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Bob Haught's
PolitiQuips
Your Government at Work
While millions of Americans are out of work and unable to pay their bills, the Obamas continue their lifestyle of the rich and famous. First Lady Michelle Obama and daughter Sasha planned an August trip to a resort on Spain's Costa del Sol with "longtime family friends", leaving the president and their older daughter Malia behind. They'll miss President Obama's $30,000 per head birthday party. But the Obama family will reunite for an August weekend on Florida's Gulf Coast and spend 10 days on the U.S. resort island of Martha's Vineyard. Taxpayers pick up the tab for most of their travel expenses.
In his presidential campaign, Barack Obama promised that if elected things would change for the better. Just the opposite happened and now he's saying that things could be a lot worse. He'll have a hard time convincing jobless Americans and workers facing a tax increase.
With the country in a mess and Democrats in control of both the executive and legislative branches of government, President Obama's message to voters is that things could be worse. He's right. If voters don't turn them out, liberals also will control the judicial branch, too.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz is to be congratulated for his candor, but he's only stating the obvious in saying that Congress does embarrassing things. When a vote was called to memorialize the start of the 142nd season of the Saratoga race course in New York, the Republican freshman from Utah objected and said he would oppose all future frivolous resolutions of this kind. "It's an absolute emrarrassment," he said.
The Defense Department received $9.1 billion for the Development Fund in Iraq to use for reconstruction in that wartorn country. An inspector general's report says DoD is unable to account for $8.7 billion of the money.
While millions of Americans are out of work and unable to pay their bills, the Obamas continue their lifestyle of the rich and famous. First Lady Michelle Obama and daughter Sasha planned an August trip to a resort on Spain's Costa del Sol with "longtime family friends", leaving the president and their older daughter Malia behind. They'll miss President Obama's $30,000 per head birthday party. But the Obama family will reunite for an August weekend on Florida's Gulf Coast and spend 10 days on the U.S. resort island of Martha's Vineyard. Taxpayers pick up the tab for most of their travel expenses.
In his presidential campaign, Barack Obama promised that if elected things would change for the better. Just the opposite happened and now he's saying that things could be a lot worse. He'll have a hard time convincing jobless Americans and workers facing a tax increase.
With the country in a mess and Democrats in control of both the executive and legislative branches of government, President Obama's message to voters is that things could be worse. He's right. If voters don't turn them out, liberals also will control the judicial branch, too.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz is to be congratulated for his candor, but he's only stating the obvious in saying that Congress does embarrassing things. When a vote was called to memorialize the start of the 142nd season of the Saratoga race course in New York, the Republican freshman from Utah objected and said he would oppose all future frivolous resolutions of this kind. "It's an absolute emrarrassment," he said.
If you get an invitation to President Obama's 49th birthday party in Chicago August 4, be forewarned. It will cost you $30,000 to attend -- a donation to the Democratic National Committee.
Where Your Tax Money Goes: Congress spent $604,000 on bottled water last year.
House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, has a strong motivation for doing something about high unemployment. He revealed to reporters that three of his brothers lost their jobs during the recession.
Don’t plan to use a restroom in a public building in Newark, N.J. The budget-cutting mayor has ordered the government to stop buying toilet paper. No decorations this Christmas, either.
What do gold coins have to do with health care? Nothing, but Congress sneaked a provision into the massive legislation requiring buyers and sellers of gold to file forms with the IRS. The law also imposes a 10 percent tax on tanning salon customers.
President Obama held another beer summit during the visit of British Prime Minister David Cameron. "We have just concluded some excellent discussions, including whether the beers from our hometowns that we exchanged are best served warm or cold," Obama said. The two leaders had bet on the June 12 U.S.-England soccer match, but after a 1-1 tie settled for a straight exchange of brews. They did not lift their mugs in a toast to British Petroleum.
