Coming Soon: Cash for Appliances

This administration will never learn, will they? After the hideous "Cash for Clunkers" program, it seems that the wonderful folks at Government House are set to implement the same program. This time, it'll be major appliances instead of junk cars.

The "Cash for Appliances" program will get the rebate funding from $300 million of the $787 billion allotted by BHO back in February. The intent of the program is to get people to buy more energy-efficient household appliances while, in theory, stimulating the economy and creating jobs. Yeah...Detroit really took off after the "Cash for Clunkers" program, eh?

Rebate programs would be administered by the states with the blessing of the federal government. A survey of some of the largest states shows that California is planning to begin its program in March, New York in February, Pennsylvania in the spring, Illinois in January and April.

Under the program, Virginia is expected to receive $7.5 million, Maryland $5.4 million and the District $568,000, but the requirements and rebates have not yet been disclosed, although initial estimates have some potential rebates pegged at $50 to $100.

The federal government is also requiring states to disclose how many jobs will have been created by this evil twin of "Cash for Clunkers." Under the current figures, California, potentially netting $35 million, estimates that a whopping 350 jobs will be created under the implementation of the program. They estimate that for every $92,000 spent, ONE job will be created. My theory would be that it'll be a government job.

The home appliance market has been in a steady decline for the past three years. Do you think people are going to go out and immediately buy a new fridge or wait until the government is handing out money? If you said that the unintended consequence of this idiotic idea is going to further depress an already declining market, go to the head of the class.

"Cash for Clunkers" blew through $3 billion within the first week. How many days will it take for the government to go through a mere $300 million? And when that money runs out, how much more is going to be thrown at a failed idea? I guess it'll be time to fire up the presses again at the Treasury Department.

What needs to happen is peaceful, civil disobedience. The American people are sick and tired of the over-the-top wasteful spending on ideas that don't work and further push us down the economic hole we're in. The time is fast approaching where we will be required to ask ourselves "At what point do I resist?"

Stimulus Waste and Our Borders

Since Obamacare seems to be on life support (we hope), I've said in recent comments elsewhere that illegal immigration will be the next big issue to voice our opinions on. Let's face facts: We're slowly being invaded. Those who live along the southern border of this country and those of us who can read between the lines when Obama called us "demagogues" would probably agree with that statement. It isn't a military-style invasion, but the results would be the same as though the entire Mexican Army came fully armed across the Rio Grande.

When the $787 billion stimulus package was passed, Obama promised to put people back to work and jump start the economy. Since then, there have been millions in stimulus money lost to fraud, abuse, and pure stupidity.

Tom Coburn (R-OK) filed a report detailing wasteful projects that were funded by the American taxpayers when the stimulus bill was passed. I'll be doing a series on the top ten wasteful projects in other posts soon. Some you may have heard of, but some you may not.

Recently, according to Judicial Watch, a couple of news reports have surfaced with even more evidence of waste. Break out the barf bags, folks.

The first report found that approximately $1 million went to 4,000 jailed convicts. Among those receiving a $250 stimulus check were murderers and rapists who did not qualify for the check issued by the Social Security Administration. The SSA had also mailed out stimulus checks to approximately 10,000 DEAD people as well as fugitives and deported aliens. No wonder the program is broke! I've stated before that the closest thing to eternal life is a government program, and Social Security is a shining example of that. I guess Charon has upped his fee for crossing the river Styx and the cost of keeping your cellmate at bay has risen.

A separate report has also uncovered political influence being used in determining where stimulus money has gone with regards to our borders. Despite a promise of transparency, the report has stated that some of the border stimulus projects that have gone through DHS were done under a cloak of secrecy. Is anyone surprised?

Whitetail, Montana (population 71), has a checkpoint along the Canadian border that sees about three (3) travelers a day but will receive $15 million in stimulus funds to build a checkpoint station the size of a Hollywood mansion. How did this happen? Sens. Max Baucus (D-MT) and Jon Tester (D-MT) pressed Janet Napolitano for the money arguing that it would create jobs and improve infrastructure. Approximately $63,000 worth of goods passed through the checkpoint last year. The project was low on the priority list that DHS is supposed to submit every year of repairs that need to be made to checkpoints. The Obama administration has carried on a tradition started by George W. Bush of using subjective standards to bump certain projects ahead of others, and Whitetail falls under that category. Ah...the game of political prostitution at its finest.

