— Hillary
Clinton,
Toledo, Ohio, October 3, 2016.
Obama
is set to cash in on presidency with a reported $20Milllion advance for his memoirs. Former President Barack
Obama could rake in more than $20 million in advance for a memoir. Esther Newberg, co-head of ICM Partners' publishing
unit, claims that an Obama memoir would 'go for more than any president's memoir has ever gone'. Obama, 55, went into the White
House as a bestselling author for his book Dreams of My Father, which was published in 1995. The only other presidents to enter
office as bestselling authors are Dwight D Eisenhower, for his 1948 book, Crusade Of Europe, and Donald Trump for his 1987 book,
The Art of The Deal.
Former
first family end Palm Springs vacation - with Michelle boarding billionaire Richard Branson's private jet. An
eight-vehicle motorcade left the home of Spanish Ambassador James Costos and his partner Michael Smith, where the Obamas had
been staying, around 10am and headed to a private terminal next to Palm Springs International Airport. A
Riverside County Sheriff's Department vehicle blocked traffic in both directions on Highway 111 as the motorcade sped to the
airport. Once there former First Lady Michelle was seen boarding a private jet owned by Sir Richard Branson.
Soros' Son
Quietly Steps Up as Major Liberal Donor. Alexander Soros, the son of liberal billionaire George Soros who acts
as the managing partner for Soros Brothers Investments, has quietly emerged as a major donor to Democratic campaigns and
causes. Alexander has remained relatively unknown in the world of political giving thanks to his father garnering a
bulk of the family's attention. However, Alexander has stepped up his political contributions even as his father
continued to pour tens of millions into the coffers of Democratic campaigns and political action committees.
The
Democrat money machine. Building a titanic campaign war chest was the paramount concern of the Democrats in
2016, because they thought it — and their media allies — would give them an unbreakable headlock over
the public debate. So Joe Biden was told he could not afford to get into the race. Same for Maryland
Gov. Martin O'Malley, who barely raised enough cash to pay for a Philly cheese sandwich. Their financial
kneecapping allowed Clinton to suck up hundreds of millions in campaign cash, sometimes in legally questionable ways,
even as she railed against the influence of money in politics.
Chaffetz
Wants To Relocate Federal Agencies Away From Washington, D.C.. Four of the five richest counties in the U.S.
are Washington, D.C. suburbs — Loudoun, Fairfax and Arlington in Virginia and Howard in Maryland — so
it is unsurprising that many Americans question the federal government taking money to prop up far-off elites? One
solution to the federal government being too expensive and out-of-touch is moving parts of it away from Washington, D.C.,
according to House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Jason Chaffetz.
It's
Still a Mad, Mad California. Hypocrisy, when coupled with sanctimoniousness, grates people like few other human transgressions:
Barack Obama opposing charter schools for the inner city as he puts his own children in Washington's toniest prep schools, or Bay Area greens suing
to stop contracted irrigation water from Sierra reservoirs, even as they count on the Yosemite's Hetch Hetchy project to deliver crystal-clear
mountain water to their San Francisco taps. The American progressive elite relies on its influence, education, money, and cultural privilege
to exempt itself from the bad schools, unassimilated immigrant communities, dangerous neighborhoods, crime waves, and general impoverishment that
are so often the logical consequences of its own policies — consequences for others, that is. Abstract idealism on behalf of the distant is
a powerful psychological narcotic that allows caring progressives to dull the guilt they feel about their own privilege and riches.
The
Obamas set for a $40 million payday. President Obama has made more than a tidy $15 million from his books since
he published his first — Dreams from My Father — in 1995, and now he's set to earn another $15 to $20 million — or even
more — from his forthcoming presidential memoir, top publishing insiders tell DailyMail.com. And high-ranking publishing insiders
are talking at least another '$20 million' in an advance paycheck for First Lady Michelle Obama's long-awaited — and highly
anticipated — memoir about her eight White House years. A source claims she's been quietly working on her book already.
How
George Soros Destroyed the Democratic Party. In 2016, Republicans control both legislative chambers in 32 states.
That's up from 16 in 2000. What happened to the big donkey? Among other things, the Democrats decided to sell their base and
their soul to a very bad billionaire and they got a very bad deal for both.
Top
Clinton Fundraiser Selected For Key Democratic Post. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced
a new finance director for the 2018 election season, according to a Wednesday report in Politico's Playbook. Mike Smith
previously served as finance chair of the campaign to elect Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, where he reportedly managed a
5,000-person high-profile donor list. Smith served in the DCCC previously, first as deputy DC finance director, then as
DC finance director before coming to the Clinton campaign.
Obama's
Hawaii Christmas vacations cost taxpayers $35 million over 8 years. For the last time, taxpayers are paying for
a Hawaiian Christmas vacation for President Obama and his family, an annual luxury getaway that has cost the Treasury easily
more than $35 million over eight years. Golfing on oceanside courses, dining at high-end restaurants and frolicking on
stunning white-sand beaches where security guards keep other tourists at bay, the president and his family are in the midst
of a 17-day holiday that requires dozens of Secret Service agents, military personnel and other government employees to
guarantee their safety and ease of travel around Oahu. The Obamas are once again renting a multimillion-dollar oceanfront
home in Kailua, a town on the northeast side of the island where houses in the neighborhood fetch around $10 million.
It's near golf courses and a Marine Corps base where the president goes for morning workouts at the gym.
Running
For That Okidoke, and Shave Ice. [L]et the record reflect that BHO is one of very few Presidents whose golf
game has actually improved during his time in office. And in case you're interested, we had dinner last night at the
exclusive Vintage Cave Club, which is not just a restaurant it's a concept.
The
'Staggering' Campaign of Liberal Billionaire George Soros to Swing Local Prosecutor Elections. As part of his
quest to overhaul the American justice system, liberal billionaire George Soros is targeting local prosecutor races like the
one in Harris County, a large jurisdiction that includes the city of Houston. [...] Soros, 86, an American hedge fund manager
and philanthropist, is No. 22 on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires, with a net worth estimated at $20 billion.
He finances a variety of liberal political causes, including ones related to education, immigration, climate change, and the environment.
Hope
and humility. [Scroll down] Humility is the polar opposite of what Michelle Obama displayed to Oprah and
what the president has mirrored during his eight years in office. Throughout his presidency, you might have thought the
pronoun "I" was his first initial for all the times he referred to himself. The Obamas could have offered real hope,
especially in the hearts of African-American children, by leading the poor among them out of failing inner-city schools and
giving their parents a choice of where to send them for a better education, which would have led to a better life. They
rightly sent their daughters to elite private schools, rather than bad D.C. Public Schools, but denied that choice to those
less affluent, thus perpetuating a spirit of hopelessness in those voters who had hoped for something beyond a "let's move"
exercise program and a vegetable garden on the White House lawn.
Census
Bureau: 4 Richest Counties in U.S. Are Suburbs of D.C.. The four richest counties in the United States, when
measured by median household income, are all suburbs of Washington, D.C., according to newly released data from the Census
Bureau. They are Loudoun County, Va., where the median household income was $125,900 in 2015; Falls Church City, Va.,
where it was $122,092; Fairfax County, Va., where it was $112,844; and Howard County, Md., where it was $110,224. The
Census Bureau treats independent cities such as Falls Church, Va., as the equivalent of a county when calculating its median
household income statistics.
Hillary
to celebrate dismal failure with ritzy party for rich donors — paid for by campaign funds. An
essential companion piece to the other big Hillary story this morning, detailing just how inept her mega-bucks campaign was
when it counted. The fact that she's throwing a party for her biggest contributors tomorrow to toast to her squandering
their money was already public knowledge. What wasn't known until now, I believe, was that that party will itself be
paid for with, um, their squandered money. For all the heat Jill Stein has taken for fleecing dumb liberals to pay for
a doomed recount, Hillary was and apparently will remain the master at getting Democrats to chip in for hapless political
vanity projects.
Hillary
Clinton Donors Who Gave Less Than a Million Booted from Party Invite List. Hillary Clinton campaign donors who
gave less than a million were left off the guest list for the Democratic nominee's glitzy "thank you" party — and
they're not happy. Clinton will fill the iconic "grand ballroom" at New York's posh Plaza Hotel — one of the
ritziest event spaces in the city — but with just a few hundred of her top bundlers (those donors who maxed out on
individual contributions and then began soliciting million dollar checks from their friends and family). Invitations to
the party went out last week, and the "Clinton campaign has been fielding complaints ever since." Because if you made less
than a million for her campaign, or aren't one of Clinton's favored few mega-donors, you were bumped from the party.
Hillary
Clinton throwing party to thank millionaire donors. Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine are throwing a party at the
Plaza hotel on Dec. 15 to thank those who donated millions to the campaign. The party will be held in the Grand
Ballroom on the third floor, to honor the Hillary for America finance leadership council.
Obama's
last White House Thanksgiving: Turkey, prime rib, six kinds of pie. The White House on Thursday
[11/24/2016] released the menu for President Obama's last Thanksgiving as president, which includes a half dozen hors
d'oeuvres, turkey, prime rib, lots of side dishes and six kinds of pie.
