Did Obama sign up for Obamacare?

President Obama says he signed up for Obamacare. Just because he said he did, you thought he really did? This time watch the magician:

Mark Thiessen's summary:

In other words, the president signed up for Obamacare coverage he does not intend to use,

- skipped the disastrous Web site he forced millions of Americans to navigate,

- had someone else do the paperwork for him,

- chose the cheapest possible plan to avoid the premiums he is imposing on others and

- waited until the last possible moment to decide whether he wanted to cough up $400 a month as a symbolic show of solidarity.

Washington Post

Obama ignoring the Constitution #7 Supreme Court arguments

President Obama's Justice Department under Eric Holder violating the US Constitution. #7

Outlandish Supreme Court arguments.

Between January 2012 and June 2013, the Supreme Court unanimously rejected the Justice Department’s extreme positions 9 times. The cases ranged from criminal procedure to property rights, religious liberty to immigration, securities regulation to tax law.

They had nothing in common other than the government’s view that federal power is virtually unlimited. As a comparison, in the entire Bush and Clinton presidencies, the government suffered 15 and 23 unanimous rulings, respectively over eight years.

For example

Requiring that the attorneys staffing a case have the same racial breakdown as the group petitioning. Legal Insurrection

Avik Roy at Forbes

Obama ignoring the Constitution #8 Appointments

President Obama swore to uphold the Constitution. Does he know what he promised? He taught Constitutional law at U Chicago, so of course he does. Then why does he continue to violate it? #8

Recess appointments.

Last year, President Obama appointed three members of the National Labor Relations Board, as well as the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, during what he considered to be a Senate recess. But the Senate was still holding “pro forma” sessions every three days—a technique developed by Sen. Harry Reid to thwart Bush recess appointments. (Meanwhile, the Dodd-Frank Act, which created the CFPB, provides that authority remains with the Treasury Secretary until a director is “confirmed by the Senate.”) In January, the D.C. Circuit held the NLRB appointments to be unconstitutional, which ruling White House spokesman Jay Carney said only applied to “one court, one case, one company.”

Is the language not clear? The president is allowed to make recess appointments when the Senate is not in session. Honorable Harry Reid came up with a way to block President Bush from making appointments by arranging to have one senator present every three days to hold a pro forma session. That is, "Come to order," "Adjourn." So the Republicans did the same thing. No president, not even President Obama, can make a recess appointment dying a Harry-Reid pro-forma session of Congress.

Another violation of President Obama's oath of office.

Ilya Shapiro at Forbes

Obama ignoring the Constitution #9

Continuing with Obama's violations of the US Constitution: Number 9:

Assault on free speech and due process on college campuses.

Responding to complaints about the University of Montana’s handling of sexual assault claims, the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, in conjunction with the Justice Department, sent the university a letter intended as a national “blueprint” for tackling sexual harassment. The letter urges a crackdown on “unwelcome” speech and requires complaints to be heard in quasi-judicial procedures that deny legal representation, encourage punishment before trial, and convict based on a mere “more likely than not” standard.

Due process and being presumed innocent until proven guilty are parts of the bedrock of our legal system. But President Obama's Attorney General Eric Holder instructs colleges to deny legal representation to the accused and conviction on the very low standard of "more likely than not," while our standard is "beyond a reasonable doubt." See also the 14th Amendment. The Free Dictionary

Ilya Shapiro at Forbes.

Sea turtles hatching every day

During our recent sojourn in Cabo San Lucas, BCS, Mexico, we saw baby sea turtles hatch almost every day! In our past five visits we have seen two mass hatches and the march to the sea. LINK But this trip surpassed all five previous ones.

On our first morning's sunrise walk we saw a group of people standing on the upper beach at the Solmar Beach Resort - the original Solmar resort. Sure enough a nest of eggs had hatched. A typical nest contains 85 to 110 eggs. They usually hatch just before sunrise. Resort employees (security employees are trained to watch for and handle the turtle hachings) gathered the hatchling turtles and stored them for release late. They choose a time when airborne predators are least likely to attack - sunrise or sunset. So we returned at sunset for the release. But, unfortunately the resort policy changed. In past years we were allowed to each take one turtle and launch him/her. Each one had a name! But this year they put up yellow police tape and wouldn't let us be involved.

The next day we saw a mass hatch at Playa Grande a couple hundred yards down the beach. Both these resorts face the Pacific Ocean; most Los Cabos resorts - both Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo - face the Sea of Cortez.

Another day there was no mass hatch, but we saw wandering tracks on the beach. Speaking to a woman nearby she said she had picked up five wandering babies and launched them in the sea. LOOKING FOR A PHOTO

The fourth of our first five days there we again saw wandering tracks. This time a resort employee was there. He looked around, then where the tracks were densest he put on gloves (¿Porque tienes guantes?) He dug in the sand and about 8 inches down found a turtle. It didn't move at first, but then he did. Hatches in unknown spots usually don't happen because when the mothers lay the eggs the resort marks where they are. And usually they move them to a common area to avoid disturbance.


One year we saw an adult sea turtle cross the very wide beach to the buildings. But we didn't check to see if it was a mother laying eggs; probably was.

Photos: My photos. First two are 2011 at Solmar Beach Resort, Cabo San Lucas, BCS, Mexico. The rest are at Playa Grande in 2013. Adult is Playa Grande in 2010.

Ten days of Obama violating the US Constitution

Has President Barak Obama violated the US Constitution? Yes!! Let's count the ways.

