Recall Senator Martinez!
Feel really pixxed off about the botched job, lies and deceit from Senator Mel Martinez?
Go
HERE and sign a recall petition!This is sad......no, not the site, but the NEED for a recall site. I am in full agreement about needing Martinez out of there. Little Duke and I both agree he should well be a one-term Senator. Now, with this effort underway....perhaps we don't have to keep him in Washington for his full six years!
Duke
From The No News Is Good News Category!
Hillary has a neat little pile of
52% of registered voters polled who say they will not vote for her if she is the Democratic nominee! That continues the trend for many months, even more than a year.
THE FACTS SPEAK LOUDLY FOLKS!
Now, if we can just get Thompson (FRED, folks....don't even go there on the "other" Thompson!) out of the starting blocks.
The more I watch, the more I am impressed with his delay entering the race. ALL the early entries are gaining baggage.....he has little. Of course, the biggest endorsement of all for Thompson is the fact the DEMs are already taking pot shots at him. That sez it all. They fear his candidacy!
Duke
Martinez - Whine, Grouse....It's ALL Your Burden Now!
Senator Mel Martinez, (R-Bushite), has already stepped forward to avoid any responsibility for the immigration laws of our country. Following his leadership role in pursuing the Bush/Kennedy/McCain fiasco, Martinez this morning told the readers of the Tampa Tribune why he has no ownership in immigration problems:
"Burden Now On You, Martinez Tells FoesBy BILLY HOUSE The Tampa TribunePublished: Jun 29, 2007WASHINGTON - Disappointed, Florida Sen. Mel Martinez says those who defeated the Senate's proposed immigration-law overhaul now have the responsibility to come up with their solutions to the problem."I will do what I can on this topic, but I do think the burden has shifted to others to see what proposals, what solutions they will offer and they will have," said Republican Martinez, one of about 10 senators with key roles in shaping the bill.Senators scuttled the bipartisan bill that was pushed by President Bush, voting 46-53 against moving ahead to a final vote. That left supporters of the bill 14 votes short of 60 required to proceed.Florida's other senator, Democrat Bill Nelson, joined Martinez in voting to allow the bill to move forward. He said the proposed overhaul of the nation's immigration laws "had flaws," but would have at least been a first step toward securing U.S. borders and enforcing immigration laws."Most everyone agrees our immigration system is broken and needs to be fixed," Nelson said. "What we have now is the equivalent of amnesty. That's why I voted to have a full debate and final decision on an immigration plan pending in the Senate."It was a particularly bitter defeat for Martinez, given his prominent role in helping to forge a bipartisan agreement as both a senator and Bush's handpicked Republican National Committee general chairman.The Cuba-born Martinez said the bill, crafted over months of negotiations, would have done "a tremendous amount" to end illegality and better secure the border nation's borders.Martinez said it also would have done "a measure of justice by those who have been here, who've worked and who've made this country their home for now-in many instances-more than two decades."
My question of Mel Martinez, with whom I exchanged emails during the bill's consideration, would be, in fact is....."Why not now regain the publics confidence by enforcing the laws on the books...you know, those from 1986? Why not build the hundreds of miles of fence authorized last year? Why not actually support your Border Patrol in their enforcement of the laws of the United States?" I'll add in my actual email to Martinez as soon as it is sent.....
We in Florida actually elected this guy as a Republican Senator? Well, I guess we also elected his mentor, GWB!
Duke
UPDATE: Here is my email to Senator Martinez.....
"I read, with much disgust, your statements in this morning's Tampa Tribune wherein you have chosen to pass off responsibility to others now that the hastily, stealthily written, bill has failed.
My questions to you include:
1. Why not now regain the confidence of a disillusioned voter-base by actually enforcing the laws passed in 1986?
2. Why not actually build the hundreds of miles of fence voted for last year?
3. Why not support your Border Patrol in their enforcement of the laws on the books?
Yes, Senator, you DO have ownership of the immigration problem...if you actually choose to enforce the laws of the United States...as your oath of office demands!
What steps do you plan to take to move on the above items. I await your response, and appreciate the response a couple of weeks ago to my 1st email on this topic...even as I disagreed with the comments you made it was positive that I got the response."
Don't Ya Just Love It?
The vote is over......Immigration bill is history!
Now the Democratic lying begins......Fresh off a full day of stiffling debate, refusing to let this bill develop in the normal committee fashion, and even asking for votes before the bill had been handed out to the Senators, Harry Reid is already speaking long and loud about "Bush's Bill".....
Pelosi is doing the same......
Do these idiotarians (that is their religion, I swear) think they can fool the American public which just had them for lunch!
I am quite certain that they will never learn until we turn out ALL incumbents in the 2008 elections....ALL OF THEM!
Duke
Where was YOUR Senator on the "Shamnesty" Immigration Bill?
Check the voting list (compiled by Michelle Malkin)
Actually, to be correct Senator "Switchback" Brownback should be on both. His 1st vote...in favor of cloture was a stage-setter for a probably later final vote against the immigration bill...one that would not have counted, but could have given him the out of saying he voted against the bill. When he realized the vote today was going D-O-W-N, he quickly reversed field.
Bye Bye Brownback candidacy!
Duke
18
That is the magic number.
18 Senators switched their vote on cloture from two days ago to this morning.
18 - 6 Democrats; 12 Republicans
What happened?
It seems fairly simple to determine the facts.
Many Senators voted to avoid cloture (in effect bringing the immigration bill, known as Amnesty 2, back to the floor) so the bill could be debated....considered, possibly amended into a bill acceptable.
Harry Reid committed legislative suicide by using every mean tool in his bag, and some not ever before used to try to choo-choo the bill thru with no debate, no modifications, etc. That stopped a BUNCH of Senators in their tracks.
These Senators were getting hundreds and thousands of phone calls, emails, letters... ALMOST ALL in opposition to the bill. The opposition? "If you cannot enforce the laws now on the books, why should we buy another pig-in-a-poke about you enforcing this new set of laws???"
Nuff Said. The word got through folks. WE, the VOTERS were heard, and the Senate responded...grudgingly for sure...with a vote today to end the current "Shamnesty" bill.
Now....do the members of Congress have the you-know-whats to face the message and do something....you know, something like ENFORCE the laws now on the books as a show of their seriousness. I'll give pretty hefty odds that AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!
Enforcement was never the plan....if it had been they could have done so within what IS....
I still feel the GOP abandoned us, and today's vote sends only one message. You cannot buffalo the people all the time.
Sounds like a P T Barnum moment to me!
Duke
Immigration Bill Dies An Ugly Death!
The final vote........53 voting to NOT invoke cloture.....in other words voting to keep deabte alive on the flawed immigration bill. That sounds the death knell as Senator Harry (Whiny Guy) Reid has promised to take the bill out if defeated.
The actual votes for the bill were 46.....14 short of the 60 needed!
Marvelous!
A number of votes from folks who failed us on the earlier cloture vote were reversed. One interesting note: Sam Brownback, alledged Presidential candidate voted FOR cloture...then, amazingly, when it became clear the cloture would not be invoked, he switched his vote. Me thinks he was going to vote against the bill in its final form, knowing full well it would pass and he could then claim his opposition for those of us opposed to the bill. What an idiot.....no wonder he is trailing on all the polls.
WE have a small victory. Now, how do we get the congress to ENFORCE the laws on the book.
Duke
Zero Hour: 10:30am, Eastern
The vote on cloture for the immigration bill is set for then.
Go to
Michelle Malkin's site where she is live-blogging the morning's actions. This is going to be close folks, and a vote against cloture will, for all practical purposes end this amnesty bill.
Capt. Ed is predicting a 57-42 vote (the cloture vote requires 60 to pass). Let us hope Ed is right! I am not quite that sure, but hell, I'll accept 59-40....
Duke
Choo-Choo-Choo-Choo! Hear that Railroad Job?
Harry Reid is trying singlehandedly to railroad through the immigration bill. He wants not only the public, but his fellow Senators to be given no time to read the bill, its amendments, and all is going by backroom Democratic decisions....with, of course, a few GOP defectors.
Michelle Malkin is right on top of this
just go to her site and read-and-read-and-read!This travesty of trampling our congressional operation into a single idiot Senator driving the train and determining where it will or won't stop had better be reined in by the GOP or they are lost to their base forever!
Duke
BAD VIBES!!!!!