The
Obamas 'have bought a mansion at a California golf mecca as well as leasing a $4.3 million DC home' for life after the White
House. When President Obama leaves the White House this January, his family is expected to become bi-coastal,
with homes in both DC and California. Sources told the New York Post that the Obamas have purchased a home in Rancho
Mirage, California. The Obamas are also leasing a $4.3 million home in the Kalorama neighborhood of DC, which
will be their main home — at least for the next two years.
Obama's
transition from 'man of the people' to 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous'. Barack Obama grew up among much
richer people than his family, in Jakarta and at the Punahou School in Honolulu. Whatever resentment he may have
developed was directed at getting a heaping helping for himself at least as much as redistribution.
Hillary and friends are shocked
to learn radical fringe politics is NOT the new normal. It used to be that Democrats abhorred the role of big
money in politics. But Clinton outspent Trump 3-1 and raised more than a billion dollars. The
plutocracy — Wall Street, Silicon Valley and the great American gilded fortunes of Goldman Sachs, Amazon,
Berkshire Hathaway, Facebook and Google — were not just Clinton supporters but often strident ones. The old
idea of a liberal populist underdog had morphed into a haughty moneybag, with a huge staff, lots of opposition researchers
and internal pollsters, surfeits of questionable cash donations, and politically correct endorsements that the left used to
find plastic and inauthentic.
Democrats:
The party of the little guy no more. The Democratic Party has historically stood for the little
guy — defending low-wage workers from inhumane conditions, and later protecting women and minorities from
institutional discrimination. But times have changed. [...] Wherever you look, you find Democrats abandoning their
traditional role as defenders of the little guy and embracing the big guy. The biggest PACs, unions and Wall Street
bankers support Democrats, including their presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. The Democrats often pursue polices
that are at odds with small business, law enforcement, the church — institutions that were once revered and
powerful but that now have considerably less influence and stature.
NYT:
'Vibrant Washington Fears Trump Will Drain Its Culture'. Jason Horowitz writes in The New York Times that the
Beltway elite fear that President-elect Donald Trump's "drain the swamp" mentality will greatly reduce the posh culture of
Washington, D.C., which expanded under Barack Obama's presidency.
About those rioters.
[Scroll down] This is why Trump won. Those millions of people across the nation are sick to death of being
ignored, mocked, and dismissed as annoyances by the people they elected to serve their interests. Our elected officials
get to send their kids to the best schools in the nation but deny their constituents school choice because they are beholden
to the teacher unions. They eat in the finest restaurants while millions of their constituents do not eat out at
all. The men and women in Congress have great health insurance while Obamacare is imposed on the folks back home and
they cannot afford it. Their doctors cannot afford it. Obama still talks as though he did American citizens a
favor! He did not. He has been increasingly despotic, going around Congress to regulate more and more aspects of
all our lives.
RT visits Obama's post-presidential
$5.3 mn Washington mansion. RT traveled to Kalorama, Washington DC — the opulent embassy district which, like
five US presidents before him, Barack Obama has chosen as his new home. We spoke to his future neighbors, were stared
down by his security detail, and even tried to rent a house next door. Like other former leaders dealing with the
chaotic and often testing transition out of office, Obama did not buy his new residence — a 8,200-sq ft,
nine-bedroom, eight-bathroom 1928 Tudor-style brick house — renting it instead from Joe Lockhart, Bill Clinton's
former press secretary, and his wife Giovanna Gray, a Glamour journalist, who previously profiled Michelle Obama.
Wikileaks:
Here's How The Clinton's Free Private Jet Scam Works. Ira Magaziner, the CEO of the Clinton Health Access Initiative, asked
former President Bill Clinton to thank Morocco's King Mohammed VI for "offering his plane to the conference in Ethiopia." "CHAI would
like to request that President Clinton call Sheik Mohammed to thank him for offering his plane to the conference in Ethiopia," Magaziner
gushed in a November 22, 2011 email released by WikiLeaks. Clinton frequently has expected free, luxurious private jet travel
during his post-presidential life. Clinton, his wife and daughter have artfully secured free air travel and luxurious accommodations
since they left the White House. It's an effective way to accept gifts of great value without declaring them for the Clinton Foundation.
Forget
the FBI cache; the Podesta emails show how America is run. They are the comfortable and well-educated mainstay
of our modern Democratic party. They are also the grandees of our national media; the architects of our software; the
designers of our streets; the high officials of our banking system; the authors of just about every plan to fix social
security or fine-tune the Middle East with precision droning. They are, they think, not a class at all but rather
the enlightened ones, the people who must be answered to but who need never explain themselves.
Ukraine
stunned as vast cash reserves of political elite are made public. Two years after angry Ukrainians deposed
Viktor Yanukovych and broke into his vast, opulent residential compound outside Kiev, revelations thrown up by a new system
that requires government officials to declare their wealth and property online have led many to suspect the new elite are no
better. The declarations, which all officials were required to file by Sunday evening, have made public many curiosities,
including politicians who own multiple luxury watches, Fabergé eggs and large collections of weapons. One
politician declared that he owned a personal church. By far the biggest shock, however, has been just how much money
Ukraine's politicians seem to stash away in hard cash. The prime minister, Volodymyr Groysman, declared $1.2m
(£980,000) and €460,000 (£410,000) in cash, as well as a collection of luxury watches.
Hillary
Clinton: 'I Love Having the Support of Real Billionaires'. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton says
she loves having rich people support her. "You know I love having the support of real billionaires," Clinton said,
during a speech in Florida.
University
of California is Hillary Clinton's top source of campaign cash. Individuals working for the University of
California were the biggest source of cash for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, according to the nonpartisan Center
for Responsive Politics. Individuals affiliated with the University of California system gave nearly $1.2 million to
Clinton's campaign committee, the largest bloc of contributions she received for her presidential run. The second
biggest giver to Clinton was another California entity, Alphabet Inc., the Mountain View-based parent company of
Google. Donors associated with Alphabet gave Clinton $1.1 million
Exclusive:
An Inside Look At An Opulent Clinton Foundation 'Site Visit'. Former President Bill Clinton and 11 wealthy
Clinton Foundation donors generously served meals to 250 underprivileged children July 16, 2014, at the Akshaya Patra kitchen
in Jaipur, India, as TV cameras recorded the moment. Clinton's group then quietly retired to Oberoi Rajvilas, a five-star
"royal resort" where the former chief executive booked into Kohinoor Villa, an 11,377-square foot luxurious villa with a 60-foot
swimming pool, according to the hotel's management. The same villa today goes for $13,900 per night, not including the
21 percent government tax. Clinton's villa was five times as big as the average American home, according to U.S.
Census Bureau data.
Soros
Gives $61 Million to Media Groups Promoting Clinton's Liberal Agenda. As U.S. citizens prepare to select the
next president, one liberal donor spent more than $103 million on media over the last 14 years to promote his own progressive
agenda. Liberal billionaire George Soros pledged to give at least $25 million to Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and
other Democratic candidates and causes, according to Politico. And emails exposed by WikiLeaks showed Clinton staffers
going out of their way to "make Soros happy" before the 2016 campaign even started. But that's just a small slice of
the pie. Media groups in the U.S. promoting the same liberal platform as Clinton got more than twice as much Soros money.
High-rollers
have given at least $113M to Clinton and the Dems. Hillary Clinton has built the largest big-donor operation in history, with
1,133 high-rollers pledged to raise at least $100,000 each for her campaign. That's almost twice the number of "bundlers" that President
Obama had four years ago, Politico reported. It means that at least $113 million — and maybe much more — of
the money raised for Clinton and the Democratic Party has come from big-money hedge funders, tech investors and celebrities like George Lucas,
Anna Wintour and Will Smith. Clinton raked in $526 million in campaign and super-PAC donations through mid-September,
according to federal campaign records.
Chelsea
and Bill join dozens of Hollywood A-listers led by Julia Roberts for $10,000-a-head New York fundraising show.
Dozens of Hollywood and Broadway stars performed and urged Americans to vote for Hillary Clinton at a fundraising concert
where tickets went for up to $10,000-a-head. The 'Broadway for Hillary' concert was held at the St James Theatre in New
York City and hosted by Billy Crystal on Monday night, with proceeds going to the Hillary Victory Fund. Ticket options
ranged from $45 for balcony seats to a staggering $100,000 for ten premium orchestra seats as well as two tickets to the wrap party.
Leaked
emails reveal Hillary Clinton's life of deceit. It's all in a day's work for a woman who claims to be for the
Little Guy but spends most of her time frolicking with the political and financial elites.
Obamas'
Next Home: 9 Bedrooms in a Wealthy Washington Neighborhood. President Obama and his family plan to move to a
mansion in the upscale Kalorama neighborhood of Washington, a mere two miles from the White House, when he leaves office in
January, according to people familiar with his plans. Mr. Obama, who has said his family will remain in the
capital until his daughter Sasha completes high school in 2018, will rent the 8,200-square-foot, nine-bedroom home, the
people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to reveal his plans.
