Headline Report for Nov. 6, 2010

The top news long-term, continues to be the following ISSUES:

    * Financial Crisis

    * GWOT

    * Cultural War (between the left and right)

    * Politics

Short-term top news centers on the following EVENTS:

    * Life’s Rich Pageant

Financial Crisis: “Experts say the mood has soured since the G20 Toronto summit in June and worry that unless the summit can patch up differences on trade imbalances and exchange rates, the outlook for international economic agreement is poor.” (China tees up G20 showdown with US).

“Ousmène Mandeng, of Ashmore Investment Management and a former senior International Monetary Fund official, said: ‘The G20 will also have to show [in Seoul] it can work on the issue or its very existence will be in question.’”

The Chinese stance on QE2 is quite clear as Cui Tiankai, a deputy foreign minister and one of China’s lead negotiators at the G20, described Friday the US’ plan to limit current account surpluses and deficits to 4 percent of GDP as harking back “to the days of planned economies.” Pretty sad when the largest communist/socialist country in the world publicly chastises the U.S. for a passé socialist recommendation. “‘We believe a discussion about a current account target misses the whole point,’ he added, in the first official comment by a senior Chinese official on the subject. ‘If you look at the global economy, there are many issues that merit more attention­—for example, the question of quantitative easing.’”

Officials from China, Germany and South Africa on Friday piled onto the chorus of complaints, saying QE2 “would create instability and worsen imbalances by triggering surges of capital into other currencies.”

“‘With all due respect, US policy is clueless,’ Wolfgang Schäuble, German finance minister, told reporters. ‘It’s not that the Americans haven’t pumped enough liquidity into the market,’ he said. ‘Now to say let’s pump more into the market is not going to solve their problems.’”

“Pravin Gordhan, finance minister of South Africa, a key member of the emerging market bloc, said the decision ‘undermines the spirit of multilateral co-operation that G20 leaders have fought so hard to maintain during the current crisis,’ and ran counter to the pledge made by G20 finance ministers to refrain from uncoordinated responses.”

“Li Deshui, from Beijing's Economic Commission, said a string of Asian states share China's ‘deep bitterness’ over dollar debasement, and are examining ways of teaming up to insulate themselves from the tsunami of US liquidity. Thailand said its central bank is already in talks with neighbours to devise a joint protection policy.” (Doubts grow over wisdom of Ben Bernanke 'super-put')

“The dollar plunged yet again. That may have been the Fed's unstated purpose. If so, Washington has angered the world's rising powers and prompted a reaction with far-reaching strategic consequences.”

“Bond funds are already restive. Pimco's Bill Gross says the great bull market in bonds is over, denigrating Fed policy as the greatest ‘ponzi scheme’ in history. Warren Buffett has chimed in too, warning that anybody buying bonds at this stage is ‘making a big mistake.’”

“No clear rationale for fresh QE can be found in orthodox monetarism. Data from the St Louis Federal Reserve show that M2 money supply stopped contracting in the early summer and has since been expanding at an accelerating rate, topping 9pc over the last four-week bloc.”

“The Fed has used the 'Taylor Rule' on output gaps as a theoretical justification for QE, but Stanford Professor John Taylor has more or less said his theories have been hijacked. ‘I don't think (QE) will do much good, and I also worry about the harm down the road,’ he said. It has not been lost on markets that the Fed's purchases of $900bn of Treasuries by June (with reinvested funds from mortgage debt) covers the Treasury's deficit over the same period. The slippery slope towards 'monetization' of public debt beckons.’”

Other headlines of the day:

Bernanke Defends Bond Purchases, Predicts Stronger Growth

Treasury Yields Tumble to Records on Fed's Plan to Purchase $600 Billion

The age of the dollar is drawing to a close

Labor Force Participation Rate Drops To 25 Year Low, At 64.5%

Boehner under fire: First cut should be lawmakers' salaries

GOP to Use Debt Cap to Push Spending Cuts

Food Sellers Grit Teeth, Raise Prices

Use of food stamps up 17% since last year

Tax needed to deal with pensions, Allentown mayor says

GWOT: The U.S. struck preemptively with a missile Wednesday—in Gaza. A warship in the Med hit the car of Muhammad Jamal A’Namnam, 27, who was in the heart of Gaza City. He was an operational commander of the Army of Islam, Al-Qaeda's Palestinian cell in the Gaza Strip. He reportedly was on a mission on behalf of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula—AQAP to plan, organize and execute the next wave of terrorist attacks on US targets after last week's air package bomb plot.

Cultural War: U.S. House GOP leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said in a TV interview he would “never ever, ever” allow ObamaCare to be implemented (Pledge: 'I'll make sure Obamacare is never implemented'). He also “hinted that the newly elected Republican majority in Congress has ‘a lot of tricks up our sleeves’ to follow through on that promise.”

One of the three Democrats MSNBC host Keith Olbermann made a donation to, against company policy that “forbids an anchor from doing so without prior approval of the president of NBC News,” is the co-chairman of a Marxist/socialist-founded bloc in Congress (Olbermann backed co-chair of 'Marxist-socialist' bloc).

Don’t get too excited about ACORN’s bankruptcy: they’ll be back (Insider confirms ACORN will be back). “‘I predicted this over a year and a half ago,’ said Marcel Reid, the former chair of the Washington, DC chapter of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. ‘It’s going to be a loose federation.’”

Looks like Spain might be a “formerly Catholic” country as Pope Benedict XVI criticized the country for a flourishing “aggressive” anti-church sentiment today during a two-day visit (Pope blasts Spain's "aggressive" anti-church ways).

