Translate

Saturday, August 30, 2014

Want to pay more taxes? Just elect Tom Wolf as governor


ObamaCare contract to foreign company muddles Dem message on tax dodgers

ObamaCare contract muddles Dem message on tax dodgers | TheHill

Florida Obamacare Website Signs Up 30 People in Six Months

Florida Healthcare Website Signs Up 30 People in Six Months

Weekly Republican Address: Salute to working Americans

Obama OKs pay raises for government workers

Obama to raise government pay | TheHill

Has Hillary ever been right?

Pat Buchanan: Has Hillary ever been right? | Human Events

A classy exit by fired CNN reporter

Columnist: Could Congressman Fattah's woes torpedo Tom Wolf's chances for Pa. governor?

Featherman: Could Fattah's woes torpedo Wolf's chances?

GUEST COLUMN: Newspapers are still here and still making money

By Caroline Little
Guest columnist


The sky is always falling and newspapers are always dying.

For more than a decade, that has been a common and constant refrain. While working at washingtonpost.com, the Guardian US, and now, the Newspaper Association of America, I have been asked frequently about the state of the industry as people search for the worst.

Though newspaper media is enjoying the largest audiences ever as well as continuing to play a unique and critical role in our communities, there is one fact that always tends to be obscured or outright ignored — newspapers are still making money and newspapers remain a good investment.

A year ago at this time, John Henry and Jeff Bezos made high-profile acquisitions of The Boston Globe and The Washington Post, respectively, which confirmed that newspapers are viable investment options with the ability to grow. Earlier this month, The Washington Post announced record web traffic for July as well as hiring more than 60 people in the first seven months of the year.

A company hiring 60 people in seven months sounds like a healthy one to me.

This summer, the newspaper industry has seen a wave of spin-offs, with Tribune and Gannett both forming publishing-only companies. E.W. Scripps and Journal Communications spun their combined publications off into a new company, Journal Media Group. This is an exciting time for the newspaper industry as these companies will now devote their undivided attention to their publications.

However, as with the investments last year, these spin-offs have been spun into more gloom and doom for the industry. It is simply not accurate.

In fact, buried in the depths of one particular article that signaled the death of newspapers is this gem of a sentence: “Newspapers continue to generate cash and solid earnings.” Think about that for a moment — an industry that generates cash and solid earnings is on its death bed? I refuse to accept that.

What is true is our industry’s business model has changed dramatically in the past half-dozen years. In 2007, 80 percent of newspaper media revenue was generated from advertising. In 2013, less than half of total revenue (46 percent) was from advertising in the daily and Sunday print newspaper. Revenue from readers paying for print and digital news and information accounted for nearly three out of 10 revenue dollar, up from less than two in 10 in 2007. Income from new, non-traditional sources is now rising rapidly. 

What is also true is that the public’s thirst for news keeps rising.

Data from the digital measurement firm comScore show that 161 million people visited newspaper websites in the month of March. We are witnessing audience increases across the country, from the aforementioned Washington Post to The Times-Picayune, which announced 5.6 million unique visitors to NOLA.com this July.

There is more demand than ever for news and journalism. There are also more competitors. There was no BuzzFeed or Facebook or Huffington Post 15 years ago. New digital channels offer consumers a dazzling array of options, all of which compete for time and attention. And advertisers face challenges in trying to catch up to these fragmenting audiences.

In my three years as CEO of NAA, I have witnessed an amazing transformation. Newspaper companies look drastically different in 2014 compared to 2011. There has been an increased focused on digital properties. Newspaper reporters and columnists have taken advantage of Twitter to build brands and large readerships. Innovation on the design side has led to beautiful works of long-form journalism include “The Unforgotten” by the Boston Globe and “Breaking Ball” from The Wall Street Journal that ran in July. Newspaper companies are using the power of their brands to create new, non-traditional streams of revenues from event hosting to digital marketing.

The evolution of the newspaper industry continues every day. The explosion of mobile readership thanks to smartphones and tablets have caused newspapers to create new mobile strategies. There is increasing demand from readers for more targeted content, which has given rise to niche sites and blogs developed by newspapers devoted to special areas of interest, such as food, high school sports and fashion.

For me and many in the newspaper industry, it is a fascinating and exhilarating time. We are in the midst a dramatic, historic shift for an industry that has been around as long as the United States of America.

The world has changed and newspapers have changed. The notion of what a newspaper company is should change for the general public. It is no longer simply about print. It is about all platforms. People don’t think, “I’m reading the newspaper” when scrolling through nytimes.com but they should.

Despite all the changes, one thing remains the same — newspapers still make money.

Caroline H. Little is president and CEO of the Newspaper Association of America, the industry’s largest trade organization.