I am going to focus one violation of the Constitution by President Obama per day for ten days. There are certainly more. Number 10:

Mini-DREAM Act. Congress has shamelessly failed to pass any sort of immigration reform, including for the most sympathetic victims of the current non-system, young people who were brought into the country illegally as children. Nonetheless, President Obama, contradicting his own previous statements claiming to lack authority, directed the Department of Homeland Security to issue work and residence permits to the so-called Dreamers. The executive branch undoubtedly has discretion regarding enforcement priorities, but granting de facto green cards goes beyond a decision to defer deportation in certain cases.

From: Cato's Ilya Shapiro at Forbes

Via Allah at Hot Air.

Don't bail out Obamacare

Obama has created a mess; everyone can see the evidence. Thursday he even added a hardship waiver for those who suffer the hardship of their insurance being cancelled by Obamacare! Get it? The hardship caused by Obamacare.

What's coming? Not next week, but coming. A bail out will be "needed." A bail out of insurance companies due to the crisis created by Obamacare.

Say no. Just say "no bail outs."

CNS News re Charles Krauthammer

Government waste in 2013

Senator Tom Coburn (R, OK) provides a helpful focus on wasteful spending in the US government. He just released his annual Wastebook.

Wastebook (PDF)

At Politico a few top examples:

… 3. $17.5 million in brothel tax exemptions: Coburn says that through the tax code, $17.5 million has gone to brothels in Nevada that have claimed tax exemptions for everything from breast implants to “free passes” that were deemed part of promotional costs and eligible for deductions by the IRS.

4. $50 million “Google searches”: Coburn attributes $50 million to National Technical Information Services, an agency that charges for reports that often can be found for free through a Google search. Coburn calls NTIS, which is part of the Department of Commerce, antiquated, as it was created at a time when information wasn’t as readily available. He noted that about 74 percent of its reports had information available in public sources. Additionally, a CD-ROM for which the agency charges $79 contains information that is also available for free on the Internet.

… 7. $285,000 for rock ’n’ roll : For the first time, the federal government’s “trade arm” funded the music industry as the American Association of Independent Music received $284,300 this year from the International Trade Administration. The funding allowed 12 music label executives — joined by one government official — to travel to Rio to promote music in foreign markets. Coburn, calling it the “the Indie Rock Music Execs World Tour,” says the group also had a side trip to Sugarloaf Mountain.

8. $10,000 “Pole” dancing: Through a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, a group called PowerUP Project features the linemen and electrical technicians of an Austin, Texas, power company who engage in performance art in a choreographed “ninety minute dance with bucket trucks, cranes and field trucks, and a set of 20 utility poles, all set before a live audience.”

North Korea slave-camp escapee asks Dennis Rodman

The only person to escape from a maximum-security slave labor camp in North Korea asks Dennis Rodman to think about the slaves suffering today.

Shin Dong-hyuk was born in Camp 14 in 1982. He knew nothing of life outside the camp - and of torture and killing on whim inside - until a high-level detainee was assigned to work with him. Shin's offense wash his father's brother escaping North Korea 25 years before he was born. The detainee told him of life outside and planned for both to escape. The electric wire surrounding the camp is designed, not to turn one back, but to kill. And it did kill the other detainee, but Shin climbed through over his body and got to China, then South Korea, then the US. His story is told in Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden.

Today Shin asks Dennis Rodman to look up Camp 14 on his phone to see it does exists. And to think about the slaves being starved and tortured there while he is partying with the dictator and his chosen few.

Seattle Times

Watch the pension crisis unfold

Unfunded pension liabilities have Puerto Rico near the edge and Detroit going over. Illinois is close and California has liabilities.

Fox News has a new news center bringing all the pension news into one place.

Fox: Pension Crisis: The gathering storm

(This is not a popcorn eating for policy nerds. It is one way to raise awareness on a problem we find easy to forget.)

But the tyrant gave us a great price - Ukraine

Ukraine, a former "republic" in the USSR, has been on the edge between the opportunities and risks of close relations with Europe versus the bear hug of Russia's emerging new empire.

Ukraine's President Yanukovich chose Russia. But huge crowds have been filling the streets in protest. So President-ex-President Vladimir Putin answered the charge of favoritism by granting favors. He announced this week a huge discount on natural gas with assured supply and loans of several billion $. Along with the benefits in energy and finance they got the overlordship of V Putin. He will treat Ukraine with all the respect given to every Soviet republic from 1918 to 1991 and the East Europe vassals from 1945 to 1989. That is none at all.

When you ride the tiger you go very fast. But you can't get off. You don't dare try.

Walter Russell Meade

China - smog has benefits

Everyone is so negative about smog. It is unhealthy and especially risky for kids, the elderly and those with asthma. It sometimes slows traffic and now is delaying flights in China. The American Interest

But look on the bright side. It protects a city from missile attack. And who doesn't need that? Reuters

In online commentaries on Monday, state broadcaster CCTV and the widely read tabloid the Global Times, published by the Communist Party's official People's Daily, both tried to put a positive spin on China's smog problem.

Those are official sites of the government of China. But the claim has since been removed.

WA Obamacare debits accounts early

Washington's Obamacare system debited peoples bank accounts early. Would you like an $835 payment to hit two weeks early? Gov. Jay Inslees team did it.

KGW

Progress? Yes

There has never been a better time to be alive than now. By most measures everyone is better off than ten years ago. Than 100 years ago.

Cato has a new web site following the trends.

Human Progress

How many times did Obama promise?

"If you like your healthcare plan you will be able to keep your healthcare plan. Period."

Watching the cancellations climb into the millions - and more next year - that statement has been proven false. A lie. How many time did President Obama or his White House spokespeople say it?

PolitiFact has collected 37 instances from June, 2009 to September 26, 2013. 

PolitiFact

Hat tip to Powerline Blog