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February 10, 2012
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The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
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Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
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Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
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Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
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Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
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Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
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Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
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January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
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January 13, 2012
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Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
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January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
March 24, 2009
/ 28 Adar 5769
It's Obama's crisis now
By
Byron York
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
You might have missed it, but a key moment in Barack Obama's young presidency occurred March 18 as he began his trip to California to promote his $3.6 trillion budget proposal. Heading for his helicopter, Obama made a statement about the AIG bonuses, and he didn't use the word "inherited." As in "we inherited this crisis."
"Ultimately, I'm responsible, I'm the president of the United States," Obama told reporters. "The buck stops with me." That makes it official: Barack Obama didn't start the financial crisis, but he owns it now.
Before anyone gives the president an award for political courage, remember that provisions regarding the bonuses and who knows what else were buried deep inside the $787 billion economic stimulus bill that Obama and his fellow Democrats rushed through Congress. Every single Republican in the House voted against it, and all but three GOP senators did the same. There's no way Obama can blame the stimulus, and its contents, on anyone other than himself.
"What's beginning to happen is his actions are starting to have consequences," a Republican pollster told me. "And this is one of those. He hurried everybody through that process, and it's now his actions that are causing things that people are unhappy about."
Think back to the day when House Minority Leader John Boehner held up a copy of the stimulus bill it must have been six inches thick and said, "Eleven hundred pages that not one member of this body has read. Not one." Urging lawmakers to vote no, Boehner continued: "What happened to the promise that we're going to let the American people see what's in this bill for 48 hours? But no" at that point, Boehner dropped the massive bill to the floor with a thud "we don't have time to do that."
So the bill was hurried through, and Obama signed it in a flash. And now we're finding out that there were, in fact, problems that should have been the subject of public debate just like Boehner said. Once-confident Democrats are worried, and Republicans have a serious I-told-you-so opportunity.
As they argued, Obama hit the road to California to sell something the budget plan that he and his fellow Democrats should be able to pass nearly entirely on their own. Most of the spending measures, apart from the president's health-care reform proposal (which we know virtually nothing about) and his energy cap-and-trade plan (which Republicans now call "cap-and-tax") could be passed by a simple majority, with Democratic votes alone. And yet Obama, worried about opposition from moderate Democrats, let alone Republicans, is having to stump for his plan. And he has recruited one of his top political operatives, David Plouffe, to create an unprecedented grassroots-and-netroots campaign for it, as well.
The sales job is likely to get harder in the days ahead. Obama took a major hit on Friday when the Congressional Budget Office said his budget plans have underestimated deficits in coming years by $2.3 trillion. How much more will a worried public accept? "Bailout fatigue is palpable," a top GOP Hill aide told me.
But Obama, by all reports, plans to push forward with his plans to overhaul health care, energy, and education no matter what the cost. "We have to ... start establishing a foundation for long-term economic growth," he said on the way to California. "That involves making investments on health care and energy and education." Does it really? The budget debate will answer that question.
Recently, Republicans have been heartened by some astonishing public opinion numbers. Pollster Scott Rasmussen found that more people, by a margin of 41 percent to 39 percent, would support a Republican than a Democrat in the next congressional race. A poll taken for National Public Radio showed similar results. Given that Democrats have trounced Republicans on that question for a long time, the new results are raising eyebrows on Capitol Hill.
So while the numbers shift beneath him, Obama hits the campaign trail. But sooner or later, he'll need to come back to his problems, because it's his crisis now.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment on Byron York's column by clicking here.
Previously:
03/17/09 : Geithner-Obama economics: A joke that's not funny
© 2009, NEA
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