Let bankruptcy work

Jeffrey A. Miron is right on the money about the current Wall Street "crisis."

Obama and a mouthful of ACORN

With all the news coverage about the bailout plan in the past few days, there's one little tidbit you wouldn't have heard from the MSM. The Democrats in Congress wanted money set aside for ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now). Now that's an extraordinary name for a progressive, leftist organization...

ACORN has been caught red-handed many times on voter fraud. Obama used to work for ACORN as a trainer. He also indirectly funded the organization through the Woods Fund and the Chicago Annenberg Challenge.

Yet the MSM has no reports about this. McCain owning multiple houses isn't news. But Obama having ties to a an organization known for fraud should be.

Finally, the people's voices heard

The House rejected the $700 billion financial bailout plan endorsed by leading politicians in Washington, causing the Dow to tank more than 700 points on Monday. With approval ratings of Congress at an all-time low, this is simply the discontent of the people manifested.

Michael Sherer of Time concludes with the sentiment shared by many:

...Years ago, the trust between the people and their politicians was broken. The credibility was lost. The reserve of goodwill went bankrupt. And when they needed it most, our nation's leaders found they had squandered their ability to exert influence over the people who chose them to lead.

As much as the politicians wanted a non-partisan effort to rescue Wall Street, it seemed that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ruined the cooperation from Republicans with her speech blaming the Bush administration's "failed economic policies" (again). Way to go, Nancy! You do realize that Democrats control the House, right?!

Financial scare tactics?

Is Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Fed Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke painting a gloomier financial outlook than it really warrants? The $700 billion bailout plan is now up for a vote. The plan calls for $250 billion to be immediately available for the Treasury Department to buy up bad debts and failing institutions.

Like many others (Irwin Kellner of WSJ MarketWatch, Joseph Calhoun of Alhambra Investment Management, and Pejman Yousefzadeh of RedState), I am not convinced of the severity (near depression!) of the nation's financial landscape. The reason for this mess was government interference in the first place. By letting the government seizing more control of the elements of capitalism would hinder the recovery, in my opinion.

There's nothing wrong with Lehman Brothers collapsing. That's the price it pays for poor investment decisions. There's nothing wrong with Merrill's fire sale to Bank of America, WaMu's sale to JPMorgan Chase, or Wachovia's sale to Citi. They had to do it in order to survive in this market. Godman Sachs was still able to raise $10 billion in one day. JPMorgan raised $10 billion in order to finance the WaMu buyout.

Obviously the engine of capitalism still runs. However, it seems Paulson, Bernanke, and many lawmakers are unwilling to trust it anymore.

Obama campaign predicts landslide victory

Apparently Obama and his team believe they can win in a landslide on November 4. Latest polls have Obama in a five-point advantage over McCain. Many swing states are turning blue.

The Obama campaign has confidence in the new registered Democratic voters turning out on election day.

Hopefully the McCain campaign ground troops are aware of this.

More fallout from Obama's bracelet

The blogosphere is abuzz with commentary on Obama's bracelet from the debate. Apparently there is evidence that the family of Sergeant Ryan David Jopek from Wisconsin had asked Obama not to wear the bracelet during his campaign.

The bracelet

In last night's debate, McCain talked about a bracelet he wears given to him by a fallen soldier's mother. She told McCain to do everything he can to ensure "my son's death was not in vain."

Then Obama said "I've got a bracelet, too." His was given by a mother of a dead soldier who wanted no mother to go through what she'd been through.

Charles Hurt of the New York Post summarizes the difference between these two men:

Obama will accept defeat if continuing on hurts too much. For McCain, any mission where defeat is an option is a mission not worth fighting in the first place.

I couldn't agree with him more.

Post-debate thoughts

I cannot say that I saw the whole thing, but definitely the majority of it.

First, both candidates did a good job in playing offense and defense. I'm glad McCain did not hold back in throwing punches, forcing Obama to play defense on the main issues: national security, foreign policy, and the economy. Many times when McCain was on the attack, you can see Obama shaking his head, signaling to the moderator that he'd like to rebuke, and just looking plain annoyed.

The best line from McCain? Something to the extent that Obama is so far left that he has a hard time reaching that far across the aisle. That's the McCain we know!

Second, Obama follows through on his "Change we can believe in" mantra to paint his opponent as another Bush. Several times during the debate he brings up Bush and labels McCain a "Bush supporter." This is an obvious scare tactic. The Obama campaign wants voters to view McCain as old school Washington. Did McCain hurt himself when he kept on referring to his background and experience? Maybe, but I'd like to think that Americans still long for the comfort of knowing McCain's history and how that's shaped him. We want change, but change in the right direction.

Third, I think McCain kicked butt in topics relating to foreign policy and the military. McCain's vast knowledge and experience helped him substantiate his claim that Obama holds a naive world view.

The V.P. debate in the coming weeks would be closely watched: Palin vs. Biden. Again, we have a younger, less experienced Gov. Palin up against the experienced Sen. Biden. This election surely boils down to Old vs. New.

The bailout drama

Whoa! The supposedly bipartisan effort to reach a deal on the bailout bill is unraveling like a bad soap opera. Treasury Secretary down on one knee begging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi? As many would say on the Internet: Pics or it didn't happen! McCain screwing up the negotiations? I don't think he's to blame -- many House Republicans aren't pleased with the bill because their constituents tell them so!

Then there's the tie to ACORN. The Democrats wants 20% of all profits from the bailout to stay in the Housing Trust Fund. They've used that fund to support ACORN and the National Council of La Raza. Being a hard-working, tax-paying, middle-income household, I think all the profits should be returned to the taxpayers. Isn't that only fair?

Of course, Paul Krugman of the NYT just had to bring up the fact that Henry Paulson belongs to the "administration that misled America to war." Get over it, already! Where are the grown-ups indeed, Mr. Krugman? I do agree that the bill should not make Paulson the Finance Czar and that there ought to be the usual checks and balances built into place.