'No strategy' a gift-wrapped gaffe that could haunt Obama

'No strategy' a gift-wrapped gaffe that could haunt Obama | WashingtonExaminer.com

The Evil Empire Strikes Back


Labor Day exhausted: 40-hour work week grows to 47-60 hours

Labor Day exhausted: 40-hour work week grows to 47-60 hours | WashingtonExaminer.com

In just 6 months, 37,477 illegal immigrant kids released, only 280 deported

In just 6 months, 37,477 illegal immigrant kids released, only 280 deported | WashingtonExaminer.com

Friday, August 29, 2014

Obama Disapproval May Have Unions Sitting Out 2014

Obama Disapproval May Have Unions Sitting Out 2014

Guest Column: The U.S. interest in Cyprus: ‘Trust, but verify’

By Nick Larigakis
Guest columnist
 
In the past two months, we have witnessed unprecedented engagement on the Cyprus issue by the Obama Administration, namely, Vice President Joe Biden. I have never seen anything like it in my 27 years of advocating for Cyprus with the American Hellenic Institute. The vice president’s visit to Cyprus was historic. It was the first time in 52 years a sitting vice president visited there.

Folks who follow the Cyprus issue know Biden is no stranger to Cyprus. He is probably the most well-educated and well-versed public official on the nuances of the Cyprus issue. For this result, credit must be given to the Greek American community’s grassroots.

Without Biden’s strong support through the many years as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee (along with Sen. Paul Sarbanes) who knows where this issue would be today. Furthermore, we certainly would not have been as successful in having Congress impose an arms embargo on Turkey immediately following Turkey’s invasion were it not for his assistance at the time.

This year, Cyprus received high-level visits from U.S. Department of State Assistant Secretary Victoria Nuland in February; and just two weeks ago, on the heels of the vice president’s visit, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Amanda Sloat and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and NATO Policy James Townsend.

What does all this mean?

The only plausible explanation is that Cyprus now has the potential to be a major energy supplier for Europe and beyond. This is a game changer. However, as long as the Cyprus issue remains
unresolved, it will compromise how this energy will be fully developed, and more importantly, how it will be exported. Biden underscored this point when he spoke at the 2014 Clergy Laity Congress in Philadelphia. He said: “The exciting discoveries of natural gas and oil offshore in Cyprus and Israel, as well as potential discoveries in Greece and Lebanon, have an opportunity to position the region as a global energy hub, and we have no bones about it from the very beginning. And under international law, Cyprus owns access to these valuable fields within the region.”

But exporting it out of the region is important. The United States and others would prefer that it be piped through Turkey. This will never happen because it would have to go through Cyprus’s Economic Exclusive Zone (EEZ) and without a settlement, it’s a non-starter. Therefore, energy has been the number one catalyst for increased U.S. engagement, making Cyprus a strategic partner of the U.S.

In Philadelphia, Biden added: “…Cyprus … has become a genuine, strategic partner. That’s what’s basically changed; it’s become a genuinely strategic partner of the USA.”

For the United States to benefit fully from this strategic relationship Cyprus needs to be free and united. A settlement must be reached that is just and viable, incorporating the norms of democratic principles. The United States can go a long way to make it happen. The vice president has started.
In Cyprus, he stated: “The matter of the fact is that the Government of Turkey, in my view, is coming to understand, not for any noble reasons, but for practical reasons, that the status quo on the island does not benefit them economically, militarily and politically. And there is significant potential benefit for Turkey in a bizonal, bicommunal federation.”

Biden’s remarks at the Clergy-Laity Congress demonstrated his further, active engagement on the issues. There, he stated he raised the issues in conversations with Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan. There, he also stated publicly that Turkish troops should be removed from Cyprus. “I opened up and made clear the U.S. position that although it was a Cypriot negotiation, there was and is and can only be one government, one Cypriot, Greek Cypriot government, on the island, with no Turkish troops on the island,” he said.

In the past, Turkey has manipulated the negotiations through the Turkish Cypriot leader. Turkey’s interests on Cyprus are not the same of the people of Cyprus. Unfortunately, not much progress has been made as evidenced by the lack of movement on confidence-building measures. This is reality. Biden and the State Department would be wise to understand it. While it’s extremely important for negotiations to proceed, they cannot succeed if the Turkish Cypriots will continue to take their instructions from Ankara and the political will is absent.

Therefore, the United States government must continue to put open pressure on Turkey. As a community, we must do our part to remind policy makers of Vice President’s Biden’s encouraging remarks. Because as historic and important as the recent flurry of comments and visits have been, we need to be vigilant and adopt President Reagan’s slogan, “Trust, but verify!”

Nick Larigakis is president of the American Hellenic Institute, a non-profit Greek American think tank and public policy center that works to strengthen relations between the United States and Greece and Cyprus, and within the Greek American community.

Burger King Escapes High US Taxes


Turnout is the key to re-electing PA Gov. Tom Corbett

PA-Gov: Internal Memo: Corbett Down 7 Points

Monday, August 25, 2014

Sooner rather than later, U.S. will have to confront ISIS

Middle East expert Trudy Rubin, a longtime Obama supporter, is not happy with Obama's feckless response to the growing ISIS threat.