He may be the second highest elected official, but Vice President Joe Biden is not the "most powerful person in American politics." By his own admission, that's House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Biden praised the California liberal at a Democratic fundraising dinner as "the single most strategic leader I have ever worked with" and "the mother of health care."
Sarah Palin is carrying on a tradition of public figures using "made up" words. On Twitter she urged peaceful Muslims to "refudiate" plans for a mosque at Ground Zero in New York. She joins former President George W. Bush, who said his opponents "misunderestimated" him, and President Obama, who came up with the term "wee-wee'd up" in referring to those concerned about his health care plan.
We have a Consumer Protection Agency. Now there's also a Consumer Financial Protection Agency. Isn't it about time consumers had an agency to protect them from the government?
Vice President Joe Biden was quoted earlier as saying "a whole lot of people" would be moving out of Afghanistan in July 2011. Now he pooh-poohs the idea, saying "as few as a couple thousand troops" could be returning home. Let's hope the enemy is as confused as American citizens.
America's first family travels first class. The vacationing Obamas flew to Bar Harbor, Maine in a Gulf Stream executive jet. The Obamas' dog, Bo, traveled in a separate smaller jet, accompanied by some White House aides.
The U.S. Department of Energy, which advocates reducing energy use, spends $76 million a year to keep the lights on. An internal audit states the agency could save $2.2 million annually with more efficient light-emitting diode lighting rather than fluorescent bulbs.
Those people carrying signs outside certain plants protesting the hiring of non-union employees are walking examples of hypocrisy. Unions are paying unemployed workers who are not union members the minimum wage, $8.25 an hour, to walk the picket lines, according to The Wall Street Journal.
A rare earthquake rattled the Washington, D.C. area. Could it have been the result of a rare action by Senate Democrats, who actually proposed cutting $14 billion from President Obama's budget for the upcoming fiscal year?
It's a sign of the times: $20 million in economic stimulus funds have been spent promoting the Obama administration's economic stimulus program. ABC News reports one sign on the road to Washington's Dulles Airport, costing $10,000, touts a $15 million runway project that created 17 jobs. Why publicize incredible government failure?
First Lady Michelle Obama, on her first trip to the Gulf since the BP oil spill, urged Americans to take vacations on the beaches of coastal states ... then returned to Washington to pack for an Obama family vacation in Maine.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid must be suffering from reelection campaign battle fatigue. He told a Las Vegas TV reporter there are no illegal immigrants working on construction jobs in Nevada, which flies in the face of a recent study showing that Reid's home state has the country's largest percentage of undocumented workers.
In the realm of unreality, Bristol Palin has announced she's engaged again to Levi Johnston, who fathered her child, then blasted the Palin family and achieved brief fame, then apologized. Mother Sarah didn't know.
The Obama administration really has it in for fat people. Not only is First Lady Michelle Obama leading a crusade against obesity, the government is insisting on having full-body scanners at all major airports. The latter idea is also being opposed by skinny fliers.
President Obama's numbers have been dropping in the traditional national polls and now we find that he's behind in another indicator of public opinion. Lady Gaga beat out Obama in the number of Facebook "friends" she accumulated - 11.9 million versus 10.4 million for the president. Sarah Palin, with more than 1.8 million friends, was far ahead of Vice President Joe Biden, who has around 240,000 followers in the social media gauge of public favorability.
BP executives won the 2010 "Sitting Duck Award" for their inane comments about the Gulf oil spill. The award is given by the National Society of Newspaper Columnists to newsmakers who are reliable sources of column material on a slow day.
Airline passengers don't always get the best treatment, but two airports in the Washington, D.C. area have opened "pet relief areas" - complete with fake fire hydrants - to give dogs an opportunity to make a pit stop before boarding the plane.
"I came once again with a distinguished American delegation, because they don’t trust me alone." - Gaffe-prone Vice President Joe Biden, during a surprise visit to Iraq.