There is no doubt that a rescue plan has to be executed. But the majority of Americans want fairness in the bailout. People nowadays are not walking around with a fat wallet in light of the high gas prices and inflation. We don't like to seeing our neighbors lose their homes or historic Wall Street firms collapse, but all we ask for is some fairness because we followed the financial rules and planned accordingly, yet we seem to be the ones paying for others' mistakes.

McCain suggests postponing debate

The blogosphere is over-analyzing McCain's decision to suspend campaign activities and suggestion to postpone the first presidential debate until Congress and the White House reaches an agreement on the Wall Street rescue plan.

Seriously, what does it matter which date the debate is held? Obama proclaims that the American people deserves to know ASAP how each candidate stands on economic issues, especially pertaining to the Wall Street crisis. Besides inconveniencing the staff at the debate venue (Ole Miss) and the Commission on Presidential Debates, what harm is there in delaying a head-on debate? I'm in agreement with John Podhoretz of Commentary:

This cannot possibly be a major issue. But it is being treated as though it is an unprecedented move, a desperation ploy, a brilliant political stroke, a game-changer, a Hail Mary pass — pick your cliche. Why?

Both McCain and Obama are United States senators. What's wrong with actually doing their job to fly to Washington and be tuned into the largest economic crisis since the Great Depression?

Obama the media darling

We're all aware of the left-leaning bias in the mainstream media (MSM). We should be thankful that there are outlets such as FOX News, conservative talk radio, and crazy right-wing bloggers to balance the information out there.

Tony Blankley of the Washington Times writes an op-ed labeling the MSM as "straight out propagandists for the Obama campaign." And he's right. The major media are infatuated with Obama and have cast their votes for president. Obama is the product of MSM hype. He's a pop star and the MSM writes his songs and scripts.

Obama's secret (unbuilt) garden

The Illinois attorney general is probing a state grant for a botanic garden awarded by then-state Sen. Barack Obama. Evidently the $100,000 was never spent on building the garden. Portions of the money were given to people and organizations with ties to Obama's congressional campaign.

More insults from Chavez

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez had the nerve to sensationalize our current economic troubles and lobbed another insult at President Bush while proclaiming "Socialism is the only route to the salvation of the world."

No thanks, Mr. Chavez. Capitalism may not be perfect and has its ups and downs, but most Americans know socialism is far worse.

Liberalism helped bring down Wall Street giants

We are now in a $700 billion debacle as Wall Street giants and mortgage kings fell one by one. As Congress still debate over the rescue (or bailout) bill, many liberals are blaming the current administration for lack of financial oversight and regulation. But that's certainly not the case as Stan Liebowitz points out on New York Post:

Pushed hard by politicians and community activists, the regulators systematically and deliberately altered financially sound lending practices.

The mortgage market was humming along just fine when, in the late 1980s, progressives decided that it needed to be "fixed." Their complaint: Some ethnic groups got approved for mortgages at lower rates than others.

So what was done to "fix" this? Banks were forced to adopt "relaxed lending standards" or face the consequences of violating the federal Community Reinvestment Act. Essentially, banks had to take on much greater risks in lending to people who cannot afford to. These high-risk mortgages were sold to Fannie and Freedie for decades, increasing home ownership and inflating home valuation, until finally the day when the owners cannot pay.

Just another example of the harm of liberal influence in government policy. Leave the market alone and it will run itself.

Dissecting Obama's leftism

Joshua Muravchik has a good article on Commentary detailing what Obama believes in from his "voting record" and also his "intellectual evolution."

Obama's income redistribution plan

The Obama campaign would like to refer it as the "tax cut" plan, but Ken Blackwell calls it what it is: income redistribution. He adds that

Some pundits argue that this is Keynesian demand-side economics. It is not. Having the government take money from business entities or affluent individuals and giving it to those who pay no federal income taxes is not Keynesian. It's Marxist.

You don't have to be an economist to understand this, just need a dose of common sense. Obama has promised universal nationalized health care and money for college education, but where would that funding come from? The government relies on income tax revenues. Paying for those government programs would then require money from taxpayers. But low-income families don't pay taxes, so the burden falls on everyone else.

Exposing the Palin smear campaign

Dr. Rusty Shackleford and his crew over at the Jawa Report did some excellent research into who's behind the Palin smear campaign with all the online videos and the effort to promote them.

The 269 tie

The Washington Times has an interesting scenario which I'm sure both campaigns are aware of: the Electoral College 269 tie:

On Nov. 5, the presidential election winds up in a electoral-college tie, 269-269, the Democrat-controlled House picks Sen. Barack Obama as president, but the Senate, with former Democrat Joe Lieberman voting with Republicans, deadlocks at 50-50, so Vice President Dick Cheney steps in to break the tie to make Republican Sarah Palin his successor.

How crazy would that be for Sen. Lieberman and V.P. Cheney to ultimately shatter the Democrats' White House dream? Based on recent polls, the most plausible scenario would be New Hampshire turning red with its four electoral votes. I'm betting that N.H. is getting a lot of attention from both campaigns because of this.

Palin to meet world leaders, Bono at U.N.

Gov. Sarah Palin is getting up to speed on foreign policy with the help of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger as she has appointments with the Colombian president, Afghan president, Georgian president, Ukrainian president, Iraqi president, Pakistani president, and Indian prime minister.

And U2 singer Bono, too.

Explaining the Wall Street meltdown

Neal Boortz explains it well on Townhall.com:

Right now this crisis is being sold to the American public by the left as evidence the failure of the free market and capitalism. Not so. What we’re seeing is the inevitable result of political interference in free market economics. Acme bank didn’t want to loan money to Joe Homebuyer because Joe had a spotty job history, owed too much money on his credit cards, and wasn’t all that good at making payments on time. The politicians told Acme Bank to figure out a way to make that loan, because, after all, Joe is a bona-fide minority-American, or forget about opening that new branch office on the Southside. The loan was made under politicial pressure; the loan, with millions like it, failed – and now we are left to enjoy today’s headlines.

