Thank You!
You did it, my friends! American Values has just finished the final tallies of our 2012 year-end receipts -- and we met our fundraising goal. I can't thank you enough for your tremendous generosity!
As I mentioned in our appeals, donations were running way behind last year's figures. But once again you have come through in a big way! THANK YOU! We couldn't do our work without you!
Cabinet Shuffle
News broke yesterday that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner plans to step down at the end of the month. That sent many liberal Washington pundits into a near panic. Geithner has been President Obama's point man on a number of key fiscal issues.
As Reuters put it, Geithner's departure "puts Obama in a tough spot." Negotiations over the debt ceiling will come to a head within days after he leaves. At the same time, the president is losing Hillary Clinton at State, Leon Panetta at Defense and Lisa Jackson at EPA. There is widespread speculation that Attorney General Eric Holder will step down soon as well.
By the way, while it is assumed that John Kerry's nomination for Secretary of State will sail through the Senate, it should not. Kerry's foreign policy views deserve thorough scrutiny. After all, do we really want someone as Secretary of State who accused our soldiers of terrorizing women and children and who suggested they were stupid?
John Kerry once called Israel's security fence "a barrier to peace." And yet he referred to Bashar al-Assad's Syria as "an essential player in bringing peace and stability to the region."
I think America can do better. I also believe we can do better than Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense. Obama has not yet formally nominated Hagel, and the bi-partisan opposition to his possible appointment only continues to grow. So much so, in fact, that MSNBC's Chuck Todd predicted this morning that Obama would ultimately drop him. That said, there is also a report today that Hagel's nomination may be sent to the Senate as early as Monday.
Keep in mind that while Congress is bogged down fighting over the debt limit and high-profile confirmation battles, there are plans to add an attack on our Second Amendment right to own a gun and immigration amnesty to this already volatile mix!
Far be it from me to give Barack Obama advice on his cabinet. But I would respectfully suggest that if the president is truly interested in appointing well-respected leaders who could quickly secure bi-partisan support, perhaps he should consider former Senator Joseph Lieberman for either Secretary of State or Defense.
He Said What?
You never know what will come out of Vice President Joe Biden's mouth, and yesterday was a good example. During the swearing in ceremonies for new senators, Biden said things that would normally have the hypersensitive media demanding an immediate resignation.
As Heidi Heitkamp, North Dakota's first female senator, was having her picture taken, Biden joked, "Spread your legs, you're going to be frisked." Can you imagine the media's reaction if Dick Cheney had said something like that to a female senator?
When it was time for Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), the Senate's only black member, to pose with the vice president, Biden seemingly developed an awkward accent as he introduced himself to members of Scott's family.
How liberals get away with these patronizing accents is unbelievable. That wasn't Biden's first time mocking minorities. But being a good liberal, Biden gets a free pass yet again.
Perspective
As liberals frantically prepare legislation to limit Second Amendment rights, FBI crime statistics tell us that hammers and clubs are far greater dangers than rifles.
Kudos to Matt Drudge for his January 2nd tweet pointing out the daily carnage of abortion and our culture's callous response. Drudge wrote the following:
"There will be over 3,500 killed in USA today from abortion. No flags lowered, no presidents crying. No media hyperventilating. Normal day."