Federal Employees Continue to Prosper

Posted by Tad DeHaven

The Bureau of Economic Analysis has released its annual data on compensation levels by industry. The data show that the pay advantage enjoyed by federal civilian workers over private-sector workers continues to expand. This state of affairs is a thumb in the eye of the private sector, which continues to struggle with high unemployment. Many private sector employees have been forced to take pay and benefit cuts while continuing to fund generous federal employee compensation with their taxes.

Figure 1 looks at average wages. In 2009, the average wage for 1.95 million federal civilian workers was $81,258, which compared to an average $50,462 for the nation’s 101 million private sector workers (measured in full-time equivalents). The figure shows that the federal pay advantage (the gap between the lines) continued its steady increase over the past decade.http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/federal-employees-continue-to-prosper/

King: WikiLeaks Should Be Declared Terrorists

WikiLeaks, the group that released the sensitive documents on U.S. military, intelligence and diplomatic policy, may end up causing the deaths of Americans and our allies through its actions. So it stands to reason that the government must do something to punish the organization. Rep. Pete King, R-N.Y., the incoming chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee calls for a strong response, The Hill reports. 

"I am calling on the attorney general and supporting his efforts to fully prosecute WikiLeaks and its founder for violating the Espionage Act. And I'm also calling on Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to declare WikiLeaks a foreign terrorist organization," King told 1010 WINS radio in New York.

"By doing that, we will be able to seize their funds and go after anyone who provides them help or contributions or assistance whatsoever," King explains. "To me, they are a clear and present danger to America."

Whistleblower website Website WikiLeaks

WikiLeaks is one example of why the American people are sick and tire of the government politicians. The first time these wikileak idiots let our classified information be known to the world someone in our government should have put a stop to it! What are the people in Washington waiting for? More of our soldiers, citizens, and friends to be killed before they act on this? The guy that runs this website should be shut down and arrested for murder & treason.
It's fine and dandy to tell the world about companies or countries that are doing things to harm human beings! But when you put out information that produces the same results, it's time your website should be shut down!

Sharpton Wants FCC to Ban Limbaugh

Liberal firebrand Rev. Al Sharpton is telling audiences that the Federal Communications Commission should take Rush Limbaugh off the airwaves because of perceived offenses toward racial minorities and other groups.

The attack was only the latest in a series of attacks by Democrats, including President Obama, who suggest that America's political discourse is being crippled by talk radio and cable news shows.

Specifically, Sharpton suggested that the FCC should establish "guidelines" or "standards" to regulate speech.

"You've got to remember that those stations that Rush Limbaugh is on and others are regulated by FCC, granted by FCC; they go back to them to get waivers," Sharpton said on his own radio show on Nov. 19th

"They go back to them to get consolidation," Sharpton continued. "They have the right to set standards. That does not impair your right to speak what you believe, but it does say that you are not going to do that to offend groups of Americans based on their race, their gender, their sexual status - none of that."

Sharpton's broadside followed a similar attack last week by Sen. Jay Rockefeller. The West Virginia Democrat went after both right-leaning Fox News and left-leaning MSNBC.

Said Rockefeller during a Senate hearing: "There's a little bug inside of me which wants to get the FCC to say to Fox and to MSNBC, 'Out. Off. End. Goodbye.' It would be a big favor to political discourse; to our ability to do our work here in Congress; and to the American people, to be able to talk with each other and have some faith in their government and, more importantly, in their future."

And earlier this year President Obama himself lamented what he described as the sad state of political discourse hampered by iPods and cable TV shows.

"And with iPods and iPads; and Xboxes and PlayStations - none of which I know how to work - information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation," Obama said during a commencement address at Hampton University in Virginia. "So all of this is not only putting pressure on you; it's putting new pressure on our country and on our democracy."

Conservatives and civil libertarians are concerned by what they see as a growing tolerance by liberals to regulate and even censor the airwaves, especially as outlets like Fox News and shows like Limbaugh's grow ever more popular.

Limbaugh is the most listened to radio host in the nation with more than 15 million weekly visitors. Fox News continues to trounce its cable news rivals CNN and MSNBC in ratings.

"This is scary stuff," lamented an editorial in Investors Business Daily. "Strong speech has always been quintessentially American.

With the airwaves and cyberspace replacing soapboxes, it's more vital than ever to protect it against politicians favoring a new 'fairness doctrine' that would keep voters from being armed with the information and analysis that can be used to unseat them."

Crisis, What Crisis? Time For a New U.S. Strategy On the Korean Peninsula

North Korea assaulted its southern neighbor today, its latest act of war against U.S. treaty ally South Korea 

and fresh on the heels of news of a previously undisclosed uranium-enrichment facility. Last March, 

North Korea sank a South Korean naval vessel without provocation, killing 46 sailors.

Today’s incident involved sustained shelling of a South Korean island by Pyongyang’s military, and resulted in at least two deaths.