It's a good read and it's something the MSM won't report on.

Bernhard's over-the-top rip of Palin

WARNING: Foul language in link.

Unfunny comedian Sandra Blowhard -- uh, Bernhard -- threw expletives and other NSFW language at Palin during a rant (MSM called it "performance") at the Theater J in D.C.

Catholics avoiding Biden

The MSM is not reporting on the mounting Catholic backlash against Sen. Joe Biden. When Biden was chosen by Obama, his religious belief was valued to attract the 47 million Catholic voters. But his pro-choice view isn't biding well in the hearts of Catholics.

Is turmoil caused by financial terrorism?

The Dow was up 240 points before opening, then lingered between 100 and -100, then finally surged 400 points on news that the U.K. temporarily banned short-selling. Following suit, the SEC may also enforce such a ban as early as Friday morning.

Short sellers are getting a bad rap these days. It's perfectly legal to bet against a stock, but it's illegal if rumors and misinformation are spread to manipulate a stock's price. Some people have even gone as far as to call these short sellers unpatriotic in betting against American investment pillars like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs in a time of market upheaval.

Others are also joining forces to discourage, if not stop, short selling. New York A.G. Andrew Cuomo will investigate into whether there were any illegal activities to influence stock prices of financial companies. Several mammoth pension funds -- California State Teachers' Retirement System and the New York State Common Retirement Fund -- ceased to lend shares for short sales.

Jim Cramer even speculated on "financial terrorism" -- people out there who want to weaken America by bringing capitalism to its knees.

The ban on short selling is controversial. Is it really fair? Why not also ban long buying? Just stop all trading completely for a few days then. Are short sellers being singled out and punished unreasonably? Well, the next few days would be interesting. If the market continues a downward spiral even after this ban, then we'll all find out the problem is really deeper than short sellers. But right now the ban is welcomed news to investors, CEOs, and regulators.

Biden equates paying more taxes with love of country

Democratic V.P. candidate Joe Biden says that paying more taxes is the patriotic thing to do for wealthier Americans. And here I thought patriotism should be something that's from the heart, not from the law.

Joe Klein of Time would go a step further:

...there probably should be a confiscatory shark tax for any and all executives whose companies have gone belly up and required a federal bailout.

So Mr. Klein goes from supporting Biden's statement to finding a scapegoat to the current Wall Street woes. As much as the executives bear the responsibilities of mismanaging these financial companies, there are only part of the picture. Regulators, short traders, board of directors, and mortgage applicants who lie on the forms are also to blame. And who knows who else is involved as the market continues to unravel?

But allow me to say this: taxes are not the solution to this. In fact, I'd say our overblown tax code has to share the blame, too. More reason for the FairTax.

Obama and Fannie in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g

The recent turmoil on Wall Street has the attention of both campaigns. The Obama camp has come out criticizing the Republican's mismanagement of the economy and McCain's detachment to the suffering American families.

If McCain seemed detached to the people, Obama is intimate with Fannie and Freddie. As a junior senator, he's close to receiving the same amount of campaign contributions as long time senator and former presidential candidate John Kerry.

Additionally, former Fannie CEOs Franklin Raines and Jim Johnson now advise the Obama campaign on economic and housing policies. Both men made great profits while heading the largest mortgage company in the country.

Again, Obama has questionable ties to prominent political, business, and academic figures. Is this really change we can believe in?

The Donald endorses McCain

Obama, you're fired!

Donald Trump has endorsed Sen. McCain for president on CNN's "Larry King Live."

BFD: Palin used personal email for business

Why isn't the main story about these hackers breaking the law to obtain Palin's personal Yahoo emails, then releasing them to the public via WikiLeaks? Why is the focus on her using her personal email account for business?

In this day and age, who hasn't used his or her personal email for business, or vice versa? Big. Friggin'. Deal.

The media is all over this, trying to sling more mud her way.

And to Andree McLeod, the Alaskan activist who claims Yahoo Mail is insecure: You're wrong -- please Google "secure http" at your earliest convenience.

The new battleground states

Richard Baehr of American Thinker gives a good rundown of the battleground states from the latest polls. He points out that Obama has missed his red state targets:

Many of Obama's once-targeted red states are now safely in McCain's corner. These include Montana (3), North Dakota (3) Alaska (3), and Georgia (15). North Carolina (15), Indiana (11) and Missouri (11) do not look too promising for Obama either. Of course, if the race breaks hard for either candidate in the last month, such that the current near-deadlock in the national popular vote becomes a 5% or greater margin of victory, then some of the second tier targets may come into play. But they won't matter. If Obama opens up a 5% national lead, he will win Ohio, and Virginia and Colorado. If McCain opens up a similar sized national lead, he probably wins Michigan and Pennsylvania. Neither candidate would need any other states from the other party's column -- these would amount to gravy, allowing the winner to claim a mandate.

The Obama campaign has failed in executing its red state attacks. Its field volunteers, mainly from out-of-state, are finding trouble connecting to local voters. With the economy going south, McCain needs a message of sympathy and not just repeating the positives. Voters have lost their savings and jobs because of the recent economic downturn, and they do not wish to hear that the "fundamentals are strong."

McCain gets vote of prominent Clinton supporter

Lynn Forester de Rothschild is endorsing John McCain for president. She was a major donor to Hillary Clinton's campaign, earning her the title of Hillraiser.

Fed bails out AIG, blame game begins

The government took control of AIG in a $85 billion deal to prevent total chaos in the world financial markets. This came somewhat as a surprise as most people expected the Fed to let capitalism work as it did in dealing with Lehman Brothers which had to file for bankruptcy. The bailout gives the Fed 80% of ownership of AIG and is secured by AIG's assets.