State
Department-Funded Nonprofit That John Kerry Had 'No Role' In Was Founded In His Home. News reports show that's
Kerry's home address, which Zillow estimates is worth nearly $18 million. Kerry's wife, Teresa, is an heir to the Heinz
family fortune. Beacon Hill is the most expensive block in Boston, with median home values estimated at $6.7 million in
2015, a Boston Globe affiliate reported. The Boston Business Journal ranked Kerry's house the third most valuable home
in the city in 2013.
America's Versailles Set.
Chelsea Clinton, for example, is married to hedge-fund operator Marc Mezvinsky (whose suspect Greek fund just went broke),
and she once made over $600,000 for her part-time job as an NBC correspondent. She serves in a prominent role and is on the
board of the non-profit billion-dollar Clinton Foundation, which has been cited for donating an inordinately small amount of
its annual budget (often less than 15 percent) to charity work, while providing free jet travel for the Clinton family and
offering sinecures for Clinton political operatives in between various Clinton campaigns. Explaining why she works at the
Clinton Foundation and for other non-profits, Chelsea confessed, in Marie Antoinette style, that "I was curious if I could care
about [money] on some fundamental level, and I couldn't." She cared enough, though, to purchase a $10.5 million
Manhattan apartment not long ago rather than, say, rent a flat in the Bronx.
America's Versailles Set.
Take the case of Colin Kaepernick, the back-up quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers who makes $19 million a year (or about
$20,000 per minute of regular season play). He has been cited by National Football League officials in the past for his use
of the N-word, yet he refuses to stand for the pregame singing of the national anthem because he believes that his country is
racist and does not warrant his respect. His stunt gained a lot of publicity and he now sees himself as a man of the
revolutionary barricades. A number of other NFL athletes, as well as those in other sports, have likewise refused to
stand for the national anthem to express solidarity with what they see as modern versions of the oppressed peasantry.
But Kaepernick and his peers make more in one month than many Americans make in an entire lifetime.
Finally!
The Clinton Family has a compound. As every Godfather fan knows, you've got to have a compound when your famiglia
hits the big time. I am sure we are supposed to associate "family compound" with the words "Hyannis" and "Kennedy," but for me,
"Corleone" comes to mind.
Bill
and Hillary Clinton buy the house next door — their third $1 million manse. Democratic presidential
nominee Hillary Clinton is seeking a job that comes with a house, but she and her husband, former president Bill Clinton,
have many options if the White House thing doesn't work out. The couple have purchased a home next door to their primary
residence in Chappaqua, N.Y., according to real estate records. That makes three homes worth north of $1 million
owned by the Clintons, including a stately mansion near the British Embassy in Washington that Clinton used when she was a senator.
Mrs
Clooney's worn £34,000 of clothes in 14 days while grandstanding as a champion of the downtrodden. With
silk dresses, £1,000 designer bags and skyscraper heels, Amal Clooney's outfits are glamorous enough to grace a red
carpet. Yet the glossy-haired human rights barrister, 38, has spent the past fortnight parading her wardrobe at events
linked to issues ranging from sex slavery to the refugee crisis. Amal wore a different designer label —
often several designer labels — each day. But given her worthy role, some of her haute couture fashion seems
out of place. Even saving the world, it seems, is better done in designer clothes, be they bought or borrowed.
Hillary
Absent Again: We Don't Need Another Part-Time President. Hillary Clinton postponed a lunch fundraiser in
Chapel Hill with some of the state's wealthiest and most prominent Democrats. No reason was given for postponement of
the Clinton event, according to CBS North Carolina. It was expected to take place at the home of Betty Craven and
Michael Warner. The event was billed as "lunch with Hillary Rodham Clinton" and costs ranged from $2,700 to $100,000.
Bill
Clinton's swanky birthday bash proves the Clintons just can't stop influence-peddling. For a giant, flashing
sign that the Clintons' influence-peddling will never end, look no further than Bill's 70th birthday party Friday night at
the Rainbow Room — which of course is a Clinton Foundation fund-raising bash. Yup, that's right; show 'em
the money, money, money: Donors must give $250,000 to be a "chair" of the party, six figures to be a co-chair, 50 grand
to be a vice-chair. True, buying a ticket will get you some glam — Barbara Streisand, Jon Bon Jovi and
Wynton Marsalis are all to perform. But how many others hope their gift will at least get them onto some future White
House guest list, and possibly buy even larger favors?
Where
is Hillary Clinton? Campaign 'Postpones' North Carolina Fundraiser. Hillary Clinton postponed a lunch fundraiser in
Chapel Hill with some of the state's wealthiest and most prominent Democrats. No reason was given for postponement of the Clinton
event, according to CBS North Carolina. It was expected to take place at the home of Betty Craven and Michael Warner. The
event was billed as "lunch with Hillary Rodham Clinton" and costs ranged from $2,700 to $100,000.
Hillary
Clinton Campaign Systematically Overcharging Poorest Donors. Hillary Clinton's campaign is stealing from her
poorest supporters by purposefully and repeatedly overcharging them after they make what's supposed to be a one-time small
donation through her official campaign website, multiple sources tell the Observer. The overcharges are occurring so
often that the fraud department at one of the nation's biggest banks receives up to 100 phone calls a day from Clinton's
small donors asking for refunds for unauthorized charges to their bankcards made by Clinton's campaign. One elderly
Clinton donor, who has been a victim of this fraud scheme, has filed a complaint with her state's attorney general and a
representative from the office told her that they had forwarded her case to the Federal Election Commission.
Michelle
Obama, 'Woman of The People,' Wears $4,200 Gucci Dress to Co-Host 'Ellen'. US Magazine says Michelle looked
"out of this world" in her Gucci number. Agreed: She looked like a visitor from the planet Krypton.
Last Chance
for the 'Deplorables'. Speaking to 1,000 of the overprivileged at an LGBT fundraiser, where the chairs ponied
up $250,000 each and Barbra Streisand sang, Hillary Clinton gave New York's social liberals what they came to hear.
"You could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right?" smirked Clinton to cheers
and laughter. "The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, you name it." They are "irredeemable," but
they are "not America." This was no verbal slip. Clinton had invited the press in to cover the LGBT gala at Cipriani
Wall Street where the cheap seats went for $1,200.
Deplorable
me and disgusting Hillary. [Scroll down] Now I won't call people names but wannabe president Hillary
Clinton's remarks, made at a fundraiser, certainly found an appreciative audience, laughing and applauding her. So yes,
they got their $50,000 worth; [...] Clinton made the comments before introducing Barbra Streisand at an LGBT fundraiser in
downtown New York. According to average ticket prices and attendance figures provided by the campaign, Clinton raised
around $6 million at the fundraiser, at which some attendees paid $50,000.
Obama
will likely become the first ex-president billionaire. Ah, the riches of public service. We are now
assured the Obamas will be able to finance their post-White House lives with record-breaking book deals. [...] According to
various book agents, it appears private citizen Barack Obama should expect to be handed a book deal in the range of $45 million.
His wife, the woman whose mission as first lady was to make sure your kids never got enough to eat at school, is also said to be worth a
book contract of at least $10 million. Public service now gets you filthy, fabulously rich. And as we've seen with the
Clintons, is now a game for grifters, selling access and influence, with the highest bidder rewarded with the most influence.
Where
Has Hillary Clinton Been? Ask the Ultrarich. Mr. Trump has pointed to Mrs. Clinton's noticeably
scant schedule of campaign events this summer to suggest she has been hiding from the public. But Mrs. Clinton has
been more than accessible to those who reside in some of the country's most moneyed enclaves and are willing to spend
hundreds of thousands of dollars to see her. In the last two weeks of August, Mrs. Clinton raked in roughly
$50 million at 22 fund-raising events, averaging around $150,000 an hour, according to a New York Times tally.
Hillary
Takes Questions From Children — For *Only* $2,700 Each!. Who says Hillary has not been busy this month?
She's been raking in millions of dollars from the ultra-rich. And the NYT reports that Hillary attended a $100,000-per-couple
lamb dinner at the Martha Vineyard's mansion of Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild. Mrs. Rothschild told the guests:
"Let's make it a nice night for her and show her our love."
Lucrative
book deals might finance the Obamas' post-White House life. After he is out of the White House, President
Barack Obama has said that he wants to become a venture capitalist, own part of an NBA franchise and avoid taking off his
shoes during security screenings at commercial airports. All of those goals, serious or not, might soon be achievable
if Obama and his wife, Michelle, sign post-presidency book contracts for what literary agents and major publishers say could
amount to $20 million to $45 million — more than enough to pay the estimated $22,000 monthly rent for the
nine-bedroom home they will occupy in the Kalorama neighborhood of Washington and foot the bill for flights on private jets.
(Obama has said he would like to avoid commercial flights once he surrenders Air Force One.)
Soros
Spends Millions in DA Races, Supported Potentially Criminal Candidate. George Soros has been busy pumping money
into district attorney (DA) races across the country, according to reports. Soros-funded shell groups called "Safety &
Justice" PACs dominate DA races in Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas, Politico reports.
Soros spent much of 2014 and 2015 giving substantial sums of money to Black Lives Matter (BLM) and affiliated groups, and is
now pushing candidates at the local level as part of his "criminal justice reform" agenda. One beneficiary of Soros
money is Kim Foxx, who won the Democratic March primary for Cook County, marking a major victory for BLM.
