Obama Makes GQ's 'Least Influential People of 2013' List: 'A Very Eloquent Hat Stand'

The news got worse for Barack Obama Sunday: for the second time in three years he made GQ's "Least Influential List."

This time the magazine referred to him as "a very eloquent hat stand":

He can blame Republicans in Congress all he likes and get away with it because congressional Republicans are the worst. But the fact remains that I have spent the majority of this man's presidency watching bad things happen, then hearing a thoughtful speech about how we gotta make sure the bad things never happen again, and then watching as nothing gets done. Next time there's an election, I want Nate Silver to analyze the data and tell me who to vote for so that I don't end up casting my ballot for a very eloquent hat stand.

Ouch!

Back in 2011, GQ had this to say about the President when he was the 25th entrant:

Okay, so we're cheating a bit with this one. He did order the raid that wiped Osama bin Laden off the face of the earth. But then he used that surplus of political capital to let everyone in Washington stick a boot in his ass. This is a man who should be the most transformational figure of the century. Hell, he promised to be that. Instead he wields all the power of a substitute teacher at night school.

Via: Newsbusters

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Kristol Dismisses Filibuster ‘Dysfunction’: Real Problem is Why Senate Won’t Take Up House Bills

On This Week With George Stephanopoulos Sunday morning, Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol criticized Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-NV) so-called “nuclear option”— that eliminated the non-talking filibuster to prevent GOP senators from blocking judicial nominations—arguing that Reid had created the dysfunction he just changed the rules to prevent.

“I think we’re being too nice here,” Kristol said, referring to the “both sides are to blame” tenor of the conversation. “Harry Reid agreed with Mitch McConnell (R-KY) that this would not happen in this session. They actually negotiated something at the beginning of the session. So, he’s simply breaking his word because Republicans were not confirming every appellate court judge as quickly as the administration liked, and were holding up some executive branch appointees longer—”

“A lot of them,” Cokie Roberts corrected.

RELATED: MSNBC’s Kornacki on Hardball: GOP ‘Secretly Relieved’ Reid Went with Nuclear Option

“168 filibusters in the history of the country,” Donna Brazile said, “82 under President Obama.”

“A lot of those filibusters were because Harry Reid introduced the bill, filled the tree, as they say, with amendments, and invoked cloture, and it’s called a quote ‘filibuster,’” Kristol said. “Reid’s behavior as majority leader has been pretty amazing. The House routinely passes legislation the Senate simply doesn’t take up. It’s fine: bring it to the floor. If they want to filibuster, filibuster; if the Democrats have the votes to beat it, beat it. But they don’t even take up stuff that the House passes.”

“But there are more than 200 nominations sitting there not confirmed,” Roberts said. “That is dysfunctional, certainly.”

Watch the full clip below, via ABC News:

Via: Mediaite.com

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Jay Carney: Obama won't sign non-comprehensive immigration bill

White House press secretary Jay Carney made clear Friday that President Obama would not sign an immigration bill unless it was comprehensive, a declaration made days after the president said he was open to a possible piecemeal approach.

"In the end, this has to be comprehensive," Carney told reporters during the daily White House briefing.

“What the president will not sign is piecemeal legislation that only [affects individual provisions],” Obama’s top spokesman added.

House Republicans have said they will not take up the comprehensive immigration bill passed by the Senate in June. Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has said he will only move legislation that has the support of a majority of his caucus and Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., has said he will only move bills piecemeal. GOP leaders pounced on Obama’s most extensive endorsement of the piecemeal approach.

Via: Washington Examiner

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Facebook's Zuckerberg says immigration reform 'biggest civil rights issue of our time'

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg suggested Sunday that U.S. immigration reform is “one of the biggest civil rights issues of our time.”

The 29-year-old billionaire, who has recently taken a more active role in calling for immigration reform, made the comment on ABC’s “This Week.” And he was immediately challenged by the interviewer, who suggested many Americans would likely disagree that providing a path to citizenship for some of the 11 million people living in this country illegally is a civil rights issue.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about that,” Zuckerberg responded. “A lot of them came here because they just want to work. They want to help out their families and they want to contribute.”

Zuckerberg recently founded the group FWD.us with other Silicon Valley leaders “to promote policies to keep the United States and its citizens competitive in a global economy,” according to its website.

His efforts follow the Democrat-controlled Senate earlier this year passing sweeping bipartisan reform legislation backed by President Obama.

Such legislation has stalled in the House, where Republican leaders want a more step-by-step approach to reform that begins with border security.