Politics: This story is in the Politics section but relates directly to the financial crisis. China’s leaders are in a precarious situation between the citizens pleased with ‘economic transformation’ over the last 30 years and the potential damage well beyond financial if the currency war plays out (The China powder keg: JOHN HUMPHRYS on a nation that's either on the edge of becoming THE superpower - or exploding into anarchy).

The insanity in India continues. Nearly 300 city cops are in “virtual confinement” because they speak English, have been assigned duties at the Taj and aren’t allowed to leave the hotel until Obama leaves tomorrow afternoon (English-speaking cops confined for four days in the Taj). Cops aren’t the only ones being detained. Dog and monkey catchers “are also being roped in to avert any ‘animal invasion’ on his route” (Obama visit to Delhi: Special vigil against monkeys and dogs).

Nancy Pelosi said Friday she wants to keep her spot as House Dem leader. Somehow we don’t think the Republicans will let her keep the private jet she’s been using weekly to fly home at a cost of greater than $50,000 per trip (Pelosi will seek to stay as House Dem leader). The Republicans ‘love’ here too, as she is the best ‘Republican’ on their team (RNC Changes 'Fire Pelosi' Message To 'Hire Pelosi').

Life’s Rich Pageant: The Russians are really tinkering with time as President Medvedev has already abolished two time zones this year and is now calling for the elimination of Daylight Savings Time (Russia Proposes Stopping Daylight Saving Time). “‘Russian officials are worried about the psychological and physical impact of adjustments like this. During these two weeks, after the clocks turn back, officials say more people get sick and there's a higher number of ambulance calls. So Russian president Demitri Medvedev said he sees no point moving the clocks back and forth,’ said David Greene of National Public Radio.”

TAKE ACTION: Please visit e-VotingBooth.com, setup your FREE account, login and vote legislation, including any previously-enacted 111th Congress (current) bills.
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Headline Report for Nov. 5, 2010

The top news long-term, continues to be the following ISSUES:

    * Financial Crisis

    * GWOT

    * Cultural War (between the left and right)

    * Politics

Short-term top news centers on the following EVENTS:

    * Life’s Rich Pageant

Financial Crisis: A new direction today from China as they start trading in credit-default swaps (China Rejects `Naked Swimming' With Default Swaps). The swaps are derivatives “blamed by some European and U.S. officials for inflaming the global financial crisis.” “‘European and American markets show the main problem is blind innovation and lack of regulation,’ Shi Wenchao, secretary-general of China’s National Association of Financial Market Institutional Investors, or NAFMII, said in comments posted on the association’s website this week. ‘Market participants have been swimming naked in a huge bond market and we can imagine their desire for a well-fitting life jacket.’” In other words, the Chinese think they won’t get burned by derivatives with proper regulation. We’ll see.

The international backlash against quantitative easing continues (As money pours in, Indonesia and other emerging markets fret over Fed easing). “As the United States and other developed countries cope with what might be years of slow growth and frugality, the concern in Indonesia is—quite literally—over too much money and how to prevent it from sowing a future crisis.”

Which leads into the building currency war: “Guido Mantega, the Brazilian finance minister who was the first to warn of a ‘currency war,’ said: ‘Everybody wants the US economy to recover, but it does no good at all to just throw dollars from a helicopter’” (Backlash against Fed’s $600bn easing).

We have a worsening situation (creating a future crisis to solve a current crisis) with the U.S. having implemented more than $1 trillion (headed to $1.6 trillion) of newly-minted dollars: “Dan Price, partner at the law firm Sidley Austin and formerly George W. Bush’s White House representative at the G20, said: ‘The US may find it increasingly difficult to galvanize countries to push China on [renminbi] appreciation when many think the Fed’s quantitative easing policy is itself a major contributor to currency misalignment and imbalances.’” That leaves one option for the U.S./Fed: print more money. What action will other countries take? “At a joint press conference with president-elect Dilma Rousseff, outgoing president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Wednesday he would travel to the G20 summit in Seoul with Ms Rousseff, ready to take ‘all the necessary measures to not allow our currency to become overvalued’ and to ‘fight for Brazil’s interests’” (Brazil ready to retaliate for US move in ‘currency war’).

Will QE2 work? Probably not, given consumer confidence and Axel Merk’s opinion: “‘Federal Reserve policies have put the US dollar at risk of crashing, which will hammer consumers through higher prices (Dollar at Risk of Crashing, Triggering Inflation: Strategist). The Fed in my view is trying to debase the dollar because printing all that money is not going to spur growth on its own. The risk is that the money doesn't stick and it doesn't go to where it's supposed to go,’ said the $500 million currency mutual fund portfolio manager and president at Merk Investments in Palo Alto, California (World stocks surge, dollar falls on Fed's QE2 plan). ‘What you achieve with quantitative easing is that you signal to investors not to buy U.S. government securities, take the money elsewhere, which in turn will weaken the dollar and spur economic growth.’” The financial crisis is now re-defining the term ‘asset’: “‘There's no such thing anymore as a safe asset. Cash is no longer safe,’ said Merk to CNBC. ‘Do what central banks do, they diversify to baskets of currencies. That's what we try to do. It's a pity for any savers out there, but we'll survive. We'll get through this.’” If you’re not a FOREX (foreign exchange) trader we suggest considering commodities, like bullion and numismatic coins.

The dollar Thursday hit an 11-month low, “opening the way for a possible test of its 2009 low of 74.17, and the euro was holding above $1.4200 after soaring as far as $1.4283, its strongest since late January. The dollar was also under renewed pressure against the yen, trading one yen above its 1995 post-war record low of 79.75 (Dollar struggles as demand for risk continues).

Conversely, gold set another record high and other commodities chalked up broad gains Thursday, increasing 3.4 percent IN ONE DAY, to $1,383.10 an ounce (Gold sets record; other commodities chalk up gains). CNBC reports today (11:12 Eastern) the dollar continues to drop and gold is up $12 an ounce to $1,395.

