Don’t be fooled with the continuous lies of the leaders and talking heads of the Republican Party when they say we must as a nation address the deficit and national debt, that spending is the key. The mere fact that they continue to demand that the Bush tax cuts be made permanent for everyone is the proof. As well as the insistence to continue to spend more money on an already bloated Military Industrial Complex.

When Bush and GOP leadership in House and Senate pushed both tax cuts, they knew full well that such cuts would add to the deficit and national debt for an indefinite period of time. How do I know this? Well they had to use reconciliation to pass it along with Dick Cheney’s vote. This is a historic fact. Why is reconciliation key? Well it was the only way they could pass it and avoid a Democratic Filibuster. Under the reconciliation rules, you only need a simple majority to pass a fiscal bill. However, if that bill adds to the deficit and national debt, it must be required to expire in ten years. Although the Republicans at the time had majorities in both houses of Congress, they didn’t have a big enough majority to pass these cuts without using reconciliation. So they knew the cuts would add to the deficit because the Congressional Budget Office told them it would.

In 2010, they held the US economy, food stamps and unemployment hostage and required Obama and the Democratic controlled House and Senate to extend the cuts for two years to expire on December 31, 2012 and here we are again. They are trying to convince the President and Democrats to extend all of them permanently, even though they know that these cuts are one of the major contributors to our current deficit. Again, this information comes from the Congressional Budget Office as well as every reputable economist in the world. Its basic math.

Today they are trotting out the same lies they trotted out during the Clinton administration and almost every year since that “taxing the wealth job creators” will kill job growth and destroy the economy. Again the history is clear. When President Clinton and the Democratic controlled House and Senate proposed the tax increases for the wealthiest Americans to 39% in 1993, Newt Gingrich and the GOP said it would kill jobs and bring about an economic collapse. Not a single Republican voted for that tax hike citing Grover Norquist’s childish pledge. What happened next? We had the largest sustained economic growth in peace time in our history. 21 million jobs were created, the budget was balanced with a surplus.

Had it not been for the Bush tax cuts, two wars, and Medicare Part D (that forbade the government from negotiating  prices with big Pharma), projections showed that our entire national debt would have been paid off in (get this) 2012, this year. The Republicans took over the House and Senate for a time on the lies that only tax cuts and limited government spending and elimination of business and banking regulations would save the country from economic collapse. The people believed them and then came 2008. It was a perfect storm of devastatingly low tax revenues, increased government spending on things that don’t contribute to overall economy and banking deregulation that crashed not only our economy, but the world’s. Even with 9-11, the country would have done well economically, were it not for the Iraq war (which we were lied into).

All the studies are clear and undisputable unless you are a liar, extremely ignorant, or just have you head stuck in a fart bubble up your ass; tax cuts for the wealthy “job creators” do not create jobs. Jobs are created by demand for goods and services, not excess cash. That is why expanding and paying a large middle-class via government assistance and investments does actually create jobs and keeps the economy perpetually growing. To put it another way, if you take the money being kept out of the economy from the wealthiest Americans and place them into taxes, that money is used to fund roads, infrastructure, airports, educations, law-enforcement etc. Jobs are actually created. With those government created jobs, those people start to spend their money for goods and services provided by the private sector requiring business people to hire more people to continue to provide goods and services and make profit. It’s simple macro economics that has historically worked.

The lies from Speaker Boehner, Paul Ryan, Eric Cantor, Mitch McConnell. Koch brothers, et al only serve to reduce revenue to federal and state governments that result in jobs being lost in the public sector, which then end up in jobs being lost in the private sector. Only the venture capitalists like Mitt Romney will make money by loading failing businesses with additional debt, forcing them into bankruptcy and then cutting them up and selling the parts for personal profits. By the way, it also results in more jobs lost, pensions destroyed, healthcare lost and more money out of the economy only to be hoarded by the wealthiest Americans. This has been the lie continually perpetrated by the GOP and their billionaire overlords that is destroying the country. It is why income disparity is at its highest rate since before the Great Depression. You suffer, they thrive and the mainstream media won’t spend time calling these politicians out on their lies. You need to do it yourself.

The Republicans don’t care about the deficit or national debt. If they did, the national debt would have been paid off by now by simply not slashing tax revenues and eliminating regulations that had the country with a surplus that would have continued to expand the economy. Instead, they were interested in the very few getting more of the overall American wealth.

Below are some key articles about this subject matter that will give you talking points to use on social media and correspondence with your local, state and federal representatives. Let them know you won’t be lied to anymore and demand positive “progressive” action from them. It’s in your hands and we need to make sure they all clearly get that message in 2014.

The Truth about the Bush Tax Cuts and Job Growth:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/07/17/the-truth-about-the-bush-tax-cuts-and-job-growth/

Do Tax Cuts Lead to Economic Growth?