Now the blame game really begins. When asked whether Congress bears any responsibility in the current financial crisis, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said "no." She blames the Bush administration (of course).

The root of the problem is the subprime mortgage market. This type of mortgage allowed people without the financial means to buy a house instead of what they should be doing: renting. Fannie Mae was established in 1938 as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's (D-N.Y.) New Deal, to provide liquidity in the secondary mortgage market, help the poor, and recover from the Great Depression. The New Deal was the beginning of a trend in big government, wealth redistribution, and government intervention in America. Whether you like it or not, it started with Democratic ideas bordering socialism.

And the rest is history.

Predicting doom about Palin phenomenon?

Jon Friedman of MarketWatch warns that "the media live to build you up, then knock you down" about Gov. Sarah Palin. He seems to think that the Palin phenomenon was created by the media and the media will end it soon. This is hardly the case. Palin entered the spotlight and the media could not contain the enthusiasm and energy she has brought forth.

But that's not the case with Obama. His campaign is truly the work of media hype. How else can a community organizer-turned-senator with zero executive experience and ties to shady individuals, running against the Clinton political machine, end up where he is today? Reporters and news anchors followed him to Europe and the Middle East, to document his global popularity tour.

Mr. Friedman should worry about Obama and his campaign, if he is so concerned about the media frenzy.

Hackers disrupted Qaeda 9/11 tape release

I guess there are some hackers out there with ethics. Thanks to hackers Aaron Weisburd and Rusty Shackleford, As-Sahab, al-Qaeda's media division, were unable to release this year's 9/11 anniversary tape.

Blue states becoming purple

McCain enjoyed a bit of post-convention bounce in the polls, but not enough to flip any blue states to red. However, recent polling suggests that McCain is turning red states even redder and blue states purpler.

Despite market turmoil, economy is OK

Yesterday was a scary day for the market: Dow dropped 500 pts. on news of Lehman Brothers collapse, Merrill Lynch's fire sale to Bank of America, and AIG's credit worries. It was the worst drop since the 9/11 terrorist attack.

Many folks are in a panic. They're losing confidence in their banks. They worry what'll happen to their savings. Their retirement accounts are shrinking. It's like the sky is falling...

The Fed understands this crisis which stemmed from institutions' overexposure to the risky subprime mortgage market. Many banks have already failed and taken over by the FDIC. A few months ago the government engineered a sale of troubled Bear Stearns to JPMorgan Chase. A few weeks ago Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were seized by the government. Was Lehman Brothers betting on a bailout? No bank would pick up Lehman without the backing of the government, and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson wasn't keen on another bailout. In the end Lehman was left without a suitor and had no option but to file for bankruptcy, ending its 158-year history and making history as the largest bankruptcy ever.

Credit is due to Secretary Paulson for allowing capitalism to work. In order for capitalism to remain healthy, sometimes it must go through illnesses, just like a human. Now that he has shown the market that he's not always Uncle Sugar, many banks have pooled together cash to improve lending, instead of always relying on the Fed.

What will happen to AIG and other troubled institutions in the future? Nobody knows, but capitalism is also about owning up to the decisions you make, good or bad, and living the consequences.

Obama's traveling companion

The teleprompter, don't leave home without it.

Evidently Obama is hitting the campaign trail with the device. He is known for his speechmaking, but reading off a teleprompter makes him even more distant to the audience.

Sarah Fey? Tina Palin?

Saturday was season premier of SNL and featured Tina Fey as Gov. Sarah Palin. The V.P. candidate and her crew watched it on a plane en route from Reno to Denver. The money quote?

"She thought it was quite funny, particularly because she once dressed up as Tina Fey for Halloween," her spokesperson Tracey Schmitt said, according to CBS News.

Score another point for the governor!

Rep. Rangel buried in tax problems

More tax troubles are brewing for Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) which prompted him to hire a new accountant to review his tax records for the past 20 years. He is being investigated by the ethics committee on unreported income and unpaid taxes on his beach house in the Dominican Republic. This is especially embarrassing for Rangel as he chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, a committee which is charged to guide new tax laws. Republicans have asked Speaker Nancy Pelosi to strip him of his committee chairmanship, but so far she's resisted. No surprise there as that committee is one of the most powerful on Capital Hill.

Even the New York Times is asking Rangel to step aside!

Obama asked for delayed troop withdrawal

Since the beginning of Obama's campaign (which is when he became a junior senator), he has made an issue with withdrawing U.S. troops in Iraq. He wanted them to come home immediately, no matter the cost to Americans and to Iraqis. But according to Amir Taheri of the New York Post:

Obama has made many contradictory statements with regard to Iraq. His latest position is that US combat troops should be out by 2010. Yet his effort to delay an agreement would make that withdrawal deadline impossible to meet.

Supposing he wins, Obama's administration wouldn't be fully operational before February - and naming a new ambassador to Baghdad and forming a new negotiation team might take longer still.

So while in Iraq, Obama actually "demanded" that the withdrawal of troops be delayed until the election is over and a new administration takes office! What was he trying to pull? Did he want to be the Commander-in-Chief, if elected, to bring home the troops so he'd look good?

More evidence that this man is manipulative and dangerous. He will step over anyone and say anything to have power.

Criticizing Palin's lack of foreign policy experience

Now that ABC News' Charles Gibson interview of Palin is over and for the world to analyze, the Obama campaign and the Left have unleashed another wave of attacks. Fred Kaplan of Slate writes that "when it comes to foreign policy, Sarah Palin doesn't know what she's talking about." Moreover, he claims:

And why should she have? As governor of Alaska, nothing in her line of duties has compelled her to pay attention to such matters—and that is precisely the point.

I'll give Sen. Joe Biden credit for his foreign policy experience, but Mr. Obama? Are we so quick to forget what he said about the threat from North Korea, Iran, Cuba, and Venezuela? That these "tiny countries" pose no danger to Americans and the world? At least Palin isn't complacent and understands the evils of the world, and the only way to defeat evil is to crush it. Whereas Obama thinks that he can talk and negotiate with evildoers and be done with it.

