Natural Born Citizen

Federalist 2012259 Comments

This is the second in a series of Constitution-related posts.

Natural-born, Native-born, and Naturalization

Let’s start this discussion with some definitions, dispel some assumptions, and request some civility in the follow-up discussion. This discussion is going to be, as much as possible, restricted to the qualifications for the Office of President of these United States and the portion of U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section 1 which states “No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President”.

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Uh Oh! The Proggies Won’t Like This: Study Finds Red States More Prosperous Than Blue States!!!

tiredoflibbs64 Comments

A study has found out something that proggies and unions are not going to like:

Red States Are More Prosperous Than Blue States

Some of the highlights:

GDP in lower taxed Red states grew 20% more than Blue states with higher tax rates.

Population Growth 4x higher

And the low tax rates didn’t exactly break the budgets of the Red states that embraced them either.  Those jurisdictions actually realized substantially larger increases in the growth of state and local tax revenue than did their more confiscatory counterparts.

Tax policy was not the only measure of comparison.  The authors of the study also compared and contrasted the performances of right-to-work states with states where union membership is compulsory. The results (not surprising, but proggies would call it “unexpected”): GDP growth was more than 10 percentage points higher in right-to-work states.

These results have been the trend for some time.  Yet, proggies will continue to deny despite the evidence shown in this study as well as others.  Their ideological beliefs are not the golden goose as they have been touting for some time.

UPDATE:

Another study says the same:

http://news.investors.com/article/610481/201205080802/blue-states-jobs-suffer-under-obama.htm

Poor ideological proggy drones, the evidence is mounting against you and your ideals and your dumbed down talking points.

The Results of Race Baiting

Mark Noonan68 Comments

From Bob Owens over at Pajamas Media:

The assaults on a pair of Virginian-Pilot reporters in Norfolk, VA, two weeks ago at the hands of 30 black youths, reported for the first time Tuesday, are the latest in a series of attacks driven by a warped sense of racial vigilantism hiding behind calls of “Justice for Trayvon.” At least 15 mostly isolated whites have been beaten not just with fists, but with potentially deadly weapons including hammers and lengths of chain. Many of the victims have been hospitalized, some may never fully recover, and one lingers on the verge of death.

David Forster and Marjon Rostami are just the latest victims of brutal beatings tied to the Trayvon Martin shooting, and some Virginians are outraged that the newspaper did not report the attack for “politically correct reasons.” The attack was revealed not as news, but in an opinion piece…

While none of us – not a single person who has spoken or written about the Martin case – knows all the facts, the evidence we do have clearly goes against the narrative which was created about the case:  the accusation that Zimmerman stalked and killed Martin because Martin was black.  That is clearly false.  Whether or not Zimmerman is guilty of a crime remains to be seen – that will be decided by a trial.  But in spite of the easily ascertainable facts showing that whatever else happened, the shooting was not racially motivated, we still got a story of racial motivation.  How?  My theory from just a few days after the case came to national attention was “grandstanding lawyers”.

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It’s All About ME!!!!

Leo Pusateri167 Comments
‘I said that I’d go after bin Laden if we had a clear shot at him, and I did. If there are others who have said one thing and now suggest they’d do something else, then I’d go ahead and let them explain it.’
-Barack Hussein Obama-

Truth be told, I wouldn’t have a problem with the above statement if President Obama had said, “I said that WE’D go after bin Laden if we had a clear shot at him, and WE did.”

He didn’t do anything but pull a Marlin Perkins, watching from behind the proverbial blind while Jim Fowler tagged the lion.

Instead, he acts no different than a mind-numbed narcissistic rooster, taking credit for the sunrise as he crows. Gawd, he’s pathetic.

www.dailymail.co.uk

The SEALs spoke out after the Obama campaign released an ad entitled ‘One Chance’, asking whether Mitt Romney would have gone after Osama bin Laden as President.

