Charles Koch calls for an end to 'corporate welfare'

The Koch conspiracy theorists are having a field day this weekend, as the bi-annual confab of Koch brothers donors got underway on Saturday. 

In addition to about 450 contributores, no less than 5 GOP presidential candidates will make an appearance through Sunday.Saturday featured "auditions" by two prominent White House hopefuls Scott Walker and Carly Fiorina. Jeb Bush will address the gathering today.

In his opening remarks, Charles Koch called for an end to "corporate welfare," specifically targetiing the big banks.

Wall Street Journal:

The press-shy 79-year-old chief executive of Koch Industries took the nation’s biggest banks to task for accepting “massive bailouts” and cheap loans from the Federal Reserve in return for the federal government wielding increased influence over how they run their businesses.

The comments came at a cocktail reception kicking off the latest gathering of wealthy conservatives assembled by Mr. Koch and his brother David. In brief remarks welcoming donors to the event at the St. Regis Monarch Beach resort, Charles Koch challenged the assembled business leaders to encourage other corporate chieftains to “start opposing rather than promoting corporate welfare.” 

[...]

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, one of the Republican White House contenders invited to appear, presented himself as the only candidate in the GOP field with a record of both fighting for conservative principles and winning those battles. He questioned why Republican majorities in Congress couldn’t repeal the 2010 health law or the Dodd-Frank financial-market reforms, a not-so-veiled shot at the senators in the race. 

But on other occasions, Mr. Walker sidestepped opportunities to take direct shots at two top rivals, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and real-estate developer Donald Trump.“You’re not going to hear me belittle any other Republicans,” he said, before restating his criticism of Mr. Trump for questioning the war record of Arizona Sen. John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee who spent more than five years in a Vietnamese prison camp.l 

Former Hewlett-Packard Chief Executive Carly Fiorina, the other 2016 contender to appear at the event Saturday, was much more assertive in her critique of Mr. Bush, questioning whether the son and brother of former presidents is the best candidate in the field to reform Washington. “Why do you think you’re the Bush who can change that?” she said, when asked what question she would pose to the former Florida governor, who will make an appearance on Sunday. 

The big banks give generously to both parties, in order to ensure they can keep their perks and advantages. But change is in the wind. The Republican who emerges as the nominee will almost certainly souind a more populist note when it comes to Wall Street and the big banks. Market friendly reforms could become an issue in the campaign as Democrats will seek to demonize Wall Street (while grasping for as much campaign cash as they can"). 

But Fiorina highlights the big question that should concern GOP primary voters; how can Jeb Bush be a credible candidate for "change"? He may end up raising more money than anyone else, but his policies reek of the Washington establishment and, in many cases, are in direct opposition to what the conservative mainstream believes. Right now, his poll numbers reflect his name recognition. But it should be interesting to see where he stands after the first debate when every other candidate attacks him for some of his more problematic proposals.

Via: American Thinker

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[VIDEO] Marco Rubio Has a New Answer for His Inexperience Problem

Has Marco Rubio hit on a way to turn two political minuses into a plus? 

The 44-year-old first-term senator is competing for the Republican presidential nomination against a crowded field that includes eight governors or former governors and several more experienced lawmakers. He has also been dogged by questions about his acumen when it comes to his personal finances. In recent days he has come up with an argument that seemingly attempts to handle both potential problems.

At a forum last weekend in Ames, Iowa, Republican pollster Frank Luntz told Rubio that "the single biggest knock on you" is that "you haven't been around long enough." In response, the son of Cuban immigrants from humble beginnings cleverly morphed job "experience" into life "experience," arguing that his makes him the most qualified to understand issues facing ordinary Americans.

"I don't think anybody running for president understands what life is like for people today more than I do," Rubio said, adding that his parents lived "paycheck to paycheck" and that he had student loans until four years ago. His youth and his financial struggles have given him more of kind of experience a president needs, he argued.