Worldview: Sooner rather than later, U.S. will have to confront ISIS

'Proofreading error' leads to firing after racial slurs published in newspaper

Tayoun changes tune on Public Record's "Chinky Winky" photo caption

Ryan Costello Earns Endorsement of Pa. Small Business Group

Republican Congressional candidate Ryan Costello, who is seeking to succeed fellow Republican Jim Gerlach in Pennsylvania's 6th Congressional District, continues to collect endorsements from key business groups.

From the Ryan Costello for Congress campaign:
READING, PA – National and state leaders of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), which represents 15,000 small businesses in Pennsylvania, joined Ryan Costello at a small business in Reading, PA, today to announce the organization’s endorsement of his campaign for Congress in  Pennsylvania's 6th District.  The announcement was made at Goodman Vending Services, a small family business located in Reading that employs 75 people. 

"NFIB is a leading voice on behalf of the nation's small businesses, which are one of the major drivers of our economic and job growth," said Ryan Costello, who currently serves as Chairman of the Chester County Board of Commissioners.  "I am honored to have the support of an organization that advocates for and champions small business. If elected, I will work to implement policies that promote job creation, reduce barriers to economic growth, and cut bureaucratic red tape that saps the resources of small businesses and inhibit their ability to expand and hire new workers."
"When he was a Chester County Commissioner Ryan balanced budgets, cut government spending, and reduced the size of county government all while making investments in open space," said NFIB Executive State Director Kevin Shivers. "It's policies like that which make small businesses feel more confident about expanding and hiring.  Government must live within its means and keeps tax rates low. We need that same mindset in Washington, D.C. where an out of control federal budget deficit has small businesses nervous about their economic future and potential for growth.  That's why we support Ryan Costello for Congress."

In Chester County, Costello is co-chairing a public-private partnership, VISTA 2025, an effort to develop a strategy that will guide economic development efforts for Chester County for the next 10 years while balancing progress and preservation.  Costello is working closely with the Chester County Economic Development Council and other community and business leaders on the comprehensive strategy, which is designed to position the county for future growth.  The effort underscores Costello’s commitment to retaining and attracting businesses, which will in turn support job growth in the county. 

The endorsement of Costello was made by NFIB's SAFE (Save America’s Free Enterprise) Trust, the association’s political action committee.  NFIB is the nation's leading small business association, with offices in Washington, D.C. and all 50 state capitals. Founded in 1943 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, NFIB gives small and independent business owners a voice in shaping the public policy issues that affect their business. NFIB's powerful network of grassroots activists sends their views directly to state and federal lawmakers through our unique member-only ballot, thus playing a critical role in supporting America’s free enterprise system.

Family owned and a recipient of national awards, Goodman Vending and Food Service provides vending, coffee and food service. Founded in 1946, it has grown to be one of the region's largest independent vending companies, serving Berks, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lehigh, Lebanon and Schuylkill counties and surrounding areas.

Judicial Watch: Missing IRS Emails are Backed Up

The Flimsy Evidence Behind Common Core

The Flimsy Evidence Behind Common Core

Feds Creating Database to Track 'Hate Speech' on Twitter

Judging from Obama's use of government agencies to go after political opponents, "hate speech" probably translates to anyone who opposes Obama's policies.

Feds Creating Database to Track 'Hate Speech' on Twitter

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Oversight Report: Obama Admin Violated Law by Freeing Taliban Members

Oversight Report: Obama Admin Violated Law by Freeing Taliban Members

Further Proof No Country Fears or Respects US Under Obama: Chinese Jet Threatened American Intelligence Aircraft

Chinese Jet Threatened U.S. Intelligence Aircraft

Government's Idea of Protection


Bill O'Reilly: Fueling the Ferguson Fire

Fueling the Ferguson Fire

GUEST COLUMN: Jedis, DREAMers and Tax Schemers

By Lowman S. Henry
Guest columnist


It could be labeled a Jedi mind trick, or perhaps double speak worthy of a George Orwell novel.  President Obama and the Left have raised to an art form the ability to name a policy initiative the exact opposite of what it actually is, thus making opponents look bad for opposing it.

The “Affordable” Health Care Act which has resulted in higher health care costs; and the proposed “DREAM” Act that supposedly would solve the nation’s immigration crisis, but actually would simply grant amnesty to lawbreakers are but two examples. In recent weeks the president and his minions have been touting “economic patriotism.”

Setting aside the obvious irony of the Obama Administration posing as patriotic, it is safe to assume most Americans would not want to be viewed as unpatriotic.  On the face of it “economic patriotism” would sound like the latest version of a “buy American” campaign, or a push to patronize your local small business.  In actuality it is part of the administration’s effort to demonize corporations for trying to lower their tax burden and maximize profits.

Taken a step further, as individuals we would be viewed as economically unpatriotic if we took our home mortgage deduction, child tax credit or charitable giving deduction because we are depriving the federal treasury of the funds it needs to finance the President’s big government agenda.  So, stop waving that flag and start finding ways to maximize the amount of money you fork over to the IRS every April.