Today is Sept. 12 and would be a good time to reflect upon the state of our security. It's been seven years since the al-Qaeda attacks on our home turf. The fact is that President Bush has kept us safe for seven years. Did he achieve this by sitting down at a table with al-Qaeda and Taliban lieutenants? Or by instructing our military to disrupt and destroy the enemies?

Take some time to ponder on Obama's way of thinking...

Chavez tells us to go to hell, threatens oil supply

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez expels the U.S. ambassador "in solidarity with Bolivia." In a political rally he tells his supporters that "Yankees...go to hell a hundred times."

The U.S. is Venezeula's biggest oil customer, so one can imagine how much of Venezuela's economy depends on oil exports. Is Chavez stupid enough to halt oil exports to the U.S.? He'll only worsen his country's economic woes.

Palin boosting other GOP candidates

The addition of Sarah Palin to the GOP ticket is also improving Republican congressional candidates' numbers:

Republicans say the landscape has changed in the past few weeks, reflected by the party's improved standing in generic ballot tests. Through July, Democrats led the RCP Generic Congressional Average by 12 points. Today, that lead is down to 3.6 points.

Palin is probably the most important and impacting running mate in American history. The Democrats not only have to worry about the W.H. race, but now also in Congress. Their goal to expand their numbers in Congress may be in jeopardy.

Remembering 9/11

Seven years ago Islamic terrorists used passenger planes as missiles and flew them into the Pentagon and the Twin Towers, killing thousands of innocent civilians.

We have been kept safe since September 11, 2001. But that doesn't mean the threat no longer exists.

Terrorists continue to plot against Americans and American interests around the globe.

Never forget.

Obama campaign now faces real challenges

Why is the Obama campaign suddenly losing its touch? Mark Cunningham of the New York Post offers a good analysis based on the campaign's makeup:

Barack Obama has never run a campaign against a real Republican. And his main strategist, David Axelrod, is way out of his areas of expertise.

Axelrod specializes in urban politics. He's run a bunch of mayoral races (usually in cities with lots of blacks), plus contests in true-blue states like Massachusetts and New York.

In another word, inexperience. Obama came into the spotlight after making an impressive speech in the 2004 DNC. His opponent during his senator race withdrew and later replaced by Republican Alan Keyes who had to establish residency in Illinois (from Maryland) just so the GOP had somebody. So really, Obama had never ran any major political campaign except this one, and Alexrod is starting to show his lack of strategic vision in this crucial time during the race.

Oh no, the world may reject America if McCain elected!

The Guardian's Jonathan Freedland is worried. He's worried about Obama losing the White House race. He's worried about McCain's endorsement of a League of Democracies (the anti-U.N.). He's worried about offshore drilling, here in the U.S.

Of course I know that even to mention Obama's support around the world is to hurt him. Incredibly, that large Berlin crowd damaged Obama at home, branding him the "candidate of Europe" and making him seem less of a patriotic American. But what does that say about today's America, that the world's esteem is now unwanted? If Americans reject Obama, they will be sending the clearest possible message to the rest of us - and, make no mistake, we shall hear it.

Don't be worried, Mr. Freedland. We know you, like thousands of other Europeans, are infatuated with Obama and what he stands for. And why not? He promotes the same socialist ideology as your frail continent. How much taxes do Europeans pay? How high is the unemployment rate? How good are the healthcare systems? How ready is your military?

Americans do not wish to turn their country into another France or Germany. Americans do not care what type of message you'd prefer to hear. History has proven that America has shown great love for Europe, no matter which president is in the White House.

World wants Obama elected, more reason NOT to vote for him

According to a poll conducted by the anti-American BBC, the majority of the world would like to see a Obama presidency as he continues to struggle against McCain's post-convention bounce.

We all know Obama's popularity among foreigners and it's well documented. But this is an American election, who cares about what French, Germans, Australians, Russians, Indians, etc. think? Americans rescued many of these nations from war and mayhem, and Americans do not need them to tell us who to pick for as leader of the free world.

There's no doubt in my mind that the majority of Americans are proud of their republic and democratic system. Such polls from foreign media are absurd and meaningless, and only works against the Obama campaign.

Thought on Fannie and Freddie bailouts

The U.S. government on Sunday seized control of mortgage backers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in order to stabilize the housing and credit crisis. Today the Congressional Budget Office announced that the cost of bailing out these two companies should be reflected in the federal budget. That's about $5 billion in liabilities combined!

For decades Fannie and Freddie, though publicly traded companies, have operated without the regular oversight and accountability of typical corporations. Fannie Mae was created in 1938 as part of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal to provide liquidity to the mortgage market. Then in 1970 Freddie Mac was founded to compete with Fannie Mae. Talk about a recipe for disaster...

The companies finally collapsed because their accounting methods inflated their worth. That's what happens when companies aren't under regulatory supervision. There's nothing wrong with the government helping out the mortgage market, but they shouldn't have create such a hybrid monster to skirt the regulatory system. Now the taxpayers are going to pick up the tab again.

Obama has foot-in-mouth disease

"You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig."

That's what Obama said in a town hall meeting in Virginia. Good way to send another drove of women voters to McCain.

I predict there will be some major personnel departures within the Obama campaign before election day.

Now the Left compares Palin to an Islamofascist

The vicious attacks keep coming against Gov. Sarah Palin. Today we have Juan Cole writing in Salon that Palin's conservative views on religion, censorship, abortion, and global warming make her no different than a Muslim fundamentalist.

Mr. Cole writes that Palin, as mayor of Wasilla "inquired of the local librarian how to go about banning books that some of her constituents thought contained inappropriate language." What's wrong about it? She was elected by the residents of Wasilla to serve them. If her constituents had concerns about inappropriate materials in the library, which is funded by taxpayer dollars, then she has the obligation to address the matter. If people have problems with this, then they should not use the library and just go to bookstores, and vote for another person in the next mayoral election.