"No one running has more experience on the issues we face right now, today, in the 21st century, with a world that's more dangerous than ever and an economy that's changing faster than we've ever seen since the industrial revolution."

The crowd applauded.

Thursday, in another interview, Rubio trotted out a different version of the same line.

"The world is changing, and no one who is running for president has more experience than I do on the issues confronting our country right now," the freshman Florida senator told Fox News in an interview Thursday.

Fox host Bret Baier didn't seem convinced. Why, he asked, is a governor not better positioned for the White House than he is?

Rubio responded that the presidency is a "unique office" that's "not like being a senator, but it's not like being a governor, either," saying that presidents face national security challenges but that they "don't create jobs."

Via: Bloomberg Politics

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BOBBY JINDAL CALLS FOR LOUISIANA NATIONAL GUARD TO ARM PERSONNEL TO PROTECT MILITARY FACILITIES

Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana issued an executive order Friday that authorized the Adjutant General of the state’s National Guard to both identify and arm guardsmen in order to protect those military facilities, a press release from the governor’s office announced.

Jindal also issued an executive order that calls for the flags at all Louisiana buildings to be flown at half-staff until July 24 in honor of the victims of the Chattanooga, Tennessee, terrorist attacks.

Via: Breitbart

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Battenfeld: Deval Patrick was flying high on taxpayers’ dime

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and his wife put taxpayers on the hook for nearly $17,000 in airfare on a single trade mission to Israel, part of an often lavish worldwide tour funded by a tucked-away trust the Patrick administration never revealed to the public, 
new records obtained by the Herald reveal.

State records tracking the trade mission costs also showed Deval and Diane Patrick took a three-day trip to Colombia in 2013 on the taxpayer dime, ringing up a $8,342 bill for flights that far exceeded what other state officials paid.

Patrick’s airfare on other overseas junkets sometimes tripled that of his traveling contingent, such as a round-trip flight to Ireland reported in state records as costing $5,751. The former governor also racked up a $2,400 tab for a three-day stay at the five-star Merrion Hotel, which bills itself as the most “luxurious” hotel in the city, according to records.

Patrick saved the most expensive flight bill for his last trade mission — $12,356 for just a five-day trade mission to France, Denmark and England, according to records compiled by the state’s Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, which oversaw the travel trust fund.

The records also list a one-way flight from Hong Kong to Singapore under Patrick’s name costing a hefty $1,640.

One of Patrick’s traveling companions on several trips was Richard Davey, former Department of Transportation chief and current CEO of the Boston 2024 Olympic bid.

Records show Davey’s airfare totaled $6,962 on a 2013 trip to Asia, while his hotel tab in Singapore and Hong Kong came to $2,829.

The former governor’s 10 international trade missions have come under new scrutiny by government watchdogs and lawmakers since the Herald first reported that the Patrick administration funneled $27 million from state quasi-public government agencies into trust funds kept separate from budgetary constraints and hidden from public scrutiny.

The Herald first reported that one of the trusts, funded by Massport and the Mass Tech Collaborative, paid for the $1.4 million trade mission costs from 2009 to 2014.

A former Patrick administration aide, Alec Loftus, said the trips were well worth the cost, citing new international flights that the former governor pushed for in the countries he visited.

“Massachusetts greatly benefitted from the trade missions,” Loftus said, adding that one report showed the state got an “over 1,000 times return-on-investment in economic activity.”

The travel expenditures provided to the Herald under a public records request reflect a “tracking system” kept by the trust and do not show receipts or invoices for flights or hotels. Patrick aides say the governor flew business class and not 
first class.

Patrick was accompanied on trade missions by advance staff and in several cases press aides, including former Department of Transportation flack Cyndi Roy Gonzalez. The records kept by the Patrick administration were not detailed for several trade missions and didn’t list what the governor or other state officials were charged. Sometimes the hotel and flight costs are bundled together.

The $21,141 hotel bill for the Colombia trip was simply charged to a “state credit card,” according to records.