Via: Fox News Politics

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California lawmakers seek to ban imitation firearms

California lawmakers are pushing to ban the manufacturer or sale of imitation firearms in the state after a Northern California sheriff's deputy shot and killed a 13-year-old boy who was carrying a BB gun last month.

State and local officials announced legislation Friday that would require fake guns such as BB, pellet or airsoft guns to be translucent or brightly colored so they cannot be mistaken for real guns, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported.

"A toy should look like a toy. It should not look like a lethal weapon," the bill's co-sponsor state Sen. Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, said.

Officials introduced the bill one month after Deputy Erick Gelhaus shot and killed Santa Rosa teen Andy Lopez after reportedly mistaking his BB gun for an assault rifle.

On Friday, dozens of protesters marched from Santa Rosa City Hall to the Hall of Justice, chanting slogans and carrying signs urging District Attorney Jill Ravitch to charge Gelhaus with murder, the newspaper reported.

California law already bars imitation firearms like the one Lopez carried from being displayed in public unless the weapon meets color guidelines

Via: Fox News

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Obama Had Senate-Office 'Portrait Session' With Pornographer -

WARNING: Some of the images and language in this story are sexually graphic and disturbing.

(CNSNews.com) -- On June 20, 2007, then-Sen. Barack Obama (D.-Ill.), who was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination at the time, hosted a “portrait session” in his U.S. Senate office where he posed for and with Terry Richardson, a man already well-known, as the flyleaf of a coffee-table collection of his work put it, as the photographer who “took 1970s porn esthetic and made it fashion chic.”

“Who uses his fashion money to fund an X-rated website? Yes, Richardson,” said the flyleaf to the 2004 book Terryworld, published by Taschen Books.

“And who can’t resist getting his clothes off and jumping in front of his own lens? Well, that would be Terry Richardson as well,” said the flyleaf. “Welcome to ‘Terryworld,’ the land restraint forgot. Porn stars, super models, transsexuals, hillbillies, friends, pets and celebrities all do for his lens what they’ll do for no other. And if any of them later wonder why they did it, just blame it on ‘Terryworld,’ where taboos are null and void, and fashion finds sex a perfect fit.”

Via: CNS News

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GOP ESTABLISHMENT DONORS TARGET TEA PARTY'S JUSTIN AMASH IN MICHIGAN

Congressman Justin Amash (R-MI) was endorsed by the conservative Club for Growth, which gives him a 100% lifetime voting scorecard rating, on October 8. However, seven Republican establishment donors who live in his western Michigan district recently endorsed his primary opponent, Brian Ellis, who claims Amash is not a"traditional conservative."

First elected in 2010, Amash has ranked #1 on the fiscally conservative, pro-economic growth Club for Growth scorecards out of 435 members of the House of Representatives in both the 112th and current 113th Congress.

The seven donors (J.C. Huizenga, Mark Bissel, Mike Jandernoa, Mark Murray, John Canepa, Marge Potter, and David Frey) are so angry with Amash's voting record and his support for Ted Cruz's efforts to defund Obamacare they recently sent out a public letterof support for Ellis.

The undated letter, distributed in early November to Republican donors on "Brian Ellis for Congress" stationery, was signed by all seven big donors and criticized Amash on several fronts:

Our current Congressman voted against the final version of the Paul Ryan Budget that would cut $5 trillion in spending - and he was the only Republican from Michigan to do so. He refused to vote in favor of the Keystone Pipeline. He votedagainst a 20% tax cut that would allow small businesses to create and retain jobs here in Michigan. Just this month, he and a small group of like-minded legislators rejected Speaker Boehner's plea to pass legislation requiring Congress and the President to be subject to Obamacare, and put on hold the special new tax on medical equipment. This irresponsible action hurt over 50 great West Michigan businesses and was part of the chaos that led the nation to the edge of default.

Via: Breitbart

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Vermont Confirms Security Breach To Health Care Exchange Website

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Officials overseeing the Vermont Health Connect website confirmed Friday there was a security breach on the system last month in which one user got improper access to another user’s Social Security number and other data.

A report from state to federal officials overseeing the health insurance exchanges set up under the Affordable Care Act said a consumer reported the incident with the Vermont Health Connect website on Oct. 17.

The consumer, whom officials would not identify, reported that he received in the mail — from an unnamed sender — a copy of his own application for insurance under the state exchange.

“On the back of the envelope was hand-written ‘VERMONT HEALTH CONNECT IS NOT A SECURE WEBSITE!’ This was also (written) on the back of the last page of the printed out application,” said the incident report.