Besides, this simply isn't true.

Mr. Cole continues, when running for governor Palin "argued that creationism should be taught in public schools, at taxpayers' expense, alongside read science." Evolution is a theory, not a law. Creationism is a theory, not a law (that's why we built the Large Hadron Collider to study Big Bang). Students should be exposed to multiple theories in science in order to develop a true scientific mind. Theories are to be tested, whereas laws are known to be true. Why is the Left so afraid of teaching anything other than Evolution and categorize Creationism as faith-based teaching? Evolution also requires a large leap of faith.

Why are there such questions about Palin standing firm on her beliefs and principles? The Left seems to view this governor-mother-of-five-moose-hunter-churchgoer as some sort of odd creature that should've been extinct from the American landscape, especially the political landscape.

Obama's brother lives in Kenyan slum

Barack Obama has said "I am my brother's keeper" in several of his public speeches, stressing the importance of family and family relationships. However, an Italian edition of Vanity Fair published an article in August 2008 about the whereabouts and livelihood of Obama's half-brother, George Hussein Onyango Obama. Evidently, Obama keeps his brother in the slums of Kenya where he lives on less than a dollar a month.

How come the MSM hasn't questioned Obama on this? I'd be interested to know how a presidential candidate treats his (or her) own family members.

MTV VMA host talks American politics, makes idiot of self

Maybe there's a reason MTV had to settle with British pseudo-actor/comedian Russell Brand in the last minute as host of its Video Music Awards... 'cause nobody wanted the gig. Brand begged the audience to elect Obama "on behalf of the world." He also called President Bush a "retarded cowboy."

When did MTV become CNN- or MSNBC-like to offer left-wing political commentary?

Well, keep it up. Although VMA viewers are most likely young voters in support of Obama, they absolutely, like, hate political stuff on MTV 'cause, you know, like, they want to see music videos and like, reality shows with beautiful young people.

Yes, the MTV Generation knows a good backlash, too.

It's really Pelosi that's scared of V.P. Palin

All this media attention given to Palin is already hitting Obama hard. But which other politician is worried sick about Obama losing the race?

I'd say Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House.

She heads a Democratic-controlled Congress with approval ratings less than 20%, even lower than the president's. Voters are dissatisfied with her leadership in today's economic downturn, primarily in the area of energy policy. As Americans are hurting at the gas pumps across the nation, Congress has done virtually nothing in alleviating the financial hardship by passing legislation to steer the country away from foreign energy dependence. The Democrats continue to target oil companies and talk of price controls, even when they realize what the feasible near-term solution is: allow drilling of America's vast oil reserves. It's Economics 101, supply vs. demand.

Palin knows the ins and outs of energy policy very well. She's chaired the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from 2003-2004. She's negotiated with Big Oil on doing business with Alaska. And she's championed the $26 billion pipeline project awarded to TransCanada to transport natural gas from the North Slope to the lower 48 states.

All the time Pelosi is sitting on her behind, taking vacations, and avoiding calling a vote on legislation to give America more energy independence. Palin is now on the GOP ticket and receiving approval points from voters like never before in this race. If she enters the White House, she'll definitely make Pelosi look like a demagoguing, do-nothing liberal from the Left Coast.

McCain overtakes Obama in polls

The post-convention bounce is giving McCain as much as 10 points ahead of Obama in a USA Today/Gallup poll, thanks to Gov. Sarah Palin.

The addition of Palin to the GOP ticket is nullifying Obama's campaign messages. First, Obama's pick of career politician, Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, not only shows his insecurity about global political experience, but raises doubts about how serious he is for "change." Second, he completely dissed Hillary to be considered V.P., then allowed her to hijack the Democratic Convention, proves to create deeper wounds between the two camps, and especially disillusioned women voters. Third, Obama/Biden run into obstacles in defining their message for the middle class because Palin is living proof of a middle class American.

If McCain can maintain this momentum in the next several weeks, we may see Obama's campaign forced to make more mistakes and eventually self implode.

Obama explains his Saddleback Forum answer about abortion

In an ABC "This Week" interview with George Stephanopoulos, Obama expresses regret over his answer to Pastor Rick Warren about life's beginning, saying:

It's a pretty tough question. And so, all I meant to communicate was that I don't presume to be able to answer these kinds of theological questions.

Theological? Isn't it more of a straight biological answer? Conception starts the cell division, and that's when life happens.

Palin's support of wolf hunting allows more food for Alaskans

We all know how much the Left loves animals at any illogical cost. Heck, that's one of the reasons we're paying $4.00/gallon for gasoline right now because drilling in ANWR is prohibited.

Alan Colmes dug up this story about Palin's support for hunting wolves in order to control and study the predator's population in several Alaskan regions. The Left has a problem with this, of course, because it involves guns and animals. Leave the wolves alone, they'd say!

But wait... The purpose of hunting these wolves is to preserve and protect select moose and caribou populations. Why? Because believe it or not, many Alaskan families don't go to the grocery store to buy meat. They hunt moose for its meat, and I'd guess killing one or two would be enough meat for a year. According to the Alaska Dept. of Fish & Game press release:

Removing wolves is one part of ADF&G's efforts to restore and increase selected moose and caribou populations which provide food for Alaskan families.

Perhaps the Left should advocate opening several Super Wal*Marts in Alaska so that these families can get their meat supplies and allow the wolves to kill as many moose and caribou as they can. But doesn't the Left love those poor moose and caribou too?

Poker politics

Play your position is a poker player's mantra. Knowing when to fold 'em or hold 'em with regards to table position is the basic strategy of the game.

Looks to be the same in politics, too.