What has set the president’s patriotic heart aflutter is the growing trend of large U.S.-based corporations merging with partners overseas and locating their corporate headquarters in nations with more favorable corporate tax rates, a practice known as corporate inversion.  This is totally legal and what would be expected in a free market system.  But the president has determined that legal or not, it is - in his opinion - wrong.  And, he having a pen and a phone is the final arbiter of all things legal and moral.

Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew got the debate started by asking congress to outlaw corporate inversion.  In highly inflammatory language he proclaimed corporations “seek to shift their profits overseas to avoid paying their share of taxes while benefiting from the United States without paying a dime.”

That, of course, is absurd.  Both foreign and domestic corporations are subject to the U.S. corporate income tax.  The problem is the United States sports a 35% corporate tax rate, the highest rate among the world’s 34 most industrialized nations. And this gets to the heart of the matter.  Scott Eastman of the Tax Foundation explains: “The U.S. is one of only six developed nations with a ‘worldwide’ tax system that subjects its domestic corporations to double taxation. Income earned by American corporations abroad is taxed once by the nation in which it was earned, and again when the income is back within our borders.”

It is both the structure of American tax policy and the excessively high tax rate that makes it attractive for corporations to headquarter elsewhere.  Consider that Japan is in the process of lowering its corporate tax rate to 25%.  Thus, an American corporation that executes an inversion with a Japanese partner will immediately realize a 10% decrease in its tax obligation simply by virtue of that move alone.

Rather than demonizing American companies that are simply reacting to the nation’s oppressive corporate tax policies the Obama Administration should be working with congress on reforming the system.  Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have been pushing for such comprehensive reform, but as with virtually all GOP initiatives it has been met with a stone wall of opposition from the White House.

In the meantime, recovery from the Great Recession continues to lag as it will until and unless the underlying disincentives for business investment and growth contained within U.S. tax policy are changed.  And no amount of name calling by the president and the treasury secretary will change that fact.

Lowman S. Henry is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Lincoln Institute of Public Opinion Research Inc., a non-profit educational foundation based in Harrisburg, PA, and host of the weekly Lincoln Radio Journal.  His e-mail address is lhenry@lincolninstitute.org

Poll: Support for Common Core Drops Sharply

Poll: Support for Common Core Drops Sharply

Israeli Air Strike Kills 3 Hamas Commanders in Gaza

Israeli Air Strike Kills Three Hamas Commanders in Gaza

Is that Tom Wolf behind the wheel?


Millionaire Democrat Tom Wolf keeps saying there's no public pension crisis in Pennsylvania even though pensions for teachers and government workers are nearly $50 billion in the red.

The war on Iraq's Christians

The war on Iraq's Christians

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

You are Christian. You are a conservative. What should you do when the homeless put out their hands?

James Pethokoukis: You are Christian. You are a conservative. What should you do when the homeless put out their hands?

Gallup: 76% Not Satisfied With Way Things Are Going Under Obama

After 5 full years of Obama policies, nearly 8 in 10 Americans are not satisfied with the way things are going in this country, according to a new Gallup survey. The other two people probably work for the Obama Administration.

Satisfaction With the United States | Gallup Historical Trends

Obama's Role In Grand Scheme of Things


Obama's secret raid in Syria to free American hostages failed

Shades of Jimmy Carter and the botched rescue mission of American hostages in Iran.

Obama's secret raid in Syria to free American hostages failed | TheHill

Pension Costs Forcing Teacher Layoffs in Pa.

Pension Costs Forcing Teacher Layoffs

Radar gun bills languish in Pa. Legislature

Radar gun bills languish in Legislature | News | witf.org

Obama's America: 1 in 5 Berks County, Pa., residents hasn't had enough to eat

One in five Berks residents hasn't had enough to eat | Reading Eagle - NEWS

Monday, August 18, 2014

Paying Pa. School Taxes In Dollar Bills

Guest Column: The Current U.S. Interest in Cyprus: 'Trust, but Verify'



By Nick Larigakis
Guest columnist

In the past two months, we have witnessed unprecedented engagement on the Cyprus issue by the Obama Administration, namely, Vice President Joe Biden. I have never seen anything like it in my 27 years of advocating for Cyprus with the American Hellenic Institute. The vice president’s visit to Cyprus was historic. It was the first time in 52 years a sitting vice president visited there. He also hosted two off-the-record meetings at the White House with leaders of the Greek American community. One was a pre-trip briefing and the second a post-trip debriefing. I had the privilege to attend them.

Folks who follow the Cyprus issue know Biden is no stranger to Cyprus. He is probably the most well-educated and well-versed public official on the nuances of the Cyprus issue. For this result, credit must be given to the Greek American community’s grassroots. For example, it was the then American Hellenic Institute Public Affairs Chairman Dr. Dean C. Lomis, along with members of AHI-Delaware back in 1974, who met with Biden to educate him about the conflict and who have been keeping him informed ever since.