Clinton wraps
up Hamptons fundraising swing. The Democratic presidential nominee hopped from mansion to mansion in the tony
New York oceanfront vacation destination, appearing at parties and dinners where the contributions ranged from $1,000 to
$100,000 for guests and hosts.
Hillary
collected $270,000 per HOUR in secretive three-day California celebrity fundraising blitz. Hillary Clinton
mingled with Hall of Fame basketball player Magic Johnson and Apple CEO Tim Cook, vamped in a photo booth with actor Justin
Timberlake and dined with some of California's richest families on what was likely the most lucrative fundraising swing of
her presidential campaign. The Democratic presidential nominee raised $18 million on a three-day trip through
California, or roughly $270,000 an hour.
Hillary
Raises Over $1 Million At Martha's Vineyard Home of Economist Magazine Owner. Hillary Clinton raised more than
one million dollars over the weekend at a Martha's Vineyard house party given by top supporter Lynn Forester de
Rothschild. Unmentioned in major media coverage of the fundraising event is that de Rothschild is a member of the
Economist Group and also owns a major stake in the group, which has controlling ownership of the Economist magazine.
Cash
Scramble: Hillary Closes August With 21 Fundraisers, One Campaign Event. Democratic presidential nominee
Hillary Clinton is spending that last days of August raising cash before heading into the busy post-Labor Day weekend
campaign season. According to ABC News, Clinton attended five fundraisers in Martha's Vineyard last weekend and is
leaving today for California where she will host seven more fundraisers in just three days. Later this week, according
to Politico, she will head to the wealthy East Coast Hamptons area where she will hit nine additional fundraisers. In
California, Clinton will attract the wealthy and powerful members of the Hollywood and Silicon Valley communities.
Hillary
Clinton Flies 20 Miles In Private Jet To Attend Rothschild Nantucket Fundraiser. As we reported a few days ago,
Bill and Hillary Clinton spent Friday night [8/19/2016] in Martha's Vineyard celebrating Bill's 70th birthday. We're
sure it was a grand affair, well worth the heat Obama had to take from Louisiana flood victims to attend. Turns out the
following morning, Hillary, not one to be bothered with traditional peasant forms of travel, awoke and took her private jet
just 20 miles over to Nantucket where the Rothschilds will be hosting a fundraiser. The event is open to all...
well anyone who can afford the $100,000 per person price tag.
'Rigged
system' crusader Bernie Sanders conveniently never got around to releasing his personal financial disclosure
form. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders almost giddily hit Hillary Clinton for giving paid speeches to Wall
Street during the Democratic primary, but yet he never filed a personal financial disclosure form of his own. The
non-profit Center for Public Integrity discovered that Sanders, amid a tough primary campaign, asked for an extension twice
and then never provided the documents to the Federal Election Commission as his presidential campaign wound down.
Meanwhile both Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump filed their forms by the mid-May deadline.
What
happened to those $ millions from the Bernie Sanders campaign? For those who want to get rich off of politics,
the surest racket is to become the media buyer for a major campaign. For the underwhelming task of actually buying
television airtime and print space, one receives a huge commission of 15%. If a campaign spends ten million bucks
on television advertising, the buyer gets a million and a half. For the Bernie Sanders campaign, which raised over
$90 million, who received this generous bounty?
Obama
golfs 'organic' on Martha's Vineyard, $350,000 initiation fee. President Obama is golfing organic Wednesday,
taking his clubs to one of the most exclusive venues in New England, and one famously known as the nation's first "organic"
course. Obama, who has golfed several times during his annual summer vacation on Martha's Vineyard, steered his
motorcade to Vineyard Golf Club, where the initiation fee is $350,000 and annual dues $12,000 for the 305 members.
It must be nice to have so little to worry about.
Obama
from Martha's Vineyard: 'Climate Change... Is a Genuine Existential Threat That We All Face'. Speaking at a
Democratic National Committee fundraiser at a private home on Martha's Vineyard on Monday night [8/15/2016], President Barack
Obama said that climate change "is a genuine existential threat that we all face." "Despite the extraordinary work that
we've done in mobilizing 200 nations to, for the first time, tackle climate change in a comprehensive, aggressive way, we've
still got a long way to go before we're out of the woods on that one," Obama said, according to a White House transcript.
"And that is a genuine existential threat that we all face and, more importantly, our children and our grandchildren face."
The Associated Press reported that people attending the fundraiser paid between $10,000 and $33,400.
Obama
urges Democrats to campaign aggressively for Clinton. About 60 Obama and Clinton supporters paid between
$10,000 and $33,400 to attend the event that was held in a tent on the sprawling property.
Soros
Paid Al Gore Millions To Push 'Aggressive US Action' On Global Warming. Liberal billionaire George Soros gave
former Vice President Al Gore's environmental group millions of dollars over three years to create a "political space for
aggressive U.S. action" on global warming, according to leaked documents. A document published by DC Leaks shows Soros,
a Hungarian-born liberal financier, wanted his nonprofit Open Society Institute (OSI) to do more to support global warming
policies in the U.S. That included budgeting $10 million in annual support to Gore's climate group over three years.
Video: Hillary Clinton's cribs shock young people.
Hillary Clinton has vowed to be a champion for "everyday Americans." The former Secretary of State — who once
described herself and husband Bill Clinton as "dead broke" — kicked off her campaign on June 13 and in her
45-minute speech on New York City's Roosevelt Island, Clinton delivered a message similar to her initial presidential
announcement. "Americans have fought their way back from tough economic times," Clinton said in the video announcement
on April 12. "But the deck is still stacked in favor of those at the top." So what do Millennials think of a
candidate who criticizes the "1 percent," but simultaneously owns multi-million dollar properties in Washington, D.C. and
New York and spends her summers in the Hamptons? [Video clip]
Black
Lives Matter cashes in with $100 million from liberal foundations. For all its talk of being a street uprising,
Black Lives Matter is increasingly awash in cash, raking in pledges of more than $100 million from liberal foundations and
others eager to contribute to what has become the grant-making cause du jour. The Ford Foundation and Borealis
Philanthropy recently announced the formation of the Black-Led Movement Fund [BLMF], a six-year pooled donor campaign aimed
at raising $100 million for the Movement for Black Lives coalition. That funding comes in addition to more than
$33 million in grants to the Black Lives Matter movement from top Democratic Party donor George Soros through his Open
Society Foundations, as well as grant-making from the Center for American Progress.
Bill
Clinton netted $1.6 million from for-profit colleges. Bill Clinton netted $1.6 million last year from a pair of
for-profit education companies that caused controversy for the future president during Hillary Clinton's time as secretary of
state. Laureate Education paid Bill Clinton nearly $1.1 million in 2015, according to tax returns released by his
wife's campaign Friday. GEMS Education, a Dubai-based firm, paid him more than $560,000. Both companies are major
donors to the Clinton Foundation. Bill Clinton's lucrative consulting contracts with the corporations have raised
questions about how closely his personal fortune is linked to his philanthropic activities.
Clintons Made
$6,725,000 in Speaking Fees in 2015. Hillary Clinton's 2015 tax returns show that Hillary and Bill Clinton
combined to make $6,725,000 from speaking engagements last year. According to the returns, which were released at noon
on Friday [8/12/2016], Hillary Clinton was paid $1,475,000 for speaking last year while Bill Clinton pulled in $5,250,000.
Clinton
releases tax returns; earned nearly $240M since leaving White House. Hillary Clinton's income took a huge hit
as she ran for president last year, dropping to less than half of what she made the year before, according to tax returns her
presidential campaign released Friday [8/12/2016]. Mrs. Clinton hoped the release would embarrass GOP presidential
nominee Donald Trump, who has refused to release any of his, while also shining a light on the high rate she and her husband
paid in their own taxes. The power couple reported earning $10.7 million in income in 2015, and claimed a tax liability
of $3.6 million.
Bernie
Sanders Pays $600,000 For New Summer Vacation Home. Bernie Sanders proved capitalism is alive and well when he
paid a whopping $600,000 for a lakefront home in Vermont this week.
One
in 10 DNC superdelegates were registered lobbyists. Nearly one in 10 superdelegates who voted in the Democratic
presidential primaries were registered lobbyists, according to a new report, adding some support to Bernie Sanders's claim
that "the system is rigged." At least 63 of 712 superdelegates were registered at some point as lobbyists on the state or
federal level, according to an analysis conducted this year by the nonpartisan, nonprofit Sunlight Foundation. These individuals
represented interests that span across big banks, healthcare insurers, the telecommunications industry and unions, including Goldman Sachs
and Planned Parenthood.
Americans'
sense of 'alienation' at an all-time high: poll. While a contentious presidential election dominates the media,
a new survey finds that a sense of "alienation" among average Americans is at an all-time high. For decades, the Harris
Poll has gauged how much, or how little, people feel their interests are heard and addressed by those with power and
influence. The latest survey found that 82 percent of Americans believe that the people running the country don't
really care what happens to them. Another 78 percent say the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer
while 70 percent believe that most people in power try to take advantage of people like them.