Janet Napolitano's home state of Arizona is set to receive stimulus funds for the busy Nogales checkpoint though it was not a major priority on the DHS list. The price tag? $199 million. Five times more than any other checkpoint will get. JaNa bragged about lobbying to get the project moved ahead on the list while she was governor of Arizona during the Bush administration. Stimulus provided the money. But I'm SURE there were no political favors, right? I mean, it's not like it was used as a political payoff to take the DHS Secretary's post, eh? That would never happen under the most transparent administration in history!

Securing our borders HAS to become a priority. It's bad enough that we are fighting the enemies from within, but we really shouldn't have to battle those coming from across the borders illegally. Unfortunately, Washington has chosen political favor over the security of this great nation.

Oh...and the Laredo, Texas, checkpoint that serves more than 55,000 travelers and 4,200 trucks a day? Despite being a very high priority on the DHS list, it will receive not one penny of stimulus money for repairs. Hmmm... if Texas was a blue state...

Stimulus Pork: Cars, Crap, and Canned Food

From cnsnews.com comes this article that will make your head hurt and your blood pressure rise. Bungalow Bill pointed out the one incidence of waste in one his posts yesterday, but here are more.

Obama Stimulus Spending Includes Rental Cars, Outhouses, and ‘Sediment Removal’ Tuesday, July 21, 2009 By Matt Cover

President Barack Obama (AP Photo)

CNSNews.com) – Among the 3,266 entries in a government database detailing to-date spending under the Democrats' stimulus law are expenditures for concrete outhouses, “deli-sliced” turkey, and hotel bills.

Passed in February, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (AARA) – also called the “stimulus package” -- was sought and signed into law by President Obama, who declared at the time, “We have begun the essential work of keeping the American dream alive in our time.”

Among the more than 3,000 projects, purchases, and grants made with stimulus money obtained through the Federal Procurement Data System, some of the projects that have contributed to keeping the American dream alive include:

- $2.2 million to the Seneca Foods Corporation in Marion, NY for “fruit, canned;” the same company received another contract worth $196,797 also, for “fruit, canned”

- $4.8 million for “frozen, sliced ham”

- $5.3 million for “deli-style turkey breast” from the Jennie-O Turkey company

- $5.5 million in “canned fruit” from the Del Monte Corporation

- $16.8 million in “canned pork” from Lakeside Foods Inc

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack explained that food purchased with stimulus money went to help the needy, which also stimulated the economy.

“While the principal purpose of these expenditures is to provide food to those hardest hit by these tough times, the purchases also provide a modest economic benefit,” Vilsack said in a statement Monday.

Obama defended the broader impact of stimulus spending, saying that the ARRA was intended to “rebuild” the country better then he found it.

“[O]nce we clear away the wreckage, the real question is what we will build in its place. Even as we rescue this economy from a full-blown crisis, I have insisted that we must rebuild it better than before,” Obama said June 11.

Among the many things that have been built with stimulus money so far are:

- $971,711.42 to “replace pond liners” at the Garrison Dam National Fish Hatchery in Cole Harbor, N.D.

- $193,077 for a “double-vault toilet building” at the Hoyer Campground in Spokane, Wash.

- $487,944 for “toilet buildings and vaults” in the Pike and San Isabel National Forests

- $254,000 for “pre-fabricated restroom facilities” in Atlanta, Ga.

- $17,110 in hotel bills at a Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Va., for the Employment Standards Administration’s annual “Prevailing Wage Conference.”

- $1.8 million for the “renovation of Slate Hill Barn and Hay Shed” in Front Royal, Va. According to the database the money was requested by the Smithsonian Institution.

Defending the stimulus from Republican critics, President Obama said the Recovery Act was doing exactly what it was intended, adding that the many projects already being funded would shield the country from the brunt of the recession.

“In a little over 100 days, this Recovery Act has worked as intended,” the president said. “We also knew that it would take some time for the money to get out the door, because we are committed to spending it in a way that is effective and transparent.”

Other things the government has spent money on are:

- $326,304 for “roadside vegetation removal” in the Six Rivers National Forest in Eureka, Calif.

- $928,194.50 to nine different firms to provide an “increased level of effort for dtv [digital television] installation”

- $25.3 million for the National Institutes of Mental Health to study schizophrenia

- $65 million for NASA’s James Webb telescope project

- $20 million for “sediment removal” at the EPA’s Iron Mountain Mine Superfund site

- $6,066.18 to buy “three laptop computers” for the National Fish and Wildlife Service

- $4,250 for “short-term vehicle rental” from Enterprise Rent-A-Car in order to “run errands” in Kings Canyon National Park in King’s Canyon, Calif.

- $840 to “disassemble” one desk and “properly reassemble and relocate” 2 other desks in Reston, Va.

Obama claimed that the stimulus wasn’t done yet, saying that it really wasn’t designed to kick in until late 2009 and early 2010.

“In the months to come, thousands more projects will begin, leading to additional jobs,” Obama explained. “But, as I made clear at the time it was passed, the Recovery Act was not designed to work in four months - it was designed to work over two years.”

This is just wrong on so many levels, but the one that jumped out at me while reading was $5.5 million in “canned fruit” from the Del Monte Corporation. Who do we know who has a HUGE stake in Del Monte? Hmmmm..... If you said "Nancy Pelosi", go to the head of the class. Tell me that's not payoff for political favors!

I'm rapidly becoming of the mindset "Screw them all." Maybe a clean slate is what this country needs.

I Warned You, Mr. Murtha!!!

I'm still seething over last night's passage of the Cap and Trade mess in the House of Representatives. Now, I am on a mission to see that my representative, John P. Murtha, will never occupy the seat that he has held for 18 (not a typo) terms. This is the poster boy for term limits.

Murtha represents the 12th Congressional District here in Pennsylvania, which includes Johnstown and Altoona areas. Everywhere you travel in this area, you will see many buildings and roads bearing his name. Why don't they just rename Johnstown "Murthaland"?These areas are democratic strongholds largely due to the fact that many early residents were coal miners and belonged to the union. And we know that the unions aren't in bed with Republicans nearly as often as Democrats! I'd almost venture a guess to say that if most of the people in this district had to choose between a million-dollar check or voting Democrat, they'd still be poor and unemployed.

Old Johnny Boy really raised the hackles of most Americans who really had no idea who he was when he called our brave soldiers "murderers" for the incident in Haditha. Murtha claims that innocent civilians were killed by our Marines before any facts or testimony were presented. Well, being a former Marine, you would think Jack would have a little more RESPECT for the military. Guess not. Yet he chairs the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee and, if he gets hacked off at the military, he has a lot of say as to whether or not they get funding. Isn't that special???

Even more special: Murtha's nephew, Robert C. Murtha Jr., just received a $4 million no-bid no-competition contract from the Department of Defense for his company, Murtech. What does Murtech do? Warehousing. That's it. A lot of the offices in the building are unoccupied and its reception area is unmanned. Many days, you can see only a handful of cars in the parking lot, and no trucks pull up to the 10 loading bays. One of Bobbo Murtha's contracts came through PMA, a Jack Murtha-associated lobbying group now at the center of a federal investigation for corruption in earmarking and influence peddling. Better yet....Robert C. Murtha Sr. (John's brother) runs a highly-successful lobbying group, KSA, that specializes in (drumroll please)....DEFENSE CONTRACTS FROM THE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE. Nepotism at its very finest!

By the way, have you received a "Thank You" note from dear Jack for the stimulus money for the John P. Murtha-Cambria County Airport? You didn't know? Let me tell you what you kind folks have done. In the stimulus package passed by Congress earlier this year, $800,000 of that is going to be spent to pave the backup runway at Jacko's airport. Pretty cool, huh? Recently, the Washington Post had an article about the airport after a reporter visited there. On the day of the reporter's visit, four passengers lined up to catch a flight, and those passengers were outnumbered by seven security staff members and supervisors, all who wore uniforms and gloves to screen the six pieces of luggage. After all that hard work, they all got a three-hour break because no flights, private or commercial, came in or took off. During the week, three commercial flights leave the airport -- all bound for Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC. In the past decade, this airport of all airports has received $200 million in federal funds, and Murtha is credited with securing at least $150 million of that. It's been dubbed "The Airport to Nowhere".