But it’s clear that the former governor and his aides traveled in style. In Tel Aviv, Patrick bedded down at the InterContinental and was charged $1,005, while the room for Richard Elam, the former executive director of the international trade office, cost $1,550, according to 
records.

Even a quick trip across the border to Toronto and Montreal ended up with steep traveling costs, with round trip flights for some in Patrick’s traveling party costing nearly $2,500 each. Elam was charged $1,133 for a one-way trip from Montreal to Boston, according to records.

Via: Boston Herald

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Massachusetts revenue, welfare, transportation, environmental agencies hit by early retirements

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Revenue, tasked with collecting state taxes, is losing 289 employees, or 15 percent of its total workforce, as part of a state budget-saving measure.

Auditors and tax examiners are among those taking an early retirement incentive.

The Department of Revenue plans to publish information later this week on how it will deal with the changes.

Gov. Charlie Baker proposed, and the Legislature approved, an early retirement incentive that was meant to save the state money by trimming the state workforce. Now that those workers have retired, effective June 30, 2,478 public employees have left state service, according to Massachusetts Comptroller Thomas Shack.

As expected, some agencies were harder hit than others – including the Department of Revenue, the Department of Transportation, the department that oversees welfare, the Department of Environmental Protection and several Health and Human Service agencies. Some of these jobs could be backfilled, as the Baker administration has the authority to use up to 20 percent of the savings to hire new people into the vacant positions.

Brendan Moss, a spokesman for the Executive Office of Administration and Finance, said state government will be able to deal with the losses. "We are continuing to work closely with all state agencies affected to ensure it will have minimal impact on state services," Moss said.

Baker pointed out that he had expected 4,500 people to retire. "We had planned for a larger number of people to leave state service than actually did, and I actually feel at this point that we're in reasonably good shape," Baker said Monday.

Via: Mass Live

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GOP gov.: "Time to move on" from same-sex marriage

Possible Republican presidential candidate and Ohio Gov. John Kasich believes it's "time to move on" from the same-sex marriage issue in the wake of the Supreme Court's landmark ruling.

"I do believe in traditional marriage and the court has ruled and it's time to move on," Kasich said on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday, adding that there's "so many other things now that we have to focus on."

Kasich, who has not yet officially announced a bid for the White House in 2016, believes the country needs to wait and see "how this evolves."

"I think everybody needs to take a deep breath to see how this evolves," the Ohio governor, who was the named defendant in the original lawsuit brought by Jim Obergefell over same-sex marriage, said. "But I know this. Religious institutions, religious entities - you know, like the Catholic church - they need to be honored as well. I think there's an ability to strike a balance."

But while the Republican governor has conceded that "it's the law of the land and we'll abide by it," some in the conservative wing have expressed their willingness to take on the same-sex marriage fight over the long term.

Russell Moore of the Southern Baptist Convention told CBS' "Face the Nation" that people of faith "are not going to simply surrender" their traditional marriage views because of the Supreme Court ruling.

"We didn't make up our views on marriage and sexuality, and we can't unmake them," Moore said Sunday. "We understand that in the short term, things are very stacked against us here, but we ought to have the pluralistic American environment where we can agree to disagree."

Instead, Moore added, "we're going to have to take a page from the pro-life movement and see this as a long-term strategy."

"I don't think that an infinitely elastic view of marriage is sustainable," the evangelical leader said. "I think we have to be the people who keep the light lit to the old ways when it comes to marriage and family and that's going to be a generation-long skirmish."

Via: CBS News

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CALIFORNIA: Are Republicans on Right Path to Take Back Governor’s Office in 2018?

Republicans will have a serious, competitive candidate for governor in 2018, Republican consultant Kevin Spillane told a conference sponsored by the Civil Justice Association of California last week. Spillane was a member of a panel that discussed California’s Changing Electorate.

Spillane’s certainty that Republicans will field a top candidate was summed up in one name – and that was not the name of any prospective candidate. The consultant said that wealthy Republican donor Charles Munger will make an effort to see that a strong Republican candidate is in the field.