"Re: Bad vibe [Mark Steyn]I agree with Stanley. There's something creepy about a political class so determined to impose a vast transformative bill cooked up backstage in metaphorically smoke-filled rooms on a nation that doesn't want it. It's an affront to republican government and quasi-European in its disdain for the citizenry. It's hard to imagine Senator Trenthorn Lotthorn as an EU Commissioner but his position on this immigration bill is basically the same as that of Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister of Luxembourg and European "president", on the EU constitution. When asked what difference the referendum result in France would make, "President" Juncker replied: If it’s a Yes, we will say ‘on we go’, and if it’s a No we will say ‘we continue’.Same with the immigration bill. I think I say somewhere in my book that the first line of the European constitution is: "We the people agree to leave it to you the people who know better than the people." That suits the US Senate, too. They'll teach this one as a textbook definition of "bipartisanship": both parties gang up on the electorate."Ron Coleman also sees the immigration fiasco as a GOP Meltdown:
"Glenn Reynolds reads our very transparent minds and ponders:
WHAT SHOULD REPUBLICANS DO as the GOP seems to be committing suicide? I dunno — saving the GOP isn’t my job, and if the Democrats weren’t worse on national security I wouldn’t mind much. (And the GOP advantage there seems to be shrinking anyway).But you’ve got three basic choices: Exit, voice, and loyalty. That is, quit, bitch like hell, or hold your nose and vote.
Problem is, people have been exercising “voice” a lot and it’s clear that President Bush, Trent Lott, et al., don’t care and aren’t listening. … I think the GOP’s vulnerability to a third party challenge has just gone way up.
I’ll say. I’ve never been more disgusted, and that’s from a lifelong Republican and occasional activist who still voted for Clinton in 1992.
I never liked Lott, and the fact that he was elected the Minority Leader in the Senate was a red flag. GWB has lost me completely on the immigration issue and his utter lack of leadership, right now, on just about anything. Not only that, but I am so disgusted that what I once willing to overlook for what I believed to be the Cause, I retroactively do not. The unbridled spending… the cronyism (which I have not hesitated to criticize before)... the complete surrender of the message on the Iraq war and, yes, the failure to communicate effectively about just about anything, certainly since the 2004 election.
What a squandered, ugly moment for Republicans conservatives like me. What a shame for America.
And, yes, what an opportunity for a third party candidate. And what an interesting moment for, in my view, Rudy Giuliani to ask himself if he might, perhaps, be that candidate — an idea so daft for the front-runner it just might work."Ah yes, and there it is folks....the third party interest i have spoken of often on the blog. Time right? Unfortunately probably wrong on several levels right now; not enough time prior to 2008 to have enough candidates (viable ones) who could get elected on a third party slate; the dismemberment of the GOP at this juncture would almost completely insure a Hildabeast Presidency (YOWCH!); and, some national figure needs to solidify an image for any third party to be successful.
But am I ready???? Yes, thanks to GWB, Mel Martinez, Trent Lott, et al.
Abandon US and we abandon YOU!Duke
A SAD Day!
Immigration.....
We have not, nor will we, enforce the laws as enacted in 1986.
We are now about to pass new laws which give the illegals (all 12-20 million of them) who came here post-1986 their due process to become legal....and we are doing it all without making the borders secure. DAMN You President Bush.
Seek nothing from this person GOP for the future....Coleman, McConnell, et al....You have abandoned YOUR voters....YOU have let us all know you will vote whatever is expedient for you....not what the public wants......50% oppose immigration legislation. 22 percent favor it.....
GET A CLUE......
Oh, wait, you are the "Elite"....for you know the best interests of the country, it has nothing to do with the voters....
In 2008 it will have to do with the voters!
Trust me on that!
Duke
WE LOSE! - The American People Lose!
The Senate has voted 64-whatever FOR cloture.....Thus the Senate will LIMIT DEBATE....LIMIT AMENDMENTS....LIMIT any chance for the vote DOWN of this disasterous bill....
My urge to all of you.....Check your Senator's vote......this is the vote that counts... If he voted to limit debate, and then later votes to oppose the bill (when a DEM majority assures it's passage) he is LYING to his constituency! He is seeking votes for re-election while playing games, and stopping the majority of the nation from their view of this absurd legislation.
If your Senator voted against cloture....he/she is against your position....despite the vote they apply later to the entire bill. They have set the stage, and made it possible for the passage of B-A-D legislation......let me call it 1986, V2.....
Nothing to be enforced, no illegals to be outed, no illegals to be prevented from coming here in the future.
Let GWB live with his legacy.....Failed President on everything, except the 9/11 reaction. Sad, Sad, Sad....GWB Lie, and his minions, including my own Senator Martinez, lied with him.
None of the perpetrators will have a vote from me in the future!
Martinez....you have my attention, and I'll work for, vote for, anyone who opposes you in the next election!
Enjoy your time in office.
Duke
IMMIGRATION....Bush Lies, Reid Lies, we Have Another 1986, with Attachments!
This is absurd!
This is GWB Talk!
This is Harry Reid Talk!
This is a
L-I-E!!!!The facts are, this bill will solve nothing implementation of the 1986 bill would not have!
If THIS government is not willing to implement the 1986 law, WHY would they enforce the 2007 law??????
They WILL NOT! They are seeking a Bush legacy......
They will have it....presuming it passes.....He will be decried as the loser of the century!
Bush is absolutely out-of-touch, and he DOES-NOT-CARE!
His obstinacy is so obvious, and so W-R-O-N-G!
I hate the fact I found him my choice...but then what were the choices???? Two of the WORST DEM choices of the past 100 years....GORE & KERRY!
Duke
Media Bias....Lack of Coverage? - Just LOOK!
I am a disciple of the fact that today's "News" is not that, but staged dialogue in most instances....particularly in the Middle-East!
This is a great read about just why
I BELIEVE THAT!Michael Totten shows his stuff, and is part of the "real" media in Iraq and the Middle-East.....We all need to read more of this and less of the pablum dished by the MSM (Antique Media)....
WHY do the MSM seek such "sensationalist" shots, and ignore facts....???? 1. it is convenient and takes no work....2. It is according to the bias they follow....
When I was a newsman/news director about 30 years ago we sought balance, fairness, and absolute knowledge of our stories. Wha Happened??????
This is SAD-Just SAD!
Duke
I Got "GAS PAINS!".....Government Provided!
How do you force people to save at the pump?
You LIE!
WIZBANG has details....How true, how true!
Cheat, deflect facts, provide false information....
HELLO Government!
We do not like you! We do not like your lies, and your obfuscation!
We need to vote out a LOT of incumbents.....perhaps ALL! It cannot be any worse!
Duke
Danes Strike Back - Ya Gotta Love It!
About time this happened.....
Gates of Vienna reports on Danish effigy burning of Mohammed! Their goal....a Mohammedan-Free-Denmark.
FINALLY....someone strikes back with the same tools used by the Islamic Yellers-and-screamers......(Yes, I know the title is simplistic, but it somehow fits these idiots!)
It is time for the world to step back and look at the idiocy of coddling such violent, absolutely single-minded, anti-everything-but-their-religion folks. There is no placating folks who hate everything but their own brand of religion....you know, the one which relates today to what they did and believed in the time of Christ, and before. These folks do not live ina real world, and are happy to utilize your products of advancement, as long as YOU worship their god of terror, killing, subjugation, and non-enlightenment!
Nuff Said
Duke
My Mosque = OK..... Your Religious Place = NOT OK!
Yeppers folks, the idiotarians are already trying to find their power to determine what IS and what IS NOT for we non-Islamist folk.
Ya Gott a read it to believe it......This is way beyond the pale folks!
& It seems to me to really, really, support the "Truth shall set you free, as long as it's YOUR Truth!" story.......
My God, these folks really feel this way.
Does the phrase, "My Way, or The Highway" come to mind?????
Duke
They Are "A-feared" of Thompson.....!
Thank you DEMs for giving us more info on who we should run to claim the White House in 2008....
The nice thing about politics is they is politics!!!!!
Thus.....per
THIS PIECE... we know Fred Thompson is a truly viable candidate; one feared by the DEMs....
Ya gotta love it....
This is part of why I am on-board for Fred......as I have said, and my site tells....
(Repeat of previous notation: I AM NOT PAID BY the Thompson folks....I display one ad for the support of Thompson, and that I do willingly, but not "PAID FOR" as the ad states....I ain't received a dime folks....nor do I want/expect same!
Thompson is going to shake this up in the vein of Reagan....not because he is a Reagan Republican, but because he is an "Outsider"....not part of the hated "beltway group" which most of our politicians are.....He comes into the frey somewhat clean, and giving really, really good infomercials for his cause.....and HE LOVES THE BLOGS!!!!
What else could we ask?