The report was prepared by Greg Needle, privacy administrator with Vermont Health Connect, and filed with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The Associated Press obtained it after a request under the state public records law to the Department of Vermont Health Access.

Via: Ecowatch

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[VIDEO] Obama gives rushed speech to tout nuke deal with Iran’s theocracy

President Barack Obama used a seven-minute late-night TV speech to maximize the PR impact of his nuclear deal with Iran’s Islamist theocracy.

Throughout the speech, the president repeatedly swiveled his head as if he were addressing a large audience.

But there were only a few officials in the White House’s formal State Room as he read the speech from two teleprompters positioned to his left and right, according to the pool reporter.

Obama’s deal with Iran is likely to snatch the headlines away from his increasingly unpopular and radioactive Obamacare health network, where broken promises, price hikes and millions of cancelled insurance policies have hammered his ratings below 40 percent in the last two weeks.

Via: The Daily Caller

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Obama promises to keep Israel in Iran loop

President Obama phoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, promising to consult with him on ongoing efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear program.

Obama told Netanyahu that he wanted to begin consultations “immediately” on Iran, after diplomats struck a temporary deal in Geneva to begin placing limits on Iran’s nuclear ambitions in exchange for sanctions relief.

Netanyahu blasted that accord after it was struck, calling it a “horrible mistake.” He added that Israel would not be bound by it.

According to a White House readout of the call, the two “reaffirmed their shared goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.” Obama reiterated that the six-month deal will provide an opportunity to strike a “lasting, peaceful, and comprehensive solution” to Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Even as Israel criticized the deal, Obama told Netanyahu that the U.S. “will remain firm in our commitment to Israel, which has good reason to be skeptical about Iran’s intentions.”

The two agreed to stay in close contact over the next six months as talks progressed.

The new deal places new limits on Iran’s nuclear capabilities by capping its stockpile and halting work on a new reactor at its Arak site, as well as the construction of new centrifuges. The two sides disagree on whether the agreement allows Iran to enrich its uranium, and whether it takes any military action against the country off the table.

In exchange, the U.S. and international partners agreed to temporarily relax economic sanctions on Iran, specifically in the sale of its crude oil, automotive sector, and other parts of the economy.

Via: The Hill

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Black Friday union strikes against Walmart likely to fizzle

The “widespread, massive strikes and protests” targeting Walmart on Black Friday will almost certainly fall flat, says one union watchdog closely monitoring the labor group planning the pickets.

OUR Walmart, a close affiliate of the massive United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), is threatening the big-box chain with crippling strikes and angry crowds during next week’s crucial Black Friday sale unless the company raises worker wages.

The planned strike, along with a series of smaller pickets preceding it, have been heavily hyped in the left-wing media. “We do expect [the protests] to be larger than last year because we have so many more members and so much more community support,” the head of a labor advocacy group told the Huffington Post on Thursday.

The Daily Caller

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Is Barack Mentally Malnourished? A Reasonable Explanation for Obama’s Mind

In fact, a weird, recent phenomenon emerges from the perpetual miasma, confusion and drama composing the life and times of Barack Obama. Many strain at the question—What drives the man? In office he has appeared arrogant and self-satisfied to a degree remarkable even for a US president. Further, he has so often seemed ignorant or obtuse to his surroundings, and of the topics presented to him.

Seemingly he is satisfied by the roar of the crowd as if this were the same thing as excellence. Obama is both the most disdainful of opinion of others, and yet the most dependent upon sheer popularity to prop up his image.

Would it really be so strange if an individual of high office, yet low achievement were driven by small ideas and an incipient laziness - which were somehow obscured by his position? In fact, it seems Barack has an allergy to deep thinking, the work of deep study, and in-depth analysis. This would help explain his apparent ignorance regarding the failed ObamaCare website, and virtually all of his other failures. According to this theory, it is not the times being too difficult which tripped up Barack, but his being too small in confronting the tasks which resulted in his overwhelming failure as commander in chief. Consider the following argument.

Via: Canada Free Press

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U.S. oil production passes imports

The new crude oil production from shale formations like the Bakken in North Dakota are making a huge difference in the U.S. energy profile. In October, for the first time since 1995, more crude oil was produced in the United States than the nation imported. It isn’t energy independence but it’s a big step in that direction.

The surge in domestically produced oil can be tracked to the development of horizontal drilling technologies and hydraulic fracturing. Combined, the two advances in oil-field technology have, for the first time, allowed drillers to effectively tap shale formations that hold crude oil and natural gas.