The
Everyday Woman: Ivanka's $138 Dress versus Hillary's $12,495 Jacket. Ivanka Trump reportedly wore a $138,
blush-colored dress from her own fashion line — sold at Macy's and Nordstrom — when she introduced her
father Donald Trump on Thursday night at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, where he accepted the
Republican Party's nomination for President of the United States. The 34-year-old fashionista also wore her own dress
on Wednesday night [7/20/2016]. [...] Trump's decision to adorn her reasonably priced clothing line makes her relatable to
every woman and it's in stark contrast to presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's decision to wear a $12,485 Giorgio
Armani jacket during her New York primary win in April.
Dead
Broke: Forbes Says the Clintons Pulled in $229 Million Between 2001 and 2014. Remember when Hillary Clinton
claimed she and Bill were "dead broke" when they left the White House? Hey, I know this will startle you, but it turns out
that's [not true]. Because even before they left the White House, the Clinton had purchased both a "...a five-bedroom home
in Chappaqua, N.Y., for $1.7 million [and] a seven-bedroom house near Embassy Row in Washington, D.C. [for] $2.85 million."
Michelle
Obama Lectures the World on Girl Power. First lady Michelle Obama has wrapped up her six-day "Let Girls Learn"
tour of Liberia, Morocco and Spain. Together with her mother Marian and two daughters Sasha and Malia, the FLOTUS,
under the guise of promoting access to education for 62 million girls worldwide, embarked on a multimillion-dollar excursion
where she ate great food, wore great clothes, hung out with celebrities, and spent $600,000 for one night in Marrakesh.
The Worst
Smear Site In America. The far-left Southern Poverty Law Center relentlessly promotes the Big Lie, wildly
popular in the media, that conservative Americans are racists and the real threat to the nation rather than Islamic
terrorists. The group claims the principal enemies of the American people are presumptive Republican presidential
nominee Donald Trump, conservatives like David Horowitz, and the Tea Party movement. The SPLC is a shamelessly
hypocritical leftist attack machine funded by radical speculator George Soros and a rogue's gallery of rich people and
established philanthropies that want to fundamentally transform America. The fabulously wealthy 501(c)(3) nonprofit has
an astounding one third of a billion dollars ($338 million) in assets, as well as investments in Bermuda and the Cayman
Islands, two offshore tax havens the Left loves to attack (but only when non-leftists stash cash there).
Here
Are The Two Multi-Million Dollar Mansions Hillary Says She "Struggled" To Pay Mortgage On. In an interview with
Diane Sawyer, Hillary Clinton claimed that after the White House their family "struggled... to piece together the resources for
mortgages, for houses." The "we struggled to get by" defense from a multi-millionaire might be tough to swallow for Americans
actually struggling to pay their mortgage. Hillary, after-all, left the White House having spent 20 years living in gratis
government mansions in Little Rock and Washington D.C. Additionally, lets not forget that Bill Clinton's annual salary was $200,000/year
as President and he was able to cash-in on a $50,000 expense account. The Clintons made roughly FOUR times what the average American
made and "struggled to get by." After leaving the White House, the Clintons bought two multi-million dollar mansions.
Obama
girls land in windy Madrid after jaunt to Liberia and Morocco. It was a windy day in Madrid as they landed at
Torrejon air base, forcing Malia to have a Marilyn Monroe moment with her stunning $78 wrap dress. Flying in from a
jaunt in Morocco and Liberia, Sasha was sporting a henna tattoo that spiraled up her arm. And Michelle wore Spanish-style
espadrilles with her $1,800 Proenza Schouler summer dress to greet officials and members of the public waiting on the tarmac.
Michelle
Obama Pledges $100M of U.S. Tax Dollars to Educate Girls — in Morocco. FLOTUS must be unaware of all
the black kids in DC and Chicago that could really use $100M for their failing public schools, since her daughters attend the
super-fancy Sidwell Friends private school, where tuition is $34,268 a year. But that includes hot lunch! Truly, a bargain.
Common
Core Fails Students. What if someone who was really rich got together with some people who were really smart
and discovered what was best for everyone? What would happen if they all used the power of government to nudge (that
is, to coerce) people to adopt their program... because it was for the best, even if no one knew it? You would get
Common Core educational standards, a one-size-fits-all curriculum reform program that has been forced down school districts
around the nation. The reigning genie behind all this is Bill Gates. After all, he is richer than everyone else,
so therefore he must be smarter than everyone else. Better yet, he suffers from a malady that seems to inflict nearly
all tech oligarchs — they believe that they constitute a class of Platonic philosopher kings or guardians who know
what is best for everyone because they have a clearer vision of the Ideas.
Hillary Claims To Be Everyday American,
But Look What She Was Carrying In NY. Although Hillary Clinton likes to pretend that she's "just like every
other American," there's some strong evidence to the contrary. Take, for example, what she had in her hands during a
recent stop in New York, and you'll see the serious issue with such a sentiment. [...] According to Mail Online, she had a
sold out, Alexander McQueen handbag, which is valued at a whopping $1,500 — $1,645 depending on the source.
Hillary
Clinton shows off her $1,600 Alexander McQueen handbag. Hillary Clinton arrived for her interview on The View
carrying a stylish — and sold out — Alexander McQueen handbag that costs $1,645. As voters headed to the polls in
Wisconsin on Tuesday, the presidential hopeful returned to her native New York, where she was twice elected by the state's
voters to represent them in the Senate.
The
surprising strategy behind Hillary Clinton's designer wardrobe. Hillary Clinton's New York primary victory
speech in April focused on topics including income inequality, job creation and helping people secure their retirement.
It was a clear attempt to position herself as an everywoman. But an everywoman she is not — she gave the
speech in a $12,495 Giorgio Armani tweed jacket. The polished outfit was a stark contrast to the fashion choices
Clinton has made in the past. As first lady, Clinton wore frumpy pastel skirtsuits. As New York senator and
secretary of state, she attempted a more serious look, wearing pantsuits in a rainbow of colors — so mocked that
they sparked memes. In comparison to Michelle Obama, who's become known as a style icon during her time in the White House
and appeared on the cover of Vogue twice, Clinton has never been able to nail down a personal aesthetic that works for her.
Hillary
Clinton wore $12,495 Armani jacket during speech on inequality. You just can't make this stuff up
anymore. Hillary Clinton, dead broke as she claimed after leaving the White House with rapist Bill Clinton wore a
$12,495 priced Armani jacket while giving a speech about inequality back in April. Some people struggling today don't
even make that in a year. Others are lucky if this is 1/3rd of what they make in a year. No matter to 'dead
broke' Hillary.
Hillary
Clinton wore a $12,495 Armani jacket during a speech about inequality. Hillary Clinton took a lot of flak on
Monday after a report surfaced that the presidential candidate wore a Giorgio Armani jacket worth more than $12,000 during a
speech in April about inequality. Clinton, who was well-known for her vast pantsuit collection, has upgraded her
wardrobe during her most recent bid for president to appear more relatable, according to the New York Post.
Obamas'
Next Home: 9 Bedrooms in a Wealthy Washington Neighborhood. President Obama and his family plan to move to a
mansion in the upscale Kalorama neighborhood of Washington, a mere two miles from the White House, when he leaves office in
January, according to people familiar with his plans. Mr. Obama, who has said his family will remain in the
capital until his daughter Sasha completes high school in 2018, will rent the 8,200-square-foot, nine-bedroom home, the
people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to reveal his plans. The
house — valued around $6 million, according to several real estate websites, with an estimated monthly rent of
$22,000 on Zillow — is owned by Joe Lockhart, a former press secretary and senior adviser to Bill Clinton.
Mr. Lockhart was until this year the managing director of a communications and political consulting practice he founded,
the Glover Park Group, but has moved to Manhattan to become executive vice president for communications for the National
Football League.
The
$5 Million D.C. Mansion Where The Obamas Will Live After Leaving The White House. After President Obama leaves
the White House, his family has plans to move to a $5 million mansion in Washington D.C. According to Politico's Mike
Allen, Obama will lease the mansion from former Bill Clinton press secretary Joe Lockhart and Giovanna Gray.
Here's
the mansion the Obamas will live in starting in 2017. President Obama and his family will reportedly lease an
8,200-square foot mansion in Washington, D.C.'s Kalorama neighborhood after they leave the White House. Sources
confirmed Wednesday to Politico that the Obamas will rent the mansion owned by Joe Lockhart and Giovanna Gray a day
after it was reported by National Journal that they had settled on the Kalorma neighborhood.
The Editor says...
With what money will the Obamas pay the lease on this house?
Obamas
'choose upmarket suburb of Karolama, DC, as their post- White House home. The Obamas are choosing the manicured
gardens and marble fountains of Kalorama, Washington DC, as their new home, according to reports. The soon to be former
leader of the free world has eschewed Embassy Row, which he had apparently been toying with, and decided upon the salubrious
Karolama, according to the National Journal. Its streets are lined with distinguished colonial homes, and its residents
range from ambassadors to statesmen.
The Editor says...