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/opinion/sunday/do-tax-cuts-lead-to-economic-growth.html?_r=0

Tax Cuts for Rich Do Not Generate Jobs:

http://www.economicpopulist.org/content/tax-cuts-rich-do-not-generate-jobs

GOP Super Committee Member Admits Bush Tax Cuts Didn’t Create Jobs, Can’t explain Why:

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/12/04/381510/upton-cant-explain-tax-cuts-jobs/

Do Lower Taxes Create Jobs? Let’s Look at the States:

http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/economic-intelligence/2012/05/03/do-lower-taxes-create-jobs-lets-look-at-the-states

Boehner Revives Flawed Study to Defend Tax Cuts for Wealthy:

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/11/08/1164121/boehner-revives-flawed-study-tax-cuts/

I know most of you understand this little bit of linear time, but many in mainstream media and political pundits are spending their time talking about the race for 2016 starting now as if 2014 isn’t going to happen. Well as I posted after the President’s win, the work continues and we need to focus on 2014 to avoid another 2010 that left us all in a deeper mess that the President has had to contend with.

The President won in an electoral landslide and had a 51% majority of the popular vote to Mitt Romney’s 47% (Karma is a bitch Mitt). Further, the Democratic control of the Senate expanded when mainstream media had been predicted for the past two years, would most likely go to Republican control. Although the House remains in Republican hands, their control has been decreased and many suspect that were it not for the district gerrymandering that took place after the 2010 race, the Democrats would have taken control of the House. In fact, Democrats running for the House garnered far more votes than Republicans. Many of the key Tea Party candidates (Allen West, Joe Walsh, etc) lost their seats.

Now you would think the country and Republican Party have woken up and all would be working to actually start legislating for the majority of the American people. You would be wrong. Subtle signs are already beginning to manifest showing that things could go bad if we don’t stay focused and ensure there is no loss of power and influence in both the House and Senate in 2014.

Now after the high voter turnout in 2008 that gave us a President Obama and large majorities in both the Senate and House, people on the left began to complain that Obama and the Democrats weren’t “liberal” enough. They were upset that he didn’t provide “single-payer universal healthcare”, upset that he continued many of the same policies regarding national security as the previous Bush administration, upset that he agreed to extend the Bush tax cuts for all Americans to include the 1%.

Mainstream media, including those on MSNBC picked up on that problem and started to complain that Obama wasn’t doing what he should. They went so far as to say that during the 2010 race, people should register their complaints at the polls. Ed Schultz, Rachel Maddow, and Keith Olbermann in their commentary expressed their dissatisfaction with the Obama administration. At the same time, the Republicans and their financial backers placed resources into the fledgling “Tea Party” movement. They were out in force at town hall meeting expressing their opposition to “ObamaCare” and government takeover of healthcare. Then came the 2010 election. The extreme right wing came out in force while the disenchanted left wing stayed home.

The Republicans swept the House seats and took over many governorships and created many “super-majorities” in State legislatures. The Republican Tea Party took enough control of the country to begin pushing anti-choice, anti-union, and pro-business and 1% legislation, while blocking all efforts of the Obama administration to push job bills to help the country. They went to war with Obama by attacking many of the American people (women, minorities, LGBTs, non-Republicans) by making their lives miserable in hopes of making them so angry; they would take it out on Obama and the Democrats in 2012.

In short, they were working the Mitch McConnell primary legislative agenda to make Obama a one term president. They started redistricting congressional districts to make the GOP House State Legislature seats safe; they started enacting voter suppression laws to keep as many from the polls as they could. They fully understand that their influence in elections does better when fewer people vote than if many showed up.

Well in 2012 they were unsuccessful. Voter suppression turned into anger at the polls and the people knew who to be angry with. Despite the predictions of mainstream media, the youth turned out, the LGBT community turned out, minorities turned out. The numbers did what the Republicans hate in a national election, they grew. It’s a fact; the party that represents more people will do better if more people show up. A party that only caters to a few at the exclusion of the many will do better if no one shows up. As Paul Weyrich who founded ALEC famously said at a Republican Party event:

So here we are. The first issue to be contended with is the so-called “fiscal cliff” that if the lame-duck congress doesn’t address before December 31, the Bush tax cuts disappear for all and sequestration of both military and domestic spending will go into effect. Taxes go up for all, spending goes down, and it is likely that if not corrected by the new Congress, the country can slip into another recession. The GOP understand that their party is being held responsible right now and are grudgingly agreeing that maybe, just maybe, the upper 2% should go back to the Clinton Tax rates while the other 98% remain under the Bush tax cuts and Obama payroll tax cuts. Maybe, just maybe military spending should be cut to reduce deficit spending. The Democrats are saying they would hold firm that Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are off the table. We’ll see.

Many on the right are being marginalized today, Karl Rove, Grover Norquist, are being ridiculed in Republican corners. So you would think that they have learned their lesson. You would think that they would begin to discredit the Tea Party influence. You would think they would be willing to work with the President and Democrats for all the people. The rhetoric from Bobby Jindal, Marco Rubio, Chris Christie, would give you hope for the future. Well, don’t be so sure. There are other things going on that shows that they haven’t changed and most likely won’t change. In fact, if given the opportunity, they will go back to what was happening in the past two years hoping for a repeat in 2014 from what happened in 2010 to secure their holdings in Washington and prepare to take complete control in 2016 and eliminate everything the President and Democrats have worked to get all of you.

In Ohio, Governor Kasich and the Republicans in the legislature have introduced a new round of misogynistic laws taking free choice away from women.