Because of horizontal drilling and fracking, North Dakota has been setting oil production records. The state has passed sister states in oil production, and only Texas produces more crude oil than North Dakota.

Experts believe that the U.S. will surpass Russia and Saudi Arabia as the world’s top oil producer by 2015. North Dakota’s production will be a big part of that changed status.

Of course, North Dakotans have been feeling the rising volumes of crude oil production. The oil activity in western North Dakota has been intense, putting extreme demands on public and private services, generating profits for oil-related business and mineral owners, and pumping up the state budget surplus with tax revenues. Creating and expanding infrastructure has been the priority for everyone associated with the oil boom. Environment issues, related to drilling and transporting oil, are providing challenges to the state and nation as production expands.

The North Dakota experience, seen close at hand, has a tendency to eclipse what’s happening with oil and gas nationally. The drive for U.S. oil independence, long thought to be wishful thinking, seems, now, probable. Shale formations have been the game changer. And the remaking of North Dakota’s economy, with energy taking on a larger and larger role, is part of that change.

Via: The Bismarck Tribune

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California: Against All Odds, Conservatives Defeat Modesto Tax Measure

Ten California cities had sales tax measures on the ballot on November 5^th and nine of them passed by significant margins.  Only Modesto’s tax measure was voted down and I’m here to tell you how a bit about how it happened.

The campaign for Measure X, a one percent sales tax increase tied to a non binding city council resolution calling for the bulk of the new revenue to be spent on police and fire, was spearheaded by Mayor Garrad Marsh and funded almost entirely by the public safety unions.  Being a general tax increase with a caveat, similar to a measure in neighboring Stockton, Measure X required a simple majority to pass.

With Modesto’s finances in a $6 to $11 million dollar hole depending on who you asked and, like most municipalities, facing crippling pension costs, the mayor and city council tossed the measure together late last summer and got it on the ballot.   Police and fire unions began pouring money into a campaign to pass the measure and, by early September, no organized opposition had formed.

Knowing a bit about Modesto’s finances as I do, something had to be done.  With little time to organize a campaign I turned to the Stanislaus Taxpayers Association and their President, Dave Thomas.  Dave and I quickly formed a plan to fight the measure with whatever means we could muster.  We were against quite a juggernaut, facing both the City of the Modesto and the public safety unions who had already raised over $100,000 and pledged at least $50,000 more.

Early on we were confronted with all the things a tax-hungry city will do to influence a municipal election that promised a waterfall of newfound cash.  In the spring the city had commissioned a $35,000 survey to gage support for the measure, a push poll that unsurprisingly showed overwhelming support.  The survey was later handed gratis to the Yes on X campaign who proceeded to hire the same consultant who took the poll.  When the Taxpayer’s Association asked for a copy of the publically funded poll they were told to take a hike.  The city later relented under pressure but have yet to charge the Yes side for the poll.  Later, the City of Modesto stuffed pro Measure X propaganda into the city water and garbage bills.

Va: California Politica Review

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Scott Walker coins new term: 'Obama-Walker' voters

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker had an op-ed in the Wall Street JournalFriday in which he tried to add a new term to the political lexicon: 'Obama-Walker voters.'

The ostensible point of the op-ed is to lay out Walker's argument that the way conservatives can win in competitive elections is not to abandon conservative principles but rather to offer a "reform agenda that is hopeful and optimistic."

Walker noted that exit polls from Wisconsin's June 2012 recall election showed that "roughly one in six voters who cast their ballots for me ... also planned to vote for Mr. Obama a few months later."

He then adds: "These Obama-Walker voters constituted about 9 percent of the electorate" (emphasis added).

In case you missed that reference or the one in the op-ed's headline, he again refers to "Obama-Walker voters" two paragraphs later.

hat is a pretty clear attempt at creating a new brand for persuadable swing voters. If the label sticks, it certainly will be a boost for Walker, who is clearly testing the waters for a 2016 White House bid. After all, who could reach all of the Obama-Walker voters better than Walker himself?

Via: Washington Examiner

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Chart of the Week: How Many Edu-crats Does Your State Have?

Federal laws and regulations such as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) levy a mighty bureaucratic compliance burden on state departments of education.

A recent report conducted by The Heritage Foundation finds that state departments of education on average have 142 employees per million state residents.

To manage the decades of federal growth and the corresponding paperwork burden placed on states, state departments of education have staff to manage the hundreds of hoops and federal regulations requiring them to demonstrate compliance with federal programs and mandates.

Via: The Foundry

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