Without Biden’s strong support through the many years as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee (along with Senator Paul Sarbanes) who knows where this issue would be today. Furthermore, we certainly would not have been as successful in having Congress impose an arms embargo on Turkey immediately following Turkey’s invasion were it not for his assistance at the time.

This year, Cyprus received high-level visits from U.S. Department of State Assistant Secretary Victoria Nuland in February; and just two weeks ago, on the heels of the vice president’s visit, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Amanda Sloat and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and NATO Policy James Townsend.
What does all this mean?

The only plausible explanation is that Cyprus now has the potential to be a major energy supplier for Europe and beyond. This is a game changer. However, as long as the Cyprus issue remains unresolved, it will compromise how this energy will be fully developed, and more importantly, how it will be exported. Biden underscored this point when he spoke at the 2014 Clergy Laity Congress in Philadelphia. He said: “The exciting discoveries of natural gas and oil offshore in Cyprus and Israel, as well as potential discoveries in Greece and Lebanon, have an opportunity to position the region as a global energy hub, and we have no bones about it from the very beginning. And under international law, Cyprus owns access to these valuable fields within the region.”

But exporting it out of the region is important. The United States and others would prefer that it be piped through Turkey. This will never happen because it would have to go through Cyprus’s Economic Exclusive Zone (EEZ) and without a settlement, it’s a non-starter. Therefore, energy has been the number one catalyst for increased U.S. engagement, making Cyprus a strategic partner of the U.S.

In Philadelphia, Biden added: “…Cyprus…has become a genuine, strategic partner. That’s what’s basically changed; it’s become a genuinely strategic partner of the USA.” There are other areas that are also defined as strategic, and Biden continued, “On the issue of counter-terrorism, Cyprus is an essential link to our war on terrorism. Essential Partner! That is no hyperbole; that is absolutely true. Counter-terrorism is an area of strategic partnership, and preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction, including the removal of serious chemical weapons and the prevention of re-acquiring the nuclear weapons, little Cyprus has taken on an outsized role in our pure national interest in our strategic relationship. But it’s not just a strategic partnership; it’s a growing strategic partnership.”

For the United States to benefit fully from this strategic relationship Cyprus needs to be free and united. A settlement must be reached that is just and viable, incorporating the norms of democratic principles. The United States can go a long way to make it happen. The vice president has started.
In Cyprus, he stated: “The matter of the fact is that the Government of Turkey, in my view, is coming to understand, not for any noble reasons, but for practical reasons, that the status quo on the island does not benefit them economically, militarily and politically. And there is significant potential benefit for Turkey in a bizonal, bicommunal federation.”

Biden’s remarks at the Clergy-Laity Congress demonstrated his further, active engagement on the issues. There, he stated he raised the issues in conversations with Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan. There, he also stated publically that Turkish troops should be removed from Cyprus. “I opened up and made clear the U.S. position that although it was a Cypriot negotiation, there was and is and can only be one government, one Cypriot, Greek Cypriot government, on the island, with no Turkish troops on the island,” he said.

As extremely important as these comments are, it would be helpful to see additional signs that the vice president’s statements are the administration’s policy. Signs Turkey will cease its intransigence on these issues and play a constructive role would also be welcomed. Turkey has not shown it’s willingness to do this. In the past, Turkey has manipulated the negotiations through the Turkish Cypriot leader. Turkey’s interests on Cyprus are not the same of the people of Cyprus. Unfortunately, not much progress has been made as evidenced by the lack of movement on confidence-building measures. This is reality. Biden and the State Department would be wise to understand it. While it’s extremely important for negotiations to proceed, they cannot succeed if the Turkish Cypriots will continue to take their instructions from Ankara and the political will is absent.

Therefore, the United States government must continue to put open pressure on Turkey. As a community, we must do our part to remind policymakers of Vice President’s Biden’s encouraging remarks. Because as historic and important as the recent flurry of comments and visits have been, we need to be vigilant and adopt President Reagan’s slogan, “Trust, but verify!”

Nick Larigakis is president of the American Hellenic Institute, a non-profit Greek American think tank and public policy center that works to strengthen relations between the United States and Greece and Cyprus, and within the Greek American community.

Top Democrat Lanny Davis critical of Dems' rush to judgment in Rick Perry case

Democrats must denounce the Rick Perry indictment, and the rush to judgment culture | TheHill

Just like Obama, PA Democrat Tom Wolf disparages gun owners

Woman protests Pa. property taxes by paying in $1 bills

Woman protests property taxes by paying in small bills | Reading Eagle - NEWS

Disney to release original, unedited 'Star Wars' trilogy on Blu-ray

Disney to release original, unedited 'Star Wars' trilogy on Blu-ray

EDITORIAL: Steelworkers taken for ride by Reid, Pelosi

EDITORIAL: Steelworkers taken for ride by Reid, Pelosi

Diva Hillary: High fashion, expense for travel

High fashion, expense for Hillary travel

Sunday, August 17, 2014

Bus Drivers Collects $80K in Overtime

NEWS ITEM: The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported on Saturday that six of the eight highest-paid transit agency employees were drivers, some earning more than $80,000 in overtime.