The Ryan Budget and Catholic Social Teaching

Mark Noonan42 Comments

The American Catholic has an excellent round of commentary on the Ryan budget and the ensuing debate carried out on the question, “is the Ryan budget in accordance with Catholic social teaching, or not?”.  While this might seem an arcane debate for only Catholics to engage, the fact is that the debate is ultimately about what sort of America we will have.

There are two words everyone has to familiarize themselves with:

1.  Subsidiarity.

2.  Solidarity.

In a nutshell, “subsidiarity” is the Catholic teaching that all decisions should be made as far as possible at the lowest level.  This covers all sorts of decisions – political, economic and religious.  While the higher authorities play a vital role, their role is rather one of support and instruction rather than mixing in the day to day activities of life.  It is for you and me, dear reader, to take care of the poor in our midst – just as it is our duty to work and earn our own living; it is for the federal government to assist us in this – mostly by ensuring law and order, the execution of justice and our common defense against outside enemies; but, also, at times by directly aiding us when our own good, solid efforts are insufficient to secure what is necessary for the liberty, safety and dignity of ourselves and our fellows.

And that leads us in to “solidarity” – none of us is an island; we are not a law unto our selves.  We are part of a group and while we have absolute rights vis a vis the group, we also have absolute responsibilities to the group.  We do, indeed, have a right to our property and the fruits of our labor – but we also have a duty to ensure that our neighbor does not lack the necessities.

Liberals tend to concentrate on the “solidarity” aspect and use it as a justification for the welfare State.  Libertarians tend to concentrate on “subsidiarity” and use it as a justification for government so small as to be incapable of doing the genuine tasks of government (especially in terms of ensuring justice and the defense of the nation).  Paul Ryan’s plan is a judicious mix of subsidiarity and solidarity – as it should be, because while the laws of God are absolute, the actions of human beings within the parameters of those laws are subject to many varying pressures and needs and thus prudential judgement is needed in each particular instance in figuring out what is best.  Neither libertarianism nor statism is the answer – in some cases the State must take a strong stand, in others the State must butt out…in most cases it has to be a little of both.

Ryan is being furiously attacked, especially by liberal Catholics who see in the Ryan budget the moral justification for dismantling the welfare State.  They are attacking Ryan’s plan because they say it will harm the poor – but the fact is the plan wouldn’t do anything of the sort; it would, though, harm the vested interests of the welfare State who do little for the poor, but seem to make quite a lot of money ostensibly caring about the poor.  But do have a care – if Ryan’s budget is ever passed (say in January, 2013 and then signed in to law by President Romney) then the attacks will start to come from the other side – libertarians who will be upset that the State refuses to become morally neutral and still seeks to have a role in American affairs.

While Ryan’s plan has a great deal of Catholicism in it (no surprise given Ryan’s Catholicism), it really brings up and clarifies the real debate – super welfare State, libertarian anarchy, or a well reasoned approach which understands that things don’t resolve themselves in perfect, little boxes?  The whole of the American experiment – our whole Constitutional order (currently hibernating) –  is based upon the Founders’ realization that (a) no one has all the answers and (b) a wise system will leave great latitude for individual and local action while still retaining a government strong enough to act forcefully when necessary.

We’ll see how it comes out – but Ryan has earned the gratitude of all Americans who wish to see the Founders’ vision restored to America.

 

 

100k Wounded Warrior Bike Ride

Mark Noonan51 Comments

From Everything Lubbock:

The president is hosting the 100k Wounded Warrior Bike Ride, a ride dedicated to military members wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Riding with veterans who have overcome an injury is not only an honor it is a huge inspiration,” President George W. Bush said.

For the second day in a row the former president and his team of wounded warriors dressed down, geared up, and rode across the Palo Duro Canyon today.

All 19 warriors served under the former president and today all 20 of them worked side by side to make it through the trail.

“There are some places where it is very steep and a group of people will wait for me to get there and sort of push me up a hill,” warrior Dan Gade said.

Sergeant Major Chris Self said wounded warriors are proof that obstacles should never stand in your way…

These are the best of the best and President Bush hasn’t forgotten them.  Neither should the rest of us.   Go here if you’d like to help out a Wounded Warrior.

Obama Ad: Romney Wouldn’t Order Osama Raid

tiredoflibbs21 Comments

Hmmmmmm….. very interesting claim.

Now for some reality:

CIA MEMO REVEALS ADMIRAL HAD CONTROL OF BIN LADEN MISSION

ObAMATEUR had his A$$ covered.  If it worked he, of course, would claim credit – which he has.  And predictably, if it failed, the Admiral would have taken the blame.

Hey, obAMATEUR needed some “victory” for his administration, which is the only reason he went for it. Look at his other decisions concerning terrorists and terrorism, uh excuse me “freedom fighters” in their “man-caused disasters”. He fumbled the economy, the recovery and almost everything else.  Now, it comes to light that his so called “gutsy call” was pure unadulterated BS (not to mention it took 18 hours to make the decision in the first place).

The desperation from the White House is getting thick.  But leave it to obAMATEUR to politicize the actions of our brave men and women who carried out the dangerous attack while he sat in a conference room watching the feed. He, then takes full credit and the narrative is written on his “gutsy call” while all along he had his a$$ covered if the raid failed and he played politics with the lives of our soldiers.

Pathetic.

UPDATE:

ObAMATEUR Criticized Clinton for Using Bin Laden to Score Political Points

And I am sure his actions against Romney is something totally different.  I am sure his spokes-idiots will squirm around this question if the repeaters errrr…. reporters have the guts to ask him about this blatant hypocrisy.  Speaking of spokesidiot, it seems one is adept at spin and damage control to the pResidents blatant lies and hypocrisies, with at little lying on his own.

Nothing surprises me anymore……. but as I said before, obAMATEUR has very little positive record to run on.

Government Spending. Does It Really Work as a “Stimulator”?

tiredoflibbs88 Comments

Listening to obAMATEUR, his fellow looters, the moochers and the mindless drones, you would think that the Stimulus and the rest of the over $5 TRILLION in spending by our so-called “leader” would have had a huge effect on the economy.  They would be touting this into the next term.

Sadly, for the looters, this is not the case.  Private spending is needed for the economy to produce the fruit we have seen from successful administrations like Reagan’s.

We have a study now published in the National Journal of Economic Research from University of California at San Diego economist Valerie Ramey.  Ramey puts the proggies lies about the success of their spending schemes to rest.

According to Ramey: “An increase in government spending never leads to a significant rise in private spending.  In fact, in most cases it leads to a significant fall.”

“A significant fall”…… say it again…..  “A significant fall……”  One true measure of the proggy belief have been the headlines concerning the economy and job growth – “an UNEXPECTED FALL in economic grown” or “an UNEXPECTED RISE in unemployment claims”, etc etc.

We already know that obAMATEUR believes that the United States is great and successful because of “government investment” code for “spending”.  Ramey also finds that government spending increases government employment .. but not private employment.

That’s it liberals keep charging on your “Bank of China” credit card and kick the can down the road to our children and grand-children.  ObAMATEUR used those words as senator when criticizing President Bush.  But those words are no longer part of his rhetoric (or any other proggy’s for that matter) while he is the one in charge.  Come November, those words will make another appearance when the proggies no longer control the White House.

UPDATE:

The budget proposed by the obAMATEUR 2012 will result in a DEFICIT of $26 trillion dollars by 2022.   If you were to spend $1,000 per minute, it would take you about 49,000 YEARS to spend $26 trillion dollars.  The obAMATEUR will do it in ONLY 10 years! What an accomplishment! – any you proggy drones whine I cannot compliment your pResident.

That’s the debt your children and grandchildren are going to have to pay.  Here is another compliment – He sure spends other people’s money very rapidly.

We can’t afford another four years of this bozo and his fellow looters.  BTW,  I am sure this budget will be UNANIMOUSLY defeated like his others.  But he will blame only the non-proggies and his loyal drones will regurgitate the dumbed down talking point.