Archive for June, 2011

Brett Noel

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David Karki

It’s hard to stomach anything that comes out of President Obama’s mouth anymore. He’s totally disconnected from economic reality, does nothing but endlessly set up phony straw men that he disingenuously uses to fraudulently portray himself as the centrist compromiser, and always tops it with a heaping dollop of raw Marxist class warfare.

His appearance in Iowa, and his press conference this week were nothing but that. First he went to Iowa and talked up the economy, never mind a 20% real unemployment rate and increasing gas and food prices. About the only thing missing was Kevin Bacon in his “Animal House” ROTC uniform, saying “Remain calm, all is well!” even as a riot erupts around him.

He once again yammered on about non-existent green jobs, and of course the usual dig at “the rich” by criticizing private jet use.  About the only thing missing from his usual list was playing the race card and blaming absolutely, positively everything on BOOSH!! Read the rest of this entry »

Dan Calabrese

If you’re following the 2012 presidential campaign at this point, I’d like to suggest you stop, read a good book or two or three, and come back in January when the primaries and caucuses start. I’d prefer that we all wait even longer to be honest with you, but I guess the point when people start voting is as logical a time as any.

And there couldn’t be a less logical time than now, because there isn’t merely nothing going on, there’s less than nothing. Consider:

- Michelle Bachmann made big news the other day by confusing John Wayne with John Wayne Gacy, which really has a lot to do with how we’re going to get federal spending under control.

- Mitt Romney made news a week ago by jokingly referring to himself as unemployed, which really has a lot to do with any policies that might be put in place to prevent so many other people from being unemployed.

- Sarah Palin, who is not even running, made big news by going on a bus tour, suspending the bus tour because she had jury duty, then speculating that maybe she would and maybe she wouldn’t resume the bus tour. This has a great deal to do with our ultimate strategy with respect to Libya, Egypt and Syria.

- Newt Gingrich made big news when his entire campaign staff quit. Apparently they were shocked to discover he is actually running for president.

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Herman Cain

I have developed many strategic plans for success throughout my 40 years of business experience, but the one I am about to present for the nation is the most humbling. Business strategic plans had to capture the keys to profitability and growth. This national economic vision must capture the keys to prosperity for everyone who has a desire to achieve their American dreams.

It starts with education, then a job, and then a career.

People who achieve “success” are able to get beyond day-to-day survival. They find a way to thrive, constantly looking for that next exciting opportunity. This thrive attitude can be rekindled here in this great country, because we have the resources, the ingenuity and that spirit of America that has allowed us to survive during hard times, and thrive when times were better.

Although our public education system has its challenges, we have seen time and time again pockets of excellence where students have defied the odds, when given a chance, to go on and find that elusive success. These exceptions along with the many private and homeschooling success stories are the nucleus for rekindling a results-driven economy.

As my dad and others showed during their generation, a good dose of common sense can go a long way to supplement any deficiencies in formal education if the opportunities are there for someone to better themselves.

For nearly 15 million people, that ladder of opportunity is not there right now. They can’t find a job. By unleashing the full economic potential of our economy, we would ensure there would be a job for every home, and a career opportunity from every job.

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David Karki

President Obama announced a major pull-out of troops from Afghanistan this week, to be implemented in the months to come. This will mean the end, more or less, of combat operations that have been ongoing for a decade, since the aftermath of September 11, 2001. Sadly, it doesn’t appear that it’s better than – or even all that different from – when we first arrived.

Yes, the Taliban is gone and a lot of terrorists got to meet their 72 doe-eyed virgins, but I don’t think anyone can say for certain that that will hold for the long-term. Once we’re gone, who knows how the vacuum will get filled? History does not bode well in this regard.

The British could neither conquer nor civilize Afghanistan from India in the 1800s, nor could the Soviet Union do so in the 1980s. Nor could the United States now. All three eventually left or are leaving after wasting large amounts of money, materiel, and lives there with no real measurable accomplishment to show for it. The only thing that grows there seems to be poppies for heroin and opium, otherwise the high desert and mountains often look more like the moon than Earth. There might be some high mineral content, but you can’t perform scientific tests in ground riddled with improvised explosive devices. Read the rest of this entry »

Lucia de Vernai

President Obama’s televised Afghanistan speech, delivered from the Oval Office on Wednesday night, was one of his worst-rated. His post-bin Laden-capture job performance ratings didn’t last long, dropping 10 points to 43 percent. Perhaps that is why the president chose to address the importance of domestic issues in a foreign policy address.

“Over the last decade, we have spent a trillion dollars on war, at a time of rising debt and hard economic times. Now, we must invest in America’s greatest resource – our people,” Obama said. “We must unleash innovation that creates new jobs and industry, while living within our means.”

Jobs? Debt? If I didn’t know better, I’d say it sounds a lot like a campaign platform…

And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There has been a tendency among Americans to carry on the conversation about the nearly decade-long war in isolation, as if it existed separately from all other struggles of the American people. There was a time when anyone with serious political ambitions would avoid even suggesting the social and financial effects of war on multiple fronts for fear of seeming unpatriotic or unsupportive of the men and women of the Armed Forces.

Yet with new prospects for American military involvement opening across the world—Libya, Tunisia, Egypt—and the growing public struggles of returning veterans, maybe it is time to consider all the factors and costs of war. The need for American involvement, support and funding is not going to end in – nor will it be contained to – Iraq and Afghanistan.

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Brett Noel

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Large version for newspaper publication.

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Dan Calabrese

On the one hand, it seems an outrage that Congress hasn’t actually passed a federal budget in two years, and continues to operate the government on a patched-together series of continuing resolutions. As deficits soar beyond $1.7 trillion, no one wants to take action to bring things under control because it might result in a political slap-down, and we can’t have that.

On the other hand, given the complete lack of seriousness involved in current budget negotiations, it’s hard to see why we yearn so badly for a budget deal. Consider the items that, according to the Associated Press, currently top the agenda in negotiations:

— Saving at least $18 billion over 10 years by eliminating student loan subsidies to those enrolled in graduate schools. Republicans are pressing for another $47 billion by eliminating the in-school subsidies for undergraduates.

— Requiring federal workers to contribute more to their pensions. Democrats are wary and won’t allow the $120 billion-plus sought by Republicans over the coming decade, but appear to be likely to accede to some of the savings.

— Reaping up to $28 billion over 10 years through auctioning electromagnetic spectrum.

— Raising $10 billion or so from sale of unused federal property.

Note the frequent use of the ridiculous “over 10 years” qualifier. Eliminating student loan subsidies to those in graduate school, and saving $18 billion “over 10 years” means an average of $1.8 billion per year. $1.8 billion! The federal deficit is nearly 1,000 times that much. That’s near the top of the agenda?

The reason they’re always trotting out the “over 10 years” line is that they’re never talking about any kind of serious spending reduction, and they have to do something to make it look like they are. Hey. I’m going to make at least $1 million! Probably more! Over the next 20 years, that is. Aren’t you impressed?

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Brett Noel

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Herman Cain

During the New Hampshire presidential debate last week, a lady named Sylvia asked, “What would the Republicans do about health care if they repealed ObamaCare?” Her question never got answered. I even pointed that out to the CNN host, John King, and offered to answer her question, but he never got back to me.

If I could have answered the question, I would have told her about patient-centered and market-driven solutions. Most of these ideas are contained in H.R. 3400, which was introduced in 2009, but virtually nobody heard about it.

I don’t believe in re-inventing the wheel. Nor do I believe in re-inventing good ideas. If I could have answered her question, I would have offered some of the following ideas to replace ObamaCare:

• Individuals choose their health insurance (no mandates)
• Deductibility of health insurance premiums regardless of who pays
• Employers to provide flexible insurance options to employees
• Federally subsidized vouchers to help low-income individuals (up to three times the poverty level) buy health insurance
• Health insurance for high-risk and pre-existing-condition individuals, which could be handled through Medicaid, high-risk insurance pools or other options
• Sale of health insurance across state lines (more competition!)
• Increased deductibility amounts for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)
• Association Health Insurance Plans
• Medical lawsuit “loser pay” laws

These ideas would allow individuals to make their own decisions about health care and health insurance rather than a bureaucrat, and they would allow the free market system to bring down the costs of both. ObamaCare does not do that, which is why over 1,300 companies have asked for and received waivers from the law.

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