In preparation for the 2014 elections, the Republican Senate has named Senator-Elect Ted Cruz to the National Senatorial Campaign Committee. Ted Cruz is a Tea Party advocate who is on record supporting and recruiting Tea Party candidates in the past. Expect more Sharon Angels, Christine O’Donnells, Todd Akins, and Richard Mourdocks, to be running in 2014 on Tea Party agenda.

They are continuing their rhetoric that all things sciency is fraudulent or from the pit of hell.

They still say the unions are responsible for companies going bankrupt even after tripling the salaries and benefits of their CEO’s and top executives while being financially strapped.

They continue to focus on Benghazi and “word smithing” by Obama spokespeople while divulging the names of Libyan operatives aiding the United States in our attempts to apprehend the perpetrators of the attack and not appearing all that interested in bringing anyone to justice for the attack, only Susan Rice for not saying it was a terrorist attack when reading the declassified talking points from the CIA.

Paul Ryan was chosen by John Boehner to negotiate the fiscal cliff talks even though he thinks the Republicans got a mandate for his budget ideas in 2012.

Governors in red states are refusing to accept federal funding for expansion of Medicaid to insure more people in their states under ObamaCare and also are refusing to establish state exchanges for insurance for those wanting to buy it at a discount per ObamaCare.

The list goes on.

2012 wounded the Tea Party Republicans, it didn’t kill them. They are counting on a much need blood transfusion in 2014 to begin the attacks anew. We cannot allow this to happen. Twitter is already beginning to fill with emo-progs saying that if Obama doesn’t do this or that they won’t have anything to do with the Democrats again. Social media is already begun to read like it did before 2010. People need to constantly be reminded of some key facts:

Obama is a centrist, in many ways he’s always been more of a moderate Republican than Liberal Democrat and by being so, has been very effective.

The only alternative to Obama and the Democrats the Republicans are willing to provide the voters are extreme right-winger who do and vote only as they are told by the 1% financial backers. Social programs will be cut, taxes for rich will be cut, military spending will go up and middle and working class will suffer under Republican control. Certainly more so than under Obama and the current Democratic representation.

GOP have sponsored a law suit to be heard in the Supreme Court to overturn the voting rights act of the 1960’s.

Voter caging and suppression acts continue to be pushed and will be in full force by 2014 to keep many from the polls. If the laws cannot be overturned or ruled, then you must start now to get your IDs and get registered to vote.

If you don’t vote, those on the far extreme right will be the only ones voting as they did in 2010 and will be voting for an extreme right-wing agenda that will impact your states and nation as a whole.

GOP obstruction is likely to continue over the next two years. Everyone who has been active these past two years must remain as active, if not more during the next two to hold you local legislators and Congress accountable to the people, not the 1%. You cannot let up at all. Whatever happens in the next two years will impact the nation for generations to come.

It’s not just the Supreme Court, its ending 30 years of supply-side “Reaganomics” and going back to building a strong middle-class as we had before. 2014 is prologue to what we can expect in 2016. So let’s focus on 2014 first so we can have a better 2016.

It’s very simple, stay active, register, get ID and Vote like we did in 2012. Your country’s future depends on you.

As with most second term administrations, several of President Obama’s Cabinet Secretaries will be stepping down and new ones will need to be confirmed by the Senate to replace them. In this case, the most notable person to be stepping down is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Even though no official word has come from the White House of those being considered for her replacement, Senator John Kerry and current Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice are being floated. However, both Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham are expressing outrage at the prospect of Susan Rice being nominated and have vowed to do all that they can to prevent this from happening. There is speculation that the reason they don’t want Ambassador Rice nominated is that they would prefer John Kerry, thus opening up his Senate seat for recently defeated Senator Scott Brown. Plausible, but this rant is over the logic these two Senators are using to justify their “outrage” of the nomination.

Both cite Susan Rice as being at the center of the “Benghazi Debacle” that the right-wing and their Fox News propaganda wing have been trying to morph into an “impeachable offense” against the President. They feign outrage and disgust over what she said when she spoke regarding the incident. It was a tragedy, much is still not known, but the “debacle” has been how the Republicans have been using this incident for political purposes and in doing so, creating problems for the diplomatic corps and those in the area trying to help us out. For example, Representative Darryl Issa divulging the confidential names of Libyan supporters in the area to the public and thus placing their lives in jeopardy.

Here are the known facts from the Pentagon, about Benghazi as we know them today (not the propaganda with no basis or reality or fact from the right)

September 11, 2012 9:42 p.m. (Benghazi time): Armed men begin their assault on the U.S. Consulate.

9:59 p.m. (17 minutes later): A surveillance drone is directed to fly over the U.S. compound, but is unarmed.

10:32 p.m. (33 minutes later): The Office of the Secretary of Defense and Joint Staff are notified of the attack by the National Military Command Center at the Pentagon. “The information is quickly passed to Secretary Panetta and General Dempsey.”

11:00 p.m. (28 minutes later): Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey meet with President Obama at the White House where they discuss the unfolding information and how to respond. The meeting had been previously scheduled. The President instructs them to take all necessary steps needed to secure our personnel and insure others are not in danger. This is 1 hour and 18 minutes after the attack began.