How PA Gov. Tom Corbett could still win in November

Brad Bumsted: How Corbett could still win

Report: IRS puts taxpayer data at risk

Report: IRS puts taxpayer data at risk | Human Events

Further misadventures of Obama's deleted administration

Nixon may have had an 18-minute gap on a tape, but Obama and his minions have deleted thousands of incriminating emails from the most corrupt administration in US history.

Further misadventures of Obama's deleted administration | Human Events

Friday, August 15, 2014

How Captain America conquered China — and why it matters

How Captain America conquered China — and why it matters

Scarborough: Obama Just Doesn't Give A Damn

I'm not a big fan of Joe Scarborough, but he's right about Obama: He just doesn't give a damn about middle class Americans.

Scarborough: Obama Just Doesn't Give A Damn

Obama's Real Legacy


Here are jobs that are most and least likely to be taken by robots

Here are jobs that are most and least likely to be taken by robots

Official: Second illegal immigrant wave of 30,000 coming in September, October

Official: Second illegal immigrant wave of 30,000 coming in September, October | WashingtonExaminer.com

'Americans have lost a lot of confidence and replaced it with fear'

James Pethokoukis of the American Enterprise Institute on the continuing economic malaise following six years of disastrous policies under Barack Obama:
Americans have lost a lot of confidence and replaced it with fear and concern that if something goes wrong things will get even worse. People no longer have that feeling that if they fall down they can pick themselves back up. And I think that's expressed in
the expectation variables. The economy needs to put in stronger numbers for people to feel that they are on more solid ground. And it's fair to say that the politician simply don't get it and don't accept the blame for their contribution to this difficult situation. I was not very optimistic about what the Michigan index would do this week. But the survey managed to come in bellow my expectations. It's a very depressing report.
Economist: 'Americans have lost a lot of confidence and replaced it with fear'

Cyprus occupation and the hypocrisy of Gaza outrage

Victor Davis Hanson: Cyprus occupation and the hypocrisy of Gaza outrage | StAugustine.com

Obama's Version of Stable Iraq


Bill O'Reilly: Obama's American Built on Racism and Lies

O'Reilly: A Weaker America Built on Racism and Lies | Truth Revolt

Laura Ingraham: Obama Plays the Race Card Again

Ingraham: Obama Using Racism to Win in 2014 | Truth Revolt

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Condemns Violence Against Christians

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Batholomew, leader of the world's 300 million Orthodox Christians, condemns the persecution of Christians in Iraq and Syria: "We will not remain indifferent or silent before such irrational persecution, cultural intolerance and appalling loss of life, especially when it is caused by religious hatred and racial hostility. The targeting of tens of thousands of Christians (including Arameans, Chaldeans, and Assyrians) and other religious minorities (including Turkmens, Yazidis, and Kurds) can never be justified in the name of any religious creed or conviction."

Statement by His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew on the Present Violence in Iraq — Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

Va. Schools Ordered To Waive Health & Immunization Requirements For Illegals

Virginia Schools Ordered To Waive Health & Immunization Requirements For Immigrants | Truth Revolt

AMERICAN EDUCATION: THE STRUGGLE FOR STUPIDITY

Pinocchios for latest Tom Wolf attack ad

Millionaire Democrat Tom Wolf is a one-trick pony whose entire campaign for Pennsylvania governor is targeted to unionized teachers. The real culprit with education spending in Pennsylvania is a pension crisis that only one candidate, Gov. Tom Corbett, is trying to address.Wolf has even said there is no pension crisis, which shows he's not serious about solving problems.
Pennsylvania's public school staffing at 10-year low

Is there anything Obama hasn't lied about?


Report: IRS Exposed 1.4 Million Taxpayers to Identity Theft

Report: IRS Exposed 1.4 Million Taxpayers to Identity Theft

NEW POLL: 42% of Americans Think Obama Has Expanded Presidential Power Too Much

NEW POLL: 42 Percent of Americans Think Obama Has Expanded Presidential Power Too Much; 53 Percent Want the US Less Involved in Israel-Hamas Peace Talks

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Democrat Kirsten Powers: Obama Failed Iraqi Christians

Kirsten Powers: Obama Failed Iraqi Christians | Truth Revolt

Hypocrisy: Chicago Teachers Union Prez Shames Wealthy, Makes $200K/Year

Hypocrisy: Chicago Teachers Union Prez Shames Wealthy, Makes $200K/Year | Truth Revolt

300,000 Obamacare Recipients About To Be Cut Off

Over 300,000 Obamacare Recipients About To Be Cut Off | Truth Revolt

Obama, Hillary Trade Catch-Phrases


Guest Column: Jedis, DREAMers and Tax Schemers

By Lowman S. Henry
Guest columnist

It could be labeled a Jedi mind trick, or perhaps double speak worthy of a George Orwell novel.  President Obama and the Left have raised to an art form the ability to name a policy initiative the exact opposite of what it actually is, thus making opponents look bad for opposing it.