Duke
UPDATE: The DEMs are in full attack mode.....JUST CHECK THIS OUT!Go FRED!
Duke
Marriage - Natural Family = Hate Speech?
If you are in Oakland the above words can be censured.....
George Will postulates on a ridiculous situation made too real.Oakland, where gaiety.....oops Gayness abounds.
The truth shall set you free.....as long as it is YOUR truth!
Duke
Biggest Battle Since The Invasion - Media SILENT!
If the MSM (Read: Antique Media) report anything that tells a story of a possible victory or positive move in Iraq, then their constant chatter about the USA losing there is not reinforced. So They just do not report anything except bombings/deaths/etc.
The BIGGEST battle since our invasion is underway in Iraq. Have you read anything about it? If so, you read blogs.
Jack Kelly reports.How very, very sad the media of our great country....you know, the supporters of the right to free speech....have chosen to limit speech by covering only items within their agenda.
No wonder their believability factor is somewhere down just above the lowest-ever rating of our US Congress.
Man-o-man do we need to oust some Congressional members (100%) and begin to turn full-time to the blogosphere for TRUTH!
Duke
Immigration Update!!!!!
1st.....The
opposition grows....2nd.....Gingrich on ABC report sez
bill is a hand-written invite to millions MORE illegals! (Surprised???....Me neither)
3rd.....The "securing of our borders.....via a previously-enacted legislation is
DELAYED????? (No surprise here folks....no law about immigration is inforced!....E-V-E-R!
4th.....127 new people are arrested as the Bushies try to make it appear they are REALLY, REALLY, working to stop immigration.....
127 out of MILLIONS?????If a gang of 1,000 comes to cause damage in your area and you arrest 1 is it enforcement???? Of course not.
It is PR to try to sell the public that enforcement is "working".....BS!!!!!
This shows why we need to insure the bill
Duke
Set Gas Prices & You'll Have NO Gas!
Once again the Defeatocrats are meddling in the prices of gasoline, and if they succeed they will ignite a gas shortage in this country which most alive today have not experienced.
Edward p. Lazear
EXPLAINS THE PROCESS!Only idiots today would believe you can regulate gas prices. It's the market stupid! The market works for a commodity such as oil which is being consumed faster than we can produce it. If we suddenly force gas companies to sell the gas at $3.00 per gallon, and they can get a better price in other parts of the world (they already do, by the way) they will quit shipping it here and send it where they can get $4.00 per gallon. That is how the business world works.
Instead of grandstanding so the government-school-educated will vote Democratic...while our economy goes down the tubes, why not do something about the problem of our having to buy gas from oil stocks from other parts of the world???? Why not obtain the oil in ANWR? Why not from the deep supplies under the Gulf? Why not reduce our energy consumption with new nuclear plants? BECAUSE...The Democrats are also trying to buy the "Green" vote by opposing all such methods of making us less oil dependent.
Mark my words.....If the current legislation, sponsored by Democrats, to control the oil prices/companies is enacted your kids will learn about long lines at gas pumps. and limited availability. They'll see what it feels like to stay at home a lot more.
The economy is global for oil. We cannot control the price from here. Simple.
Duke
Labels: Legislation, OIL, Price Controls
This Little Piggy Ain't Helpin No Muslims!
The story of completely humorous Muslim opposition to TOY pigs is at
Little Green Footballs.... You really need to read it!
As someone near and dear to Cardiac surgery, all i can say is our usage of "porcine" valves as replacements for humans should give them a quiver....AND, a dilemma if they need a replacement valve.....
It is actually quite a funny thought.....
Duke
From The "No Surprise" Department
The Duke three have asked for criminal action against
Mike Nifong...FOXNews reports.By the time this is over Mr. Nifong will be one sorry dude....he probably already is. Message: Don't screw with the public trust!
Duke
Oh We of The Disenfranchised GOP In Florida!
We are just that. We have 1 Senator.....Mel (I'm a Bushie) Martinez.
He is lock-stock and barrel ignoring the 3 to 1 majority of our own state who feel the immigration bill is a mistake.
Martinez, after all, is all-knowing and all-seeing...as long as it is from the Bush play book.
Of course, Nelson is a DEM party-line voter who will never oppose immigration....this despite the polls as well.
Our legislators at the national level are about as disconnected as those at the state level.
My personal favorite as a corrective measure, one I mentioned earlier, is to vote all incumbents out in 2008. A-L-L
Duke
DEMs are on a "Witch Hunt"....but they deny it!
Just go read the F-A-C-T-S!!!!
FROM FOX NEWS!But, of course the DEMS will decry the FOX item as the FOX News items , TO THEM, are completely biased.......
Have you, my friends and readers seen the poll that sez the Main Stream Media are BIASED in their giving to the political parties.....????
What a surprise....they give more to the DEMs than to the GOP....by a margin of
90% to 10%WOWSER!....what a surprise, (Wink, Wink).....
The media are LIBERALS! That is fact.....
But we are expected to believe their news stories????
That MUST be the reason the MSM ratings are in the BASEMENT!!!!
what are they now, on the believeability factor????? 20%, 15%.....they are so low as to escape reality!
WE need to find a new political image which works, and we have to do it without the MSM or ANY input they offer.....They are biased, unreal, and willing to offer anything as fact which helps the Liberal agenda....
SAD
Duke
SECURE THE BORDERS!
Senator James Inhofe, R-OK has begun a petition campaign for the millions of us who oppose the "amnesty" bill being revived UNTIL our borders are secure......NOT partially secure as the bill suggests would happen (no real guarantees!).....
Captain Ed at Captain's Quarters interviewed Senator Inhofe....
DETAILS HERE (Including petition link)!If any of us let up on this issue we'll have 12-20 million LEGAL criminals.....as citizens....with MANY, MANY more to come!
Go-sign-up!!!!Duke
Congress Hits Bottom; Keeps Digging!
The complete disconnect between our Congress and the voters of this country continues and worsens...
Instapundit gathers the information and some added comments.This is indeed a dangerous situation. Something, somewhere has to change. That is not an idle statement, but fact. This great nation cannot continue to operate with our "elitist" and completely oblivious Congress and President so very far from the public position.
The term elitist as used above is, in my opinion, completely warranted! The Congress has made it their position that they know best and we, the people....you know the voters....know nothing.
It is long past the time when either a third party need exist, or...there needs be a mass ending of political careers in the 2008 elections.
Duke
UPDATE: Speaking of "diss"approval.......this from Neal Boortz:
CONGRESS GETS 3% APPROVAL ON AMNESTY
Guess what has crept up on the list of most important issues facing Americans? Yep. Immigration. Or, illegal immigration. Second only to Iraq, which should technically be labeled our war against Islamic extremists ... But anyway, Zogby just did a little poll. You wanna know what it said? It said that only 38% of Americans think the immigration legislation is a good idea. Even worse, a measly 3% of Americans think that Congress has done a good job handling the immigration bill. The president did a little better with 9%. I mean, Bush's approval ratings have been low, and Congress is notoriously unpopular, but this is appalling.
But I wonder how many people out there actually know how their representatives are going to vote. Heck, how many people out there even know who their representatives are! When these polls are taken and they ask about Congress, people generally assume the entire body of Congress. And this is fine, but if you want to actually do something about an issue (like immigration) you have to lobby your individual representatives. They are the ones that are supposed to be representing you with their votes. Now I have gotten plenty of emails from listeners, sending me their letters they've sent to their representatives. This is a good thing. But unfortunately I am afraid that it isn't the norm. So when you see that 3% approval rating, how do your representatives stack up? Do you think that three out of every hundred people approve of their job? If so, this is some pretty lousy representation we have here.
Movin on UP! - Fred Thompson
A WIN!
Well, a small one, but a significant one......
Rasmussen polls tells it all....Fred Thompson is now the at-least co-leader of his party and is NOT YET an annopunced candidate....(WINK!)
This is not statistically significant, but it is significant because of the fact there are folks who have been digging, developing, etc. for MONTHS and MONTHS! They are still in a tie/losing position with Thompson.
I do not wish here to try to advance an agenda.....I think he is the candidate. BUT we have a long way to go. Let us see how he fares when in a confrontation with others. I believe he will stand out like a charm....we'll see!
Duke
We See This In Our Grandkids!
Out-of-doors was where I lived as a child/teen.....Not because I was a woodsman, but instead because I enjoyed the time away from the home.
Now, it seems, that has been reversed:
Reported by Donna St. George.