This maneuver probably indicates one of several scenarios, for example: [#1] The Obamas will embark on fresh new careers
as lobbyists, or [#2] The Obamas are staying close to Washington in case Michelle runs for the White House.
Report: Obamas choose DC neighborhood
to live at after presidency ends. Back in March, President Barack Obama said he and his family will be sticking
around the nation's capital after he leaves office in January. It appears they have chosen which neighborhood they plan
on living in after his second presidential term is over. According to the National Journal, the Obamas plan to rent a
home in the Kalorama neighborhood of Northwest D.C., just east of Massachusetts Avenue.
You
Too Can Live Like Chelsea Clinton For A Mere $6 Million. The former first daughter and Marc Mezvinsky's starter
home is on the market again after the couple sold it in 2013 for $5.9 million.
Obama
foundation donors at the White House. A new study details how President Barack Obama has been inviting his
Obama Foundation donors to events at the White House, a venue that obviously won't be available to him to entertain mega
contributors in a few months. The Obama Foundation, created on Jan. 31, 2014, has to date only 39 contributors,
with the money coming either from individuals or foundations controlled by Obama supporters.
Hillary
reveals she earned $1.5 million from just six speeches last year and $5 million in book royalties. Hillary
Clinton filed financial documents Tuesday [5/17/2016] showing that in 2015 she earned more than $5 million in royalties from
her book 'Hard Choices' and about $1.5 million in speaking fees before she launched her presidential campaign. Her
husband, former President Bill Clinton, continued his lucrative speaking tour through last November, more than six months
after his wife entered the race, reaping more than $5 million from banking, tech and other corporate interests.
The Progressive
Lust For Power. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have been talking a lot about "fairness" and "equality"
during their primary campaigns. Like most progressives, they pass themselves off as the champions of the ordinary
people who are suffering beneath the boot of rapacious capitalists and the plutocratic "one percent." Give us power, they
say, and we will create "social justice" for all the victims of "white privilege" and capitalist greed, not to mention redistributing
even more money from the selfish "rich" in order to finance such utopian goals. Promiscuously displaying their hearts
bleeding for the oppressed has long been the progressive camouflage that hides their real motive: the lust for power.
Hillary
and Bill Clinton Made $6.7 Million from Speeches in 2015. Hillary and Bill Clinton raked in a combined $6.725 million
in paid speeches in 2015, a decrease from the year before, according to a personal financial disclosure form released late Tuesday night
[5/17/2016]. As a presidential candidate, Clinton has come under fire for paid speeches she gave, particularly to big banks and Wall
Street, after leaving the State Department. Her Democratic opponent, Bernie Sanders, and his supporters have called on her to
release the transcripts of these speeches, which she has thus far refused to do.
Rift Between Labor
and Environmentalists Threatens Democratic Turnout Plan. Two of the Democratic Party's most loyal
constituencies, labor and environmentalists, are clashing over an effort to raise tens of millions of dollars for an
ambitious voter turnout operation aimed at defeating Donald J. Trump in the November election. The rift developed after
some in the labor movement, whose cash flow has dwindled and whose political clout has been increasingly imperiled, announced
a partnership last week with a wealthy environmentalist, Tom Steyer, to help bankroll a new fund dedicated to electing Democrats.
The Greens' Daddy Warbucks
Helps Himself. Any comprehensive review of green energy and its politics and policies has to include the name
of wealthy liberal Tom Steyer — who has been called the environmental movement's new "Daddy Warbucks." Having made
his billions from his tenure atop Farallon Capital Management — much of it from coal projects around the world —
Steyer apparently had an environmental epiphany and now wants to atone for his past sins by trying to save the planet from manmade
climate change. He is using his wallet to try to elect candidates who will promote policies and energy plans that agree with
him. And that plan is "green."
NY
Democrats selling national convention access to big donors. Despite federal and state probes into government
pay-to-play schemes, New York's Democrats are offering fat-cat donors access to bigwigs at the party's national convention in
exchange for contributions, The [New York] Post has learned. In their pitch for cash, state Dems promise to grant a
dizzying array of perks to top donors at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in July.
The Great Culture War. [Scroll down]
Normal Americans are the ones paying the price for gesture politics. John McCain can be generous on immigration because
he never experiences it. He lives in one of his wife's 23 mansions, rides in government limousines and works in
fortified government facilities. Men like John McCain live as strangers in this country. What they see of it is
from a safe distance. Similarly, the chattering skulls on television pull down six figure salaries and live in bunkered,
whites-only communities. It is not an accident that they are crowded into the richest counties on earth, all of them
around Washington DC. They are the petty royalty of the ruling class. To these people, normal Americans are
aliens, indistinguishable from the people sneaking over the border.
John
Kerry, Teresa Heinz Family Trusts Invest Heavily In Fossil Fuels. Despite Secretary of State John Kerry's
outspoken demand that America drastically reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, his family investments heavily favor oil, coal
and natural gas companies while giving scant attention to renewable energy firms, according to a Daily Caller News Foundation
analysis. In his latest 2015 financial disclosure report obtained by TheDCNF, Kerry listed family trust investments in
94 companies involved in the exploration, extraction, storage and transportation of oil, natural gas, coal and liquefied
natural gas. Several of the investments are in companies that use hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, which is
passionately opposed by environmentalists.
Kerry,
Heinz Family Have Millions Invested In Offshore Tax Havens. Secretary of State John Kerry and his wife Teresa
Heinz have invested millions of U.S. dollars through family trusts in at least 11 offshore tax havens, according to The Daily
Caller News Foundation's Investigative Group. The revelation comes on the heels of the release of the Panama Papers, a
treasure trove of 11.5 million legal and financial records documenting how some of the world's richest and most powerful
people have used offshore bank accounts to conceal their wealth and avoid taxes.
One
Law for the Rich, Another for the Average. Somewhere, Big Tim Sullivan might be laughing. Over 100 years
after the enactment of New York City's handgun licensing law (commonly referred to as the Sullivan Act), the measure is still
working as the political boss intended. That is to say, it is ensuring that New Yorkers who are well-connected, either
by status or more nefarious channels, are able to arm themselves with handguns, while average residents remain at the mercy
of the criminal element.
Hillary's
State Department Stopped Haiti From Increasing Its Minimum Wage to 61 Cents. The #FightFor15 movement is
continuing to make gains. After steamrolling through large urban centers such as Seattle, San Francisco, and New York,
now it may be coming to entire states near you. New York and California recently adopted a $15 statewide minimum wage,
and both Democratic presidential candidates have advocated extending the policy nationwide. While Bernie Sanders has
made political hay out of Hillary Clinton's seeming reluctance to fully embrace his rush to $15, she has been coming around
to the same talking points of late. Of course, when the rubber meets the road, Hillary seems to have a different take
on drastic wage hikes. When she was running the show, the State Department helped block Haiti's efforts to increase its
minimum wage from 27 cents to 61 cents per hour.
Surprise!
Socialist Bernie Sanders' Free-College Plan Would Help Rich People Most, Study Says. The proposal by
self-proclaimed socialist Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders to make tuition free at America's public colleges
and universities would provide almost $17 billion in free handouts to already-comfortable American families in the upper half
of income distribution. Meanwhile, Bernie's plan would cause just $13.5 billion to trickle down to families in
America's poor half — the ones who would have considerably more trouble covering room, board, textbooks, travel
and other non-tuition costs.
Billionaire-Bashing
Bernie Sanders Is a Millionaire With Three Homes. Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders rails against
the "billionaire class" and has called income inequality "the greatest moral issue of our time," but the senator from Vermont
is "not exactly a man of modest means," according to an article written by Kerri Anne Renzulli for the TIME magazine
website. However, "nothing about Bernie's net worth devalues his progressive beliefs," stated Peter Daou, a former
adviser to Hillary Clinton who responded on the Blue Nation Review website to reports that Sanders and his wife, Jane, could
retire with an "effective retirement nest egg" valued at "nearly $2 million."
Hillary's
Haircut Inequity. The Clintons claim that in 2001 when they left the White House in a moving van stuffed to the
rafters with $190K worth of stolen items, they were poverty stricken. Then, between 2001 and 2012, on speaking fees
alone, the destitute couple managed to stockpile approximately $160 million dollars. With that kind of haul, who needs
commemorative china and cutlery? Anyway, now it's 2016 and, thus far, Hillary watchers haven't seen the former
penniless first lady/current prosperous presidential hopeful wear the same outfit twice. In fact, every time Hillary
Clinton's bulging eyes approach the podium, if you listen closely, besides the signature squawking and screeching, you'll
hear a cash register ring up $1,400 for each and every Nina McLemore power pantsuit she shows up in.
Hillary
Clinton's entourage blocks up traffic in New York as she gets $600 haircut. She has been out and about in New York trying
to woo voters in Harlem. But before hitting the campaign trail [3/31/2016], Hillary Clinton's entourage reportedly blocked up
traffic on Fifth Avenue as she enjoyed an early morning hair appointment at luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman.
Gridlock
In NYC So Hillary Can Get a $1,200 Haircut. Hillary Clinton's oversized motorcade gridlocked Manhattan traffic this
week so she could, eh, get a coiffe. Looks like the cut and color cost a mere $1,200. But she's for the little people!