Major TV networks gave little mention of President Obama's controversial recess appointment of Dr. Donald Berwick to head the Medicare and Medicaid programs as the new health care reform law is implemented. According to the Media Research Center, ABC, CBS and NBC gave more coverage to actress Lindsay Lohan's run-ins with the law.
Levi Johnston, former fiance of Bristol Palin, apologized to Sarah Palin and her family for telling lies about them -- thus grabbing a few more minutes of fame for himself.The Denver Post reports an insurance company threatened to cut off a woman's benefits because she had underpaid the premium -- by one cent! Wasn't Obamacare supposed to such injustices?
A man in Villa Rica, Georgia held his mother hostage for six hours for refusing to iron his clothes. Let's hope they smoothed things out and she didn't press charges.
Political humor writers have received a crushing blow: former Rep. Jim Traficant, one of the most colorful figures to serve in Congress, can't return -- at least not this year. He didn't get enough signatures put his name on the ballot this fall. The Ohio Democrat got out of federal prison last year after serving a seven-year term for corruption.
"Tar balls in Texas" - No, not a new country song. Crude from the BP oil spill now has washed up on beaches of every Gulf state.
Forget about America being a leader in space exploration. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden says his "foremost" mission -- assigned by President Obama -- is to improve relations with the Muslim world. Guess Bolden doesn't have "the right stuff" to say no.
The general formerly known as "Betray Us" now is officially in command of the war in Afghanistan. In calling for unity among American, NATO and Afghan leaders, Gen. David Petraeus has taken on a big challenge.
"She's a colorful spice in the general recipe of democracy. She's a sexy woman. Yes. Me and Sarah. We could do a romance." - Woody Allen on Sarah Palin.
President Obama's White House staff hasn't found a solution to the national unemployment problem, but his hired hands are doing all right for themselves. The payroll for 469 staff members totals $38,796,307.
"Smoke and mirrors" politics has reached a new height in Congress. House Democrats, who earlier to take no action on a budget this year, have passed legislation that states a non-existent $1.12 trillion budget is "deemed as passed." Now lawmakers can continue unrestrained spending. When will they learn they can't just wave a magic wand and make their responsibilities to taxpayers go away?
Enjoy tax-free shopping on the Internet while you can. There's a new push in Congress to allow all states to collect sales taxes on online purchases, which could total up to $23 billion in new state revenues.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters that unemployment checks are the fastest way to create jobs. Huh? Then why did Congress take a weeklong Independence Day holiday without passing a bill to extend jobless benefits that expired June 1?
COUNTDOWN. Better start planning a bangup New Year's Eve celebration. On January 1, 2011 the largest tax increases in U.S. history will take effect, hitting families and small businesses in three great waves. Read 'em and weep at the Americans for Tax Reform website www.atr.org.
Democrats in control of Congress couldn't get enough votes for extension of unemployment benefits before adjourning for a Fourth of July recess, but they won the congressional baseball game13-5.
June 2009
Excerpt from the hearing on Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture allocated $54 million to the Mohegan Indian tribe of Connecticut through a program designed to help small communities that are "unable to ... finance the proposed project from their own resources." The Washington Examiner calls that an outrage because the tribe's Mohegan Sun casino grossed $1.3 billion in 2009, and adds: "Remind us why they need federal assistance."
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. -- "Where were you on Christmas Day?"
How long will it be before the American Poodle Association files a defamation of character lawsuit against the Portland, Ore., massage therapist who alleges former Vice President Al Gore behaved like a "crazed sex poodle" during a late night session in his hotel room?
Kagan -- "Like all Jews, I was probably at a Chinese restaurant."
How long will it be before the American Poodle Association files a defamation of character lawsuit against the Portland, Ore., massage therapist who alleges former Vice President Al Gore behaved like a "crazed sex poodle" during a late night session in his hotel room?
The U.S. Department of Agriculture allocated $54 million to the Mohegan Indian tribe of Connecticut through a program designed to help small communities that are "unable to ... finance the proposed project from their own resources." The Washington Examiner calls that an outrage because the tribe's Mohegan Sun casino grossed $1.3 billion in 2009, and adds: "Remind us why they need federal assistance."
