look for change in the couch.   


Question 2: Moody's and the folks at the S&P told us that the US Government would need to SLASH spending by about $4 TRILLION to keep its AAA Rating. I wasn't GREAT at Math, but isn't 2.4 LESS THAN 4.00 TRILLION? 

UPDATE:  Friday evening Standard & Poor's lowered the Nation's credit rating to AA+  

Ah, nuts, I guess somebody over at the S&P was even better at Math than I was.  They KNEW that the 'promise' of a $2.4 TRILLION reduction in debt over 10 years is LESS than an ACTUAL $4 TRILLION immediate reduction in Government Spending...

And, per the article 'linked' from the 'Update' line above: 
"S&P said that in addition to the downgrade, it is issuing a negative outlook, meaning that there was a chance it will lower the rating further within the next two years.

It said such a downgrade to AA would occur if the agency sees less reductions in spending than Congress and the administration have agreed to make, higher interest rates or new fiscal pressures during this period.

S&P first put the government on notice in April that a downgrade was possible unless Congress and the administration came up with a credible long-term deficit reduction plan and avoided a default on the country's debt." 

You can read the entire article: HERE 

Question 3:  The President, Harry Reid, Timothy Geithner, John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, Nancy Pelosi, Jerry Lewis,  and "Babbu-The-Lizard-Boy" each told us that if we did not resolve the Debt Crisis Dilemma by August 2nd that there would be a profoundly negative impact on US and World Financial Markets. 

Let me be the first to say the following: 

"THANK GOD-IN-HEAVEN THEY ACTED
WHEN THEY DID!" 

If they didn't come up with this last-minute-bipartisan-bit-of-horse-pucky, can you IMAGINE what would have happened to US and World markets?

Can you imagine how WORSE IT WOULD HAVE BEEN!?!?!?!?!?!? 

In case you've spend the last several days sleeping under a bridge abutment, let's recap the excellent financial results following the landmark legislation that 'we-just-had-to-have':

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 60.93 points, or 0.54%, to 11444.61. For the week, the blue-chip index finished down 698.63 points, or 5.75%, its biggest weekly point drop since October 2008. It has dropped 9.75% over the last two weeks and is down 1.15% for the year. -- Wall Street Journal Online, August 5, 2011  
  
So, I'm wondering, if Congress didn't have an arbitrary timeline, the President didn't freak out old people, the sick, the dependent, and squishy-minded Americans who believe that ALL GOOD comes from Government, given the legislation more time AND honest negotiation, would Congress have been able to exorcise the 'really bad aspects' of the recently-passed Debt Limit Increase?  Or, would US and World markets have been impacted LESS negatively as they were FOLLOWING passage of the 'Deal'?

Remember, this 'deal' was supposed to SAVE us from 'Gloomy Financial Uncertainty' - right?

But wait - there's MORE!!! 

The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index edged 0.69 point, or 0.06%, lower to 1199.38. For the week, it finished down 7.2%, its biggest percentage drop since November 2008. The index is down 10.83% throughout the last two weeks.


The Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 23.98 points, or 0.94%, to 2532.41. The technology-oriented index slumped 8.13% this week and is down 11.42% over the last two weeks.   Source:  Wall Street Journal Online


Question 4:  IF, big 'if', (but better than a big 'butt'!) you are the President of the United States and you KNOW that hard financial times are coming, do you:

a.)  Form a bipartisan committee to recommend how to best weather the impending financial storm?,

b.)  Form a bipartisan committee to recommend how to best weather the impending financial storm and play 70+ rounds of golf in your first two & a half years in office?,

c.)  Form a bipartisan committee to recommend how to best weather the impending financial storm, play 70+ rounds of golf in your first two & a half years in office and THEN disregard the recommendations of the bipartisan "National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform" LEADING into the financial mess we find ourselves in today?

or, do you

d.)  Do an exclusive interview with 'Tiger Beat' magazine?

The answer, of course, is...  [DRUMROLL]

is...

No, just kidding. 

But you almost bought it for a moment, didn't you?  I mean, it COULD have happened, right?  Unfortunately, it's not real - it's a gag. 

More unfortunately for the country, the actual answer, of course, is 'C' - which can best be summarized as follows:

a.)  Form a committee to reduce government waste
b.)  Golf 'a lot'
c.)  Ignore the committee's recommendations
d.)  Blame it all on Bush, Japanese Tsunami, Arab Spring, and oil prices


Question 5:  Republicans, in their 'Pledge to America', promised to provide 3 days of review for any Bill in the House prior to its being brought up for a vote.  In violating their own stated promise to the American People, they have shown a lack of commitment to their not just Republicans, but all Americans. 

Let me ask you this, who's more at fault for this - President Obama, Congress, or the Treasury for creating the 'crisis' to begin with, or Speaker of the House Boehner for not sticking to his campaign-based principles? 

My opinion?  Boehner 'screwed the pooch'.  When you negotiate from a position of weakness, you take shortcuts, you make 'easier' decisions.  You get what you deserve. 