I am not surprised......my metal gas station, and worn deck of cards was a poor substitute for the PlayStation, and PC potentials of today. I still prize a picture of my diminuitive 4 year old granddaughter in Rockford, IL, sitting on a
BOOSTER seat to play a PC game.
Times change....sometimes NOT for the better.
Our just-turned 11 year old grandson spent last weekend with us, and the thing is, while he works for me outside, and rides his bike, he still prefers cartoons/TV/PlayStation/PC online games to the outside stuff.
SAD!
Duke
A Tiger Cubette!
AP PhotoTiger Woods is a Daddy! Seems only yesterday he was a kid himself.....now, thirty, he and wife Elin....pictured above....have a child....a daughter....Just one day after the U. S. Open in which he finished 2nd.
One telling quote from Woods earlier in the week.....This is our
FIRST child....May they have more and may they all be healthy.
SIDENOTE: A commercial by one of the golf companies showed the company producing a downsized version of the clubs....in a tiny bag for the then-anticipated child.
Welcome to a wonderful world, Sam Alexis Woods!
Duke
Major Iraq Initiative.....Imbed Reports
Michael Yon is one of those non-MSM folks who is actually THERE in Iraq, THERE in the field, THERE with our troops as one of the largest offensive movements since the war began is underway as part of our "Surge"......you know the one which is only now beginning, but has already been declared D-O-A by the completely-out-of-touch Harry Reid (whose approval rating is in the sub-basement and is half of GWB's miserable total).
Go and read
YON's STORY and gain a fresh "real" perspective on the status of the Iraq war...not the biased, reported-from-the-green-zone MSM babble.
Duke
Scooter Libby is NOT Responsible!
Read it.....I did...
Duke
Global Warming Causes Darfur???????
HOLY COW!!!!! As Harry Carey would have said....
Why did I not see this coming.......
The Sec.-Gen. Speaks and I fall on the floor laughing.....
GW causes genocide......
WOW!!!!!! This is a revelation.......
What it reveals is the extent to which our new Sec-Gen is screwed in the head!
So much for anticipation of the fact that nothing could be worse than our departing Sec-Gen.....
MESSAGE TO THE SEC-GEN.......
Mass Killings of People are usually caused by P-E-O-P-L-E!!!!!HOLY CRAP......The U.N. remains seriously out-of-it! We need to be O-U-T of this organization, and then let them fend for themselves......funding, w/o the USA is a killer for them.
Duke
"The Southern Fried Version of Ronald Reagan"
That has a nice ring.....
Let Mr. Brown at Real Clear Politics explain!The fact is, I kind of feel that way about Fred Thompson. I have heard too many politicos who fight by taking stands according to their current appearance (HILLARY, and to somewhat lover levels, McCain, Giuliani, etc.).
If you've heard him in off-the-cuff comments, he seems much more R-E-A-L than the plastic folks who speak to certain guides and not from-the-heart!
Duke
12 Million Would Be Added To Backlog of MILLIONS!
Michelle Malkin once again brings a perspective......
We are told by GWB and his Harry Reid action doll that we can assimilate and check on the 12 million illegals.....
Wanna BET?
In Michelle's article she details
JUST HOW COMPLETELY UNWORKABLE THAT JOB IS!I particularly liked the fact that all those who have currently filed LEGALLY would now have to go to the back of the line with the illegals.
This bill needs to DIE AN UGLY DEATH!
Duke
Immigration Bill A Fraud!
Mark Steyn, one of my favorite writers gives perspective for those among us who feel somehow the "developed-in-secret" immigration bill has any actual value....It is really worth reading:
Immigration bill is a fraud
June 17, 2007
MARK STEYN
I forget where I was when I first heard the phrase ''undocumented worker.'' Possibly it was after swimming the Rio Grande and emerging dripping on the northern shore to be handed a fake Social Security number and a driver's license. But I assumed, reasonably enough, that this linguistic sleight of hand was simply too ridiculous to fly even with the American media. I underestimated my colleagues, alas.
The ''undocumented'' are, as it happens, brimming with sufficient documents to open bank accounts or, on the other hand, rent a Ryder truck, as Mohammad Salameh did in 1993 when he and his pals bombed the World Trade Center first time round. Being ''undocumented'' means being documented up to the hilt as far as everyone else is concerned but ''undocumented'' only to the U.S. government. Which, when you think about it, is a very advantageous status to have.
Anyway, about five years or so back, I started making references in columns to ''fine upstanding members of the Undocumented-American community.'' But from the lame Steyn joke of yesteryear to the reality of tomorrow is a mere hop and a skip. A few days ago, Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, declared: ''This week we will vote on cloture and final passage of a comprehensive bill that will strengthen border security, bring the 12 million undocumented Americans out of the shadows, and keep our economy strong.''
Talk about ''a fast track to citizenship''! Never mind probationary visas, Z-visas and green cards, in the eyes of the Democrat steering ''comprehensive immigration reform'' through Congress, these guys are already ''undocumented Americans.'' Was it simply a slip of the tongue? (Speaking of which, I thought thanks to George W. Bush we had ''the worst economy since Herbert Hoover.'' When did it get ''strong''?) Or did Sen. Reid mean it?
If he did, the very concept of citizenship is dead, and the Senate might as well opt for ''really comprehensive immigration reform'' and declare everyone on the planet a U.S. citizen with backdated Social Security entitlements. As Le Monde's famous headline of Sept. 12, 2001, put it, ''Nous sommes tous Americains.'' Literally.
I don't know whether this sham of a bill is dead or just resting ''in the shadows'' like a fine upstanding member of the Vampiric-American community. But, if it rises on the third night to stalk the land once more, I would advise its supporters to go about their work more honestly. First of all, the only guys ''living in the shadows'' are the aides of American senators beavering away out of the public eye to cook up this legislation and then present it as a fait accomplis to the citizenry (if you'll forgive the expression). That is an affront to small-r republican government, and, if intemperate hectoring mediocrities like Trent Lott and Lindsay Graham don't understand that, then their electors should give them a well-deserved lesson.
Second, the bill's supporters should stop assuming the bad faith of their opponents. On Fox News the other night, I was told by NPR's Juan Williams, ''You're anti-immigrant!'' Er, actually, I am an immigrant -- one of the members of the very very teensy-weensy barely statistically detectable category of ''legal immigrant.'' But perhaps that doesn't count anymore. Perhaps, like Colin Powell's blackness, it's insufficiently ''authentic.'' By filing the relevant paperwork with the United States government, I'm not ''keepin' it real.''
I wouldn't presume to speak for the millions of Americans who oppose this bill, but it's because I'm an immigrant myself that I object to the most patent absurdity peddled by the pro-amnesty crowd. The bill is fundamentally a fraud. Its ''comprehensive solution'' to illegal immigration is simply to flip all the illegals overnight into the legal category. Voila! Problem solved! There can be no more illegal immigrants because the Senate has simply abolished the category. Ingenious! For their next bipartisan trick, Congress will reduce the murder rate by recategorizing murderers as jaywalkers.
Back in the real world far from those senators living in the non-shadows of their boundless self-admiration, the truth is that America's immigration bureaucracy cannot cope with its existing caseload, and thus will certainly be unable to cope with millions of additional teeming hordes tossed into its waiting room. Currently, the time in which an immigration adjudicator is expected to approve or reject an application is six minutes. That's not enough time to read the basic form, never mind any supporting documentation. It's certainly not enough time for any meaningful background check. Under political pressure to ''bring the 12 million undocumented Americans out of the shadows,'' the immigration bureaucracy will rubberstamp gazillions of applications for open-ended probationary legal status within 24 hours and with no more supporting documentation than a utility bill or an affidavit from a friend. There's never been a better time for Mullah Omar to apply for U.S. residency.
America has an illegal immigration problem in part because it has a legal immigration problem. Anyone who enters the system exposes himself to an arbitrary, capricious, whimsical bureaucracy: For example, one of the little-known features of this bill is that in order to ''bring the 12 million undocumented Americans out of the shadows,'' millions of legal applicants are being hurled back into outer darkness. Law-abiding foreign nationals who filed their paperwork in the last two years would be required to go back to their home countries and start all over again. Not only does this bill reward law-breaking, it punishes law-abiding.