John Murtha is definitely one of the most corrupt members of Congress, yet the people of the Johnstown area keep electing him based on his ability to bring money into the area. Nevermind that he's not creating a lot of jobs in what has been a depressed area since the coal mines shut down. He's just securing funding for already established projects that usually bear his name.

Coming from a region rich in coal and coal-mining history, I would almost think for a nanosecond that he would've voted against Cap and Trade. Then I wake up and I'm still in the nightmare known as the 12th Congressional District.

What Campaign Finance Reform???

This is going to be a long one folks. According to newsmax.com, members of Congress are finding a way to line their pockets and get their piece of the stimulus money. Here's how it works.

A member of Congress sits on a certain committee. Said member may have a non-profit or charity group with personal or family ties. Certain groups of industry and lobbyists on behalf of certain groups can donate any amount of money to said charity or non-profit. Nice work if you can get it, eh? It was only in 2007 that corporations and lobbyists were mandated to provide information when they donated to a charity or event connected with lawmakers.

Since the 2007 ethics agreement, USA Today has kept track of the lobbying reports. Wanna know how much? I hope you're sitting down: a total of $35.8 million in 2008. That's between a total of almost 2,800 reports filed. About $28 million went to non-profit groups with direct ties of members of Congress. Sickening. I've read and would suggest for anyone to read Outrage by Dick Morris. He details this scheme nicely.

Here is a list from newsmax.com listing some of the groups, their ties, and how much they got:

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. Organization: Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate Connection: Named for Kennedy, wife on board. Received: $5,050,000 Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C. Organization: James E. Clyburn Research and Scholarship Foundation Connection: Foundation named for congressman. Received: $326,224 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga. Organization: The Faith and Politics Institute Connection: The congressman is co-chair emeritus of the institute. Received: $206,000 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind. Organization: Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy Connection: Center named for the senator. Received: $140,000 Financial documents: Unavailable Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va. Organization: Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute Connection: Alzheimer's research institute named for senator's late mother. Received: $65,000 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Sen. Susan CollinsR-Maine Organization: Alliance for Health Reform Connection: Senator is co-chair of Alliance for Health Reform, along with Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va. Received: $45,000 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Rep. Steve Buyer, R-Ind. Organization: Frontier Foundation Connection: Rep. Buyer's daughter was president of the group, and its treasurer is the executive director of his PAC. Received: $40,000 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas Organization: Joe Barton Family Foundation Connection: Foundation founded by Rep. Barton. His daughter-in-law, Amy Barton, is the executive director. Received: $35,000 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W.Va. Organization: Robert H. Mollohan Family Charitable Foundation Connection: Mollohan is on the executive committee; named for his father. Received: $25,000 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 Rep. Joe Baca, D-Calif. Organization: Joe Baca Foundation Connection: Congressman is president of the foundation named for him. Received: $19,163 Financial documents: IRS Form 990 © 2009 USA Today. All rights reserved. Reprinted Via Rightslink.

Personally, I'm surprised the UAW hasn't donated to Ted "Chappaquidick Fats" Kennedy's charity to fund an underwater car museum.

Yes, I'm bitter.

South Carolina Has to Take Stimulus Money

The South Carolina Supreme Court has issued a ruling requiring Governor Mark Sanford (R) to take the federal stimulus money he had been fighting to refuse.

Sanford had been fighting for the right to refuse stimulus money from the Obamarx administration. Well, evidently, the court decided it was in the best interest of the people to force their will upon the governor. This makes South Carolina indebted to the Federal government against their will. How special is that!

Every time someone has exercised their choice to refuse to partake of any of these loony programs set up by Dear Leader, the threat of force is the administration's first response. Do it or else. How can we say we a truly free nation when tyranny is looming on the horizon and gets closer every day?

Oh, Governor Sanford? I know you said you would drop your federal case and not appeal the decision, but please grow a spine and reconsider. The only way to stop the federal government from dictating what state governments do is to stand up and fight. If you can't do that, please exercise your state's rights under the Tenth Amendment. Don't let those of us who believe in freedom down.