The $50 Billion
Hypocrite. Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has a net worth that exceeds $50 billion, but he really
wants you to know that he's a Champion of the proverbial "little guy." How does he prove this? By promoting the notion
that America would benefit greatly from the swift legalization of countless millions of illegal aliens — you know,
"little guys" — who are highly likely to become permanent wards of the welfare state and, most importantly, permanent
Democratic voters. In 2013 Zuckerberg visited Capitol Hill, where he pressed members of Congress to support an amnesty
bill designed to confer citizenship to millions of people residing unlawfully in the United States.
The Apology Tour of Our
Next President. In Havana recently, President Obama talked of the similarities between Cuba and the United
States, as if a constitutional republic of some 240 years and a thuggish and murderous communist dictatorship were kindred
souls. In Argentina, Obama both tangoed and then apologized for the nth time for his country while abroad, this time
supposedly for not opposing the brutal Argentine military dictatorship at the height of the Cold War. He also advised
young people that there was not that much difference between communism and capitalism — without giving them a
glimpse of his own retirement plans that will make the Obamas fabulously rich by following the hyper-capitalist post-presidential
get-rich program of the Clintons.
Bernie
Sanders calls George Clooney's $33,400-a-ticket Hillary Clinton fundraiser 'obscene'. Bernie Sanders took a
shot at Hollywood on Sunday [3/27/2016], calling two upcoming Hillary Clinton fundraisers organized by George Clooney
'obscene'. The actor is hosting a fundraising dinner for the Democratic candidate in San Francisco on April 15, where
two seats at the head table with Clinton, Clooney and his wife Amal cost $353,400. The following night, Clooney is hosting
yet another event at his home in Los Angeles where tickets are $33,400 each.
Michelle
Obama's Floral Outfits Cost 23 Times Average Annual Salary in Cuba. The two floral dresses that first lady Michelle Obama sported in
Cuba this week would not be affordable for the wide majority of individuals living in the repressive country. US Weekly recently
spotlighted two outfits that Obama wore during appearances in Havana on Sunday and Monday that, according to a [Washington] Free Beacon
analysis, together cost more than 23 times the average annual state salary in Cuba recorded in 2014.
Hillary
Clinton to Miners: Let Them Eat Coal. By now, most people probably know about one of Secretary Hillary
Clinton's biggest campaign gaffes to date: "we're going to put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business."
As soon as I heard it, I tweeted: "Imagine a presidential candidate running for office based on putting people out of work?"
I wasn't the only one shocked by the uncharacteristic clarity of her statement.
40
Reasons Not To Vote For Donald Trump. [#22] Eminent domain: Not only is Donald Trump in favor of having the government use the power
of eminent domain to take property from private owners so it can be given to fatcats like him, he tried to use eminent domain to take a widow's home
away from her so it could be used as a limo parking lot. If you think Donald Trump is for the little guy, you're a sucker.
Wage
gap: One Hillary Clinton speech more than average CEO salary. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton's charge that
corporate CEOs earn 300 times more than their workers isn't just wrong. It hides another very real wage gap: She earns more in
just one speech than the average American CEO in a year.
White
Lady with $650K Speaking Fee Wants Black Americans to Know She's Down with Their Struggle. [Scroll down]
I'm glad we are finally getting around to airing out a subject that's been put on the back burner for so long. After the
Democrats got a free pass on making the African-American citizens of Detroit significantly poorer for almost half of a century,
Hillary probably rightfully feels that there is no level of Demspeak feel-good pandering that she can't get away with now.
Obama dines privately with DreamWorks CEO
Jeffrey Katzenberg, actor Will Smith. As he is wont to do when he visits Los Angeles, President Obama dined secretly with moguls and stars. Mr.
Obama had dinner at a hotel Thursday night [2/11/2016] with Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks CEO and a major campaign donor; Alan Horn, chairman of Walt Disney Studios;
and actor Will Smith, most recently in "Concussion." The White House didn't disclose the dinner, nor was it on Mr. Obama's public schedule. It was first
reported by Deadline.com.
Obama hits golf course in
California. While Washington was facing a deep freeze Friday [2/12/2016], President Obama was eager to hit the links on the West Coast.
Fresh off a Thursday fundraising swing through San Jose and Los Angeles, Obama flew to Palm Springs, Calif., for a weekend golf getaway. Obama's
motorcade arrived at Porcupine Creek golf course, owned by Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, in nearby Rancho Mirage just over 20 minutes after
Air Force One landed on Friday [2/12/2016].
Financial
Scandals Follow Socialist Millionaire Sanders. Responding to one of Anderson Cooper's softball questions,
socialist Bernie Sanders (I-VT) told the CNN Town Hall on Wednesday night [2/3/2016] that he lives a frugal life and indicated that
he doesn't care about money or status. "I have a small Chevrolet," he said. "It is one of the smallest Chevys that they
make." He said it was about five years old. But James O'Brien, a political consultant and former publisher of Campaigns
& Elections magazine, says the career politician, who has been a mayor, member of Congress and U.S. senator, has achieved the
financial status of a millionaire. O'Brien has analyzed the financial status of Sanders and his wife, including their financial
disclosure report, and has concluded they have a net worth in the range of $1.2 to $1.5 million, not the $700,000 or less
that is usually reported by the media.
The many contradictions of Hillary
Clinton. [Scroll down] Clinton has also vowed to raise taxes on hedge fund managers. Is that a way of expressing
displeasure with her son-in-law, Marc Mezvinsky, who operates a $400 million hedge fund? For that matter, how did Clinton's daughter,
Chelsea, who worked for a consulting firm and a hedge fund despite having no background in finance — reportedly become worth an
estimated $15 million? Hillary Clinton recently proposed a new $350 billion government plan to make college more affordable.
Certainly, universities spike tuition costs, and student-loan debt has surpassed $1 trillion. Colleges spend money indiscriminately,
mostly because they know that the federal government will always back student loans. Yet, since she left office, Clinton routinely has
charged universities $200,000 or more for her brief 30-minute chats. Her half-hour fee is roughly equal to the annual public-university
tuition cost for eight students.
The
Tet Offensive: European Union Edition. [Scroll down] Over on the Fourth Estate, the global mass media
have been almost entirely subverted, scripted and stage-managed for decades by these über-wealthy elites through a
thousand channels greased with kickbacks, no-show jobs, and secret payoffs that are disguised as special stock offerings and
private land deals. Media figures morph seamlessly into senior political advisors and corporate board members, adding
millions to their portfolios with each well-timed transition. Even many retired generals and admirals eagerly wallow in
this swamp of sell-out and sleaze. It should not be a surprise to anyone that so many politicians leave Washington or
Brussels as millionaires. Just as it should not be a surprise that long-time CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite, "the most
trusted man in America," was for his entire adult life secretly a leading member of the World Federalist Association, a fact
he proudly revealed only after his retirement from in front of the camera.
Clinton
donors use Maine Democrats to skirt campaign cash limits. A Cuban-born sugar tycoon. A California-based
registered foreign agent for the government of Sri Lanka. A Chicago billionaire. All of them are recent large donors to
the Maine Democratic Party via a complex fundraising scheme called the Hillary Victory Fund. The fund exploits recent court
decisions and weakened campaign finance laws to maximize political contributions and funnel them to the Democratic National Committee.
Hillary
Clinton pocketed $37 million in campaign cash in 4th quarter; $112 million in 2015. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign
said Friday [1/1/2016] it raised $37 million in the past three months and more than $112 million in all of 2015 to support her
bid for the Democratic nomination.
Elitist
President Obama Back To Familiar "Bitter Clinger" Remarks Ridiculing The "Blue Collar" Middle Class. You could
not time a more damaging contrast than presidential candidate Donald Trump rallying with thousands of middle-class patriotic
Americans, while the Democrat President of the country pokes them in the eye and heads off to Hawaii for a golf-filled
Christmas vacation.
President
Barack Obama and his family to spend Christmas in Hawaii for eighth consecutive year. President Barack Obama
and the first family will return to Hawaii for their Christmas vacation next week for the eighth year running. The White
House confirmed Friday [12/11/2015] that the Obamas are due to leave Washington for the island on December 18, the Huffington
Post reports. It is not yet known where they will stay this year, though they have traditionally rented out a property in
the upscale Kailua area on Oahu island.
In
Paris for Climate Summit, Obama, Susan Rice, John Kerry Dine at Fancy French Restaurant. While in Paris for the
Cops21 climate change summit, President Obama took some time off to enjoy a fancy meal at L'Ambroisie with French President
Hollande. [...] According to an estimation from Zagat, a meal at L'Ambroisie costs about $200 and is described as "a jewel of
French gastronomy" on the restaurant's website.
Ex-NYC
mayor with multiple mansions, jets: 'Crazies' like Ted Cruz don't accept climate change reality. According to
the New York Times in 2012, [Michael] Bloomberg has eleven homes. Eleven. ELEVEN! He also has a fleet of
private planes that he uses to get to and from those homes, as well as to arrive at "climate change" summit meetings in style.