The people who are truly ''anti-immigrant'' are the folks who want to send that immigrant from Slovenia or Fiji who applied in May 2005 back to the end of the line. But then ''comprehensive immigration reform'' is about everything but immigration, including subverting sovereignty and national security. Remember the 1986 amnesty? Mahmoud abu Halima applied for it and went on to bomb the World Trade Center seven years later. His colleague, the aforementioned Mohammad Salameh, was rejected but carried on living here anyway. John Lee Malvo was detained and released by U.S. immigration in breach of its own procedures and re-emerged as the Washington sniper. The young Muslim men who availed themselves of the U.S. government's ''visa express'' system for Saudi Arabia filled in joke applications -- ''Address in the United States: HOTEL, AMERICA'' -- that octogenarian snowbirds from Toronto who've been wintering at their Florida condos since 1953 wouldn't try to get away with. The late Mohammed Atta received his flight-school student visa on March 11, 2002, six months to the day after famously flying his first and last commercial airliner.
All the above passed through the U.S. legal immigration system. And, whether they were detained, rejected, approved or posthumously approved, in the end it made no difference. Because U.S. immigration had no real idea who these men were.
But, don't worry, they'll be able to handle another ''12 million undocumented Americans'' tossed in for express processing.
The real ''immigration fraud'' is not Mahmoud abu Halima's or John Lee Malvo's or Mohammed Atta's, but that of the politicians who attempted to foist this sham bill on the nation.
© Mark Steyn 2007We really, really, NEED to derail this bill, and you will only do it by telling your congressional Rep/Senator....take some initiative...Please!
Duke
"Why is President Bush Acting Like A Democrat?"
Instapundit
offers his views!He is right as rain, and I have several times mused on these pages about a third party...but, such a horrendous cost to create one....The failed/guaranteed-to-fail immigration bill.
GOP........WAKE UP!!!!
Duke
Nifong in Last-Ditch Effort to Save License!
This slimeball of an attorney is seeking any and every means to save his Law License in NC......
Just read how pathetic he has become
from FOX News!Cry, baby, cry.....I am proud that your "victims", the LaCrosse three of Duke were so strong they never cried during their persecution by YOU!
Paybacks are hell......Win an election by playing to the extremists....lose your lively-hood by the same thing.
This 2-bit whore of racism deserves much more, and he WILL get it.....The lawsuits are to follow this consideration of his license! The lawsuits will cripple this idiot for his entire life....as well it should.
Persecution of folks for political gain is one of the ultimate sins for me!
Nifong.....live a miserable life......one you designed for the LaCrosse three!
NOW....Let us get to the matter of the 88 Duke "Staff persons" (they could NOT be professors!) who were complicit in this venture...
Oh Yeah! just too.....S-W-E-E-T!!!!Duke
Reid vs Lieberman - The 180 Divergence Continues!
Glenn Reynolds has more in fewer words, but good links than I could assemble!Ever wonder how the DEMs find things so VERY, VERY different than anyone else.....do the words "Agenda-Driven" come to mind?
Duke
The NYT Sky Is Falling!
MSM......Read: Antique Media......continues it's singular march toward absolute lack of consequence!
AmericanThinker has details!
The old guard still claim superiority, but only THEY believe it.....
Duke
Two "New" Countries...."Hamastan" & "Fatahstan"
This is getting so really interesting.....but, probably not to the Israeli population. It seems now that Hamas has complete control of Gaza......Fatah, meanwhile is consolidating their already-considerable hold on the West Bank.
Let's examine this a bit.
West Bank.....While Fatah is a legion of crooks and thieves, they are perhaps less annihilation-minded than their counterparts. They, through their leader Abbas, have at least on-paper agreed to recognize Israel.
Gaza....These folks, to use the vernacular, are "screwed." How very, very sad. A terrorist organization that came to political power via a public revolt against a dishonest administration in Fatah & Abbas, now moves to complete control of the Gaza. The organization will impose strict, antiquated rules of Islam on the population, and wholesale deaths will reign. That comes to both the Israeli people Hamas will try to rocket to death, and the Gaza residents already decimated by the warfare among their own people. They have no future!
This will be something to watch....not something pretty, but interesting to see how the world reacts to the two entities vis-a-vis funding, and humanitarian dollars.
Duke
IT's THE FENCE - Redux!
Nothing states it more clearly than this Charles Krauthammer piece.Send it on to your Senator.....
Make him KNOW you believe.
Duke
Lieberman Sez Iraq Advances Being Made & He Was There!
As opposed to Senator Harry Reid's Deep-in-DC announcement that the surge, which is just now underway, has failed, Senator Joe Lieberman has a different perspective...by about 180 degrees!
Lieberman's Assessment!Amazing how Reid, with a support rating just ten points South of GWB, is all-knowing and he does it without facts to muddy up his assessment!
Duke
DO NOT GIVE UP!!!!!
(Photoshop by David Lunde)
It was prevented just a week ago......now it is back and sell-out Senators such as Trent Lott & others are giving away the farm on immigration to avoid a conflict. In the process they are dropping any pretext of our actual GOP position of "CONTROL THE BORDERS 1st".
4.4 billion dollars, called for by Bush as an "insurance" that he is serious about the control of our borders, is a J-O-K-E!!!!! ON US! The money is simply to fund laws ALREADY ON THE BOOKS! It is NOT connected at all to the Shamnesty bill.
This bill is actually MUCH, MUCH worse than the 1986 farce! The money will never be collected from the illegals.....the border will NOT be secured, and we will spend BILLIONS in the process and Bush's legacy will be the sellout of America to Mexico.
When do we get to vote again on these sellout folks like Mel Martinez? I'd vote twice if i could... but I can guarantee the votes of myself and Duchess will be for whomever opposes Martinez!
Meanwhile do not give up on this folks......call 1-800-417-7666
Let the Lotts and McConnells know just how opposed to this deal we, THE VOTERS, actually are.
Duke
They're Back!!!!!!!
Immigration bill to be brought back off life-support....Reid & Kennedy & Graham & Martinez (bless his lying soul) are going to bring the bill back.
They are trying hard this time to convince us they are
serious by making money part of the deal. They could accomplish that WITHOUT the amnesty portion. They make it part and parcel. Michelle Malkin, always on top of this issue, tells the tale.Our Florida Senators are lost to us (Nelson toes the Demo line, and Martinez is in GWB's hip pocket.)......so reach out to the swing Senators.
When more than 60% of the public in the USA want BORDER SECURITY 1st, there is something wrong with a bill built around amnesty....PERIOD!
Our government is out-of-control. The GOP wants cheap labor which we taxpayers fund for healthcare, education etc. The DEMs want Hispanic votes. They could give a you-know-what about the voters in the majority opinion.
Time to speak up folks!
Duke
Immigration - Some Perspective!
Once in a while there comes forth a statement on a current, and hotly discussed issue, that cuts through the BS and speaks clearly on the issue.
Such is the piece by Victor Davis Hanson summed up by these thoughts:
"So, what is the truth on illegal immigration?
Simple. Millions of fair-minded white, African-, Mexican- and Asian-Americans fear that we are not assimilating millions of aliens from south of the border as fast as they are crossing illegally from Mexico.
In the frontline American Southwest, entire apartheid communities and enclaves within cities have sprung up whose distinct language, culture and routines are beginning to resemble more the tense divides in the Balkans or Middle East than the traditional melting pot of multiracial America.
Concern over this inevitable slowdown in integration and assimilation is neither racist nor nativist. It grows out of real worry that when millions of impoverished arrive in mass without legality, education and the ability to speak English, costly social problems follow that will not be offset by the transitory economic benefits cheap wages may provide.
Those fretting about delays in sealing the border along with proposed fast-track visas, millions of new guest workers and neglect of existing immigration law are neither illiberal nor cynical.
But their self-righteous critics may well be both."The entire piece is
A GREAT READ!Duke
IRAQ is LOST????? Not By Military Statements...
THIS IS THE FEELING of our military!They know what is....they are not indentured newsfolk inside the Green Zone (basically immune to anything except what they wish to portray as fact!....They are real reporters/newsfolk outside the boundaries which most MSM (Read: Antique Media) people find to their liking!
Duke
Remember Nifong????
The state does.....and here are the ongoing facts....
Just read, and read and read....Nifong is going to hell in a handbasket, as the old phrase goes....
I, for one, cannot wait for the idiot to be charged, and then to see he and his folks (Durham PD, investigators for the SA office, etc.) sued, and sued and sued!
Yee haw....to get this idiot, and to make him responsible for the terror and devastation he placed upon innocent folk just to be elected.
Hang him by the xxxs.....
Seriously.....
Duke
"86" That Order!
Maybe it is time to show the backbone of a GOP with real intentions to represent their constituency and issue an
"86" order.......
The meaning is dual......
1986 was the year the last immigration bill was passed; you know, the one
NOT enforced, never funded, and without any form of completion what-so-ever!
The term "86" in restaurant parlance has a meaning "remove the item from the menu!"
Time, folks, for us to "86" this immigration bill.