The "Affordable" Health Care Act which has resulted in higher health care costs; and the proposed "DREAM" Act that supposedly would solve the nation's immigration crisis, but actually would simply grant amnesty to lawbreakers are but two examples. In recent weeks the president and his minions have been touting "economic patriotism."

Setting aside the obvious irony of the Obama Administration posing as patriotic, it is safe to assume most Americans would not want to be viewed as unpatriotic.  On the face of it "economic patriotism" would sound like the latest version of a "buy American" campaign, or a push to patronize your local small business.  In actuality it is part of the administration's effort to demonize corporations for trying to lower their tax burden and maximize profits.

Taken a step further, as individuals we would be viewed as economically unpatriotic if we took our home mortgage deduction, child tax credit or charitable giving deduction because we are depriving the federal treasury of the funds it needs to finance the President's big government agenda.  So, stop waving that flag and start finding ways to maximize the amount of money you fork over to the IRS every April.

What has set the president's patriotic heart aflutter is the growing trend of large U.S.-based corporations merging with partners overseas and locating their corporate headquarters in nations with more favorable corporate tax rates, a practice known as corporate inversion.  This is totally legal and what would be expected in a free market system.  But the president has determined that legal or not, it is - in his opinion - wrong.  And, he having a pen and a phone is the final arbiter of all things legal and moral.

Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew got the debate started by asking congress to outlaw corporate inversion.  In highly inflammatory language he proclaimed corporations "seek to shift their profits overseas to avoid paying their share of taxes while benefiting from the United States without paying a dime."

That, of course, is absurd.  Both foreign and domestic corporations are subject to the U.S. corporate income tax.  The problem is the United States sports a 35% corporate tax rate, the highest rate among the world's 34 most industrialized nations. And this gets to the heart of the matter.  Scott Eastman of the Tax Foundation explains: "The U.S. is one of only six developed nations with a 'worldwide' tax system that subjects its domestic corporations to double taxation. Income earned by American corporations abroad is taxed once by the nation in which it was earned, and again when the income is back within our borders."

It is both the structure of American tax policy and the excessively high tax rate that makes it attractive for corporations to headquarter elsewhere.  Consider that Japan is in the process of lowering its corporate tax rate to 25%.  Thus, an American corporation that executes an inversion with a Japanese partner will immediately realize a 10% decrease in its tax obligation simply by virtue of that move alone.

Rather than demonizing American companies that are simply reacting to the nation's oppressive corporate tax policies the Obama Administration should be working with congress on reforming the system.  Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have been pushing for such comprehensive reform, but as with virtually all GOP initiatives it has been met with a stone wall of opposition from the White House.

In the meantime, recovery from the Great Recession continues to lag as it will until and unless the underlying disincentives for business investment and growth contained within U.S. tax policy are changed.  And no amount of name calling by the president and the treasury secretary will change that fact.

Lowman S. Henry is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Lincoln Institute of Public Opinion Research Inc., a non-profit educational foundation based in Harrisburg, PA, and host of the weekly Lincoln Radio Journal.  His e-mail address is lhenry@lincolninstitute.org.

Hollywood pumps cash to save Senate majority for Democrats

Hollywood pumps cash to save Senate majority for Democrats | TheHill

Former PA lawmaker used tax-free per diem to buy house

Update: Former PA lawmaker used per diem to buy house - WHP CBS 21 Harrisburg - Top Stories

Who rules America?

Who rules America? | TheHill

Obama agencies routinely do union business on taxpayer's dime

Federal agencies spend millions on union business | Human Events

Is Pa. Millionaire Tom Wolf paying his fair share of taxes?

Monday, August 11, 2014

Democrat Kirsten Powers: Obama 'Not a Humanitarian President' - Iraqi Christians Ignored

ObamaCare premiums slated to rise by an average of 7.5 percent

ObamaCare premiums slated to rise by an average of 7.5 percent | TheHill

Poll: Obama hurting mid-term Dem chances

Poll: Obama hurting mid-term Dem chances | TheHill

Welcome to Obamaland


More lost emails — When will Democrats have enough?

Twenty different Obama administration officials have lost or destroyed a portion of their email traffic, according to The Hill newspaper.

That's not bad luck or incompetence. It's a criminal conspiracy.

More lost emails — When will Democrats have enough? | TheHill

Federal Agencies Spending Millions to Support Unions

Taxpayers spent more than $150 million to aid federal unions, according to a new report.

Federal Agencies Spending Millions to Support Unions

Obama Surpasses 400 Fundraiser Events As President

Obama Surpasses 400 Fundraiser Events As President

'The border fence is a joke': Filmmaker crosses from US to Mexico dressed as Osama bin Laden

'The border fence is a joke': Filmmaker crosses from US to Mexico dressed as Osama bin Laden

A few Pa. state lawmakers who don't belly up to the trough

John Baer: Pa. pols who don't belly up to the trough

Obama's Toxic Poll Numbers


Obama's America: Welfare State Grows as Self-Sufficiency Declines

Welfare State Grows as Self-Sufficiency Declines

Obamacare Enrollment Data: Employer Based Coverage Declines

Obamacare Enrollment Data: Employer Based Coverage Declines

Saturday, August 09, 2014

Friday, August 08, 2014

Homework-eating dog gobbles up ObamaCare emails

Homework-eating dog gobbles up ObamaCare emails | Human Events

IRS union runs on taxpayer subsidies

IRS union runs on taxpayer subsidies | Human Events

Some Positive Poll News For Obama?


Democrats talk about impeachment 20 times as much as Republicans

Dems talk about impeachment 20 times as much as Republicans | TheHill

Epic Fail! Medicaid enrollments top 7M under Obamacare

Medicaid enrollments top 7M under O-Care | TheHill

Evidence is Clear: Obama's Cash for Clunkers Was Huge Boondoggle

boon·dog·gle
ˈbo͞onËŒdägÉ™l,-ËŒdôgÉ™l/
North Americaninformal
noun
noun: boondoggle; plural noun: boondoggles
  1. 1.
    work or activity that is wasteful or pointless but gives the appearance of having value.
    "writing off the cold fusion phenomenon as a boondoggle best buried in literature"
    • a public project of questionable merit that typically involves political patronage and graft.
      "they each drew $600,000 in the final months of the great boondoggle"
verb
verb: boondoggle; 3rd person present: boondoggles; past tense: boondoggled; past participle: boondoggled; gerund or present participle: boondoggling
  1. 1.
    waste money or time on unnecessary or questionable projects.
James Pethokoukis: Oops! Obama’s Cash for Clunkers program ‘actually lowered total new vehicle spending’

Obama Second-Guessing


Reality intrudes upon Obama’s bullet train fantasy

James Pethokoukis: Reality intrudes upon Obama’s bullet train fantasy

'Dead Broke' Hillary Clinton Spending $100K For Three-Week Rental In Hamptons

Hillary "Dead Broke" Clinton Spending $100,000 For A Three-Week Rental In Hamptons…

GUEST COLUMN: The Shocking Price of the Affordable Care Act

By Congressman Joe Pitts


The law was sold to Americans as a plan to save money on health insurance. However, the way it works out is that some save, while others pay a whole lot more. Plans on the new federal exchanges are generally more expensive than equivalent coverage available before the law.

A detailed county-by-county analysis by researchers at the Manhattan Institute found that individual market premiums have increased by an average of 49 percent across the country from 2013 to 2014.

Right now, health insurers are setting their rates for the next year. So far, there is little information about the premium costs in most states for 2015. Florida is the first state to provide information about what consumers will be paying.

According to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, premiums for plans on the Obamacare exchanges will increase by an average of 13.2 percent. The most popular plan in the state, Florida Blue, plans to raise their rates by 17.6 percent. Big government subsidies will help some, but not all, consumers afford these increases.

Over the coming months, other states will announce rate changes, including Pennsylvania. Many families are going to be shocked to find how much more money in their budget will be going to health care next year.

Recently, we got another shock when the Government Accountability Office issued their report on the total mess that is Healthcare.gov. Everyone knows that Healthcare.gov was a disaster at its launch, but even though the consumer side of the website works relatively well now, behind the scenes parts of the site still aren’t built.

Government information technology programs are frequently disasters. In recent years, agencies from the IRS to Social Security to the Department of Defense have spent billions of dollars on computer systems that never worked properly.

Healthcare.gov is just another disaster to add to the list. According to the GAO, government managers were primarily at fault. Work on the website started without essential information like how many states would participate or how many enrollees would need to be served. Compounding this error, the contracts for the site were constructed in a way that the government paid regardless of whether the system worked.

In September 2011, Healthcare.gov was expected to cost $56 million. By 2014, the bill had ballooned to $209 million. The cost for the data hub had increased over time from $30 million to $85 million.

Last year, in the midst of the disaster, the government tried to blame contractors and fired the principle company building Healthcare.gov. A new contract with a new company was signed for $91 million, but this has already grown since the beginning of the year to $175 million. No telling how much it will be before work is completed.

The cost of final price shock is still somewhat unknown. The Affordable Care Act contains a so-called risk corridor provision. The provision is meant to smooth out insurers’ losses from new health plans on the Obamacare insurance exchanges. The risk corridor procedure typically reduces payments to plans that are doing better than projected and increases payments to those who are doing worse.

If this is done in a budget neutral fashion, it doesn’t hurt taxpayers. However, under Obamacare there may a whole lot of losers and few winners. There is great concern that the administration will use the risk corridor provision to give almost every health insurer increased payments—essentially bailing out the industry. Before the end of the year, we could see what the bill to taxpayers will be.

There are some things only the government can do, such as defending our nation. Running health care is a tremendous task, and even the smartest people in the Obama administration have failed. Government isn’t the answer and Obamacare needs to go.

###

US Rep. Joe Pitts is a Republican who represents Pennsylvania's 16th Congressional District in Chester, Berks and Lancaster counties.