Munger’s name has been floated in political circles from time to time as a possible candidate for high office but Munger has dismissed the notion.

When pressed which Republican might be that competitive candidate, Spillane mentioned first San Diego mayor Kevin Faulconer. He also suggested that Fresno mayor Ashley Swearengin and former Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner could fit the role.

The distant gubernatorial race was also evident in CJAC’s choice of the luncheon keynote speaker. Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom has announced his intention to run for the office. Newsom agreed that the discussion about the 2018 governor’s race has already gone mainstream even before the 2016 presidential election has been contested.

Other notes from the panel discussion:

Democratic Assembly consultant and former labor staffer Charu Khopkar said that labor was concerned with the Top-Two primary proposal because organized labor would have to spend much more money engaging in the Top-Two contests picking favorites among same party candidates. He admitted that the prediction has come true.

Via: California Political Review

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CAUGHT ON TAPE: Dem Governor Says Lobbying For CAP Was His ‘Dream Job’

Former Democratic Ohio governor and former congressman Ted Strickland revealed that being a high-paid liberal lobbyist was his “dream job.”

“I want to tell you, I had a job last year that was a dream job, paid me more money than I’ve ever made in my life,” Strickland said Sunday during a campaign stop at Vern Riffe Vocational School in Piketon, Ohio.

Strickland, who is running for Senate in 2016, was referring to his work as the president of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, the lobbying arm of John Podesta’s left-wing think tank the Center for American Progress. The group spent $40,000 on lobbying in 2014.

Via: The Daily Caller

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Survey: $15 Minimum Wage Could Shutter 1 in 5 NY Fast Food Joints

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BY: Bill McMorris  
June 5, 2015 3:20 pm

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D.) promised minimum wage hikes for fast food New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D.) promised minimum wage hikes for fast food restaurants could shut down one out of every five chain restaurants in the state, according to a new survey.

The Employment Policies Institute, a free market think tank and critic of minimum wage hikes, surveyed nearly 1,000 self-described fast food entrepreneurs about how they would respond to statewide, industry-specific wage hikes. More than 20 percent of respondents said they were “very likely” to go out of business if the state raises the minimum wage for fast food joints to $15, a 70 percent increase from the current $8.75 statewide minimum wage.

Such a hike could spur higher costs for customers and reduced employment opportunities and hours for workers. Business owners responded overwhelmingly that such policies would hurt the very workers that Cuomo and activists claim to want to help.

Only 5 percent of respondents said they were “unlikely” to raise prices to cope with a $15 wage; 70 percent said they were very likely. In order to retain customers and remain competitive, a majority of the owners said they would be forced to cut employee hours or curb hiring.

“Low single-digit profit margins, which are typical for the fast food industry, explain why business owners in the state report considering a series of off-setting measures to adapt to a $15 minimum wage,” the report says.

Cuomo is seeking to increase wages on the fast food industry through a three-member board that is debating a potential $15 wage at chain restaurants. EPI analyst and report author Michael Saltsman attended Friday’s hearing, criticizing both Cuomo’s methods and also the policy.

“Our survey shows that a dramatic minimum wage hike would have the same negative effect in New York that it’s having on the west coast. Employers and employees should hope the wage board can tune out the noise and take a careful look at the consequences,” Saltsman said. “An unelected board hearing where proponents shout down the other side—is this what democracy looks like?”

Via: WFB

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Meet Martin O'Malley

The RNC would like to introduce Martin O’Malley, the tax-hiking, anti-energy production Governor who's best known for his disastrous state ObamaCare exchange and his legacy on crime and jails in the city of Baltimore that have come under fire. A prolific tax raiser, O’Malley increased taxes 40 times on Maryland families, including an absurd “flush tax” on household water and sewage usage. With a record like that, it’s no wonder why even voters in the blue state of Maryland rejected his legacy and elected a Republican last year.  