DO NOT try to give us a few amendments which would propose to change the current idiocy into some form of acceptable legislation.....RE-WRITE the bill.....NOPE!!!! Give us a new one with 1-2-3 as the lead.
1. Build the fence/wall
2. Provide enough Border Patrol agents to enforce the wall's preventive measures.
3. THEN...Deal with the illegals here now......
#3, by the way, becomes much more sane and easy to envision when the flow of new illegals has been halted!
This is such a "DUH!" that I am amazed when I read the politicians who are posturing, posing, and proposing amendments when it has become clear the PUBLIC (read VOTERS!) is opposed to their efforts.
Their hubris in still continuing their line is amazing and defiant.
Time for a voter-induced reform in our Congress.....BOTH HOUSES!
Duke
From The "WTF?" Department....
FOX has a new story-telling method which I find a bit mysterious.....
Their polls now show Giuliani leading and Thompson tied for the GOP 2nd place with McCain. That is REALLY strange...... The poll they quote is so far removed from the Rasmussen poll as to be very, very suspect.....They show Giuliani with 27%, and McCain and Thompson with 15%....
Rasmussen shows Thompson and Giuliani tied at 24%, and McCain and Romney at 11% each...
WOW, nothing like comparable polls.....HUH????
Just check
THIS IDIOCY!Wha?????
Duke
Democrats Don't See No Terrorism!!!!
From the Hugh Hewitt interview of Rudy Giuliani......
" HH: In your speech today, when you made the 12 Commitments to America, number one was "I will keep America on offense in the terrorist war on the U.S." Do Americans fully grasp the extent of the problem with Islamist radicalism, Mayor? RG: Some do, some don’t. Quite clearly, the Democrats don’t. If you listen to their three debates, or two debates, I guess, they haven’t mentioned the threat, they haven’t talked about it in those terms. They haven’t talked about Islamic terrorism or Islamic extremism, or however you’re going to describe it. It almost seems as if they either think it’s politically incorrect to say it, or they’re in denial of it, like they were in the 1990’s. HH: When you were the mayor of New York, I know you were regularly briefed after ’93 on Islamic radicalism around the city. Do you think the Fort Dix six and the Kennedy Airport four are aberrations, or are they the tip of the iceberg? RG: Oh, no, they’re not aberrations at all. They fit very well into a pattern that I…I mean, I started investigating Islamic terrorism in the 1970’s, when I was in the Justice Department in the Ford administration. So for me, this is something that I’ve been briefed on, and knowledgeable about, investigated it, involved in it. The situations that were uncovered at Fort Dix and at Kennedy Airport, or related to Kennedy Airport, that’s the kind of thing that American law enforcement internationally is dealing with every day. HH: What kind of a scale are we talking about, because I think that’s what’s missing in the puzzle. We see these arrests, we see the fellow released by the 4th Circuit yesterday, ordered released, and Americans wonder is it three, is it ten, is it three hundred? How many plots, do you think? RG: Yeah, I think that’s real hard…first of all, I don’t have the intelligence at my command nowadays. I had it much more back when I was mayor, to give you a real number on that. And I’m not sure they do. I think the best way to put it is, it is significant, it’s pretty close to worldwide, meaning in many, in just about every continent you’re dealing with it. And unfortunately, I think this home grown part, because I talked to the U.S. attorney in New Jersey about this the day after the case came down, the Fort Dix case, I think the home grown part is something we’re just getting a fix on. And I think it’s really concerning us, that the way Chris Christie described it was this was not directed by al Qaeda, but it was inspired by al Qaeda. Sometimes, those connections are harder to find, because they’re not taking place over a telephone call, or some kind of communication." MSM, ever vigilant to advance their own cause....ever able to disparage any who try to tell it like it is with their bias!
Duke
Department of Homeland Security Is Not Securing The Homeland! - DUH!!!
President Bush wants a HUGE Immigration bill, and sez "Trust Me!" regarding its implementation...
Now a report sez:
"...we are jailing or deporting fewer alleged foreign criminals and terrorists now than we did in the early ’90s — before most of the public had even heard of Osama bin Laden. The final stat says it all: Only 37 of these extremely high-risk individuals were physically removed from the United States between 2004 and 2006. No wonder nobody believes the feds when they claim to make terrorism prevention their No. 1 priority."Read the entire story
HERE & Be not surprised!GWB still sez "trust me!" Georgie.....check your credibility rating, and quit giving us the sly smile and smooth movements. The public no longer buys your rhetoric!
At least not THIS public!
Duke
A Fresh Voice? - Thompson on Tonight Show!
IF YOU MISSED THE SHOW...Go Watch this clip! I missed the show as I never watch the evening shows.....hell, I never watch the TV series....But this is neat. He sounds so much less structured and has a realistic view of the world.
Guess that's why I am an unabashed supporter.
Duke
Salvageable Immigration Bill?
TWO PART STORY
1. I emailed Senator Mel Martinez a few days ago, expressing my absolute belief in securing the border 1st. I did not expect a reply. I got one anyway! More to the point, he actually addressed my points.....or possibly ALL his emails have been similar recently(?)....
Here is his reply:
"Dear Mr. DeLand:Thank you for taking the time to contact me. I appreciate hearing from you regarding comprehensive immigration reform and would like to respond to your concerns.As you may know, on June 7, 2007, the Senate was unable to reach an agreement on the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act (S. 1348) and the Senate Majority Leader has set aside S. 1348, for the time being. Delaying comprehensive reform does a disservice to America. I remain committed to working together with my colleagues to produce a tough but fair and workable piece of legislation that President Bush can sign into law during this Congress. To do this, we must secure the border first. The first section of S. 1348 mandates that border security and worksite-enforcement benchmarks must be met before other elements of the legislation are implemented. This legislation will direct the Department of Homeland Security to complete construction of hundreds of miles of additional double layered fencing and create 200 miles of vehicle barriers on our border with Mexico. The department will hire and train 18,000 border patrol agents. In addition, this bill provides for surveillance technologies to enhance our ability to monitor the border, such as, 70 ground –based radar and camera towers on the southern border and 4 unmanned aerial vehicles. However, physically securing the border will not solve the entire problem. Employers will be required to verify the work eligibility of all employees using an employment eligibility verification system, while all workers will be required to present stronger and more verifiable identification documents. Tough new anti-fraud measures will be implemented and stiff penalties imposed on employers who break the law. After the border has been certified secure by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and the employment verification system is in place, the remaining provisions of the bill will go into effect. To address the labor shortage in industries with a demonstrated need such as, the Florida Citrus and Hospitality Industries, a guest worker program will be implemented. The purpose of this program is to relieve pressure on the border and provide a lawful way to meet the needs of our economy. The proposal creates a temporary worker program to fill jobs Americans are not doing. To ensure this program is truly temporary, workers will be limited to three two-year terms, with at least a year spent outside the United States between each term. A small percentage of temporary workers will be allowed to bring immediate family members only if they have the financial ability to support them and they are covered by health insurance.Additionally, this legislation does away with a relative- based immigration system or “Chain Migration” and establishes a new merit-based system to select future immigrants based on the skills and attributes they will bring to the United States. Under the merit-based system, future immigrants applying for permanent residency in the U.S. will be assigned points for skills, education, and other attributes that further our national interest including: ability to speak English; level of schooling, including added points for training in science, math, and technology; employment in a specialty or high-demand field; employer endorsement; and certain family ties to the U.S. This merit- based system will enhance and ensure American competitiveness for the future and put American immigration policies in line with other industrialized nations. It is my firm belief that addressing border security and cracking down on unscrupulous employers while doing nothing to address those already living here illegally would amount to de facto amnesty for those 12 million. Further, it is in the United States’ national security interest to learn the identity of these individuals. Illegal immigrants who come out of the shadows will be given probationary status. Once the border security and enforcement benchmarks are met, they must pass a background check, remain employed, maintain a clean criminal record, pay an initial fine, determined by the size of their household as well as a state impact fee, and receive a counterfeit-proof biometric card to apply for a work visa or "Z visa." Some years later, these Z visa holders will be eligible to apply for limited permanent residency, but only after paying an additional $4,000 fine; completing accelerated English requirements and demonstrating knowledge of American civics; going to the back of the line while the current green card backlog clears; returning to their home country to file their application; and demonstrating merit under the merit-based system. It is important to note that a petitioner for or holder of a Z visa can be deported at any time if a disqualifying factor is identified during background checks, such factors include but are not limited to-- a criminal conviction, gang affiliation or terrorist activity.With my full support, this bill declares that English is the national language of the United States and calls on the United States Government to preserve and enhance it, as well as enacting accelerated English requirements for many immigrants.Please know that I will keep your concerns in mind as the Senate debates S.1348. I am aware that Congress has failed to oversee the enforcement of immigration law in the past. I believe that S. 1348 provides the Executive Branch, American employers and people aspiring to work in America or become Americans with a clear and workable policy that is efficient and fair. This is an important national security, economic, and humanitarian challenge, and I know the American people are looking to Congress for action and oversight. Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. If you have any additional comments, please contact me. For more information about issues and activities important to Florida, please sign up for my weekly newsletter at http://martinez.senate.gov.Sincerely,Mel MartinezUnited States Senator"
As I stated above, color me surprised. However, I do give him an "A" for his effort to explain what he sees in the bill. I still find myself among the majority (according to the polls) who feel they cannot trust the Congress....and, that the bill is not enough for security of the border.
2. NOW, However......
This story from FOXNews about a $4.4 Billion dollar immediate investment on signing the bill to insure prompt funded action to implement the security plans.....
SOMETHING TO CHEW UPON!I have to read this in more detail, and see what goes, but something is definitely afoot. S-H-A-K-Y, at best, is my opinion at this point.....too many Senators with their own agendas, and constituents who have expressed their outrage already!
Duke
Fred Moves On Up!
Fred Thompson, in the latest Rasmussen Poll, is tied with former front runner Rudy Giuliani for the lead in the GOP race for President.
24 points each.....Last week it was 7 points more for Rudy than Fred.
Just imagine what is going to happen when Fred actually announces.
Duke
The Two-Party Betrayal System on Immigration!
Think we are protected from a new "amnesty" by the GOP? Think again!
Thomas Sowell at Real Clear Politics tells the story as well, or better than any I have read.
BUILD THE WALL!There......was that too hard to say? I firmly believe if each of us, as voters, tell our elected folks what we feel in the terms brightly printed above we will achieve something.
Well, most of us. Some of our elected
(Mel Martinez-RINO, FL) have no scruples at all, and will vote the GWB line at every opportunity.....but then Martinez is not a native of the USA. Perhaps he has ambitions beyond Senator for the future....and he NEEDS the Mexican/Latino vote! Hummm!
Gotta get rid of that "native-born" clause in the constitution!
I am sick of this, and to find that the polls tell us the American public wants a wall, and then to see our elected pandering to the mirage of an Hispanic vote is pathetic. If we do not vote these dolts out-of-office, it is our own fault for what they do!
Think about it!
Duke
Speed Bumps!
Speed Bumps - Speed Humps - Speed Control Islands - etc.
The variety of these evil things is astounding. Their purpose is ostensibly to control speeders.
Their actual accomplishments are probably major business for companies making shock absorbers, brakes, and steering components.
These things come in all varieties.....short, tall little bumps which rock your vehicle at even low speed; wider "islands" which, in my mind accomplish nothing at all; and everything in between.
Tampa & Hillsborough County (in which I actually reside) seem preoccupied with these demons. My own street has thus far been spared, but I am fearful. Neighboring streets, including those to my favorite drive-thru Indian-owned (As in the country, not our natives) beer sales place, are rife with them!
Even getting to our neighborhood post office requires trips across the demons.
I have, following careful research-by-driving, found several truths about these things. The oldest ones are the steepest, and the most trouble for cars of any kind...Including both my Town Car and my little Suzuki Jeep. The speed at which you cross them also plays a part. In my Town Car, for instance, I can charge over many of them at 25-35 and the car barely acknowledges them at all. In the Suzuki a 25-35 mph approach will send you careening off in a different direction while trying to re-collect the items which have been launched from the dash, console, etc.
One thing they do not do is control speed. I find the youngsters here (mostly in their little two-door Japanese Kamikaze-mobiles consider them start and end points for racing. They merrily race from one to the next.....
I have a strong suspicion the asphalt companies are complicit in their proliferation! Now a newer threat is posed by these little black hills. They recently re-surfaced one of the streets going to our post office. Since the asphalt machine cannot go over a hump well, they simply laid asphalt to within 4 feet or so and stopped, beginning again 4 feet beyond the hump. Now the humps are, in effect even higher as you drop off the new asphalt as you near them, and then climb back aboard again on the far side. If I live here for another 2-3 asphalt layers on that street I may be able to achieve orbit in my Suzuki! I await the opportunity.
Duke
Less Than A Do-Nothing Congress?
November brought Democratic control of Congress and promises flowing from the mouths of Pelosi and Reid in volumes.
Now, once again, Congress has an approval rating LOWER than GWB's....believe it or not.
Captain Ed covers the ground well. And in the process he pretty much buries the Democrats and their miserable failures as a majority party.
The thing ran poorly under the GOP, and now even worse under the DEMs....where is that viable third party?
Duke
Power To The Blogs....Politics Changing!
John Podhoretz
is ON TOP OF THE FUTURE of politics....
Damned if I don't believe he is R-I-G-H-T!
Duke
Once Again Martinez Votes RINO!
Our Senator Mel Martinez.....ever the devotee to GWB, his prime sponsor into the Senate, aided by Martinez' defiling attacks against both his own GOP opponent and the Democratic opponent, has once again proven to be NO GOP Senator!
He has joined Nelson, our admitted DEM Senator in voting to impose cloture on the immigration bill.....thus trying to insure Bush's ill-conceived, and highly unpopular immigration "amnesty" bill is passed. (IT is AMNESTY!, no matter Bush's rhetoric).
This man needs seriously to be a one-term Senator.....NO MATTER who I have to vote for! For me that is a really
Strong Statement!!!! I am a GOP, with Libertarian leanings....
Just read his vote record
HERE!!!!He is NOT MY Senator......I guess I don't have one as I find he and Nelson to be simpatico......Martinez is pro-immigration in all respects. That leaves those of us who like having a country with strong borders, and strong laws about them out in-the-cold!
Mel, please go home.....I believe he is from somewhere in the islands....he is certainly not from the USA!
Duke
Bush Immigration Rating At All Time Low - DEMs Worse!!!
One would get the impression that politics have taken a turn which is AWAY from the voters.......Impression???? It is fact friends.
The Examiner.com tells the tale.If the current trend of complete and utter opposition to our leaders continues the 2008 elections may be really, really interesting indeed.
Duke
A Bush Defeat? - A DEM Loss? - GOP Loses Out?
I have seen all of those headlines and a lot worse ascribing the failure of the immigration amnesty bill (v2.01 - as opposed to amnesty bill v1.01 from 1986!) to various and sundry people/parties, etc.
Stepping back from the fiasco for a minute i am feeling that this might instead be a
victory for the majority of this nation! Just maybe the voters, who harangued the Senators over the weekend as they tried for the most part to hide behind closed doors, were the real driving force!
More power to the voter.......What a unique concept!
The bill was a sham, or as Michelle Malkin labeled it
"Shamnesty" (great word Michelle!)... Take out a few numbers and magic elixers such as "Z" visas, etc. and you have 1986 repeated. You who are old enough....and at 64 I am....remember the "cure for all time" which was supposed to be the 1986 amnesty bill. The bill might have been good. The follow through was abomination! No funding, no enforcement, etc.
Then along comes this current fiasco.....Bush/Kennedy/et al simply wrote what they pleased, dragged in a few they managed to convince and then pronounced it all good and well. Of course along the way they refused to follow the normal legislative process and skipped such niceties as Committee hearings; open discussion; making the bill available for all to read.
In place of the usual, Bush-Ken-Co simply said
"Trust Me!" If that comment from a politician....particularly from a President who has abandoned his base and a Senator known for his ability to swim solo, would make the average voter shudder and do exactly the opposite.
I believe that is what happened here. If the Senators might ever admit that I would be surprised, but i believe it!
Congratulations my fellow border-security fans......how unique to have the majority actually prevail!
Duke
Pot....Meet Kettle!
If you wanna get my attention, 1st begin enforcing the laws now on the books.....Then we can talk!I have nothing against Geraldo Rivera......except the part about his narrow-minded, ultra-liberal, muckraking news (editorializing) broadcasts and statements.
I quit watching him about the time he broke down a wall to find lord knows what in a "hidden room"......
Having spent most of the last few years just refusing to watch when i knew he'd be around, this morning I was watching Fox News, and was given a stark reminder of WHY I don't watch him.