The GOP and McCain camp had a positional advantage: its convention was held later than the Democrat's, and Obama had to pick his V.P. sooner. This meant that the Republicans had a little bit of time to figure out a strategy to react to their opponents. They'd know who the speakers were, what was said, and even how the Democratic convention was decorated (Republicans continue to make fun of Obama in accepting the nomination surrounded by mock temple columns).

The McCain camp raised the stakes with Gov. Sarah Palin as running mate after Obama's pick of Sen. Biden. Palin runs the largest state in the Union while Biden sits in a chamber drafting laws and casting votes. Palin fights government corruption (even in her own party) while Biden is a career politician from the northeastern state of Delaware. Palin hunts moose while Biden, well, people don't really care to know his hobbies.

The Palin play is an all-in move for McCain, except he had the advantage of position. If she works out to be a great complement to the senator from Arizona, then he doubles up. Otherwise, he loses all his chips and the campaign will falter.

But right now, it seems the Obama camp will call the all-in. All cards are shown on the table, and we'll find out who wins soon enough...

The Oprah Winfrey no-show

We know that Oprah has already expressed her endorsement of Barack Obama and now after a Drudge Report flash, would "love to have her [Gov. Sarah Palin] on after the campaign is over." She also claims that there has been no discussion within her staff about interviewing Palin on the show.

Yeah, right! Please don't insult your viewers' intelligence, Oprah. I hope you read the comments on your site regarding your statement. You may be losing a chunk of your audience.

Ignore Palin, says the Huffer

Did Arianna Huffington figure out something that the Obama/Biden campaign hadn't? She offers the advice:

And it's why Democrats need to ignore Palin, and keep the focus on reminding voters about the stark contrast between an Obama and a McCain administration. It's tempting to prime the Palin attack pump. But Obama and the Democrats do so at their own peril.

Seems to make sense, but ignore Palin all you want, she is not going to stop campaigning. This is a no-win situation for the Obama camp, unfortunately. The MSM may not be in love with her, but a lot of voters are, and they want to read and see more of her.

In other words, Obama isn't the only celebrity in this race anymore. Gov. Palin is the new star.

Missing the point of Palin's choice for Trig

Dr. Rahul Parikh writes in Salon about Palin's choice to have Trig with Down Syndrome:

And what she has chosen to do is fantastic. The love that she and her family have for Trig was clear in her speech at the Republican National Convention. It was inspirational to see a mother in a position of political power stand up for a child with special needs. But Palin was given a choice whether to have that child, something, if she had her way as a lawmaker, she wouldn't give others. According to legal experts, should Roe v. Wade be overturned, some states could outlaw abortion for Down syndrome or other birth defects, and women wouldn't have Palin's choice.

His article dutifully points out that the financial and physical burden to raise a child with Down Syndrome can be overwhelming. He suggests that not all women share Palin's financial and emotional stature to support such a pregnancy and birth. It's true. But I think the real issue is this:

1. Belief in the sanctity of all human life, starting from conception. You do not decide who enters and leaves this world.

2. Personal responsibility. If you are an adult and you decide to have a child, then it is your responsibility to provide the necessary means to support this new life and understand what you are getting yourself into, including the various complications that could occur during childbirth, the various genetic defects, diseases, etc. If you are unwilling to accept the risks associated with the reward of a child, or are unable to provide a decent environment to raise the child, then you should not have kids.

The fact that the Palin family decided to receive Trig when they knew he had Down Syndrome prenatally doesn't mean the family is perfect. In fact, we know they are far from it when Sarah Palin had to publicly announce her unmarried daughter, Bristol's, teen pregnancy. In a few months Sarah and Todd Palin will be grandparents. All we can say is that the family is grounded in their Christian Faith and the belief of the sanctity of human life, under any circumstance and public scrutiny.

It's the Left that is politicizing this into an election agenda. To most American families, they realize that the Palins, like them, are dealing with such everyday family challenges, except the Palins are doing so under a microscope.

Who's angrier? The Right or the Left?

So here we go with the Left trying to make sense of McCain/Palin. Paul Krugman of the New York Times theorizes that the Republicans are under the spell of the "angry right." Obviously he didn't see the "passionate" protesters outside (and occasionally inside) the Xcel Energy Center. And who can forget what happened after Bush's re-election in 2004? Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS) actually has an entry in Wikipedia and the term has been used many times in major print and online publications.

The Right is not angry. There were more warm smiles during the convention among the speakers and audience than unfriendly stares. What Mr. Krugman is trying to understand is, Why are you so happy with the old man and small-town mayor? Why can't you support the eloquent, well-spoken rock star who can summon tens of thousands just to hear him, here and abroad?

No, the Right is not angry. The Right is energized because now they realize that by choosing Gov. Sarah Palin, McCain is serious about fighting for the conservative ideology shared by millions of Americans.

And people like Mr. Krugman, who once thought Obama had a smooth sailing into the White House, are now afraid of a tough fight ahead.

Convention afterthoughts

Congratulations to the Republican Party for running a smooth operation amidst the disruption caused by Hurricane Gustav and media frenzy over Sarah Palin.

For the past few days, I saw unity. Former heavy-hitting candidates came out to support their former competitor. Thompson, Romney, Giuliani, Huckabee, Brownback, and even a former Democractic V.P. nominee, Sen. Lieberman. All of them expounded McCain's heroic background and solid character. There was no doubt in their minds that McCain would be a great leader for our nation in a world where evil exists. The bottom line: We know what McCain would do when faced with adversity -- he's shown the world with his experience and deeds as a POW of five years in North Vietnam.

I also saw optimism. The speakers and audience agreed that the glass is always half-full. Words like victory, prosperity, and freedom were used frequently. Speeches were given with humor and smiles. How uplifting! Compare that with the gloom and doom speeches from the Democratic Convention. I think Americans, deep down in their hearts, are optimists. It's engrained within us, but some may not know it because of the distractions seen and heard.

And I saw perseverance. That's how McCain ran his campaign. Earlier in the primaries, nobody thought he'd make it this far. But here he is accepting the nomination, waving and giving thumbs-ups, unable to raise his arms above the shoulders because of injuries sustained as a POW. The Maverick and his running mate won't give up on their principles in this race. They know the supporters expect them to never quit.

God bless McCain and Palin, and God bless America!

McCain's acceptance

John McCain accepts the GOP's nomination for the president of the United States. What's with those Code Pink idiots?

...and off to Wisconsin soon after! Only two months left before the general election.

Obama finally talks to O'Reilly, attempts to steal GOP thunder

FOX News' "The O'Reilly Factor" finally gets a chance to interview Obama. It will air at 8 p.m. ET tonight. According to the program, the senator concedes that the troop surge in Iraq succeeded.

Obama was invited to the program in early 2007. Why grant the interview now?

After Palin's show-stopping speech last night, the Obama/Biden campaign is panicking. Palin totally ripped the Dem ticket apart. The media is in a feeding frenzy. Nobody's paying attention to The One, and that's not a good sign. Liberals are scared... Can't blame them, their own leftist media CBS even released a poll with McCain and Obama dead even at 42%!

The Obama campaign finally talked The One into being challenged on FOX News. It's all about media coverage and generating buzz. His campaign simply cannot sit idle while newspapers, blogs, and TV shows continue to run stories about Palin. Not to mention showering some rain onto McCain's parade tonight as he delivers his acceptance speech.

Detroit is free at last

Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, son of Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-MI), pleaded guilty and will resign and pay a hefty fine.

This is the mayor that Obama calls "a friend and a colleague." Now let's see who else is a (in)famous Obama friend:

• Unrepentant terrorist Williams Ayers
• Corrupt businessman Tony Rezko
• Racist Rev. Michael Pfleger
• ...and many more

Change we can believe in? We cannot choose our parents, but we can certainly choose our friends. Looks like Obama didn't care much about who he hung out with.

Palin finished speech without teleprompter

There's a report that Palin finished her speech without the teleprompter as it continued scrolling during applause breaks... Apparently Rudy had to wing his speech as well.

Very impressive.

Huckabee hit a home run, too

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee ran a respectable campaign with almost nothing. His speech praised Obama's historic nomination, took a jab at the elite media, and shared a very touching story about freedom.

Hmmm, how about a Palin/Huckabee ticket in 2012?

There's nothing special about Palin

That's right. Look at her. Compare her to Hillary. Which looks like the neighborly mother who you'd run into in the local grocery store with kids in tow?

There's nothing special about Sarah Palin. She played high school basketball, won the Miss Wasilla beauty pageant and was runner-up for Miss Alaska, married her high school sweetheart (who's really into racing snowmobiles), goes to church regularly, has five children (one of whom with Down Syndrome), and one of her daughters is 17 and 5-month pregnant.

Sounds like an ordinary American family.

And that has the Democrats worried because Palin is able to connect to their voters in states like Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, and W. Virginia who live the everyday struggles of family and work. Palin has painted the Obama/Biden ticket as out of touch and elitist: bigger government, higher taxes, weakened national security. She also took a jab at the liberal media.

If nothing Palin has energized the conservatives who weren't sure about McCain. It was a risky choice, but the gamble could pay off.

Noonan's boo-boo?

I have great respect for Peggy Noonan and her writing style. I've enjoyed her books about Ronald Reagan and love to read her WSJ columns. But earlier Wednesday night a recording between her and GOP consultant Mike Murphy was leaked onto the Net with some, uh, anti-Palin remarks.

Now she's offered an explanation and clarification of the incident.

Palin was born for this

What a speech. Barely a week since Gov. Palin leaped into the media spotlight when McCain announced her as running mate, she has shown the American people that she was born for this. The MSM (mainstream media) has been attacking her -- even her 17-year-old pregnant daughter -- relentlessly, and I'm just amazed at how composed she was in delivering her monumental speech. Did she play defense? Yes, by going on the offense. She sliced and diced Obama, and all the time wearing an infectious hockey-mom smile. Not many people can do that, it's a rare gift.

Some of the best lines?

• What's the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick.
• Obama "has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform -- not even in the state senate."
• "...there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers," but John McCain and others "use their careers to promote change."

Palin is indeed a rising star in the GOP. Imagine McCain/Palin winning and in 2012 it is Palin vs. Hillary.

Oh yes, and you thought this year's election was going to be the most memorable?

Tonight's lineup

What a night it will be! After Thompson and Lieberman yesterday, we're going to hear from Romney, Giuliani, and Huckabee tonight. All of them formerly competed with McCain.

The speech I'm really looking forward to (besides Gov. Palin's) is from Gov. Huckabee. During the primaries, his campaign had the least cash but most buzz (Chuck Norris endorsed him!) and survived the longest -- in the end it was between him and McCain. To me he seems a down-to-earth gentleman, and I've always enjoyed watching him during the primary debates.

A minority that's right

This year's presidential race proved to be one of the most dynamic and exciting in U.S. history. Since George Bush and Dick Cheney took office in January 2000 and again in 2004, the country has lived through vote recounts, terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina, toppling Saddam Hussein's regime, and living through rising oil prices, a mortgage crisis, and the twists and turns of the 2008 presidential campaign.

Last week Barack Obama and Joe Biden formally accepted the Democrat Party's nomination. This week in the wake of Hurricane Gustav, the Republian Party gathers in St. Paul, Minnesota to nominate John McCain and Sarah Palin.

I watched the televised speeches of Fred Thompson and Joe Lieberman last night. As the cameras panned to the audience on a few occasions, I couldn't help but notice the absence of Asians. I wished I was there, waving signs and cheering when Thompson hailed McCain's character. I wished I was there on the floor of the Xcel Energy Center, admiring Sen. Lieberman's courage in breaking rank with his Democrat colleagues.

So where are you guys? Asian conservatives, let's unite, be proactive, be heard, and help move this great country in the right direction.