Via: RNC.com

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TX Routs CA in Education Test Scores

Every time I write or speak on a radio show favorably about Texas compared with California, I get harsh online comments, emails and phone calls. The usual theme isn’t just that California is a nicer place to live. It’s that Texas is a hellhole compared with just about anywhere — a place that hates unions, poor people, nonwhites and more, and has a culture that celebrates ignorance.

This is supposedly reflected in the priorities of Gov. Rick Perry. A phone message I got expressed disbelief that I praised Texas public schools and called them broadly better than California’s. A male voice said something along the lines of … “Have you seen how little they pay for K-12? It’s obscene.”

That is not a good argument. In fact, it’s another argument for Texas.

It’s time to bring in Chuck DeVore, Orange County assembly member turned Austin think tanker. DeVore suggests the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is a good baseline to compare states. It measures fourth- and eighth-graders in math, reading and science and breaks down the results by the performance of white, Latino and African-American students.

So guess what happened in an analysis of the NAEP results for the eight biggest states? According to what Chuck wrote last year for the San Francisco Chronicle, it’s a rout.

“Looking at the most recent NAEP testing data for fourth and eighth graders in math, reading and science as well as looking at race and ethnicity and considering the eight biggest states, there are 24 categories to measure (e.g., eighth-grade science results for African American students, etc.). The 2009 results showed Texas as having the strongest scores in 11 of 24 categories while California was last in 15 of 24 categories. Further, Texas showed no areas of weakness compared to the national average.”

Via: California Political Review

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Why Jan Brewer Vetoed Arizona's 'Anti-Gay' Bill

Just like the Democrats in 1984, today's Republicans are shifting power toward party leaders and away from grassroots activists. It didn't work then, and it won't work now. 

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer’s veto Wednesday night of a law allowing businesses to discriminate against gays and lesbians reveals something important about the divide inside today’s GOP. It’s not only ideological; it’s also vertical.

Brewer faced pressure to sign the bill from below: from the local legislators and activists who passed it. But she ultimately succumbed to pressure from above: from national Republican leaders and their corporate allies, who fear looking complicit with homophobia at a time when homophobia is rapidly becoming a political and economic loser.

Relat

There’s been a lot of this kind of vertical wrangling in recent months. In Congress, House Majority Leader John Boehner has tried to push rank-and-file Republican members of congress to unconditionally raise the debt ceiling and support a path to legalization for illegal immigrants. Republican bigwigs have tried to prevent local Tea Partiers from mounting primary challenges that undermine the GOP’s chances of taking the senate. The Republican National Committee has published an “autopsy” of the 2012 presidential race that proposes giving the national party more control of the 2016 primary calendar and debate schedule so as to avoid another lengthy, nasty nomination fight that leaves the eventual nominee drained of cash and far out on an ideological limb.

Via: The Atlantic

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Wendy Davis Will Be Charitable With Your Tax Dollars

The problem with liberals is they always want to be charitable with your money and never with their own.

Wendy Davis has released her tax records. Turns out she’s only managed to fund about 2.7 abortions over the last three years. She’d rather use the power of the state to make you fund the abortions.

In all seriousness,

Davis’ adjusted gross income rose from $130,931 in 2010 to $235,428 in 2011 and $284,183 last year. She made roughly $12,000 to $14,000 a year from capital gains, mostly from the sale of mutual funds.

In 2010, Davis’ combined legal work brought in $126,043, then rose to $223,263 a year later before hitting $275,271 in 2012, according to figures filed under tax schedules for business and partnership income.

But then consider what she has given personally to charity.

Davis has made relatively modest contributions to charity. In 2010 she reported giving $2,700. She gave $515 in 2011 and $950 in 2012, the tax returns show.

This is a woman who refuses to provide the press a full list of her law firm’s “public-sector clients” as more and more evidence crops up she’s used her position in the state legislature to steer the public-sector to her office door. In fact, as the Texas Tribune notes, her legal work has gone from $126,043 to $275,271 over a three-year period. A good bit of that work could be from using her position in the legislature, which would give it the appearance of all sorts of conflicts of interest and kickbacks. Again, though, she refuses to provide a full list of public-sector clients. What’s she hiding?