11:10 p.m. (10 minutes later): The surveillance drone arrives over the Benghazi facility.

11:30 p.m. (20 minutes later): All surviving U.S. personnel are evacuated from the consulate. U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and State Department computer expert Sean Smith were killed in the initial attack.

September 12, 2012:

Midnight to 2:00 a.m. (30 minutes later) Panetta and other senior leaders discuss possible options for further violence if it were to break out. Panetta gives verbal orders for Marine anti-terrorist teams from Rota, Spain to prepare to deploy to Tripoli and Benghazi. Panetta also orders special operations force team training in Croatia and an additional special operations force team in the United States to prepare to deploy to a staging base in southern Italy.

1:30 a.m. (30 minutes later, and 2.8 hours after the initial attack): A six-man security team from the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli (404.5 miles away) arrives in Benghazi.

2:39 a.m. to 2:53 a.m. (1 hour 9 minutes later) The National Military Command Center gives formal authorization for the deployment of the two special operations force teams from Croatia and the United States.

5:15 a.m. (2 hours 22 minutes later, and 7 hours 33 minutes after initial attack) Attackers launch assault on a “second” U.S. facility in Benghazi. Two former U.S. Navy SEALs acting as security contractors are killed. They are identified as Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty.

6:05 a.m. (50 minutes later) A C-17 aircraft in Germany is told to prepare to deploy to Libya to evacuate the consulate personnel.

7:40 a.m. (1 hour 35 minutes later): The first wave of Americans are evacuated to Tripoli via airplane.

Later this day at the White House, President Obama commented about the attack using the words “Act of Terror” in context with his statements regarding the Benghazi attacks.

September 16, 2012 (5 days after the attack): On request of President Obama and using “talking points” provided her by the CIA on September 15, UN Ambassador Susan Rice makes a statement regarding the Benghazi Attack. The CIA informed her of the theory at the time that the attack was “spontaneous.”  She cites that at that time, they had “no evidence” that this was “pre-planned” as the CIA were still gathering information.

CIA Talking Points:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505263_162-57550337/cia-talking-points-for-susan-rice-called-benghazi-attack-spontaneously-inspired-by-protests/

Note: Libya is a foreign country still rebuilding a government and security forces following the collapse of the Kaddafi government. U.S. military resources are scattered throughout the region and a State Department request for additional funding from Congress was denied by the Republican controlled House.

Further, although John McCain and Lindsay Graham say that from an intelligence point of view, Susan Rice should have known better, the fact remains that as UN Ambassador, she is not privy to continuous intelligence briefings on every intelligence operation or investigation. She is provided that information on a “need to know” basis. She spoke according to the talking points provided her by the CIA.

Susan Rice as Ambassador to the UN, is there to represent the interests of the United States to the World Community. She was easily confirmed to that position based on her record in the Clinton White House. She has always served with distinction.

She was confirmed for the position by a majority vote in the US Senate to include John McCain and Lindsey Graham.

Susan Rice’s current job duties do not include interpreting intelligence data from the CIA. That was the job of another Rice, namely Condoleezza Rice.

Now let’s compare the job record of Condi Rice prior to her nomination and confirmation of Secretary of State under George W. Bush.

Condi Rice when she first came to the White House was George Bush’s National Security Advisor. She was responsible for interpreting and advising intelligence information for the President and advises him appropriately. In the early months of the Bush administration, there was this group known as Al Qaeda operating in the United States. Various intelligence agencies were concerned regarding traffic going on regarding a potential attack forthcoming. The president gets what’s known as a Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB), giving a summary of issues that the President needs to be aware of.

On August 6^th, 2001, while the President was vacationing in Crawford, a Presidential Daily Briefing was delivered to Bush. This one was prepared out of frustration over the apparent lack of action from previous PDB’s prepared regarding Al Qaeda for the President and Condi Rice. It was entitled “Bin Laden Determined to Strike in the United States.” Nothing of substance was done until after September 11, 2001 when Bin Laden did strike in New York, Washington DC and Pennsylvania resulting in the murder of over 3000 Americans on American soil.

Later, Condi Rice went on the airwaves as National Security Advisor helping the Bush Administration convince the nation that the “intelligence” was a slam dunk, that Iraq was not only involved with Al Qaeda, but were acquiring weapons of mass destruction and were preparing to attack the United States. So with Condi’s help, we attacked a nation that had nothing to do with 9-11, had no weapons of mass destruction, that resulted in the deaths and wounding of thousands of U.S. Military personnel and hundred of thousands of Iraqi citizens.

When Condi Rice was nominated for Secretary of State, she was given glowing recommendations from John McCain and Lindsay Graham and was confirmed for the position. They made no reference to her absolute failure to interpret the intelligence (her job duty) and her either being blatantly wrong or was blatantly lying to the American people. The very same thing they are accusing Susan Rice of doing (which she didn’t) that resulted in the deaths of 4 Americans on foreign soil.