"If you see me losing 40 pounds, that means I’m either running or have cancer." -- Mississippi's Republican governor, Haley Barbour, asked about a possible challenge to President Obama in 2012.
Another sign of economic distress: Walt Disney World is now selling passes - which can cost almost $400 - on the installment plan.
"Prosperity is the best protector of principle." -- Mark Twain
When a Wisconsin custard shop manager asked Vice President Joe Biden for lower taxes, Biden angrily called him a smartass. The thin-skinned veep missed a good opportunity to promote the Obama administration's small business tax credit plan.
A 54-year-old redhaired masseuse told Portland, Ore. police former Vice President Al Gore behaved like a "crazed sex poodle" during a late night appointment in his hotel room in 2006 and asked her for a "stomach massage." Is that anything like a "belly rub"?
"You've got a lot of golf courses here, don't you?" - President Obama, as he arrived in Huntsville, Ontario for the G8 summit. Right, Mr. President, and no oil spills.
While President Obama and the first lady continue lavish entertaining at the White House in the midst of multiple crises, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has guillotined the traditional Bastille Day garden party in the grounds of his Elysee Palace residence as a savings measure. Well, Obama did take Russian President Dmitry Medvedev out for hamburgers instead of throwing a state dinner.
Only in America: Screw up bigtime and get a national TV talk show gig. Former New York Democratic Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who got caught having an affair with a high-priced prostitute, is going on CNN. Who's next? Maybe Gen. Stanley McChrystal, stripped of his command in Afghanistan by President Obama after making derogatory remarks about the commander-in-chief and other top officials to a Rolling Stone reporter.
It's well known that members of Congress don't pay much attention to budgets in their zeal to spend taxpayers' money, but now House Democrats have dropped all pretenses. Having already ignored an April 15 deadline for passage of a budget resolution, lawmakers won't even try to meet that obligation this year, says Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md.
A politician in the Amazon basin in Peru is winning more than votes. Charles Zevallos, a candidate for mayor in the province of Maynas, is so popular that women at his rallies are tossing their underwear at him. His reaction: "The people love me."
Certainly no American politician would hope to generate that kind of response.
White House Budget Director Peter Orszag plans to resign in July. Why stick around when Congress won't even pass a budget anyway?
British Petroleum isn't the only BP to blame in the Gulf oil spill fiasco. There's also Botched Planning, Bollixed Priorities, Bureaucratic Procrastination, Broken Promises, Brazen Posturing, Backbiting Politicians, Bloated Punditry, and a Bungling President.
What not to do during a major oil spill crisis: BP CEO went yachting in England, President Obama went golfing with Vice President Joe Biden.
Only in America: Screw up bigtime and get a national TV talk show gig. Former New York Democratic Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who got caught having an affair with a high-priced prostitute, is going on CNN. Who's next? Maybe Gen. Stanley McChrystal, stripped of his command in Afghanistan by President Obama after making derogatory remarks about the commander-in-chief and other top officials to a Rolling Stone reporter.
It's well known that members of Congress don't pay much attention to budgets in their zeal to spend taxpayers' money, but now House Democrats have dropped all pretenses. Having already ignored an April 15 deadline for passage of a budget resolution, lawmakers won't even try to meet that obligation this year, says Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md.
A politician in the Amazon basin in Peru is winning more than votes. Charles Zevallos, a candidate for mayor in the province of Maynas, is so popular that women at his rallies are tossing their underwear at him. His reaction: "The people love me."
Certainly no American politician would hope to generate that kind of response.
White House Budget Director Peter Orszag plans to resign in July. Why stick around when Congress won't even pass a budget anyway?
"I root fervently for the Flyers or I sleep alone." - Vice President Joe Biden, explaining why he supports the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team -- his wife, Jill, is an ardent fan.