What she is not hiding is that she is not a charity.

Via: Red State

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The Persecution of Wisconsin Conservatives

Conservative political entities who supported Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker are beingsubjected to a secret investigation. Special Prosecutor Francis Schmitz has issued a series of subpoenas to 29 conservative groups, demanding that they submit all documentation related to the recall campaigns mounted by unions and their supporters against Walker in 2011 and 2012. The investigation is being conducted under the auspices of the state’s John Doe law, which forbids the targets of subpoenas from revealing the contents of those subpoenas to anyone other than theirlawyers.

The effort reeks of political intimidation. According to the Wall Street Journal, the two subpoenas they’ve reviewed demand “all memoranda, email . . . correspondence, and communications” within the targets of the subpoenas themselves, and between those targets and conservative groups such as the Friends of Scott Walker and the Republican Party of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Manufacturers &Commerce, Americans for Prosperity-Wisconsin, American Crossroads, the Republican Governors Association, and the League of American Voters.

In a transparent effort to determine an entity’s list of campaign donors, one subpoena demands “all records of income received, including fundraising information and the identity of persons contributing to the corporation.”

Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm John Doe probe

The investigation originated in the office of Milwaukee County Assistant DistrictAttorney Bruce Landgraf. Landgraf works for Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, a Democrat. This latest John Doe investigation is the second one being conducted against Walker in only three-and-a-half years, and it was initiated just days before Democrat Mary Burke, a member of the Madison School Board, announced her intention to run for governor.

Via: Canada Free Press

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Charlie Crist Flip Flops…Yet Again

In An Interview Monday With MSNBC’s Ed Schultz, Republican-Turned-Independent-Turned-Democrat Charlie Crist Said He Would Raise Taxes As Governor. SCHULTZ: “What would you do with Florida’s finances, and what would you expect, would you expect more out of the wealthiest residents? CRIST: Well I think we all have to expect more out of each other. I don’t like to raise taxes. I don’t know that anybody really enjoys the idea of doing that. I did it as Governor, though. SCHULTZ: Would you do it again? CRIST: If necessary, I would.” (MSNBC’s “The Ed Show,” 11/18/13)

• Crist Noted That He’d Raised Taxes During His Term As Governor. CRIST: “I don’t like to raise taxes. I don’t know that anybody really enjoys the idea of doing that. I did it as Governor, though.” ( MSNBC’s “The Ed Show,” 11/18/13)

WHEN HE STILL CALLED HIMSELF A REPUBLICAN, CRIST INSISTED THAT HE HADN’T RAISED TAXES AS GOVERNOR, JUST “FEES”

In A Primary Debate During His 2010 Senate Race, Crist Vehemently Denied Having Raised Taxes In Florida’s 2009 Budget. WALLACE: “Let me ask you, Governor Crist, about your record, though. When you were running for governor four years ago, you made a flat, George H. W. Bush pledge: you will not raise taxes as long as you’re governor. Last year you signed a $66 billion state budget that had a $2.2 billion increase in taxes, new taxes and fees. Didn’t you break your promise to Florida voters? CRIST: No, I don’t think I did, and I’ll tell you why. The only part of it that was a tax — and it’s loosely defined as a tax — was on cigarettes. And I would argue that that’s a user fee. If you don’t use them, you don’t pay it.” (Fox News Sunday Florida Primary Debate, 3/28/10)

• Crist: “The Only Part Of It That Was A Tax — And It’s Loosely Defined As A Tax — Was On Cigarettes. And I Would Argue That That’s A User Fee. If You Don’t Use Them, You Don’t Pay It.” (Fox News Sunday Florida Primary Debate, 3/28/10)