This is likely part of an effort by Kim Jong Il to bring the North Korean military closer to him as he works 

through the installation of family members to surround him in power and eventually succeed him. It is also 

North Korea’s tried-and-true method of scaring us back to the negotiating table, where Pyongyang has 

gotten so much largesse over the years in exchange for false promises to disarm.

The response taking shape in Washington is insufficient.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/11/23/crisis-crisis-team-obama-comes-short-korean-peninsula/#ixzz16Cm064e7

Bailey: Maybe Obama should meet with the North Korean Leader and bow down to him like he has to several of the other Communist Leaders!

Newsmax Poll: O'Reilly, Beck Could Rival Obama in Head-to-Head Presidential Race

By Jim Meyers

In a clear sign of voters’ disdain for President Barack Obama’s policies, several media personalities with no political experience, including Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck, would be within striking distance of defeating Obama in a head-to-head race, according to a new Newsmax/SurveyUSA poll.

Newsmax conducted the survey to find out how several well-known political and "dark-horse" celebrity figures, ranging from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to businessmen Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to O’Reilly and Beck, would fare if they ran against Obama for the White House.

The survey of 1,000 registered voters was conducted Nov. 3-4, after Republicans won the House and gained six seats in the Senate in the midterm elections — results widely interpreted as a rejection of Obama and raising questions about his chances for re-election in 2012.

In the Newsmax poll, respondents were asked: “If there were an election for president of the United States today, and the only two names on the ballot were Bill O’Reilly and Barack Obama, whom would you vote for?” They also were asked that question with other leading media figures in place of O’Reilly.

Overall, O’Reilly got 46 percent of the vote and his fellow Fox News Channel host Beck received 45 percent.

Those percentages are remarkable considering that a prominent political figure, Sarah Palin, got 48 percent of the vote in the Newsmax poll.

O’Reilly even outpolled Obama among men with 52 percent of the vote, among Republicans (79 percent), and conservatives (82 percent).Beck tied Obama among men at 50 percent, and won among Republicans (78 percent) and conservatives (80 percent).

Both Beck and O’Reilly received 49 percent of the vote among white respondents.

Radio talk show host and former CNN anchor Lou Dobbs got 44 percent of the vote in the hypothetical head-to-head race against Obama, and top-ranked radio host Rush Limbaugh got 42 percent.

Other media personalities in the poll were “Tonight Show” host Jay Leno, who got 40 percent of the vote, Comedy Central host Jon Stewart (39 percent), and Oprah Winfrey (37 percent).

But all of the media figures in the poll, including Winfrey, defeated Obama among Republicans and conservatives.

SurveyUSA is an independent research company that conducts public opinion polls for media and academic institutions, and conducts private market research for commercial clients and nonprofit organizations.

More Voters Say No Obama Second Term: Poll

Almost half of voters say President Barack Obama doesn’t deserve a second term, and he is in a statistical tie with two top possible Republican challengers, a Quinnipiac University poll shows.

By 49 percent to 43 percent, poll respondents say Obama shouldn’t be re-elected in 2012. If a contest were held today with Republican rival Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, Obama is supported by 44 percent of those surveyed and Romney by 45 percent.

In a race with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Obama garners 46 percent to Huckabee’s 44 percent. Obama does the best in a race against former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, winning 48 percent to 40 percent. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

Palin “is very unpopular among independents, and although she recently said she thought she could defeat Obama, the data does not now necessarily support that assertion,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Hamden, Connecticut-based Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a statement.

Palin responded “I believe so” when asked in an interview with Barbara Walters of ABC News whether she could defeat Obama in 2012. ABC has released portions of the interview, which is scheduled for broadcast Dec. 9.

Democrats, by 64 percent to 27 percent, say they don’t want another member of the party to challenge Obama in a primary race.

Men Less Supportive

Obama’s support lags among men, with 39 percent saying he should get a second term. Independents also disapprove, with only 35 percent saying the president should be re-elected.

“His weakness among independent voters at this point makes his 2012 election prospects uncertain,” Brown said.

Among the possible Republican contenders, Palin is viewed most negatively, with more than 50 percent of voters saying they have an unfavorable opinion of her. By comparison, 25 percent have an unfavorable opinion of Huckabee and 26 percent of Romney. Newt Gingrich of Georgia, the former Republican speaker of the House, is viewed unfavorably by 43 percent.

Obama’s approval rating is split at 48 percent favorable and 48 percent unfavorable.

The telephone poll, conducted Nov. 8-15, surveyed 2,424 registered voters nationwide.

http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/voters-obama-second-term/2010/11/22/id/377734?s=al&promo_code=B290-1

Obama Says He Understands Ire Over Airport Screenings

"I understand people's frustrations," Obama said, while acknowledging that he's never had to undergo the stepped-up screening methods.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/11/20/obama-says-understands-ire-airport-screenings/


Bailey: I thought the best leader were the ones that lead by example? I think Obama and his family should go through these airport screenings like everyone else. What makes him think he's better then any other American?