He came on to try to trounce one and all who opposed the immigration bill....sometimes known as Amnesty 2-01 (we had 1-01 in 1986!). He went on a rampage about the millions of poor innocent folks who were left hanging in the wind without the bill....and how the gestapo storm troopers (ICE Agents) made these folks feel fear and discomfort. He added that there was not room for the 12 million in our jails. (Did someone propose jailing them???? I never heard it)
He then proceeded to issue the traditional uber-liberal "My mind is made up, don't confuse me with facts!" statement as he urged that no more folks send him emails about the issue.
I am amazed at the folks, such as "Horrible Revolting" who can choose their arguments with such complete disregard for those really nasty things called
F-A-C-T-S!Fact Many of the 12 million....some hundreds of thousands....are already criminals beyond their breaking the law to enter this country. They are killing people in our country daily.
Fact A good percentage of the illegal folks are here only for money & THE BENEFITS. They care not for this country nor its laws, nor its territorial integrity. Many espouse openly that large portions of the SW USA are actually "theirs."
Fact An equally large portion find no reason to follow the use of our English language, and instead demand that we offer everything in two languages. They are not interested in being a part of this country. Their goal....take money from a successful society while maintaining no involvement in that society.
I could go on.....but you are already probably on one side or the other.
To me this is all VERY simple.....IF you remove politics!
1. Build a fence/wall/containment. It is OUR national border.....defending it is required constitutionally of our elected folks.
No law passed to deal with the illegals here works until we stop the flow of more illegals into the country! (see references to the amnesty bill of 1986....cut from EXACTLY the same cloth!)
2. Begin a plan to deal with those here.....now that the flood across the border has been stopped. If you wish to be in our country.....become a part of this country. (Go try to collect social security/medical/healthcare/welfare in Mexico!)
It is that simple.......2 steps to resolution. I'll bet you gain an instant avalanche of approval from LEGAL residents and voters.....
For my part I congratulate those who would not be steamrollered into accepting a bill which basically is the one already on the books....and which has NEVER been enforced.
If you wanna get my attention, 1st begin enforcing the laws now on the books.....Then we can talk!Nuff Said!
Duke
UPDATE: Just to bolster my views......actually I probably bolster his......well, anyway we agree... No less than Senator Byron Dorgan states his position against the amnesty bill!
Immigration Bill Dead....er...On Life Support!
PULL THE DAMN PLUG!
This dog won't hunt.....
The vote tonight in the Senate was 45 for; 50 against a vote on cloture (to cut off debate). Thus the motion failed, meaning in effect the immigration bill is down and the count is 9....
Harry Reid, amid crying and sniveling, said he would try to bring it back in a few weeks.....but shelved the bill for now.
Me thinks the message of more than half the nation telling its elected officials that they want BORDER CONTROL 1st....had an impact.
I am still very, very PO'd at Our own Florida Senator Mel (Immigration be good!) Martinez. This man has found more ways to make me angry in a short Senate stay than almost anyone else other than a few of our other RINOs.....
Now, can we move on to other issues for a while, and then bring on a bill with border security as a 1st step? Doubtful, but one can hope.
Duke
1st Major Candidates To Leave Presidential Campaign?
Here we are still just under a year and a half from the election, and fully 7 months from the first primaries, and the rumbling of departing candidates is already underway.
Listening to the political chatter out there, and viewing the donation/fund raising levels, it seems apparent to me that one major candidate is on his way out....a 2nd may be heading that way.
My pick for 1st out is John McCain. He has picked up too much negative political baggage to win his party's nomination and, at least partially-due the baggage his fund raising is, to be kind, anemic. McCain/Feingold; the gang of 14; the illegal amnesty (I calls em as I sees em!) bill, even if it fails....all contribute to his demise as I see it. He is fading in the polls, and being led by fellow GOP candidates Romney and Giuliani and even falls behind Fred Thompson who has yet to officially announce.
2nd out...and this one will cause some to ask where my reality sits...John Edwards. The man is simply not popular among his own party. That leaves the fact that in most head-to-head races against a GOP candidate he is also sadly lacking. He has, I believe, become his own worst enemy. $400 haircuts, 26,000 square foot mansions, the apparent lack of popularity in his own state...These are not good signs for Edwards.
My analysis is, of course, carefully ignoring several lesser candidates. These folks, including such as Kuchinich and "The Rev" Sharpton, will be hangers-on for as long as they can. Ratings mean nothing to them.
Now let me sit back and see how far off the mark I might be.
Oh, I forgot to mention a time table. Sooooo....McCain out by the end of August, and Edwards fades from the scene sometime in September or October.
Duke
Our "Friends" Help us Understand the Cloth!
YES...it is a SHOCK!
Just read
THE STORYHow sad that we actually accept the countries which practice this abomination as "our friends" in the Middle-East!
SAD
VERY SAD!
Duke
GOPers in Favor of AMNESTY!
Here are the votes which identify, among others, the idiot of the Florida Senate....my long-time personal favorite for
DUFFUSS of Florida!I voted against Mel Martinez in his election to office....the ONLY Republican against whom I voted.....
He shall thus be my continued NAY vote....forever.....and I have so declared to his email address. Their inspirational response.....NOTHING.....
What an idiot for we Floridians to elect.
Duke
KOS Kids WAAAAY Behind Instapundit on Savings!
Yessir....The amazing KOS kids who yell, shout and carry on about energy and savings and doing the "right" thing are not as much involved in actual effort as are the readers of Instapundit....Glenn Reynolds' blog on all things.....
JUST GO READ IT!The KOS kids are best known for swarming about anyone who disagrees with their ideas...usually in vile, hate-filled posts......Instapundit, on the other hand, is a Law Prof who is level headed and gives voice to almost all views of a subject!
Nice to know sanity still prevails!
Duke
D-Day 63 Years Later....
I was 1 year old....most of you reading this were yet unborn.....
The day cost more lives of American Soldiers by three times than ALL of Iraq has cost us....The soldiers involved were committed and many died, were wounded, or would die in the next few months as we defeated the Nazi German army which killed MILLIONS of Jews as well as thousands....tens of thousands of Americans, French, English, etc.
A salute from one who remembers because when I grew up it was still taught in the schools....if you doubt the Liberal bend of education today do two things....
1st - Ask your school student when they return home from school today if they know what day this is in history.....
2nd - Ask the same student if the teacher or school today spoke about D-Day; gave an address about the importance of the day; or, gave any pronouncement about the war and our efforts and our sacrifice of tens of thousands of American lives.
I'll bet the VAST majority of the students heard nothing today....
Let me know!
Duke
"Heelys" Being Castigated....For NO Reason!
If you do not know what a pair of "Heelys" are, then you are out-of-touch.....
They are sort-of tennis shoes with a small wheel in the rear of the shoe so you can glide along without walking.....
My grandsons have them.....
The story today is they are
EVIL!The news folks have gathered their forces against this "evil" device......But there is a single WRONG thing here which negates their entire premise......
They talk of 1,600 emergency room visits for a year!
Folks, GET A GRIP!!!!!
more than 100,000 kids faced injury by bicycle last year......
1,600 vs 100,000.....OOPS!
The media strikes yet another discordant view of things, just to unveil a story!
Get a clue MSM, and you too FOX......Check your story before unveiling the "traumatic news"....
My God....can we get a perspective here??????
Duke
Democrats "New-found" Religion! R-I-G-H-T!!!!!
Yeppers folks, the Democrats have had a "Come-To-Jesus" conversion......
How wonderful.......My Gosh....I sure hope it is
NOT a step by the LEFT to convince the Righties they are dedicated to the precepts of the right!
Captain Ed has details in his usual fine fashion!Duke
Edwards Does NOT Know The Constitutional Rights.....Must Be GOVERNMENT EDUCATED!
Candidate Edwards.....Mr. $400 haircut....failed MISERABLY when asked some questions.....and he proved he knows not of the Constitution of the USA.....OR, he simply views it as an item up for correction......
Watch a
One Minute film which tells all!And someone thought this buffon of the 2004 idiocy of Kerry/Edwards was a serious candidate!
SORRY....He is NOT!
He is vile and out-of-touch.....But a GOOD Democrat!
Duke
Democrats Stop PORK....N-O-T !!!!!
PORK, Oh, PORK, Wherefore are thou?
E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E !!!!!!!!!!!!The story is stomach-turning, I am sure, for the folks who voted Democratic to "reform" the system!Har, Har....I just love it....and then we learn the laugh is doubly on
US.....for BILLIONS are involved in the
36,000 earmarks hanging like the fabled "chads" of Florida......
EXCEPT these are real, and WE, the taxpayers lose under the lies of the Democrats!
Duke
HT Dean Barrett @ Hugh Hewitt's blog.
AP Photo