GWOT: “A senior missile scientist who defected from Burma after leaking secrets about the junta's suspected nuclear programme has revealed how senior generals were personally involved in plans to develop a weapons system” (Burmese defector reveals truth about junta's nuclear ambitions).

Hamas claims they succeeded in bringing "game changing" weapons into the Gaza Strip (Hamas claims 'game-changing weapons'). “Israeli security officials confirmed to WND that Hamas recently was able to bring into Gaza advanced weaponry that deeply concerns the Israel Defense Forces.”

Cultural War: A report in Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin by a senior fellow of the International Strategic Studies Association claims “political Islam could be in control of Europe by as early as 2050” (Forecast: Europe under Islam by 2050). “‘Political Islam, resorting to asymmetrical warfare and terrorism," he said, "has already intimidated a tired and perplexed Europe and has frightened the U.S. It seems that the U.S. and the democratic West do not have a sound strategy to deal with political Islam,’ said Assad Homayoun. ‘The West appears to have no strategy or will to prevent a shifting of power, or to guard Western culture, civilization and democracy.’”

“Republicans say they'll repeal and replace President Barack Obama's health care law, but tinker and tweak is as far as they're likely to get” (No clear path for GOP on health care repeal). In the meantime it looks like AARP is about to pay the piper for endorsing ObamaCare. “Now the seniors' lobby is telling its employees their insurance costs will rise partly as a result of the law. In an e-mail to employees, AARP says health care premiums will increase by 8 percent to 13 percent next year because of rapidly rising medical costs” (Citing health overhaul, AARP hikes employee costs).

The Oklahoma chapter of CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) plans to sue challenging the constitutionality of a ballot measure barring judges from considering Islamic law (CAIR sues Oklahoma for banning Islamic law). An author of the legislation responded: “‘Certainly each of these measures had critics, but the crushing margins by which these constitutional amendments passed shows without a doubt that those critics are deeply out of touch with the values and views of Oklahomans, just as Washington, D.C., is out of touch with America,’ Republican state Sen. Anthony Sykes said.”

Irony rules instead of the rule-of-law in Arizona, as the city of Phoenix, without due process or notice, ordered billboard and bus shelter ads promoting gun training torn down (City yanks down firearm safety billboards).

Politics: So much for the Saudis helping to reduce tensions between Israel and the PA (Saudi prince rules out engagement with Israel until Arab land is returned). “‘For us to take any steps toward any form of normalization with the Israeli state before these Arab lands have been returned to their rightful legitimate owners would undermine international law and turn a blind eye to immorality,’ Prince Turki al-Faisal, the former Saudi ambassador to the United States, said in a speech at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.”

China continues its strategic push into Europe as President Hu Jintao signed billions of euros' worth of business deals during a state visit to France Thursday (China and France sign deals as Hu Jintao visits Paris).

Muslims are starting to stand up to radical Islamists in the wake of the Baghdad mass massacre Sunday (Egypt's Brotherhood pledge to defend Christians). “Prominent Egyptian Muslims, including leaders of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, rallied yesterday to defend their country's Christian minority after threats from an al Qa'eda-linked group in Iraq. The Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), an umbrella group that includes al Qa'eda in Iraq and allied insurgents, declared on Wednesday that all Christians were ‘legitimate targets.’ In Abu Dhabi, up to 1,000 Muslims and Christians are expected to attend a service tonight at St Joseph's Cathedral in memory of the victims.”

Colombia, Venezuela Solidify Improved Ties: “‘We are determined that no one or anything will derail us,’ said Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos during his second meeting with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez since August. ‘We've gone from good-intentioned statements to concrete accords,’ he added.”

More over-the-top spending for Obama’s India trip as Secret Service officials amazed Indian police officials with a kilometer-long, bomb-proof, air-conditioned, heavily-guarded over-the-ground tunnel measuring 12’ by 12’ and fitted with close-circuit TVs to ‘protect’ the president from a potential sniper threat in a nearby high-rise (Tunnel for Obama near Mani Bhavan). Press secretary Robert Gibbs yesterday claimed the trip doesn’t cost $200 million/day, but also wouldn’t provide actual costs (If not $200 million, then how much?).

Life’s Rich Pageant: Johns Hopkins Researchers claim they found a way of permanently deleting painful memories, which they say could lead to drugs for post-traumatic stress disorder (Eternal sunshine? Scientists create technique to delete traumatic memories).

The CDC claims in a report last Friday American adults with diabetes will grow (Deadly disease to hit 1 in 3 Americans), up from 1 in 10 now. The solution: lose weight. “If you're seriously overweight, maintaining a normal blood sugar level is like trying to squeeze a 42-inch waist into a pair of size 36 pants—it's next to impossible. More than 90 percent of people with type 2 diabetes are overweight. In fact, the link between diabetes and obesity is so strong that it's led to the coining of a new word: diabesity.”

Although the nation’s highest, we think the recidivism rate in California demands research followed with a public policy discussion to find a solution (Most California parolees back in prison in 3 years).

NASA is working to get you from New York to Sydney in just 2hrs 30mins, from the 21 hours it is now, by developing 'hypersonic' passenger jets that travel at five times the speed of sound. Why? “The project is thought to be aimed at making a reusable aircraft that could fly to Mars.” The agency believes they can build the aircraft on the cheap, allocating just $5 million per year for only 3 years.

TAKE ACTION: Please visit e-VotingBooth.com, setup your FREE account, login and vote legislation, including any previously-enacted 111th Congress (current) bills.
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Headline Report for Nov. 4, 2010

The top news long-term, continues to be the following ISSUES:

    * Financial Crisis

    * GWOT

    * Cultural War (between the left and right)

    * Politics

Short-term top news centers on the following EVENTS:

    * Election follow-up

Financial Crisis: A potential new direction is emerging in China’s efforts to protect themselves from our destructive financial habits: “China must set up a firewall via currency policy and capital controls to cushion itself from external shocks, Xia Bin said in a commentary piece in the Financial News, a Chinese-language newspaper managed by the central bank” (U.S. dollar printing is huge risk -China c.bank adviser). The comment comes on the heals of the Fed’s new round of quantitative easing, or as Xia Bin describes it “unbridled printing of dollars is the biggest risk to the global economy.” The statement goes a long way in destroying Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s credibility in his statement 'We did it. ... very sorry, won't do it again' (Bernanke: Federal Reserve caused Great Depression), made at a Nov. 8, 2002, conference to honor Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman on his 90th birthday. Bernanke, who at the time was a Federal Reserve governor, gave a speech at Friedman's old home base, the University of Chicago.

The self-fulfilling prophecy of currency and financial collapse continues as finance ministers in emerging economies like China and Brazil criticize the move, saying the added dollars could exagerate asset bubbles in their countries. Stateside stocks and commodities are rising sharply today while the dollar continues to fall (1% so far today) against other currencies (Stocks surge a day after Fed reveals stimulus plan). Oil, in particular, spiked (Oil hits six-month peaks on falling dollar, Fed move).

In the meantime China continues to protect themselves through a continuation of their “broad, strategic push into Europe” (Looking for Investments, China Turns to Europe). “It is snapping up assets depressed by the global financial crisis and becoming a significant partner of other hard-hit European nations.” “‘They are indicating a willingness to stick their nose into Europe’s business,” said Carl B. Weinberg, chief economist of High Frequency Economics. ‘It’s very clever and sends a clear message,’ he added, ‘that China is a force to be contended with.’” That message will be reinforced by a visit this week by China’s president, Hu Jintao, who is scheduled to meet with top officials and business executives of Portugal and France.

German Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle basically agrees with China, believing it brings the world closer to a disastrous currency war “I fear that there could be a trend in that direction” (Germany Concerned About US Stimulus Moves). “Bruederle also said there was some truth to the criticism that the United States was influencing the dollar's exchange rate with monetary policy and voiced concern about increased protectionism in different forms around the world.”

New claims for unemployment rose more than expected last week while unit labor costs fell in the third quarter, underlining the continued jobless recovery (Jobless Claims Turn Higher; Productivity Up, Costs Down). “‘The big picture is that firms are trying to squeeze every ounce out of the workers they have and this is one reason they feel no need to hire,’ said Cary Leahey an economist at Decision Economics in New York.”

Another indicator of both business and personal cutbacks comes from Solyndra, a Silicon Valley solar-panel maker “that won half a billion dollars in federal aid to build a state-of-the-art robotic factory” (Solar-Panel Maker to Close a Factory and Delay Expansion). “‘We’re adjusting our plans to be more in line with where the market is and where our business is at the moment,’ said Brian Harrison, Solyndra’s chief executive, in an interview.”

GWOT: Lots of news today on Iran. While thousands chanted ‘Death to America’ today in a mass protest against the ‘Great Satan’ marking the 31st anniversary of the capture of the American embassy by Islamist students (Iranians stage mass protest against 'Great Satan' US), Revolutionary Guards, in an article in their most recent magazine, took the president to task for declaring recently that, after the supreme leader, it is his government and not parliament that is the country's highest authority (Revolutionary Guards speak out against Ahmadinejad). Even more ominous were the comments from former Iranian Revolutionary Guard Reza Kahlili, speaking from an undisclosed location, telling Israel National Radio's Yishai Fleisher Iran would not hesitate to use nuclear bombs against Israel (Former Iranian Revolutionary Guard: Iran Will Bomb Israel). “‘[Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government] will use the nuclear bomb against Israel, they will use it against Persian Gulf countries, and they will use it against Europe to bring about that last hadith (Islamic commentaries on sayings and activities of Mohammed and his companions) that calls for total chaos, lawlessness, and havoc in the world, which creates the circumstance for Imam Mahdi (the Islamic messianic figure) to appear.’”

Cultural War: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Congress “can and should” vote to repeal ObamaCare, “repeatedly if necessary” (Senate GOP Leader Takes Aim at Health Law), threatening to cancel funding for its programs if Obama vetos a repeal. Privacy advocates are also taking action, raising alarms “over plans by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to build a database that would contain information about the healthcare claims of millions of Americans” (Privacy advocates fear massive fed health database). “In a letter to OPM Director John Berry, the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) and 15 other organizations asked the agency to release more details on the need for the database and how the data contained in it will be protected and used.”

A school district in New York paid a serious penalty for banning the rosary, classifying it as “gang-connected” (District pays up for slamming student's rosary). The American Center for Law and Justice filed suit after officials at Oneida Middle School in Schenectady implemented the ban, winning a judgment of nearly $25,000. “‘This case sends an important message to other school districts, too—reminding them that the constitutional right of students to express their free speech does, indeed, apply in the school setting,’ the ACLJ said in a related blog report.”

Politics: ‘The greenest president ever’ (President Obama, according to Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club, in a January 2010 Huffington Post article), taking the largest trip ever (logistically), is now being hit on two major fronts in his Asia visit: cost (Obama visit criticised for 'over-the-top' spending) and global warming (Obama’s trip to India has a carbon footprint bigger than many US cities). Not only is Obama spending $200 million PER DAY on the trip, he is emitting 8,469 metric tons of CO2 for the Washington-to-Bombay only roundtrip, according to Anthony Watts who operates the most visited blog on climate science in the world, www.wattsupwiththat.com. Ignoring the other legs of the trip (South Korea and Indonesia), the Washington-to-Bombay portion “comes in between Memphis and Raleigh on a per capita basis,” according to The Brookings Institute’s 2008 survey ranking major US cities by their per capita emissions.

But wait, there’s even more carbon: Obama “will also be protected by a fleet of 34 warships, including an aircraft carrier, which will patrol the sea lanes off the Mumbai coast during his two-day stay there beginning Saturday” (34 warships sent from US for Obama visit). We think Press Trust of India is a little misleading with the headline, as the ships are most likely already in the Indian Ocean in support of operations in Afghanistan. But the U.S. Navy is still expending some of its fuel budget to support the trip.

To look at the president’s trip from another perspective, consider British Prime Minister David Cameron, who took a business-class seat home on board a scheduled British Airways flight, after traveling to New York from Washington on Amtrak’s Acela train (U.K.'s Cameron, Pinching Pennies, Goes Commercial). “‘We have got a lot of money to save,’ the prime minister told ABC News July 20. ‘We’ve got a very big budget deficit, so we can’t go spending money on executive planes, sadly.’”

We would argue calling Obama “elitist” is just a slight understatement! We are thinking more along the lines of gross misconduct and gross negligence, with misconduct in most companies disciplined with immediate termination of employment and negligence in courts with civil fines. And if this isn’t the height of insanity, Obama must not like coconuts, as they’re being removed from trees for the visit (Coconuts removed from trees in preparation for Barack Obama's India trip). This action could only be taken because Obama must have some irrational fear. If one uses the ‘reasonable person’ test lawyers love, it is far cheaper to assign one individual to look up, if Obama is even ever under a coconut tree, than to remove all coconuts from all trees the President could potentially walk under around the Gandhi museum.

2010 election: More indicators for new Congressional directions:

Republican election surge hits U.S. state houses

GOP likely to urge Obama officials not to shred documents

Darrell Issa signals restraint in Obama oversight

Eric Cantor lays out 22-page game plan

Harry Reid, winner over Sharron Angle, tells Republicans that 'no' is not the answer

Tea party bites 'Marxist-socialist bloc'

A tea-party warning to Republicans (Letter)

DeMint: We'll Ban Earmarks Right Away

New House Judiciary Chairman to Obama: Prepare for Investigations

Rush Limbaugh: Obama is poison. Blood is in water for 2012

TAKE ACTION: Please visit e-VotingBooth.com, setup your FREE account, login and vote legislation, including any previously-enacted 111th Congress (current) bills.
Why vote a bill already enacted?
Because we’re currently building our Voting Scorecard. This tool is effectively a report card and will list all your votes alongside your representative, senators, VP and President, where applicable. The bottom line number for each public servant will be a percentage indicating how each voted with or against your personal legislative desires. For example, 80% means the public servant, or potential public servant, voted with you 80% of your total votes. This is powerful information every American should have and use when making future election decisions. Though not live on the site yet, the database has been built and is current with all Roll Calls to-date.

Headline Report for Nov. 3, 2010

The top news long-term, continues to be the following ISSUES:

    * Financial Crisis

    * GWOT

    * Cultural War (between the left and right)

Short-term top news centers on the following EVENTS:

    * Election follow-up

Financial Crisis: The Fed today announced it will buy $600 billion more in bonds by next summer in an attempt to breath life into the economy (Fed to Spend $600 Billion More To Help Boost US Economy). The US dollar promptly fell against the euro and also pared gains against the yen. “Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig continued his streak of dissents, saying the risk of additional securities purchases outweighed the benefits.” With a just-announced 2% third quarter GDP and our main creditors (China, Russia and India) long past fed up with our debt levels (Will China Keep Buying Our Debt?) we see this as a purely political move.

Of course the $600 billion over the next six or so months is in addition to the billions the U.S. will borrow just to fund the government from October to December (Treasury estimates $362B in borrowing for quarter). At least 40 cents of every dollar the Federal government spends each and every day is now borrowed money. “‘This nation is on a course where if we don’t do something about it, get federal situation, the fiscal policy [under control], we’re Greece. We’re a banana republic,’ said Sen. Judd Gregg, (R-N.H.) to CNBC ('We're Greece' in a Few Years: Sen. Gregg). ‘Our status as a nation is threatened by what we’ve got coming at us in the area of deficit and debt. And it’s only a few more years, at the most, that we have to work with here before the market says, “Sorry, your currency is something we can not continue to defend.””

Yesterday’s election of conservatives didn’t have any effect either: “‘The rest of the world, including Asia, is looking at the United States and seeing no real effective policy measures in bringing the economy back on track,’ said Bart Van Ark, the chief economist at the Conference Board, which measures U.S. economic indicators. ‘That is making the U.S. lose its legitimacy in the global economic community as a leader in terms of providing solutions’” (Shift in Washington Stirs Economic Jitters Abroad).

So it’s no surprise after the last 2 years that Home ownership at lowest level in a decade. “About 18.8 million homes, or 14.4 percent of all houses and apartments, were vacant, according to the government survey.”

It looks like the financial crisis isn’t confined to the western world as “Cuban President Raul Castro told unionists to accept layoffs and reforms that open the way for private enterprise as necessary for the survival of socialism” (Accept reforms or “we will fall off the cliff” warns Raúl Castro).

GWOT: Tangle.com has An Alarming video every Westerner should see. The speaker is Abdallah Fahd Abd Al''Azia Al-Nafisi', speaking to a supportive crowd. The video was aired on Al Jazeera TV.

Cultural War: Oklahoma yesterday became the first state to ban Shariah laws and courts (Voters decide to banish Islamic law). The action comes in the wake of 85 separate Shariah courts in the UK for Muslims “that operate in parallel with the Crown courts of the nation, and one judge in New Jersey already has cited Shariah in a defense of a man accused of assaulting his wife.”

Not only did Oklahoma ban Shariah they shouted “No” to the ObamaCare (Oklahoma votes to gut Obamacare), voting 65 to 35 percent to amend the state constitution to declare mandates to purchase health insurance illegal.

A federal appellate judge Monday blasted administration lawyers in a hearing, expressing “deep skepticism Monday about a Justice Department lawsuit challenging Arizona's new immigration law” (Judge questions Justice Department's lawsuit against Arizona immigration law). What’s very telling about this action is the judge is a member of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco, by far the most liberal court in the county.

2010 election: Where Do Democrats Go Next?, as Few Democrats survive healthcare vote, Obama Appeals for 'Common Ground' After Democrats Lose House and Boehner Claims Mandate to Nix Health Care Bill. It did, however, have a dark side: Election Day fraud found all over U.S., Voting oddities, irregularities across the nation, and Sharron Angle files voter intimidation complaint. The aftermath may be just as ugly: After electoral drubbing, Democrats must now deal with ethics trials, Republicans promise an era of limited government, Pressure Builds on Obama to Shake Up Inner Circle, Democrats Lose Obama's Former Senate Seat, DeMint digs at GOP establishment, and Tea time: GOP near locking up House control.

TAKE ACTION: Please visit e-VotingBooth.com, setup your FREE account, login and vote legislation, including any previously-enacted 111th Congress (current) bills.
Why vote a bill already enacted?
Because we’re currently building our Voting Scorecard. This tool is effectively a report card and will list all your votes alongside your representative, senators, VP and President, where applicable. The bottom line number for each public servant will be a percentage indicating how each voted with or against your personal legislative desires. For example, 80% means the public servant, or potential public servant, voted with you 80% of your total votes. This is powerful information every American should have and use when making future election decisions. Though not live on the site yet, the database has been built and is current with all Roll Calls to-date.

Headline Report for Nov. 2, 2010

The top news long-term, continues to be the following ISSUES:

    * Financial Crisis

    * GWOT

    * Cultural War (between the left and right)

    * Politics

Short-term top news centers on the following EVENTS:

    * Election day

    * Life’s Rich Pageant

Financial Crisis: Today’s information is BIG, both in terms of story quantity and implications. We strongly recommend you read closely, and re-read if necessary, to make sure you understand all the implications.

China is now officially—and publicly—pissed with the United States after this irate statement from their commerce ministry today: “The continued and drastic US dollar depreciation recently has led countries including Japan, South Korea, and Thailand to intervene in the currency market, intensifying a 'currency war'. In the mid-term, the US dollar will continue to weaken and gaming between major currencies will escalate” (QE2 risks currency wars and the end of dollar hegemony).

While G20 ministers stuck to the script words during last month’s summit, they will continue to fight and protect their individual currencies. As a result, collapse of the Western financial ‘system’ will accelerate: “‘It is becoming harder to mop up the liquidity flowing into these countries,’ said Neil Mellor, of the Bank of New York Mellon. ‘We fully expect more central banks to impose capital controls over the next couple of months. That is the world we live in,’ he said. Globalisation is unravelling before our eyes.” At some point the 40-odd countries pegged to the dollar or closely linked by a “dirty float” will realize they do NOT have to go down this ‘Only Way’ road, “these countries are under mounting pressure to break free from the dollar. They are all asking themselves whether these pegs are a relic of the past," said David Bloom, currency chief at HSBC.

The cost of the crisis continues to rise in Europe as Britain and France, historical antagonists, enter a defense partnership today (France and UK plan unprecedented military cooperation). This agreement comes as Britain cuts its defense budget by 8 percent in real terms over the next four years.

EU leaders have acknowledge a temporary eurozone crisis facility set up in May had to be replaced with a permanent mechanism to avert the possibility of a recurrence of the problems faced by the eurozone earlier this year (Merkel secures major victory). The agreement, however, seems counterproductive: “The deal was secured, however, only after a number of important concessions on other demands. Germany had to give up demands for member states that break eurozone budget rules to lose voting rights and face automatic sanctions.” Clearly Germany is betting the entire ranch Europe can dig itself out of the current financial crisis.

Economists surveyed by Bloomberg believe the Fed will introduce at least $500 billion in “an unprecedented second round of unconventional monetary easing tomorrow” (Fed Will Probably Start $500 Billion of Bond Buys, Survey Shows). Some expect a severe penalty for the action: “‘I think a 20 percent decline in the dollar is possible,’ said Bill Gross, adding the pace of the currency's decline was also an important consideration for investors. “‘When a central bank prints trillions of dollars of checks, which is not necessarily what (a second round of quantitative easing) will do in terms of the amount, but if it gets into that territory—that is a debasement of the dollar in terms of the supply of dollars on a global basis,’ Gross told Reuters in an interview at his PIMCO headquarters.” Remember, "The dollar is being trashed, we've actually had effectively devaluation of about 14 percent in the last two months," according to Robin Griffiths, technical strategist at Cazenove Capital (Dollar at Risk of Becoming 'Toxic Waste').

More economic data supports the projection of a double-dip recession (Mid-America economy staggers amid weak job growth): Creighton University's Business Conditions Index fell to 52.3 in October from 56.3 in September (A reading of 50 is considered growth neutral, while a reading above that signals expansion over the next three to six months.). "Since July, the leading economic indicator has been trending downward and indicates slower growth in the months ahead. Even so, surveys are not pointing to a double dip recession," said Creighton University Economics Professor Ernie Goss in a statement.

Journalism 101 teaches students the three ‘Bs’ (babies, beauties and beasts) are what sell. So American Media Inc., publisher of the tabloid National Enquirer, announcing plans Monday to file for bankruptcy protection is another strong indicator of the severity of the financial crisis (National Enquirer publisher seeking bankruptcy protection).

At an individual level, increasing longevity and the financial crisis are forcing new realities (In Their 90s, Working For More Than Just A Paycheck), especially if Bill Gross’s projections (above) are accurate: “between 1985 and 2008, the percentage of Americans working past the age of 65 rose from 11 percent to 17 percent. According to Caitrin Lynch, an associate professor of anthropology at Olin College in Needham, it doesn't make sense anymore for people to retire at 65.”

To mitigate the effects of the financial crisis you might consider going on a Debt Diet (Overwhelmed by Debt? Go on a Debt Diet), especially since the average American ‘weighs in’ at $16,000 in debt, not including the mortgage.

GWOT: Al-Qaida took a direct shot at Christians today, killing at least 58 and wounding at least 78 after Iraqi security forces raided Our Lady of Deliverance in Baghdad during evening Mass today to end the hostage situation (58 die in siege on Baghdad Catholic church). “Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki also condemned the siege, saying it was an attempt to drive more Christians out of the country.”

Cultural War: “While Republicans are expected to make extraordinary gains in today's elections, the most radical Democrat members of Congress—notably a House caucus founded as an arm of a Marxist socialist organization—are expected to emerge mostly unscathed,” reports WorldNetDaily.com (Congress 'socialist bloc' expected to survive vote). Almost all of the members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which boasts 83 members and was founded by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), are expected to win their Districts.

Politics: The Middle East has another potential driver for conflict (Oil and gas discoveries produce potential Israel-Lebanon flash points). “‘This is something big and potentially landscape-changing economically, financially, and politically,’ says Nassib Ghobril, head of economic research and analysis at Byblos Bank in Beirut.” The potential tension isn’t limited to Israel (Oil and Gas Finds Fueling Tension in Eastern Mediterranean): “Complicating matters is the fact that the deposits are in international waters, historically a reason for nations to call in the gun boats in the absence of a production-sharing agreements. The potential threat is heightened by the state of war between Israel and Lebanon and tension between Turkey and Cyprus over Turkey's backing of Turkish Cypriots in their dispute with the island's Greek Cypriot majority.”

After building e-VotingBooth.com and inputting 111^th Congress bills and resolutions we agree with Rep. Michele Bachmann, who will set up constitutional classes for newly-elected because “There’s so many folks that come to Capitol Hill to discuss obscure and mundane topics, but no one coming regularly to discuss bill of rights or the role of government” (Bachmann wants Constitution class). Based on just one day’s reporting (above) of the condition of our country we believe time is running out for the Executive and Legislative branches to focus on Maslow’s base level needs at a country level before we’re forced to by the Chinese, Russian, Indian and Brazilian central banks.

2010 election: We have an indication of the volume of automated political calls this election (Comcast: 'Massive' Amount Of Political Calls Lead To Phone Outages). Apparently the ‘Opt-Out’ list means nothing to the politicians as our own staff report numerous calls in the last week, providing individual confirmation of lack of respect of the law.

Nevada’s Senate race provides a prelude to post-election news (Reid and Angle fight could spill into December). After hanging chads and convicted felons providing a Senate seat to Al Franken (Investigation: Franken might not have been chosen), we agree with Radhia Al-Mutawakel, a human-rights activist and the director of Hewar Organization for Democratic Development in Yemen, not only for relations between the Muslim world and the West but between the left and right (Civil society is the best way to create real change): “My personal experience with human rights work in Yemen made me believe that civil society is the best way to create real change and to create solid common ground between communities in the Muslim world and the West.” Right now we see the incivility as part of the political calculus to both gain/maintain support, as well as provide an excuse for failures.

Life’s Rich Pageant: Researchers from the world-famous Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge claim a dramatic breakthrough (A cure for the common cold may finally be achieved as a result of a remarkable discovery in a Cambridge laboratory).

We’ll definitely need their help because Soon We'll Be Drinking Recycled Pee; Some of Us Already Are.

Today’s Darwin Award goes to Robert Leroy Johnson Jr., 40, of Byers, Colorado. Byers appeared at the Arapahoe County Jail Saturday saying he wanted to turn himself in on a minor warrant. Just one problem: he forgot the vehicle he drove to jail had a dead male body in the trunk (Body In Car Trunk Killed By Gunshot To Head)!

TAKE ACTION: Please visit e-VotingBooth.com, setup your FREE account, login and vote legislation, including any previously-enacted 111th Congress (current) bills.
Why vote a bill already enacted?
Because we’re currently building our Voting Scorecard. This tool is effectively a report card and will list all your votes alongside your representative, senators, VP and President, where applicable. The bottom line number for each public servant will be a percentage indicating how each voted with or against your personal legislative desires. For example, 80% means the public servant, or potential public servant, voted with you 80% of your total votes. This is powerful information every American should have and use when making future election decisions. Though not live on the site yet, the database has been built and is current with all Roll Calls to-date.

Headline Report for Nov. 1, 2010

The top news long-term, continues to be the following ISSUES:

    * Financial Crisis

    * Cultural War (between the left and right)

    * Politics

Short-term top news centers on the following EVENTS:

* Final jockeying for election day Nov. 2

Financial Crisis: The dollar hit a 15-year low against the yen, for the third time in the last couple months, Monday (Dollar sinks before 'busiest week in decades'). It also sank against the euro. "Market angst is likely to reach fever pitch this week as we lead up to no less than five central bank meetings, mid-term elections in the US and a non-farm payroll report on Friday,” said Kathleen Brooks, a Forex.com analyst. “A week packed full of so much event risk is a rare thing in the financial markets, and the dollar has started as it left off on Friday—trading with an air of nervousness," she added.

Meanwhile, both Russia and China continue to step up and fill the financial and political shoes of the declining U.S., as Russia allegedly expressed its desire to Turkmenistan to sell their gas anywhere but Europe (Russia’s Message to Turkmenistan: Export Your Gas Anywhere Except Europe). Though Secretary Clinton is there now and President Obama heads there soon for “a whirl of deal-making and diplomacy, from Tokyo to New Delhi,” the U.S. is at a significant disadvantage between a $13 trillion debt and America’s longest war in Afghanistan against China’s $3-plus trillion cash reserves (China’s Fast Rise Leads Neighbors to Join Forces). We suspect the Asian countries will follow in China and North Korea’s footsteps and extract what they can from the U.S. while they still can.

On a national level spending slowed in September to its weakest in three months while income fell for the first time in 14 months (September consumer spending weak while incomes dip). “Personal spending rose at an annual rate of 0.2 percent in September, the Commerce Department said Monday. That's below the 0.5 percent gains recorded in July and August. Incomes fell 0.1 percent in September, following a 0.4 percent rise in August that had been pushed higher by the return of extended unemployment benefits.”

In California an Alameda County Superior Court judge put Gov. Schwarzenegger between a rock and day care Friday by issuing a temporary restraining order to prevent the state from cutting child care for tens of thousands of children of working parents coming off welfare rolls (Court won't let Calif. cut child care funds). The funding would have expired today. “The move comes in the wake of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's veto of $256 million in child care funds before signing the new state budget into law.”

Armed security guards will be placed at unemployment offices around the state as a precaution in advance of the early-December expiration of unemployment benefits for thousands after the 99-week maximum allowed for Federal extensions (Unemployment Offices To Add Armed Guards).

Cultural War: Polls are showing the American public has rejected President Obama's leftist politics, as the tea-party movement has gained momentum and independent voters are breaking hard to support Republicans (Voters abandoning Obama in droves?). “Republicans, however, should be cautious to realize the realignment of voters is at its base a reaction against incumbents as a whole,” said Jerome Corsi in an excerpt from his latest Red Alert report.

John Nolte’s Big Hollywood blog (Brietbart) Saturday had a two-fer, addressing political correctness and radical Islam in discussing Bill Maher’s Friday Real Time interview where he asked “Am I racist to feel alarmed by that?” (Bill Maher: Am I Racist to Feel Alarmed By the Thought of Islam Taking Over the Western World?). It no-doubt follows the story of Juan Williams’ firing by NPR. Has the PC veil regarding Islam been broken in the U.S? Maybe, but we think where it really needs breaking is within Islamic society itself, if only to get Islam to allow introspection.

Politics: Rule-of-law seems to be improving in Russia after almost 2,000 people assembled in Moscow for a rare sanctioned rally in “a nod to the 31st Article of the Russian constitution, which guarantees the right of assembly” (2,000 rally in Moscow, demand freedom of assembly). "Authorities have shown respect for the law for the first time," Sergei Udaltsov, leader of the anti-Kremlin Left Front movement, said as he moved to join Alexeyeva's rally "It's a big victory for the opposition."

WorldNetDaily.com claims a “PA official, as well as security sources in Egypt and Jordan, said they heard from the Obama administration an outline of a series of moves to pressure Israel after the Nov. 2 vote” (Obama 'to turn on Israel after midterm elections'). That Obama will do so is no surprise, the article just provides evidence of Obama’s intent to limit further damage to the Democrats this election. A cynical person would also say it indicates someone in his administration or party thinks they’ll do better than expected in the election, and our recent cites of voter fraud and intimidation might be the basis for that expectation.

Another possible source could be the continued split vote between the Republican and Tea Parties (Next for GOP leaders: Stopping Palin).

Brazil yesterday elected their first female president who has a very interesting past (Ex-guerrilla to be Brazil's first female president): “a former Marxist guerrilla who was tortured and imprisoned during Brazil's long dictatorship.” How she rules could have a major impact on Brazil’s economy and her international business, most notably oil exploration and production.

2010 election: e-VotingBooth.com definitely believes the pen/word is mightier than the sword and agree with House Republican Leader John Boehner’s remarks for a Cincinnati rally with Rob Portman, the GOP nominee for Senate in Ohio, and John Kasich, the GOP nominee for Ohio governor (John Boehner to hit President Obama on 'enemies'): “Ladies and gentlemen, we have a president in the White House who referred to Americans who disagree with him as ‘our enemies.’ Think about that. He actually used that word. When Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush used the word ‘enemy,’ they reserved it for global terrorists and foreign dictators — enemies of the United States. Enemies of freedom. Enemies of our country. Today, sadly, we have president who uses the word ‘enemy’ for fellow Americans — fellow citizens. He uses it for people who disagree with his agenda of bigger government — people speaking out for a smaller, more accountable government that respects freedom and allows small businesses to create jobs. Mr. President, there's a word for people who have the audacity to speak up in defense of freedom, the Constitution, and the values of limited government that made our country great. We don't call them ‘enemies.’ We call them ‘patriots.’”

TAKE ACTION: Please visit e-VotingBooth.com, setup your FREE account, login and vote legislation, including any previously-enacted 111th Congress (current) bills.
Why vote a bill already enacted?
Because we’re currently building our Voting Scorecard. This tool is effectively a report card and will list all your votes alongside your representative, senators, VP and President, where applicable. The bottom line number for each public servant will be a percentage indicating how each voted with or against your personal legislative desires. For example, 80% means the public servant, or potential public servant, voted with you 80% of your total votes. This is powerful information every American should have and use when making future election decisions. Though not live on the site yet, the database has been built and is current with all Roll Calls to-date.