Moonbat Debate

What do you get when the Democratic Party barfs into its own closed mouth? The Congressional candidacy of Lee Whitnum.

In the inevitable match-up between Republican Chris Shays and Democrat Jim Himes in the 4th Congressional District, Lee Whitnum has made quite the entertaining sideshow.

Democrats are getting annoyed with her, because she is managing to cause a significant distraction from the anticipated general election match up where they hope to unseat the last remaining Republican US House member in New England. Despite the pomposity and over-confidence demonstrated in the leftwing blogosphere, these folks know it is an uphill battle, and this distraction isn't helpful.

Whitnum is a moonbat. When she has been criticized by bloggers, she has sent them emails from fictitious attorneys. Her only real claim to fame is her supposed romantic relationship with Senator John Kerry, over which she bemoans her inability to sell a revealing book.

It has been suggested that Whitnum has no donors, no money, no support, and no chance. yet, she has managed to get her crazy self onto the primary ballot. Could it be that Himes is not so anointed as previously believed?

Whitnum is calling for a debate with Himes. The Himes campaign, clearly attempting to keep her from attaining any credibility has deflected, saying they are considering options for debating Shays in the fall.

I say Himes should accept the debate. If Whitnum is as crazy as we all suppose her to be, that will be evident in the opening ten seconds. Himes really doesn't have anything to lose, and in fact, really ought to debate as she is on the primary ballot.

Ground-swell

My friend ACR featured this fascinating news story on his blog.

Apple Found Next To Tree...

Senator Chris Dodd has acknowledged today that he was aware of the VIP program he was a part of through his loans with Countrywide Financial Corp.

Yet he contends that he believed he was getting this special treatment because he was a longtime Countrywide customer, not because he was a "friend" of CEO Angelo Mozilo and just happened to be the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.

Also benefiting from special treatment from Countrywide was Democratic Senator Kent Conrad from North Dakota, who has pledged to donate his financial gains from his deal to charity... a rather quick guilty-conscience move if you ask me.

Dodd continues to contend that he did not seek special treatment, nor did he know he was given this treatment because of the power he wields and where he wields it... namely the Banks Committee.

This is difficult to believe of a man who has made himself a crusader in the area of sub-prime mortgages and protecting the little guy.

We all remember the ignoble details of Dodd's father's abuses that lead to his censure on the Senate floor... perhaps the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree.

Still Doing Nothing

You would think with all the activity surrounding yesterday's special session of the General Assembly, we were about to have a windfall of relief. Guess again.

While it is definitely a good thing that Democrats finally came around to the notion that the scheduled increase of the gross receipts tax on gasoline to 7.5% should be halted, all that means is taxes are staying right where they are. And in case you weren't aware of it, where they are is high.

Higher, in fact, than any other state in the Continental US, and higher even than in Hawaii, where the product has to be shipped across the Pacific.

But the Democrats were certain to increase taxes a little before getting out in the wee hours of the morning. The real estate conveyance tax which was scheduled to phase out was kept in place. So, in other words, the special session raised your taxes.

Legislative Republicans tried valiantly to get their budget options discussed, but to no avail. Democrats, just as they did during the regular session, were unwilling to even debate the matter, let alone cast a vote on it.

Interestingly, when the vote was taken on the GOP amendment to open the discussion beyond the narrow construction of the call, 31 Democrats were absent from the vote. Six minutes later, when a procedural vote was taken, 22 of those Democrats reappeared. So reports Capitol Watch.

Also from Capitol Watch: "But Rep. Stephen Dargan, a veteran Democrat from West Haven, said that 18 of the 21 missing lawmakers never heard the bell when they were in the House Democratic caucus room on the second floor."

This evasion is commonly known in technical terms a "bullshit."

This is the type of gamesmanship you get from a gang of political cowards who, as supposed friends of lower-income people, have worked strenuously to protect a regressive tax system that punishes low-income citizens just as roughly as wealthy ones. Everyone gets the red ass just as good under these guys. Poor people just have less salve.

Congratulations are clearly in order.

Your Full-Time Part-Time Legislature.

According to today's New Haven Register, tomorrow's scheduled special session of the Connecticut General Assembly may not be the last one. State Senator Toni Harp (D-New Haven) claims that they may take up items left off tomorrow's agenda during another special session.

"Special" sessions are special alright. Just like those olympics we all know. Democrats adjourned with a do nothing policy on the state budget while facing a deficit, and now there has been a scramble to add item after item after item to the scheduled special session which was initially intended to prevent a sunset of the real estate conveyance tax.

Now majority Democrats have agreed to include postponing the gross receipts tax increase on gasoline scheduled to take effect July 1st.

This new special session would address the minimum wage bill that Governor Rell rightly vetoed, ethics legislation including pension revocation for convicted corrupt officials, and health care.

The legislature was supposed to adjourn May 7th. And so it did, but more and more this "sine die" adjournment that is constitutionally mandated has become nothing more than a technicality. Last year, the legislature managed to go into session almost every month after its June adjournment for one thing or another.

There are a couple reasons for this. While incompetence and an inability to get the job done are certainly central to this due to the vacuum of intelligent leadership of legislative Democrats, these frequent special sessions are paving the way to a full-time legislature, something many Democrats desperately want.

Gone would be the citizen who embarks on a part-time avocation to improve their community and the state, while we usher in the full-time political class who have life-long political vocations. If you think your legislature is peopled with lower and lesser elements, it is a moon-cast shadow compared to the scum you will get should these positions go full-time. They will pay just enough to get by, but not enough to attract quality candidates.

We will be placed on a proverbial torture rack operated by ignoramuses who have nothing better or more productive to do than to constantly fiddle with the buttons, knobs and levers of government at their leisure.

Rotten Tomatoes

If you asked me to select a menu item that McDonald's ought to remove, tomatoes would not have made my list. I mean, with those nasty cartilage nuggets and those femur scrapings pressed into hamburgers and fried, the last thing I would ask them to get rid of was one of the two actual vegetables you can get there.

But, alas, McDonald's has stopped serving raw sliced tomatoes. And that's because of an apparent salmonella poisoning issue. The same is the case for Taco Bell, which I find perplexing. I mean, if you eat Taco bell, aren't you expecting projectile diarrhea? I would think salmonella would only enhance the authentic Mexican dining experience.

Here in Connecticut, tomatoes are under scrutiny as well. It's very frightening.

We all know that the failure of a vegetable can destroy a nation. Look at the Irish potato famine.

Thankfully, there doesn't appear to be any danger or shortage of potatoes... imagine America convulsing during a french fry famine. Why, obese children would be forced to drink more soda and eat more Twinkies to keep their weight up. Can you imagine the tragedy?

Amann Will Eat Horse Meat

Just a few short weeks ago House Speaker Jim Amann regaled us all with his incisive wit in response to GOP proposals to cut the gas tax and eliminate the estate tax by saying the Republicans were "selling horse meat."

Today, Amann will apparently get himself a piece of standard bred steak.

At the center of all this is the GOP efforts since early spring to get a gas tax cut, and at the very least prevent the scheduled increase in the gross receipts tax on gas scheduled July 1st that will raise the price several more cents a gallon. Democrats have scoffed at the idea, ridiculed the proposal, and refused to take the measure up before the regular session expired last month.

Now there will be a special session next week. Democrats initially intended to simply use the session to prevent the sunset of the real estate conveyance tax. But now, with a public outraged over the astounding price of gasoline coupled with the fact that Connecticut residents are now paying the highest gas taxes in the nation, Democrats are changing their tune.

Don Williams had this to say yesterday via a press release that he slapped together:“Families across Connecticut are hurting – and it is only getting worse. Senate Democrats are determined to do what we can to provide some relief. We know that rising fuel prices not only affect the cost of gas, but essentially everything – including food and clothing. While we can’t stop fuel prices from rising, we can prevent tax increases from further driving up the price.”

Is that back-peddling? Yes. My friends at CTLP noted this was a score for the GOP, and to verify that fact, all you have to do is read this wet-pants rant over at My Left Nut Smeg. It's a healthy serving of "horse meat" that Democrats are ready to eat, lest you actually make them accountable in November.

Scrub Up

We've all been there. You're in the restroom. Maybe you're in one of the stalls, doing what you have to do... you hear someone come in, relieve themselves, and saunter out without so much as a squirt of soap or a drop of water. It's nasty.

Once I was at a wedding and observed someone do that. Later, I was introduced to him. He was insulted to see I was unwilling to shake hands. I was insulted he offered me his pee pee mitt.

This is apparently a gigantic problem. Particularly when those people are in the food service industry. No one wants the flavor of their food to have a little wang in it.

Naturally, government must step in. Evidently, the State Department of Public Health is undertaking a "Two Hands at a Time" public service hand-washing campaign.

A child old enough to wipe himself or herself generally gets this advanced level of education they are spending our tax dollars to promote. It usually come along with the "better to wipe front-to-back than back-to-front" section of instruction.

I know a lot of liberals can use some hygienic tips. I doubt they even use toilet paper at the Democratic National Convention. Why kill a forest for the sake of cleaning some dirty backsides?

Coming soon: public service campaigns to instruct you how to brush your teeth and tie your shoes, and keep you from eating broken glass, or urinating into an electrical socket.