British Petroleum isn't the only BP to blame in the Gulf oil spill fiasco. There's also Botched Planning, Bollixed Priorities, Bureaucratic Procrastination, Broken Promises, Brazen Posturing, Backbiting Politicians, Bloated Punditry, and a Bungling President.
What not to do during a major oil spill crisis: BP CEO went yachting in England, President Obama went golfing with Vice President Joe Biden.
Taking a cue from President Obama, the Democratic National Committee has named its official online blog "Kicking Ass." Somebody must have forgotten the party's symbol is the donkey, also known as an ass. Republicans aren't kicking about that oversight.
News media playing ball with Congress? Yes, literally. Female reporters beat a congressional women's softball team 13-7 in a breast cancer charity game that raised $5,000.
BP agreed to create a $20 billion escrow fund to aid victims of the Gulf oil spill, but the company chairman's condescending comments about "small people" didn't help soften the image of "big oil."
President Obama and Mississippi's Republican governor, Haley Barbour, don't agree on many things, but they found common ground as they walked along a pier during the president's latest visit to Gulf states. They both ordered lemon-lime Sno-cones.
"The American people don't want to hear about what we inherited and how tough it is." - Vice President Joe Biden, to a group of Democratic supporters, after going on at length about the "God-awful mess" that he and President Obama inherited.
Al Gore more than just a tree hugger? A tabloid reported the ex-veep had an affair with another environmentalist, but she denied it - implying they are both green and clean.
(With apologies to Jeff Foxworthy) If you call the president a "raghead", you might be a redneck. A Republican state senator from South Carolina, Jake Knotts, removed all doubt when he told fellow legislators, "I am proud to be stereotyped a redneck."
Taxpayers foot the bill for office space for members of Congress and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is living high on the hog. Her district office in the new federal building in San Francisco rents for $18,736 a month. That's almost twice the cost of the next-highest rental by a House member. Her predecessor, Republican Dennis Hastert, occupied a district office in Dixon, IL that rented for $4,300 a month.
North Carolina congressman Bob Etheridge is definitely not a contender for the title of Mr. Congeniality. After he left a Democratic fundraiser in Washington, a group of students on the street asked him if he supported the "Obama agenda." Not only did he dodge the question but he knocked away a video camera and assaulted a student. Temper, temper.
Is the American flag you fly on national holidays made in America? Perhaps not. According to the Census Bureau, the U.S. imported $3 million worth of foreign-manufactured flags last year, and the vast majority ($2.5 million) was for U.S. flags made in China.
The latest Capitol Hill buzz is about a new legislative initiative by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.: a crusade against "honey laundering." No, bees haven't installed washing machines in their hives. The Roll Call newspaper says Schumer is attacking a "sticky problem" with Chinese honey imports that may be contaminated. He wants to give federal agents more power to crack down on adulteration, misbranding and fraudulent mislabeling of honey.
"I know that Boob-gate is all over the Internet right now because there are a lot of, I guess bored idle bloggers and reporters with nothing else to talk about." - Sarah Palin, denying a rumor that she has had breast implants.
California politics began to get really ugly after two high profile Republican women won nominations for governor and U.S. Senate. Democrat Jerry Brown, making another run for govrnor, compared his opponent, Meg Whitman, to Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler's minister of propaganda. And Carly Fiorina delivered the ultimate insult to Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer when a live mike caught her saying, "God, what is that hair? So-o-o yesterday."
A New Jersey woman who's hungry for attention might become the prime target of First Lady Michelle Obama's crusade against obesity. Donna Simpson of Old Bridge, N.J. announced she wants to become the world's heaviest living woman. At 42, Simpson weighs 600 pounds. Her goal is to reach 1,000 pounds. Fat chance? Maybe not. She spends $750 a week on groceries.
