Waste In the Stimulus Bill? Democrat Author Says 'So What?'

And My brother David wonders why Republicans are scoffing at this pork barrel spending bill, that is only meant to stimulate the money out of the pockets of hard working Americans and into the pockets of liberal special interest groups like Planned Parenthood and Acorn.

David, please read what Michael Obrien with The Hill wrote about the bill's author who, when asked about wasteful spending in the bill said "So what?":

Waste In the Stimulus Bill? Democrat Author Says 'So What?'

How money is spent should be far from the biggest concern about the stimulus package, its chief author, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Wisc.) said Friday.

"So what?" Obey asked in response to a question on NPR's "Morning Edition" about the perceived lack of direction from Congress as to how money in the stimulus should be spent. "This is an emergency. We've got to simply find a way to get this done as fast as possible and as well as possible, and that's what we're doing."

Obey said that Congress is not responsible if money is misspent, but rather, whoever spends the money poorly.

"We simply made a decision, which took about three seconds, not to have earmarks in the bill," Obey told NPR. "And with all due respect, that's the least important
question facing us on putting together this package."

As Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Obey had chief oversight in crafting the $825 billion package as passed by the House. The provisions in the bill have been
criticized by Republicans and some centrist Democrats for not being as directly related to stimulating the economy as it should be.

"We have more oversight built into this package than any package in the history of man. If money is spent badly, we want to know about it so we can hold accountable the people who made that choice," the chairman said. "And guess what? Regardless of what we do, there will be some stupid decisions made."

Gallop: Obama’s most unpopular decision? Funding overseas abortions.

For those who believe that the debate over abortion is dead, I have new for you!

A recent poll conducted by Gallop revealed that of all the decision President Obama has made during his term’s infancy, it was his decision to approve funding for organizations to provide abortions overseas that is most unpopular with voters.

Gallop writes:

…Obama's decision to reverse the prohibition on funding for overseas family-planning providers may be the least popular thing he has done so far. This was an executive order that forbade federal government money from going to overseas family-planning groups that provide abortions or offer abortion counseling. Fifty-eight percent of Americans disapprove of Obama's decision to lift this ban, while only 35% approve of it. The ban on federal funds to these groups was put in place by Ronald Reagan, but lifted by Bill Clinton. George W. Bush re-instituted the ban after taking office in 2001, but Obama has once again lifted it.

Even more interesting is the fact that Republicans were not the only ones opposed to this decision. According to Gallop, 67% of independent voters disapproved as well.

And for my fellow GOPer’s who advocate for having abortion striped from our party platform, take note… 92% of Republicans polled opposed overseas funding of abortions.

Keep that in mind!

Roe v. Wade and the making of a President

In light of the history making events we witnessed this week and because today marks the 36 year anniversary of the passage of Roe v. Wade, I would like to offer the following food for thought



As one who was also born prior to Roe v. Wade and was unwanted by my paternal parents, this part of the President's story resonates with me. Furthermore, I have come to learn that had Roe been the law of the land in 1969, I myself would likely not be here. Just think, what if our President had been concieved just a few years later?

How many doctors, lawyers, teachers, pastors, community organizers or presidents have been sacrificed on the altar of choice? Is it truly justice to allow one person's right to choose supersede another's right to live?

Just food for thought....

Someone didn't get the memo about the end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas...

In his inaugural address, President Barack Obama proclaimed, "...an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics."

But clearly someone in his new administration didn't get the memo. Below is an exerpt from the Whitehouse.gov, the official website of the President of the United States. Notice no petty grievences, false promises, recriminations or worn out dogmas here:

President Obama will keep the broken promises made by President Bush to rebuild New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. He and Vice President Biden will take steps to ensure that the federal government will never again allow such catastrophic failures in emergency planning and response to occur.

President Obama swiftly responded to Hurricane Katrina. Citing the Bush Administration's "unconscionable ineptitude" in responding to Hurricane Katrina, then-Senator Obama introduced legislation requiring disaster planners to take into account the specific needs of low-income hurricane victims. Obama visited thousands of Hurricane survivors in the Houston Convention Center and later took three more trips to the region. He worked with members of the Congressional Black Caucus to introduce legislation to address the immediate income, employment, business, and housing needs of Gulf Coast communities.

President Barack Obama will partner with the people of the Gulf Coast to rebuild now, stronger than ever.

It is great to see you talking the talk Mr. President. Now it's time to start walking the walk.