When Asked About The Higher Fees He Had Approved On Drivers’ Licenses, Motor Vehicle Registration And Motor Vehicle Tags, Crist Again Insisted They Were Fee Increases, Not Tax Increases. WALLACE: “I’m going to get to Mr. Rubio in a minute. But you also signed into law higher fees on drivers’ licenses and on motor vehicle registration, motor vehicle tags. You said these aren’t broad-based taxes. Governor, 16 million people are drivers in Florida and there are 18 million motor vehicles. CRIST: No, I understand that. I understand that, Chris. WALLACE: That’s a pretty broad-based tax, isn’t it? CRIST: Well, I don’t think it’s a tax. It’s a fee. If you don’t drive, you don’t pay it, if you look at it by its pure common- sense definition.” ( Fox News Sunday Florida Primary Debate, 3/28/10)

Via: GOP.com

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Rep. Kinzinger: Obamacare 'Failing Much Faster than Expected'

Rep. Adam Kinzinger said Sunday the failure of the Obamacare website to function is symptomatic of a larger problem with the new healthcare system that will cost consumers more money and rob them of their current health plan.

"This thing is failing, but this is failing much faster than they expected," the freshman Republican from President Barack Obama's home state of Illinois told ABC's "This Week" program.

The website will eventually be fixed, Kinzinger said, but the bigger issue is that deductibles will go up by thousands of dollars.

"I'm not celebrating this because this hurts real Americans, but from a political perspective, we came out of a government shutdown where I think undoubtedly Republicans took the brunt of the hit and we had an immensely, amazingly quick change of fortunes," Kinzinger said.

Former Vermont Governor and Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean also appeared on the program, and described the failings of the website as an initial setback that will be forgotten once the program is in place for all Americans. 

"I think the greatest fear of the Republican Party is that this works, and I think it will work," Dean said.

But Kinzinger responded that one of the few issues Republicans are united on is that Obamacare is a flawed system. 

"We've been saying from the beginning this plan doesn't work," Kinzinger said. 

"It's beyond the website, and when the website gets fixed, I think Americans are going to be shocked to see that there is still a problem."


Via: Newsmax

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Mayor with Ties to Fla. Gov. Guilty of Corruption

A south Florida mayor with close ties to Governor Rick Scott haspleaded guilty to public corruption for participating in a scheme involving the theft of federal grants earmarked for his tiny working class city.

The plot involves a small-town mayor, Manuel Maroño, with big-time political ties to prominent Republicans. In fact, Maroño was a rising star in the party and played a key role in Scott’s transition team in 2011. The disgraced politician even launched a “business development” firm called 7 Strategies after the governor’s 7-step plan to create 700,000 jobs in 7 years.

But everything went downhill in early August when the feds indicted Maroño and a longtime mayor pal of a neighboring city for operating a brazen scheme to steal federal grants that were supposed to help their respective towns. The mayors teamed up with two prominent lobbyists, one of whom worked for U.S. Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart when the Republican lawmaker was a state legislator.

Large sums of cash were exchanged in envelopes and hidden in notebooks during covert meetings in cars and at local eateries, according to federal prosecutors, who claimed in separate complaints that the lobbyists went around recruiting corrupt politicians to participate in the scheme. In all, tens of thousands of dollars were exchanged with hefty cash bonuses for making introductions to other public officials willing to participate in the kickback and bribery operation.

Both mayors abused their power to enact measures to help fake companies get federal grants made available only upon the official request of local municipalities, authorities say. Maroño collaborated with both lobbyists and pocketed more than $40,000 in bribes, according to his federal complaint. The money was supposed to help the 13,000 constituents in his working-class town of Sweetwater, which barely spans a square mile.

Upon getting indicted Maroño paraded around town confidently guaranteeing that his innocence would quickly vindicate him. At his side was his mother, a Sweetwater councilwoman, who led a media campaign professing her son’s innocence. This week, however, the former mayor marched into a federal court in Miami and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced in January and faces five years in prison.

Via: Judicial Watch

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