The left is so afraid of Sarah Palin that they will do or say anything IF they think that it reflects badly on her.  Our pals over at DelawareLiberal are no different.

According to “Unstable Isotope”, Palin is “intolerant” and just plain stupid.  I’ll admit that spelling errors piss me off too (particularly my own), but I hardly think that makes Palin “dumb”.  After all, the folks over at DL worship at the alter of Barack Obama and he can’t even read his teleprompter.  Remember the Navy Corpse-man who received a medal?

As for denouncing the mosque at Ground Zero, Palin is right on target.  Even in Delaware, I think Mr. (or is it Ms.?) Isotope would find themselves heavily outnumbered on this one.

What happened to the “new kind of politics” promised by the Obama faithful?  Sounds like the same old partisan hackery to me.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has declared the Tea Party movement “racist”.  What does the Tea Party stand for?  Here a a few of the movement’s primary issues:

• Fiscal Responsibility
• The Rule of Law
• Limited Government
• Personal Responsibility
• Lower Taxes

Gee, I guess I need to order a sheet and a hood!

By attacking a grassroots movement whose only crime appears to be supporting genuine American values, the NAACP has lost any credibility as a civil rights organization and can only be objectively viewed as an adjunct of the Democrat party and partisan political left.

The NAACP leadership has attempted to gain political cover by claiming support for the Tea Party’s right of free assembly but accusing the movement of tolerating “racist elements”.  For “evidence”, the NAACP claims that Tea Party activists hurled racial epithets at black congressmen.  The problem is that no evidence exists to back up their claim despite an extensive video record of the purported incident:

"We take no issue with the Tea Party movement. We believe in freedom of assembly and people raising their voices in a democracy," the NAACP President Benjamin Todd Jealous said in a written statement announcing the unanimous vote. "What we take issue with is the Tea Party’s continued tolerance for bigotry and bigoted statements.

"The time has come for them to accept the responsibility that comes with influence and make clear there is no place for racism and anti-Semitism, homophobia and other forms of bigotry in their movement."

NAACP leaders have referenced an incident in March when Tea Party protesters allegedly hurled racial epithets at black lawmakers on Capitol Hill ahead of a health care vote.

But Tea Party members have challenged claims that their activists accosted black lawmakers in March and no visual evidence has been produced depicting a racist attack. Dallas Tea Party founder Phillip Dennis said "there was no proof" of racist behavior at the event and that the movement welcomes minority members.

"We don’t care about the pigment of one’s skin," he said. Dennis accused the NAACP of playing the "race card" and called the organization "irrelevant."

SWAC Girl, and fellow Duke fan, Lynn Mitchell has a great piece on that well known ailment – LIBERAL SELECTIVE MEMORY SYNDROME.  This is just one more disease that ObamaCare is guaranteed not to cure.

FOXNews reports that Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyle (R-AZ) has fired a shot across the bow of the Obama administration regarding any possible replacement for Associate Justice John Paul Stevens:

He suggested the party did not want anyone so outspoken as Sonia Sotomayor, who was picked to replace former Justice David Souter last year, and said the decision on whether the GOP will filibuster will "all depend" on who the next nominee is.

"I think the president will nominate a qualified person. I hope, however, he does not nominate an overly ideological person. That will be the test," Kyl said. "And if he doesn’t nominate someone who is overly ideological, I don’t think — you may see Republicans voting against the nominee, but I don’t think you’ll see them engage in a filibuster."

Stevens, the leader of the courts liberal wing, has stated that he will retire while Obama is still president.  Wait, I thought people like Stevens were “above politics”?

“I don’t worry about the Constitution.”  That’s a direct quote from Rep. Phil Hare (D-IL).

It’s bad enough that this guy thinks that the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution are the same thing.  It’s bad enough that he doesn’t worry about little things like our Constitution.  Here is the oath of office Rep. Hare took in January of 2007 AND 2009:

I, NAME, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

It seems that Phil Hare is one of those domestic enemies.  At least local lefty Mike Pretl makes a pretense of adhering to the Constitution in claiming that ObamaCare is a good thing.  Hayek was right.  Without the rule of law we are most certainly headed down the road to serfdom.

McCarthyism … That dirty little word from the 1950’s.  We shouldn’t persecute people for their political beliefs.  (NO, we should PROSECUTE people because of their political beliefs) Well, it’s back.  The NEW face of McCarthyism – Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), the congressman from 90210.

Waxman has decided to haul several corporations before his Energy and Commerce Committee to attack them.  Why?  They had the audacity to restate their earning because of the future impact of ObamaCare.  Their crime?  Obeying the law.

Corporations are required to restate their earning in a timely fashion when circumstances warrant.  Corporations are also required to include the present value of future healthcare liabilities on their balance sheets.  Because companies like AT&T, John Deere, Caterpillar, Valero, and others, commit the unspeakable crime of providing drug benefits to their retirees, they have been forced to write down earnings because of an increase in their future health care liabilities.

Paradoxically, if these same companies did not restate their earnings in a timely fashion, Waxman’s pals – the nation’s trial lawyers – would be rushing to court to file class action suits against these same companies.  But that’s OK.  Just don’t blame ObamaCare for the evaporation of billions of dollars of wealth.

As the Wall Street Journal puts it:

In other words, shoot the messenger. Black-letter financial accounting rules require that corporations immediately restate their earnings to reflect the present value of their long-term health liabilities, including a higher tax burden. Should these companies have played chicken with the Securities and Exchange Commission to avoid this politically inconvenient reality? Democrats don’t like what their bill is doing in the real world, so they now want to intimidate CEOs into keeping quiet.

Of course they should have.  To people like Waxman, corporations are merely props in their bizarre little kabuki world. It doesn’t matter that they employ people, pay taxes (lots of taxes), and create wealth (the true engine that drives our economy).  No.  Theses evil, overpaid CEO’s should merely have kept their mouths shut and paid off the lawyers in the lawsuits that surely would have ensued.

RedState’s Erick Erickson hits the nail on the head:

This is behavior that can indisputably be described as soviet behavior (my emphasis). If McCarthyism was about hounding out communists and their sympathizers, the left seems intent on creating their own version of McCarthyism, which we can call Waxmania — silencing capitalists.

To the left capitalism IS the NEW COMMUNISM.  They can’t even admit to what they aspire.  Instead, they wish to bring their brand of corporatism, their LIBERAL FASCISM, into our culture right under the very noses of the workers who will be most heavily affected.  To do that, Waxman and his ilk feel that they must persecute (and even prosecute) corporate CEO’s who dare obey the law … if obeying the law means admitting that schemes like ObamaCare will strip shareholders and employees of the wealth they have worked so hard to accumulate.

Yes, McCarthy was a populist ass, but he was right more often than he was wrong.  Waxman can’t even claim that.

Was there ever any doubt as to their intentions?  I wonder if Dingell can spell T-Y-R-A-N-N-Y?

H/T – Aaron Gardner @ RedState

Today’s front page story in the Daily Times regarding Salisbury mayor Jim Ireton’s new “Slumlord of the Week” policy fails to answer several questions:

1. Is this “policy” meant to accomplish anything?
2. Why doesn’t Ireton actually do something to fulfill his campaign promise “to ‘close loopholes’ in the city’s municipal codes and get crime out of neighborhoods”?

IF Ireton was actually doing something to close these loopholes and to actually enforce the spirit, as well as the letter, of the city’s zoning laws that would be one thing.  Instead, we have seen one woman loose her rental income because of zoning (last Sunday’s DT), but we’re not seeing any progress in taking care of the scores of non-conforming uses in the city.

Ireton isn’t pushing the issue in the appropriate forum – the city council – because he knows that the “council majority” of Gary Comegys, Louise Smith, and Shanie Shields are owned by the city’s slumlords.  Instead of exhibiting a backbone, my friend Jim is doing what liberals do best – making a show without accomplishing anything.

Does he really believe that a slumlord is going to be shamed?  It’s time for a little reality check Jimmy.

Because Ireton is unwilling to stand up to either the Barrie Comegys bloc on council or the bureaucracy within his own administration, Salisbury’s citizens are being forced to pay for Allan Webster’s six month paid vacation, watch city officials spend money that has not been appropriated, and now they are being given a “show” rather than real solutions to the rental problems that have faced Salisbury for years.

In just over a month, Ireton will present his first budget.  I am confident that it will include a sizable tax increase.  I can’t wait to see what kind of show Ireton will put on to justify that “policy” as well.

Jim needs to learn that the people who elected him expect solutions, not a “show”.  Jim needs to learn that voters want him to DO SOMETHING rather than just claim to “feel their pain”.

Much has already been written about Saturday morning’s Salisbury town hall meeting held by Del. Norm Conway (D-38B) and Del. Jim Mathias (D-38B).  Michael Swartz of Monoblogue provides a very factual, blow-by-blow account.  Julie Brewington of Right Coast Girl weighs in with a little more opinion.  My friend Joe Albero, uncharacteristically, is taking a “can’t we all get along” approach.

There are two things that almost everyone seems to agree on.  One is that we appreciate Conway and Mathias taking time to meet with constituents.  Yes, I know it’s an election year AND that it’s part of their job.  Yet, not every member of the legislature takes the time.  The second thing is that both Conway and Mathias are “good guys”.  I concur.  Wicomico County Exec Rick Pollitt is a “good guy”; so is Councilmen John Cannon and Dave MacLeod.  Councilwoman Sheree Sample-Hughes is a “good person”.  Hell, I’m sure there are even a few people who like Salisbury Councilwoman Louise Smith and Wicomico Councilman Bill McCain.  Regardless, taxpayers need to ask themselves if they can afford to continue supporting these “good guys”.

BIG GOVERNMENT CONSERVATIVES?

Mathias is widely considered to be the more conservative of the two delegates representing 38-B.  Both Mathias and Conway attempt to portray themselves as “common sense, conservative Democrats”.  However, closely listening to these two yields a different conclusion.  Mathias lamented the fact that Wicomico County had lost large employers such as Dresser, Campbell Soup, and Crown Cork & Seal.  Yet, according to Mathias, these private sector employers had been replaced by the growth of Salisbury University, Wor-Wic Community College, and PRMC.  What’s the difference?  For starters two of the three are GOVERNMENT and the third does not contribute to the local tax base.

Before anyone starts pointing fingers, I’m not bashing SU, et al.  Our local economy benefits greatly from these institutions.  Sadly, as SU and PRMC continue to expand their respective footprints, the impact on the local governments will be increasingly negative.  Why?  They don’t pay property taxes and their “payments in lieu of taxes” never keep up with the increasing demands being placed by these institutions on local infrastructure and services.  Yet, Mathias argues that replacing private sector employment with the public sector is somehow an even trade?

PROTECTORS OF THE FAMILY FARM?

What distressed me even more than Mathias’s belief that government can create wealth was the hypocritical rhetoric of both Conway and Mathias regarding our farmers.  Mathias and Conway both crowed that they were helping local poultry farmers to get needed permits for new poultry house construction.  This would be wonderful EXCEPT for the fact that Mathias, Conway, and their lefty pals in Annapolis are attempting to DESTROY DELMARVA’S POULTRY FARMERS.

While Conway and Mathias are "helping” poultry farmers in public, they are working with groups like the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Maryland League of Conservation Voters to put these same constituents out of business.  While these groups are plotting with state officials and local politicians like Pollitt, Cannon, Sample-Hughes, and Wicomico councilmen Bill McCain and Dave MacLeod to strip farmers of their property rights (in the name of “preserving our agricultural heritage”) they are simultaneously working to put these same farmers out of business:

We know what causes these dead zones– unchecked pollution from large factory chicken farms and sprawling development. President Obama has given the EPA a chance to hold these polluters accountable.

Taking away the property rights of local farmers AND regulating them out of business is hardly the image Mathias and Conway want to convey to Wicomico and Worcester farmers.  Yet, they certainly aren’t standing up to protect those farmers.

WHERE IS MY LIMITED GOVERNMENT?

Both Mathias and Conway attempted to sell their assembled constituents that they were working hard to spend their money wisely AND lessen the burden of government regulation on businesses and individuals.

Really?  Where’s your evidence guys?  Both Conway and Mathias live off of the public trough.  Conway is a retired BOE employee.  Mathias’s wife is the town clerk of Ocean City.  Where have either of these two ever stood up to the waste, fraud, and abuse of state and local government?

Mathias and Conway argue that there are only 10 members of the House of Delegates from the Eastern Shore and it takes 71 votes to pass a bill.  That’s true.  However, the quid pro quo, back scratching approach that Mathias and Conway seem to take regarding state policy simply isn’t working.  Heaping praise on Gov. Martin O’Malley and sucking up to their profligate pals in Annapolis has simply yielded an environment where hard working, law abiding, private sector taxpayers are being held hostage to the deified leviathan of big government.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

According to both Mathias and Conway, not much.  The government is just going to continue taking an ever greater share of our economy.

I disagree.  While there are no quick fixes, voters simply need to ask themselves one question when they vote in November:

CAN WE AFFORD ANOTHER FOUR YEARS?

Regardless of the office, if the GOP fails to offer a real alternative DON’T VOTE for that particular office.  Our elected officials must learn that the days of people working FOR the government are coming to an end.  When Marylanders take the same actions as former New Jersey residents and vote with their feet, people like Jim Mathias and Norm Conway will learn that a state populated by government employees and transfer payment recipients simply can’t function.  Only private enterprise can create wealth.

nemski at DelawareLiberal seems to think so but does Delaware really need  Vice President Joe Biden as the unofficial First State poster child?  Biden makes George W Bush look like the chairman of the Oxford Union.  While Gov. Jack Markell is governing far more responsibly than many of us thought he would, both Markell and Delaware have a ways to go to repair the damage done by previous administrations.

nemski is right about one thing – you really should read this article from the Wilmington News-Journal.  Then ask yourself if these supposed “men of the people” are really good for the image of the First State?