Tar Heel Blue Dogs Fare Poorly on Taxpayer Rankings

Group names four N.C. Republicans ‘taxpayer heroes’
By David N. Bass
August 16, 2010

RALEIGH — North Carolina’s three centrist Democrats scored in single digits on new congressional rankings that judge how well lawmakers protected taxpayers’ interests in 2009.

U.S. Reps. Heath Shuler, D-11th, and Mike McIntyre, D-7th, scored 8 percent and 5 percent, respectively, in the rankings by the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste, a conservative group based in Washington, D.C. Shuler and McIntyre are members of the Blue Dog Coalition, an alliance of House Democrats who claim to be “independent voices for fiscal responsibility and accountability.”

Rep. Larry Kissell, a Democrat representing the 8th Congressional District, isn’t a member of the coalition but has parted company with party leaders several times during his year-and-a-half in the House. He garnered 5 percent on the scorecard.

McHenry clarifies his view on Obama’s citizenship

By Peter St. Onge
pstonge@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009
UPDATED 8/13/09. 10:11AM

LINCONTON U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry this morning clarified remarks he made at a town hall forum in Lincolnton Wednesday night indicating he was unconvinced that President Obama is a U.S. citizen.

During a three-hour question-and-answer session, primarily on health-care reform, Lincolnton resident Alan Hoyle asked if McHenry thinks Obama is a citizen. McHenry declined to affirm Obama’s citizenship, instead saying: “I haven’t seen evidence one way or the other.”

Rahm Emanuel’s chickens ‘coming home to roost’

Rahm’s chickens come ‘home to roost’
By: Glenn Thrush
July 29, 2009 04:34 AM EST

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) is angry that the conservative Blue Dogs are dominating health care negotiations, and she’s blaming their breeder — Rahm Emanuel.

Waters, former chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, told MSNBC that the Dogs have proved so powerful because Emanuel, the former DCCC head, and others promised to allow them to vote however they want on any issue.

Hagan backs Obama budget, but not section on international aid

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: May 13, 2009

RALEIGH – U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., said yesterday that she would like to cut the amount of international aid provided in President Obama’s budget plan, but she largely praised the proposal as fiscally responsible even though it shatters records with a deficit of more than $1.8 trillion.

Hagan, a former state budget writer, said she opposed Obama’s plan to cut $400 million out of a program that helps law-enforcement agencies offset the cost of incarcerating illegal immigrants who have committed crimes. Her only proposed cut was to international aid, and she largely praised increased spending on teachers and rural health care.

“President Obama is making a serious effort to rein in the fiscal irresponsibility which has plagued us for too long by cutting the deficit in half by the end of his first term,” Hagan said in a written statement.

http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2009/may/13/hagan-backs-obama-budget-but-not-section-on-intern/news-ncpolitics/ 

 

**NOTE** – Umm, I’ll have the anti-freeze without the arsenic please.

Obama urges passage as Kennedy introduces hate crimes bill in Senate

By CHRIS JOHNSON, Washington Blade
Apr 28 2009, 6:31 PM  |      |   

As U.S. House lawmakers made preparations Tuesday for a floor vote on hate crimes legislation, Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) introduced similar legislation in the Senate.

The new Senate bill, called the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act, is named after a gay college student who was murdered near Laramie, Wyo., in 1998 because of his sexual orientation. Like the House bill, it would enable the Justice Department to prosecute hate crimes committed against LGBT people.

In a statement Tuesday, Kennedy said the legislation is “long overdue” and “hate crimes are especially poisonous.”

“They are acts of domestic terrorism that target whole communities, not just individuals,” he said. “This bill will bring greater protection to our citizens and much-needed resources for state and local law enforcement to fight these vicious crimes.”

http://www.washblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=25214

Abortion bill veto costs Obama nominee a vote

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr will oppose Kathleen Sebelius’ nomination.

The Winston-Salem Republican said Monday that he cannot support the Kansas governor’s nomination as secretary of Health and Human Services because of her recent veto of an abortion bill.

On Thursday, Sebelius vetoed a bill that would have amended Kansas law on late-term abortions, questioning whether it was constitutional and suggesting that it would lead to intimidation of doctors.

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1503877.html

Duke: Obama plan would bring higher rates

Climate change-related auction of credits will be ‘carbon tax’ passed on to consumers, Rogers says.

By Bruce Henderson
bhenderson@charlotteobserver.com

Posted: Tuesday, Mar. 03, 2009

Duke Energy says Carolinas electricity rates would rise by at least 13 percent under President Obama’s plan to address climate change by auctioning off carbon credits.

Obama would set the nation’s first limits on emissions of carbon dioxide, the gas linked to global warming. Under an approach outlined in his proposed budget last week, industries and utilities such as Duke would be able to trade allowances to release the gas.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/business/story/572553.html

Bellamy, Obama to discuss economic stimulus

• PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 18, 2009 12:15 AM
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ASHEVILLE – Mayor Terry Bellamy will be going to Washington on Thursday to meet with President Barack Obama to talk about economic stimulus.

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009902180328

Foxx statement on today’s meeting with President Obama

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                              Contact: Aaron Groen

January 27, 2009                                                                   202-225-2071

 

Foxx statement on today’s meeting with President Obama

 Washington, DC—President Barack Obama today met with Republican’s in the House of Representatives, including Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (NC-05), to discuss the need for an economic relief package.  Rep. Foxx issued the following statement after the meeting with President Obama:

 

 “Today’s meeting with President Obama was an encouraging sign that our new President is willing to listen to the ideas and concerns of House Republicans. 

 “My sincere hope is that the President will seriously consider the proposals presented by Republicans to cut taxes for families and small businesses across America.  His openness to dialogue is an important first step to fixing the serious flaws in the House Democrats’ $825 billion spending bill.

 “As this process moves forward perhaps my Democratic colleagues in the House will follow the example of President Obama and include House Republicans in the economic relief negotiations that we have thus far been locked out of.”

 ###

Abortion funding back with Obama

01/24/2009 13:51
ASIA – UNITED STATES
Abortion funding back with Obama
The new president has revoked the ban imposed by Bush for eight years. Obama has also promoted financing of UN population control policies. Pro-life movements are sending critical messages to the president.

Washington (AsiaNews/Agencies) – U.S. president Barack Obama has reauthorized funding for organizations that perform or promote abortion abroad, removing the veto put in place by his predecessor, George W. Bush. The decision of the new president, just three days after the beginning of his inauguration, was announced shortly after the conclusion of a pro-life march at the capital, attended by hundreds of thousands of people. The evening before the march, Philadelphia Cardinal Justin Rigali provided over a prayer service for the defense of life.

Speaking at the march, Congresswoman Virginia Foxx remembered the “millions of unborn children whose blood has been shed in the abortion mills of America.”

Obama is a supporter of the idea that the unborn have no rights, and that abortion can be performed up until the ninth month of pregnancy. The new president has also said that he will restore American funding to the United Nations population fund. Bush had blocked the funding because some of the programs of the UN organism were linked to abortion, and to forced sterilization in China.

In the past, Obama had promised total liberalization of abortion in order to “safeguard the health and freedom of women.” His cabinet includes staunch abortion supporters, including White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and secretary of state Hillary Clinton.

The website Lifenews.com has launched a campaign among its visitors in order to send messages of criticism on this decision by President Obama, through the link http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact.