"Shock & Disbelief" 

With 55 Democrat votes in the Senate, President Obama's cabinet nominations should be a slam dunk. But in recent days, many senators refused to take a position on the controversial nomination of former Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel to be Secretary of Defense. They said that they would wait until after the confirmation hearing to make a decision. 

The hearing is over and Hagel's fate remains far from certain. The blogosphere was ablaze yesterday with many liberals describing Hagel's performance as a "disaster." CNN's Dana Bash reported that senators were "shocked" and in a state of "disbelief" after the hearings. You can see why here. 

Among other astonishing statements yesterday, Hagel said the following:

As the Wall Street Journal points out, Hagel's ignorance may be understandable given that he "was never on the Armed Services Committee." Surely there must be someone more qualified to lead the Pentagon. 

If you would like to share your views with your senators about Chuck Hagel's nomination, click here to use our online Congressional Directory to look up contact information for your senators. 

Homicide Bombing At U.S. Embassy 

A homicide bomber blew himself up attempting to enter the U.S. embassy in Ankara, Turkey, today. The blast killed one guard and injured two others as well as a Turkish journalist. 

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but I believe it exposes oft-repeated myth that "Al Qaeda has been decimated." 

Jihadists have attacked our consulate in Benghazi and murdered our ambassador and three other Americans. A natural gas facility in Algeria was attacked by Al Qaeda thugs whose only goal was to kill "Christians and infidels." 

Al Qaeda militants control large swaths of North Africa. Radical Islamists are taking over country after country in the Middle East. Syria is in a civil war and its stockpiles of chemical weapons are in jeopardy of falling into the hands of terrorists. Now Egypt's top general is warning that his country could collapse into chaos. 

Unemployment Up 

Today's employment report brought more evidence of the fragile state of the American economy. The unemployment rate increased to 7.9%. Once again more adults left the workforce (169,000) than found new jobs (157,000). 

Putting these dismal numbers into perspective, Professor Peter Morici of the University of Maryland writes: 
 

That does not seem likely as long as taxes and regulations are increasing. By the way, gas prices are setting record highs too. 

The sad reality is that economic growth shrank last quarter. Liberal politicians are complaining that the economy shrank because of a reduction in government spending. Thus, they claim that what the economy really needs right now is more stimulus spending. 

There is some merit to their argument, but their solution is wrong. Military spending was down last quarter. But no liberal is suggesting we spend more on the military. To the left, food stamps and paying people not to work are stimulus programs. 

FBI Raids Office Of Big Liberal Donor 

The FBI raided the West Palm Beach office of Dr. Salomon Melgen Tuesday on charges that he owes millions in back taxes. Dr. Melgen is a big time donor to liberal candidates and a major patron of New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez. 

Conservative news sites broke a story last year that Menendez solicited underage prostitutes in the Dominican Republic. Big Media ignored the story, which Menendez dismissed as an election-year smear campaign. It has resurfaced in recent days, just as Menendez prepares, somewhat ironically, to assume the chairmanship of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. 

Last week The Daily Caller released emails indicating the FBI was pursuing the allegations. So what's the connection to Dr. Melgen? 

Menendez reportedly took several trips to the Dominican Republic onboard Dr. Melgen's private jet. Last month, Menendez reimbursed Dr. Melgen nearly $60,000 for the cost of those flights. 

In addition to the prostitutes, the New York Times reports that Dr. Melgen, an eye surgeon, recently bought into a company that had a "long-dormant contract" to provide port security in the Dominican Republic. His good friend Senator Menendez used his influence to make sure that the $500 million contract would be enforced. 

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid should, at a minimum, prevent Senator Menendez from assuming the chairmanship of the Foreign Relations Committee until this investigation is complete. If Menendez is forced to resign, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie would appoint his replacement. Stay tuned! 

What Ever Happened To Football? 

I still remember when the Super Bowl used to be about tough, manly football players going out on the gridiron and pummeling each other until one team claimed the trophy. The week before the game would feature rhetorical "chest thumping" insults and heated discussions about the talent of the players.

Alas the football of my youth is disappearing and being replaced by political correctness and left-wing posturing. This year seems particularly putrid with the media focused on whether Beyonce will lip sync the national anthem (she promises to actually sing it this time) and whether San Francisco cornerback Chris Culliver should be drawn and quartered. 

Culliver sinned against the Gospel of Liberalism when he answered a question posed by shock jock Artie Lang, who asked if there were homosexuals on the San Francisco 49ers team. Here is Culliver's answer: 
 

I will skip over the fact that Mr. Culliver is a graduate of the University of South Carolina, where he apparently missed a few English classes. But what offended the cultural storm troopers was not his elucidation but that he dared to suggest he would not be comfortable if there were homosexual men in the locker room. Oh the horror!

Before the week was over, there were calls for him to be suspended from the team and fined by the NFL. The 49ers coach made it clear that Mr. Culliver will be forced after the game to spend time with the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgendered community in order to acquire the proper attitude. By next season, he'll be singing show tunes and expounding on the virtues of same-sex "marriage."

Here's my unsolicited advice to Mr. Culliver or any other pro-football player who is asked about the homosexual agenda: Just respond by attacking Tim Tebow or any other player who is openly Christian. It is okay in the NFL to tell them that they should stay in the closet.