Lawrence O’Donnell questions Condi Rice’s participation in the lead up to the Iraq War and is confronted with her lies as the “The Young Turks” clip will attest:

President Obama called McCain and Graham out on their lies yesterday and they are doubling down. Susan Rice has been effective as UN Ambassador and had nothing to do with Benghazi other than to report out as per the President’s request using data prepared for her by the CIA. In fact, even though things did go wrong in Libya, we need to examine what went wrong and develop plans to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Using the death of 4 murdered Americans for partisan political purposes does dishonor to those who died, their families, the U.S. diplomatic corps, The U.S. Government, the U.S. Senate and the people of the United States. There is “no there there” this was a tragic incident that we must learn from.

Lawrence O’Donnell goes after McCain and Graham himself:

Now 9-11-01 resulted in over 3000 murders on U.S. soil based on the National Security Advisor not doing her job properly and then lying to the American people in the following months resulting in the additional deaths of hundred of thousands more. Who is more qualified for Secretary of State? One who did her job and no one ever complained about regarding her job performance until just recently or someone who literally has blood on her hands prior to being nominated?

John McCain speaks of being responsible for what you say and do. Well, this is the man who not only supported Condi Rice for Secretary of State, he chose Sarah Palin for Vice President. This is the man who cavalierly speaks of bombing Iran. The only proper thing he’s done in recent years was voting to confirm Susan Rice for UN Ambassador. Even a broken clock is right two times a day.

To paraphrase Ann Coulter, Our Rice is better than your Rice.

This was a rallying cry of the 1960’s from angry white blue-collar conservatives angry at the liberals who were angry with the nation for being involved in the Vietnam War and supportive of the corporate agenda. The liberals wanted change, the conservatives didn’t want anything to change so they told the liberals “American, Love it or leave it.” Today, it would appear the phrase has new life, only the roles have reversed.

As you all may know from recent reports, there is a movement going across the nation following President Obama’s win of people petitioning the White House to secede from the Union. The White House has a website called “We the People” that invites people using their zip codes to start a petition drive about any policy change. If they collect more than 25,000 signatures, they are to get a response from the White House within 30 days. Texas has already collected over 80,000 signatures to secede from the Union and form its own government. Other states across the nation have started similar petitions on the web site.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/texas-petition-secede-reaches-threshold-obama-comment/story?id=17701519

People from over 40 states have now signed versions of that petition. However, the states that have the most signatures are not only those from the former Confederacy, but they all tend to be Red states, that take in far more in federal give-aways than they send back to Washington in taxes. These states are far more dependent on Washington to survive that the Country is dependent on them.

We all know how well the last secessionist movement went. However, things do tend to be a bit different these days than in the mid 19th Century. Now I don’t believe a minority of angry, America loving, but American hating, folks have a right to drag their States into treason. Even the Red states have some decent Democrats, Independents and moderate Republicans, of sound rational minds, residing there and want to remain part of the greatest nation on earth. In fact as Jeb Bush noted recently, even Texas is destined to turn Blue in as soon as four more years based on her demographics. Many of the Red states are at least getting more purple. But what to do with these angry secessionists?

Now as you can expect, since it happens all the time, many on the right have promised, or inferred that if Obama won, they would leave the country. They never say that they would leave because a Black man was reelected; they’re not bigots mind you. No, they would leave the country because they don’t want a Marxist, Socialist, European Style, Muslim national government to contend with. A lot of countries were floated out there just prior to and since the election.

They spoke of moving to Canada, a nation with national healthcare and a socialistic government that has a higher tax rate on her citizens than in the United States.

They have mentioned Australia, a nation with national healthcare and a socialistic government that has a higher tax rate on her citizens than in the United States.

They have mentioned European nations, nations with… Oh you get it.

Even Rush Limbaugh said if ObamaCare passed (which it did, and was held up as Constitutional by the Supreme Court) he would move to Costa Rica, a nation with single payer national healthcare and a socialistic government that has a higher tax rate on her citizens than in the United States.

Now there are nations that would better fit what these people want. Somalia comes to mind. It really has no government, no healthcare, and no taxes. A Libertarian, Tea Party, Republican dream. There’s any number of middle-eastern nations (Not Israel that has national healthcare, a socialistic government and higher tax rate on her citizens than the United States), but there is Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, etc. Not only do some of these nations have smaller governments, many have small government just large enough to allow religion to take control of that government. Oh, wait; maybe it’s the wrong religion? Misogynistic, anti-gay, pro-life, male dominated beholding to a single God. Maybe it is the right religion? Who knows?

It’s very simple. Obama and the Democrats won. Yes, many on the left whined and cried about when Bush won his two terms and talked about leaving the nation. Only difference was that those who actually did leave, left for nations closer to what they aspired to; Canada, Australia, Costa Rica, any European nation. None of them talked about secession. Those on the right want to go to nations that embody what they say Obama is bringing to this nation, or they want to secede.

Well, they can’t secede. That is an illegal act; it’s treason against the government of the United States. They all should really read history. Now if they want to leave. Then they should go. However, considering that those who want to leave, have been dependant on government assistance to balance their State budgets, build their roads and infrastructure, pay for education, healthcare, and keep the air and water clean, food and drug safe, all from money provided by the rest of us. Well, if you want to leave, pay your tab first. After all, you all aren’t freeloaders who just want stuff are you?