Alvin Greene might not make it into "Who's Who" but a lot of people are asking, "Who's He?" Greene, 32, an unemployed military veteran, won the Democratic nomination to run against incumbent Republican Sen. Jim Demint in November. He did virtually no public campaigning to defeat a former state legislator who actually did campaign. Democrats suspect Greene is a Republican plant.
Liberal activists heckled a speaker in Washington ... and what made it a news story was that it wasn't just any speaker but the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Nancy Pelosi. The California liberal Democrat should have brought the gavel she uses to silence unruly lawmakers.
While the Gulf oil spill continued and voters voiced their anger at the polls in the June 8 primary elections, members of the House and Senate partied at the White House with President Obama, who praised them for the "incredible sacrifices" they make. The annual congressional picnic was a fun time, and very likely the last one for a number of incumbents.
"Nudists Storm Capitol Hill" -- This headline from The Hill newspaper is a bit misleading. Representatives of the American Association for Nude Recreation were fully clothed as they visited congressional offices lobbying for fair treatment of nudist camps. Some lawmakers might have been disappointed.
Headline: "Obama public relations offensive timed to $250 rebate checks for Medicare." This message paid for by taxpayers.
Odd news: Arch-conservative Rush Limbaugh got married for the fourth time. Limbaugh, 59, wed Kathryn Rogers, 33, in a private ceremony in Palm Beach, Fla. The popular radio talk show personality, an outspoken opponent of gay marriage, hired openly gay performer Elton John to sing at his wedding for a reported fee of $1 million. Stay tuned.
Nothing's too good for our tax collectors. The Internal Revenue Service received $80.5 million in economic stimulus money for an office building renovation in Andover, Mass. The makeover will provide employees with a new reflecting pool, an art gallery and indoor gardens.
Helen Thomas tarnished her crown as queen of the White House press corps with her public statement that Jews should "get the hell out of Palestine" and "go back home to Poland, Germany, America and everywhere else." It's time for the 89-year-old liberal Hearst correspondent of Lebanese descent take her outrageous views to a retirement home.
Is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton challenging Vice President Joe Biden for the title of gaffe champion of the Obama administration? She sent a glowing birthday message to England's Queen Elizabeth II, but the timing was off. It was a week early.
Maybe one reason President Obama has been unsuccessful in dealing with the nation's unemployment problem is that he and his Democrat cronies have been too busy with their "jobs for dropouts" program -- offering candidates government positions to persuade them not to run in primary elections.
Former president George W. Bush has been blamed for the Iraq war, the Hurricane Katrina disaster, the sour economy, even the Gulf oil spill. But there's got to be a limit. Now Bush critics are saying it's his fault that Al and Tipper Gore are separating. If only he had not denied Gore the presidency in 2000 ...
Gulf oil spill strategy: first, President Obama sent in SWAT teams. Then he sent in bureaucrats. Now he has sent in lawyers. What's next? Send in the clowns? No, they're already there.
Hollywood to the rescue? Kevin Costner has offered an oil separation machine designed by his scientist brother Dan to help avert environmental calamity from the massive oil spill. The actor has invested some $26 million in "ocean therapy" technology. As the star of "Waterworld", Costner may be as well qualified as anyone working on the problem.
Your Government at Work
The National Park Service used $265,000 of taxpayers money to help the Herschell Carousel Factory Museum in North Tonawanda, N.Y. Many states are closing parks and other facilities because of tight budgets. The Washington Examiner listed the federal action as a "Daily Outrage."
May 2010
Crude oil has been spewing into the Gulf for more than 40 days and 40 nights and BP is still looking for a way to stop it. Got any ideas? Call 281/366-5511.
With unemployment at 9.9 percent and household debt topping $13 trillion, a new poll shows 46 percent of Americans are stressed out. No kidding!
Republicans asked for ideas in a new forum-based website called America Speaking Out and got some real doozies, like dinosaur/robot armies and bathing in nuclear waste to create a nation of powerful mutants. Another suggestion: rather than sell the space shuttles, send them to the Moon to harvest cheese.
It's a rare occasion when a president fails to participate in the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetary, but President Obama decided he'd rather spend the Memorial Day weekend in Chicago. He skipped town and left the duty to Vice President Joe ("f-ing big deal") Biden.
America's problems will have to wait. The president and Congress are taking an extended holiday. After a visit to the oil-stained beaches of Louisiana and declaring June National Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month, President Obama left on vacation with his family. The Senate took off on a 10-day holiday recess, failing to avert a June 1 scheduled Medicare cut for doctors. The House broke for a weeklong absence after passing a downsized jobs bill.
The Obama White House press office appears to be following a "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. It's as if press secretary Robert Gibbs explained to reporters: "You don't ask, we don't tell."
Democrats like to blast "big oil" but President Obama stands accused of being soft on BP in the oil spill mess and recently hosted a fundraiser for Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., at the Getty Mansion in San Francisco -- built by oil profits. Guests paid $17,600 each to dine on quail egg with caviar, braised Kobe beef short ribs and buckwheat crepes with roasted cherries.
Someone needs to tell President Obama: "You know you've really screwed up when James Carville, one of the most partisan Democrats around, goes ballistic about the administration's handling of the BP oil spill disaster."
Here's a sobering thought: Each taxpayer's share of the $13 trillion national debt is figured at $117,975. Have a nice day.
President Obama, who has found it hard to quit smoking, might be tempted to follow the example of Benigno Aquino, who is set to become the next president of the Philippines. Aquino says he's not ready to give up smoking because it could affect his decision making. The pack-a-day smoker says there are more pressing political, social and economic issues to be addressed than his smoking habit.
Why Democrats aren't smiling (from the headlines): "Obama Rating Drops to 44%", "63% Now Favor Repeal of Health Law", "Republican Wins House Seat in Obama's Home District (Hawaii)"
Your Government at Work
The General Services Administration inspector general reports that employees of the Federal Protective Services used government purchase cards to buy thousands of dollars worth of gold coins, flat-screen televisions, and even gym memberships. No disciplinary action has been taken.
Jokesters have renamed a great southern city on the Gulf of Mexico "New Oileans, U.S.A."
There's a rat in residence at the White House -- a four-legged one, that is. While President Obama was making a statement to reporters in the Rose Garden, a rodent scurried in front of the podium and into some bushes. Obama apparently didn't see the intruder, nor did he take any questions from it or the reporters.
The second state dinner of the Obama administration was an elegant and classy affair, if you don't count the White House chief of protocol stumbling and falling on the red carpet and the Mexican president's translator doing a lousy job. At least there were no party-crashers like the last time (that we know of).
Indiana Republican Rep. Mark Souder has set some kind of record for hypocrisy. An advocate of urging teenagers to abstain from sex, he recorded a video on abstinence with one of his female staff members acting as interviewer. It turns out he was having an affair with her. Blaming the poisonous environment of Washington, Souder announced he was resigning from Congress. Maybe he and his mistress should have received some abstinence education themselves.
Advice to company officials blaming each other for the Gulf oil spill: "Put a sock in it." Or a tube.
Talk about irony! President Obama signed the Freedom of the Press Act in the presence of a press pool -- a select group of reporters -- and rejected a request to answer questions.
Here's the latest buzz from the White House: As President Obama headed out to play basketball, a swarm of "thousands of bees" hovered nearby. Put the blame on First Lady Michelle Obama. She ordered a beehive installed in her vegetable garden recently.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will appear on next season's "Top Chef" series. One blogger greeted the news with this suggestion for a dish: "Pork Supreme ala Fancy Nancy and the Stuffed Belly Congress."
Bill Clinton has the answer to reducing America's exploding deficit: more immigrants and a value-added tax. The former president apparently hadn't even considered cutting wasteful government spending.
Public figures who allow a cuss word to creep into their language might be watching a Pennsylvania lawsuit which contends profanity is not against the law. The American Civil Liberties Union is suing police for issuing tickets to people for swearing. Reaction from Pennsylvania cops was unprintable.
Attorney General Eric Holder has been harshly critical of Arizona's new immigration law, but he didn't do much to impress members of the House Judiciary Committee when they drew a confession that Holder hadn't even read the 10-page measure.
Headline: "Bill Clinton offers himself as lottery prize to pay off Hillary’s debts" -- Monica Lewinsky need not buy a ticket.
Or if you'd rather spend your time with a sitting president, enter the "Dinner with President Obama and Senator Boxer sweepstakes" sponsored by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. The event to help Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., get re-elected is scheduled May 18 in San Francisco.
With the U.S. economy going down the toilet and government waste mounting, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee scheduled hearings on the "Potty Parity Act," a bill aimed at ending inequality in restroom facilities for women in federal buildings. Pressure from the congressional wives lobby perhaps?
If more U.S. senators were like Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., hearings on President Obama's nomination of Elena Kagan wouldn't be necessary. Inhofe quickly announced his opposition.
In the Nashville flood, the stage of the Grand Ole Opry was under two feet of water. It's a good thing Little Jimmy Dickens wasn't performing.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., is said to be cackling about an offhand comment made by a potential Republican opponent, Sue Lowden. The millionaire casino implied she favored bartering for medical care, saying "our grandparents -- they would bring a chicken to the doctor." Democrats set up a "Chickens for Checkups" website and sent a volunteer in a chicken suit to one of her fundraisers. Reid still faces an uphill race for re-election.
As heavy rains began to produce flooding in Nashville, President Obama issued a National Day of Prayer proclamation citing victims of disasters in Haiti and Chile, but did not alter it to include the devastation in a major American city. Has he forgotten the criticism of his predecessor for slow action on Hurricane Katrina that hit New Orleans in 2005?
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid put into words what many voters believe when he stated: "We've had a big day in the Senate ... and we have been able to accomplish almost nothing." His sarcastic comment followed passage of a resolution designating July 9 Collector Car Appreciation Day. Someone should tell Reid that doing nothing is less harmful to taxpayers.
When the going gets tough, go on vacation. That's what Interior Department chief of staff Tom Strickland did while his agency was charged with coordinating the federal response to the major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. ABC News reports Strickland went white water rafting with his wife in the Grand Canyon.
As proof that anything can happen in American politics, former Rep. James A. Traficant, Jr., who spent time in prison for bribery, cheating on his taxes and racketeering, has announced he will make a bid to return to Congress. What's more, the Ohio Democrat will try to run in two districts at the same time. "You never know with me," he said. "I might run in West Virginia." His platform: repeal the income tax amendment and abolish the IRS.
A new study finds that Congress makes too many vague laws. Any taxpayer knows that.
The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico isn't so bad, according to Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss. The Washington Times quotes him as saying: "That chocolate milk-looking spill starts breaking up in smaller pieces. It is tending to break up naturally."
Want to feel better about all the bailouts approved by Congress the past couple of years? Ministers of the European Union have agreed to a $146 billion rescue package for Greece to prevent the worst crisis in the 11-year history of the Euro from spreading through other nations in the bloc.
From the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner:
"Mr. President, I have to admit when you were elected, I was a little worried that the comedy well at the White House would dry up. So thank you for picking Joe Biden." -- Jay Leno
"I am glad that the only person whose ratings fell more than mine last year is here tonight — great to see you Jay!" -- President Obama
To the list of business failures during the Obama administration, add a West Loop boutique in Chicago owned by Maria Pinto. She blamed the "sour economy" -- although she did derive some benefits from the last presidential campaign. Michelle Obama chose her hometown friend, Ms. Pinto, to design the teal dress she wore to the 2008 Democratic National Convention and the red number she had on when meeting the Bushes on their way out of the White House. As First Lady, she switched to bigger name designers. Ah, the fickle world of fashion.
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