We, the People, deserve better.

If you have any answers to the above inquiries, toss them in the Comment section below - I'd like to know what you think..

I fear that many in our Nation have more questions than they have answers.  This holds especially true for the man currently sitting in the White House.  Maybe the President can start asking US what we do when our household is spending more than it takes in?

For this, yes, I believe we have many 'answers' for him.  

If only the man would ask someone other than a Nobel-Prize-Winner for an answer from time to time? 

Actual 'Made-Up-Seconds-Ago' Example:  When President Obama needs to know what time it is -- he asks one of his 'Nobel-Prize-Winners' how to deconstruct and then reconstruct a watch using only 'Green Technology' and the power of his 'Awesomeness'.

For the love of God!  Someone, please, from now on when he asks what time it is, tell him the following:

"It's just after midnight, Mr. President.  Get some sleep now...  You've got 18-holes in the morning."

Speaking of time, it's time for me to chase dreams into the night...

I do well with dreams.  Sometimes the waking is the nightmare.

Things I Do Not Understand: The Debt Ceiling 'Deal'

"Let me be clear, there are things in life which I simply do not understand.  Perhaps I do not understand certain concepts because they defy logic, or perhaps, more likely, other people who understand them less than I do - keep trying to explain them to me 'incorrectly'..."   --  Mike Kane 08/03/2011

I've been listening to the TV and radio for the past several days trying to get a handle on the whole 'Debt Ceiling Deal' thing.  After 72 hours of almost constant-exposure to the 'Smartest People' in the room pontificating about the deal, I have questions.  Some go back to BEFORE the deal, some DURING the deal, and a few AFTER the deal.  

Not wanting to over-burden my already-pounding head, let me ask my questions in no particular order - if you have answers to any of the following, please chime in, if these you leave you scratching your head too, well, I'm sorry...

Question 1:  How does increasing Congress's ability to borrow money by $2.4 TRILLION reduce spending?  Would you give a bottle of Jack Daniel's to an alcoholic to get him to stop drinking?

Question 2:  Moody's and the folks at the S&P told us that the US Government would need to SLASH spending by about $4 TRILLION to keep its AAA Rating.  I wasn't GREAT at Math, but isn't 2.4 LESS THAN 4.00 TRILLION?

Question 3:  The Bill, as written, creates a 'SuperCongress' provision.  Will the members of this SuperCongress be compelled to wear tights, boots, and capes?  And if they are - will the proceedings be televised on CSPAN?  And if they are televised, will Guantanamo detainees be forced to watch them? 

Question 4:  How can President Obama continue to blame our current economic 'Malaise'* on President Bush's policies?  He HAS been President for almost three years - correct? 

I know it SEEMS longer than three years, but President Obama blaming our current economic conditions on GW Bush is like my wife blaming me for a bad dream SHE had in which I did something wrong. 

When she wakes up, she's mad at ME and all I did was wake up...  (Am I the only one this happens too?) 


Question 5:  If someone presented the following chart to you, would you think that there is 'might be a slight spending problem' within the US Congress (since spending is proposed by Congress and 'approved' by the President)? 

To more completely understand the above chart, please note a couple of things:

FIRST:  GW Bush, between 2000 and 2006, between the two solid red lines, increased our National Debt from $5 TRILLION to over $6 TRILLION with a 'divided government' (Republicans held White House and Presidency - Democrats controlled the Senate) 

[An increase of $1 TRILLION in new debt while recovering from 9/11 and spending for two wars.]

SECOND:  GW Bush between 2006 and 2008 (dashed white line to second red line) increased our National Debt from over $6 TRILLION to over $8 TRILLION with a Republican in the Presidency and Democrats controlling the House, the Senate. 

[An increase of $2  TRILLION in debt in 2 years]

THIRD:  President Obama, a Democratically-controlled House (2 Years) and Democratically-controlled Senate (3 Years) between 2008 and 2011 increased the National Debt from $8 TRILLION to over $14 TRILLION in LESS THAN THREE YEARS. 

[A $6 TRILLION increase in debt in less than three years]

FOURTH:  The prior item, of course, was the fault of GW Bush.  

FIFTH:  The chart above was found on a Korean Investment website.  My sincere thanks to "Korean Investment's Yoo". 

You?  No, not YOU, the OTHER Yoo...  Ah, never mind.

SUMMING UP:  Democrats never met a borrowed dollar of yours that they didn't like to spend.  40 Cents of EVERY dollar being spent today is borrowed from other nations or being printed at the Treasury.  It's backed by?

Hope and Change.

There are MORE questions, of course, but I am out of time and valuing my JOB as I do, I must be off. 

More questions to come.  If you have any answers, toss them in the Comments section below. 

If you, too, have questions, please don't give them to me as I have enough for all of us...  And my wife told me that she had a bad dream about ME last night so I'm sure I'm going to get questions of my own later today... 

[SIGH]

*NOTE: President Carter NEVER used the 'M' word, but it became synonymous with his 'Malaise Speech' which as mentioned above, never included the word itself.