True to what was threatened prior to the election, some corporate CEOs and business people are following through with their threats to either cut hours or fire some of their employees if Obama was reelected. Many cite the provisions of ObamaCare as their justification. However, anyone who understands ACA (Affordable Care Act) and economic history realizes that there are other factors involved. Partisan politics, racism, or the fact the companies involved were already in trouble comes to mind. First, let us look at the current headlines:

CEO Keeps Promise to Lay Off Workers If Obama Elected:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/49764441

Robert Murray, the CEO of Murray energy keeps his promise. This is the guy who staged a Mitt Romney event in which he required his employees to act as backdrop for Mitt without pay. He says that Obama is destroying the coal industry. He appears ignorant to the fact that Mitt Romney once pointed to a coal plant in Massachusetts and said they were killing people. He also appears ignorant to the fact that nationwide, 80,000 people are employed in the Coal Industry, more than when the recession started. He also seems ignorant to the fact that the Coal Industry has been losing ground to Natural Gas under provisions enacted by the Bush Administration. You would think there are different factors involved here.

Las Vegas CEO Reportedly Fired 22 Workers Because Of Obama’s Reelection:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/08/david-las-vegas-ceo-fired-workers_n_2093369.html

“David” wouldn’t give his full name or the company in which he fired 22 of his 114 employees because he needed to save the company from the “taxation” that was coming. Who knows if he was legitimate; however, taxes for small businesses have gone down under Obama and he wishes to keep them down if only Congress would agree. If he was a big business and rich guy like Sheldon Adelson, he can expect his personal taxes to go up. However, it has been proven that lower tax rates for large corporations and the 1% have no positive impact on the community or business. It only helps those at top. So, you would think there are different factors involved here.

Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter Says Company Will Reduce Workers’ Hours In Response To ObamaCare:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/09/papa-johns-obamacare-john-schnatter_n_2104202.html

John Schnatter made it clear long before the election that under the guidelines of ObamaCare, his pizzas would increase in price by .11 to .14 cents. Dear Lord! Of course he failed to present the calculations that backed up that claim. But no matter, this early backer of Mitt Romney now says that to avoid having to increase his price of pizzas by less than a quarter, he’ll reduce the hours of his employees so they don’t qualify for healthcare. What a wonderful man working to save late night stoners an extra quarter to buy a lousy pizza by making the lives of those desperate enough to work for him get even less. Even prior to this decision, Papa John’s had bad reviews as a place to work at.

From Jobbite:

http://www.jobbite.com/reviews/papa-johns-pizza/

You would think there are different factors involved here.

People on Social Media are starting to gather the names of other companies planning to or have already laid off employees or cut their benefits in alleged response to Obama’s reelection. This list would be useful, but what to do with it?

Although we avoided a major depression and our economy has improved significantly with a stock market doubled since Obama took control and corporate profits at all time highs, the economy is still fragile. Those working for these people need their jobs and benefits, as meager as they may be. We can call on a boycott, but I would suspect that move would hurt the employees we’re trying to help out more than those CEOs; who are doing better than ever, thank you. Union influence is at record lows for the country following generations of federal and state laws designed to make them ineffectual. Many states are now “Right to Work (for less)” states. This leaves employees little remedy from the Courts when their employers take things out on them en masse.

The best way to address this issue is to take it directly to the CEOs involved. We need to go to the various stockholders and Board of Directors to educate them as to what poor decisions their CEOs are making and how it can seriously impact the profit margin of the corporations involved, and the future dividend checks to the stockholders.

What’s the argument for sticking with Obama and the Democrats? Well that’s simple. An analysis of national economies throughout history clearly indicates that Democratic Presidents and Administrations have always been better for the Stock Market, business and business people than Republicans.

Democrats better for Wall Street than Republicans, research shows:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/economics-blog/2012/aug/29/democrats-better-wall-street-republicans

YouTube Presentation of the above:

Here’s the Stock Market under President Obama:

Although traditionally the Republicans would appear to be more business friendly with less regulations and more pro-business agenda, in reality, the Democrats have always done better for the business community and stock market since 1900. This actually makes perfect sense with the Democrats focusing more on the people, with regulations on business and assisting the working and middle-class, making them a larger and more robust consumer base. The more people with disposable income, the more they are willing to go shopping at the businesses out there. More spending, more money generating in the economy, more economic growth. Supply side never worked because people don’t buy anything because it’s out there, they buy because they can afford to buy. So the focus needs to be on people, not business.

By CEOs laying their employees off, they are in a way, hurting their own businesses. If fewer people have jobs and/or money to buy, they won’t. If no one buys, businesses have nothing to sell and everyone suffers. Henry Ford knew this in the early 20th Century by paying his employees enough money to buy the cars they were manufacturing.

Though the middle-class is doing better than during the Bush administration, they aren’t doing as well as they could be. However, the CEOs who are complaining are doing much better than in any time in history under the Obama administration. Schnatter is certainly doing well.

Here Now, the Utterly Bonkers Manse That Papa John’s Built:

http://curbed.com/archives/2012/08/10/here-now-the-utterly-bonkers-manse-that-papa-johns-built.php

Papa John’s Can’t Afford ObamaCare for his employees, but…:

http://www.politicolnews.com/papa-johns-ceo-cant-afford-obamacare-for-employees-wow/

Nice how underpaying your employees so they can’t even afford the pizzas they make can make you filthy rich.

When you focus on all the money going to a few, everyone suffers including the stockholders. The more business, the better the business environment and profit margins. It’s true that the most expensive aspect of any company is payroll. Employers only hire if they need to in order to maintain production for business. So logically, if there is no business, there is even less need for employees. Of course, then there is no money coming in at all for the stockholders or Board of Directors or CEOs. Hire who you need, but pay them and compensate them fairly so business can continue in a thriving economy.

Colbert comments on Papa John’s and gets it absolutely right:

http://eater.com/archives/2012/08/09/colbert-on-what-americans-will-pay-for-papa-johns.php

As a former Republican and a helper, I’m going to do something on this post that you wouldn’t expect from me if you’ve read my tweets on Twitter. I’m going to explain to the Republican Party what they need to do to avoid the fate of the dinosaurs in 2016. Now this advice doesn’t come free and is not without pain, it involves actually stepping outside their “bubbles” and facing reality and fact (which actually do have a liberal bias). They also have to accept there is nothing wrong with a liberal bias.

First a little about myself that some of you may already know about. I’m a fourth generation Arizonan. When I turned 18 in 1979, I registered as a Republican. I was a member of the Young Republicans while a student at Arizona State University. I met Barry Goldwater and heard him speak. I saw myself as a fiscal conservative and a believer that government should only be big enough to assist the people in those things that neither they nor the private sector could provide. At the same time, I was a social liberal. It’s actually was a perfectly reasonable combination for Republicans at that time. Government shouldn’t involve themselves in the personal lives of individual Americans. As the conservative movement took hold of the Republican party, Goldwater warned them to be careful not to get in bed with the extreme right-wing, religious moral “conservatives” (who he doubt were truly conservative) saying that they would be the death of the party.

Goldwater on Falwell and Moral Majority:

“I’m probably the most conservative member of Congress and I don’t like to be kicked around by people who call themselves conservatives on a non-conservative matter.” Barry M. Goldwater

It started with the Religious Right’s take-over of the party, followed by more corporate influence and finally the complete take-over of the GOP by the Koch Brothers sponsored and paid for Tea Party Movement that caused me to finish evolving. I ended up leaving the Republican Party; but my core beliefs never changed, they only became more refined.

As the election results were coming in on Tuesday night, Bill O’Reilly opined what was happening with the “American Establishment becoming a minority” to explain why Obama could win:

Now Bill’s explanation wasn’t quite factual, but he came close. He was wrong that 20 years ago President Obama couldn’t beat an “establishment” Republican Candidate. He forgets that 20 years ago was 1992, when Bill Clinton, a centrist Democrat similar to Barack Obama today, ran against establishment GOP Candidate George H. W. Bush. Further, it’s not a matter that the “establishment” is becoming a minority, it’s a matter that the American people are evolving and what the Republican Party offers isn’t what the majority want or expect. Although the GOP remain in their bubble, and many of the rank and file remain in that same bubble, Americans are actually noticing that there is a real world outside of that bubble. The country is changing, it’s evolving. To focus only on what they THINK old white people want (a dying constituency by the way) and ignoring everybody else, is a recipe for extinction.

Republican David Frum Goes Nuclear: Leaders = “Cowards,” Says Republicans “Fleeced, Exploited & Lied To”:

Because Mitt Romney, Reince Priebus, Karl Rove, et al, wouldn’t venture outside of their bubble (possibly out of fear as David Frum says), they did nothing to counter the bad messaging from Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, and various Governors and Republican Legislators sponsored by the Koch Brothers and ALEC, when they went after Women, Latinos, LGBTs, Blacks, anyone outside of their bubble. They refused to acknowledge that all of these people are an ever growing and powerful demographic, who are taking control of the political narrative in this nation. Their numbers are increasing and their views are unlikely to change because “establishment” Republicans tell them that they are wrong. They wouldn’t work with them or acknowledge their beliefs. So where else were they to go. The exit polling bears this out.

Obama win shows demographic shifts working against Republicans:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/08/us-usa-campaign-diversity-new-idUSBRE8A70QK20121108

And of course the big elephant in the room maintaining the GOP bubble and destroying the Republican Party, Fox News:

http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-news-is-killing-the-republican-party-2012-11?0=politics-contributor

Now those in the Republican bubble are not allowed to accept science, they cannot accept Climate Change and certainly cannot accept evolution. However, both do exist and the lessons of both apply to the Republican Party. The political environment of this nation, as well as the climatic environment is changing. The change to some extent can be altered, but not stopped. Too many factors beyond anyone’s control is involved. If an organism cannot adapt to the change in their environment, that organism dies off.

The Republican Party to date refused to adapt to the changing political environment of the nation. They can try to stop the change, but have been unsuccessful.

Voter suppression failed, it only made people more determined to vote.

Millions spent by the SuperPacs in propaganda and lies failed because people were able to find the truth for themselves and questioned the source of the ads.

The change is here; however, the GOP isn’t adapting and they are dying.

Today, Speaker Boehner and Mitch McConnell have implied they will stand firm with no tax increases for the wealthiest of Americans. They ignore that the majority of Americans, including a majority of Republicans agree that those making over $250,000.00 a year should pay more in taxes, which is what President Obama want. Though some of them are now saying that they are “evolving” regarding immigration and women’s rights, they stand firm on the same rhetoric from the extreme fringe right that rising taxes is a non starter. It’s the same rhetoric spoken in 1993 with Bill Clinton imposed a tax hike on the wealthiest. Not a single Republican voted for it saying it would destroy the economy. Instead, we had the greatest and longest peace time expansion of the economy in history.

They hide their own studies that prove that tax cuts to the wealthy do nothing to improve the economy.

They hold on to the same “bubble” talking points of “job creators” despite 30 years of evidence against them.

They won’t budge, they won’t adapt, they are willing to go over the fiscal cliff and raise taxes on all Americans and impose sequestration that would have massive cuts in domestic and military spending because they won’t adapt.

The majority of the American people see this. This is why, if they don’t begin to adapt, begin to negotiate, begin to compromise, begin to get out of the fringe Koch paid for and FOX orchestrated bubble, the party will suffer another major loss in 2014 and will cease to exist in 2016. The GOP will go the way of the Whigs.

It’s simple, adapt or die. The choice is theirs.

President Obama Discusses the Fiscal Cliff and Reaches out to GOP:

November 6th, 2012 was a great day for democracy in this nation. Despite Citizen’s United, despite billions spent to convince the people of the nation that “trickle-down” works, that reality was an illusion, that a man and party clearly in the pockets of the one percent and corporate America, would be better for you by making you give up more so that those one percent and corporate America can have more, had their collective clocks cleaned.

The cancer known as the Tea Party was decimated. None of them took seats that should have gone Republican in the Senate. Many of the most right-wing, hard-core and vocal Tea Party Congressmen in the House; Joe Walsh, Alan West were removed. Michele Bachmann’s win was so narrow there could be a recount. Although the Republican Party still controls the House, the margin was narrowed, while Democratic control of the Senate increased.

Despite the billions spent, the American people wouldn’t have any of it and voted what they knew was true and in their best interests. President Obama won a second term. He won with a greater Electoral College and Popular Vote margin that George W Bush did in 2004 when he claimed to had won with a mandate. Last night was great, but the work must continue.

Though they lost, the Republican Party and those who remain in power, who are influenced by the extreme right-wing corporate-controlled Tea Party are not defeated, not yet. As Ed Schultz pointed out this morning on his radio show, expect the next Congress to begin where they begun after the 2010 mid-terms, the House will work to de-fund ObamaCare. They will work to give more tax breaks to the richest Americans by slashing services to those in need. They will continue their propaganda, they never learn because they will remain in the Fox News propaganda bubble. They are wounded, that makes them more dangerous.

They have already said that they will be working to get ready for the 2014 mid-terms. Interesting thing is that these people have no capability of learning, of listening, of coming up with better ideas. It will be a carbon copy of what happened between 2008 and 2010. We can and must prepare for it. We cannot rest on our laurels because the counter-attack has already begun.

What can we do?

First of all, stay on social media, Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, etc to keep the people motivated to let their representatives know we demand they work in our best interests, not the interests of the one percent and corporate America. Remind them that we know that trickle-down doesn’t work, that only building the middle-class will improve the economic strength of this nation.

We must push Congress to amend the Constitution to overturn Citizen’s United and make voting a true Constitutional Right for all Americans. The vast majority of Americans are fed up with the money wasted on this campaign from both sides and the unnecessary long lines that mostly Democrats, but many Republicans, Libertarians, Greens, Independents etc had to contend with. As the President pointed out in his victory speech, “We got to fix that.” Voter suppression must become a federal crime supported by a Constitutional Amendment. Now is the time to begin pushing this while memories are fresh.

We must demand action on Global Climate Change. The flat-earthers in power must be marginalized because this is only going to get worse. Besides, investing in industries and infrastructure that would counter the devastation climate change can cause to shorelines and farmlands would actually improve the economy. Investment in clean energy and eliminating reliance on big oil would only hurt big oil while the others energy sources become economic giants creating jobs and expanding our economy. It’s basic economics.

The nation needs to explore new regulations governing “News” organizations from being more of a corporate propaganda wing and more of actual news without commentary. Too many uninformed people out there which is counter-productive to a nation designed for self-rule of the people.

We must work to eliminate the Electoral College. There should be no “swing states” to determine who will be our President. The founders wanted individual states to determine who would sit as President, that concept no longer works. A President is president for all the people, not just Ohio and Florida. Candidates must work to convince the majority of the entire nation to support them because of policies that impact the entire nation. Let House and Senate members represent their own states and congressional districts, the President must work for the entire nation. Seems fair to me.

We must prepare ourselves for the 2014 mid-terms. We must make sure there is as high, if not higher turnout as we had yesterday. Low turn-out has dire consequences. Never let anyone forget 2010.

This is only the beginning. My rants will continue because there is so much more we need to do to build on what we already have and to keep those only concerned for their own ideology to take away from us. We all must remain active. The work of creating a “more perfect union” never ends. Citizenship is hard work and everyone must be involved.

The President summed it up best: