Pennsylvania Going Republican--Latest Polls Show Hope

I never thought I'd live to see the day where Arlen "Magic Bullet Theory" Specter would be unseated. Here in Pennsylvania, he's become almost as entrenched in his seat as Ted Kennedy was. By now, the actual seat itself is probably growing into Specter's gluteus maximus. From all accounts, though, it looks like Specter's days are numbered as are the rest of the Dems in this state (I will NOT use the word 'commonwealth').

In a poll conducted by The Philadelphia Daily News, Pat Toomey, a former U.S. Representative from the Allentown area, has opened up a 14-point lead over Specter in the fight for the Senate seat coming up for grabs. Could Pennsylvania be the next Massachusetts? I pray so.

Among likely voters, Toomey leads Snarlin' Arlen 45-31 percent with 20 percent undecided. I will tell you folks that in Pennsylvania, that's saying something.

"I can't deny it's all very encouraging," Toomey said. "But I'm also very aware of the fact that the election is nine months away. A lot can happen. So I'm going to run like I'm 20 points behind."

Pat Toomey lost to Specter in 2004, but it was a narrow victory for Specter, who defected to the Dems last year.

U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak (D), of Delaware County, is leaving his job to challenge Specter in the primary. In the poll, Sestak doesn't fare as well against Toomey as Specter does.

Among likely voters, Toomey leads 41-19 percent with 37 percent undecided. Registered voters favor Toomey over Sestak 28-16 percent with 51 percent undecided. In short, a Toomey-Sestak matchup would be a massacre.

Also in Pennsylvania, the reign of "Fast Eddie" Rendell is coming to an end (THANK GOD!) after Rendell served the maximum two terms as governor. In this race, the most likely candidates are going to be former AG Tom Corbett for the Republicans and Allegheny County Executive Dan Onarato for the Democrats. Trust me when I say that the people of Pennsylvania DO NOT want Onarato as governor. When one looks at how Allegheny County has been run in recent years and how the assessment of property has been bungled, it proves that Onarato is not the man to be running the state.

How this all plays out is going to be interesting to watch. I'm sure ACORN is going to be VERY active in Pennsylvania. There are a lot of dead people that need to register to vote.

The HAPPY Act

Here we go folks. We're about to fall just a tad bit further down the rabbit hole. The information for this comes from the Huffington Post (I know...pick your jaw off the floor.). I occasionally stop over there to see just how successful we conservatives/libertarians are by how much whining goes on over there.

In the midst of this economic crisis created by the left, it appears that a Republican House member from Michigan (Is there really such a creature?) has introduced a tax credit for the American people. The tax credit could give Americans up to $3500 in savings on their returns. The catch? It's a tax credit for expenses spent on YOUR PETS. That's right. Spot and Fido could potentially get you a tax break.

Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) has sent out a letter to fellow House members asking for co-sponsors on his Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years Act (HAPPY) which would give taxpayers up to $3500 in tax credits for pet care, including vet visits.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/23/house-goper-seeks-co-spon_n_296670.html

"Dear Colleague," the letter reads.

"According to the 2007-2008 National Pet Owners Survey, 63% of United States households own a pet. Indeed, the human-animal bond has been shown to have a positive effect upon people's emotional and physical well being. In families with children, pets help to create a nurturing environment and provide ample educational opportunities. For people in later stages of life, pets offer important companionship. No matter the age of the owner, pets have been shown to reduce stress, safeguard against depression, improve social skills, and even ease loss.

"In light of this, please join me in becoming a cosponsor to H.R. 3501, the Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years (HAPPY) Act. If enacted, H.R. 3501 would amend the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow an annual tax deduction of up to $3500 for qualified pet care expenses. Specifically, "qualified pet care expenses" would be defined as funds spent in connection with providing care (including veterinary care) for a legally owned, domesticated animal."

Now, don't get me wrong. I love my pets. But instead of giving more of a tax break to help pay for healthcare expenses for humans, Mr. McCotter has gotten this so upside-down that it boggles my mind.

Right now, the IRS allows a taxpayer to deduct medical and dental expenses that exceed 7.5% of their adjusted gross income. If you spend less than that, you can't deduct your medical expenses. But you can sure deduct expenses for the care of your pet under this legislation! Am I the only one who has an issue with this lunacy?

McCotter introduced this legislation in late July and has yet to garner any co-sponsors. Thank Heaven!

Btw...the picture at the top of this post is my beloved pit bull, Zeus.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/23/house-goper-seeks-co-spon_n_296670.html

"Dear Colleague," the letter reads.

"According to the 2007-2008 National Pet Owners Survey, 63% of United States households own a pet. Indeed, the human-animal bond has been shown to have a positive effect upon people's emotional and physical well being. In families with children, pets help to create a nurturing environment and provide ample educational opportunities. For people in later stages of life, pets offer important companionship. No matter the age of the owner, pets have been shown to reduce stress, safeguard against depression, improve social skills, and even ease loss.

"In light of this, please join me in becoming a cosponsor to H.R. 3501, the Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years (HAPPY) Act. If enacted, H.R. 3501 would amend the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow an annual tax deduction of up to $3500 for qualified pet care expenses. Specifically, "qualified pet care expenses" would be defined as funds spent in connection with providing care (including veterinary care) for a legally owned, domesticated animal."

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/23/house-goper-seeks-co-spon_n_296670.html

Cap and Trade: Got Earmarks?

I know lots of people are saying "Get off the cap and trade thing already!" I won't. It's poised to be voted on in the Senate, and that is our only hope of this monstrosity being killed. If people stay angry, maybe the pressure will be put on the Senate.

Eight House Republicans voted for the Waxman-Markey bill (shall henceforth be the Wacky-Marxist bill) despite what the constituency wanted. The following is a list of the earmarks those eight put into the legislation they voted in favor of. Grab a cup of coffee and get ready. Duct tape is also recommended.

"Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful bill..."

1. Mary Bono-Mack (R-CA) -- It seems Mary secured a $500,000 earmark (that's your money, folks) through the Bureau of Land Management for land acquisition. The project? The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument. But this had nothing to do with her voting "yea", did it? She also had ANOTHER half-million dollar earmark for groundwater protection in Cathedral City, CA. That earmark goes through the EPA.
   
2. Mike Castle (R-DE) -- From the spreadsheet I saw, he didn't put in any earmarks. That doesn't make him any smarter for voting for it.
3. Mark Steven Kirk (R-IL) -- No earmarks listed, but still a chucklehead. Co-chairman of the moderate GOP Tuesday Group.
4. Leonard Lance (R-NJ) -- Lenny got $500,000 for the city of Califon, NJ, for stormwater improvments, also acquired through the EPA. Where's my thank you note for the money, Lenny?
5. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) -- Mr. LoBiondo did not get any congressionally-directed earmarks. Instead, he got a presidentially-directed earmark of $2 million for the Cape May National Wildlife Refuge for land acquisition. Evidently, we have to protect the wildlife. They'll be running the treadmills to power this nation should cap and trade become law.
   
6. John McHugh (R-NY) -- The folks at Traditional Arts in Upstate New York, Canton, NY, are probably just oozing mush from their ears due to the $150,000 earmark McHugh got them. The money is going for restoration of Village Park. The National Park Service will be cutting the check. This has to do with energy how???
7. Dave Reichert (R-WA) -- Dave got lucky. He received a $333,000 congressional-directed earmark through the EPA for the City of Buckley to get a new emergency intertie booster station, and he also prostituted himself to Dear Leader for $2.15 million of our dollars to go to Mt. Ranier.
8. Chris Smith (R-NJ) -- Evidently, there are no conservatives in New Jersey. The National Park Service was nice enough to give Mr. Smith a $200,000 earmark for Georgian Court University in Lakewood, NJ, to restore the Georgian Court Mansion. You would think that for what a college education costs that taxpayer funding wouldn't be needed. Go figure!!!

These are earmarks that came through the House Interior and Environment Appropriations bill. I'm going to try to break down and organize all the other earmarks by who got what. The spreadsheet is 276 lines long on the congressionally-directed side and 189 lines on the presidentially-directed side, so please bear with me.

We all wondered what the promises were.... This is just the beginning.