That's the guy accusing others of not believing what they're saying. Here's just one of Bloomberg's places: A
22,000-square-foot mansion with 11 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms with hot and cold running hypocrisy.
Green
Tech and the climate crisis syndicate. Renewable Portfolio Standard advocates recently held their 2015 National
Summit. The draft RPS agenda suggests it was quite an event — populated by bureaucrats, scientists and consultants
who have jumped on the climate and "green energy" bandwagon, to follow the money. Indeed, they are no longer content with
10% corn ethanol in gasoline, or some wind and solar power in the electricity mix. Now they want to convert the entire
electrical grid from fossil-fuels to renewable sources and, if Catholic bishops get their way, totally eliminate hydrocarbons
by 2050, despite the horrendous impacts that would have on workers, families and the world's poorest people. There's
certainly a lot of money to be made. The green revolution is estimated at $1.5 trillion per year, which means
potentially huge profits for those with political connections.
Top
10 reasons George Soros is the most dangerous man in America. [#1] Gives billions to left-wing causes:
Soros started the Open Society Institute in 1993 as a way to spread his wealth to progressive causes. Using Open Society
as a conduit, Soros has given more than $7 billion to a who's who of left-wing groups. This partial list of recipients
of Soros' money says it all: ACORN, Apollo Alliance, National Council of La Raza, Tides Foundation, Huffington Post, Southern
Poverty Law Center, Soujourners, People for the American Way, Planned Parenthood, and the National Organization for Women.
Resettlement
Contractors Lie to Protect Their Franchise. In the wake of the horrific terrorist attacks in Paris, and the
revelation that at least two of the terrorists were Syrian refugees, the governors of Texas, Alabama, Illinois, Iowa,
Michigan, Arkansas, Louisiana, Indiana, and even Massachusetts, have announced they will seek to bar Syrian refugee
resettlement in their states. More are likely to join them. Good for them! But the resettlement
contractors have fired back.
Politico:
Big-money leftists considering major funding for #BlackLivesMatter. Oddly enough, the MSM denouncers of "big
money" in politics are never concerned with the cabal of left-wing billionaires who manipulate public opinion from behind the
scenes by funding the Astroturf-ish movements like #OccupyWallStreet in the last presidential election cycle and now
#BlackLivesMatter. Operating under the ironic name of "Democracy Alliance," a cabal of billionaire and mere centi-millionaire
leftists meets in secret to decide where to spend their money to keep the left powerful. George Soros, the financier whose
billions mostly reside overseas in banking secrecy havens, already is known to have spent tens of millions of dollars funding
Ferguson protests and spin-offs like BLM, according to the Washington Times. Now his colleagues in the Democracy Alliance
are reportedly ready to up the ante with many millions more to fan racial resentment.
Democrats
Decry Income Inequality That Their Own Policies Make Worse. [Scroll down] Under Obama, the poor have gotten poorer
and the rich richer. Incomes for the bottom 20% have fallen in each of the past four years and are now 8% below where they stood
when Obama took office. Meanwhile, incomes of the wealthiest 5% have climbed under Obama, after adjusting for inflation. Then
there's the report published in September by the European Central Bank, which examined the correlation between welfare spending and income
inequality in European countries. It found that the higher the welfare spending, the higher the income inequality.
Bloomberg
targets states suing over climate rules. Billionaire media mogul Michael Bloomberg will begin shelling out millions of
dollars to counter the 26 states suing the Obama administration over its climate rules, and Democrats aren't immune. Bloomberg
advisers said Friday that the $10 million campaign will target state attorneys general who are part of a multi-state suit comprising
more than half the nation, including the Missouri attorney general who is running for governor.
Hillary's
'everyday Americans' base is questioned as ZIP codes at the top of her donor list are among America's richest. Hillary Clinton's
donors have something else in common other than their support for the Democratic candidate. Turns out, they're neighbors. The top 10
zip codes of her donor list represent some of the richest neighborhoods in the country, and they're all clustered in Manhattan or near Northwest
Washington, D.C.
How
The Clintons Have Made $230 Million Since Leaving The White House. Less than a week before the Clintons left
the White House in 2001, they bought a replacement house 15 minutes down the road for $2.85 million. It was a pricy purchase
for a couple who had more than $1 million in legal debt and a net worth of nearly nothing at the time. But the Clintons had
little reason to worry — they were poised to make a fortune. Over the next 15 years, they earned more than $230 million
before taxes.
Lobbyists
for Clinton's 'Enemies' Are Bankrolling Her Campaign. Asked to name the enemies that she is most proud of
during Tuesday's Democratic presidential debate, Hillary Clinton cited industries represented by lobbyists who are among her
top campaign fundraisers. In addition to Iran and the Republican Party, Clinton said she was proud to count "the health
insurance companies" and "the drug companies" as her enemies. Those industries' lobbyists do not appear to share that
enmity. By mid-July, seven of them had raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for her presidential campaign, according
to campaign finance records.
Clinton
Promises to 'Make the Wealthy Pay' and Make 'Companies Share Profits'. At the very beginning of the debate, Clinton introduced herself as
"the granddaughter of a factory worker" to establish her credibility with the middle class. Later, debate moderator Anderson Cooper challenged her
on that point, noting that Hillary and her husband Bill "are part of the one percent." "Well, you know, both Bill and I have been very blessed,"
Clinton responded.
The Editor says...
I suppose "blessed" is a code word for greedy.
Hillary
Clinton's Hidden Big Business Agenda Exposed. Despite all this anti-corporate rhetoric, the fact is that [Bernie] Sanders and [Hillary]
Clinton will be the best friends big business could ever hope for, since their regulatory agenda will invariably help big, established businesses at
the expense of small, entrepreneurial competitors. That, after all, is their legacy in the banking and health care industries. Both Sanders
and Clinton are big boosters of the Dodd-Frank financial reform. But a recent Harvard study found that the massive regulatory scheme that it
imposed has hurt small community banks the most.
President Obama's mysterious
trip to San Diego. Those attending the Democratic National Committee fundraiser paid between $250 and $10,000.
Obama
to party with Jamie Foxx at $10K a ticket fundraiser hosted by the DNC in Southern California. President Barack
Obama is reportedly hosting yet another big ticketed star-studded event in Southern California on Saturday, that will include
entertainment from singer Jamie Foxx. According to TMZ, the Democratic National Committee is throwing the ritzy $10,000 a
ticket fundraiser in Pacific Palisades at a private home. The original invitation to what is expected to be an all night
affair, said that the musical guest had not yet been determined.
Planned
Parenthood Got $528M In Tax Dollars, Paid Cecile Richards $523,000. Planned Parenthood received $528 million in
government health services grants and reimbursements or 41 percent of its total revenue for the fiscal year ending on June 30,
2014 and gave its president, Cecile Richards, $523,000 in annual compensation. "My annual compensation is $523,000 a year,"
Richards told House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah).
Because they both care so much about the poor and unfortunate...
Michelle
Obama Wears $2300 Dress To Greet Pope. Politico reports that First Lady Michelle Obama, looking lovely and
classy, greeted Pope Francis Tuesday while wearing a $2,290 dress. While the Obamas are not Catholics, this is still a
finger-in-the-eye to a White House guest who frequently speaks out — to wild Democrat applause — about
the evils of excessive capitalism. [...] According to WorldVision, you can feed a child for just $35 a month. Michelle
Obama's dress would feed over 80 children for that month. This choice obviously is contrary to the values of Pope Francis.
But the Obamas' religious values come from elsewhere, a divisive and disturbing place, not a charitable or unifying one.
Michelle
Obama Wears $2300 Dress To Greet Pope. Both President and Mrs. Obama are disciples of Jeremiah Wright, a racist
Jew-hating Chicago-based preacher. Not long after Obama ascended to the presidency, Wright, Obama's religious mentor
for 20 years, retired to a $1 million, 10,400 square foot mansion located next to a country club and golf course.
Obama
rubs elbows with Harry Reid's corporate welfare lobbyists. The crowd cheered the President's toast to their
taxpayer-provided profits, and soon Obama headed off to a $33,000-a-head fundraiser at the mansion of the billionaire owner
of the local newspaper. You, the taxpayer, paid for Obama's flight to Vegas. This is what Hope and Change looks like
seven years after Obama accepted the Democratic nomination. Obama was the keynote speaker at the National Clean Energy
Summit, an annual confab organized by outgoing Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid — which tells you a lot about the
nature of the event.
Hillary
Clinton plans to spend break from campaigning among 'ordinary Americans' in $50,000-a-week Hamptons home. Her
campaign has centered on her claim that she will be the champion of the middle class if she is elected to the White House.
So the average person will no doubt find it easy to relate to the beachfront mansion that Hillary Clinton is renting for her summer
vacation in The Hamptons. Exclusive pictures obtained by Daily Mail Online show what exactly the Democratic Presidential
candidate is getting for her $100,000 — which covers just a two week rental.
Bill and Hillary Clinton
spending $100K on Hamptons rental. Following Hillary Clinton's recently announced plan to help the middle class, she
and Bill are again renting a house in the Hamptons for the last two weeks in August for a rumored $100,000. The Clintons are
renting a four-bedroom home from Republican art collector Andre Nasser and his real estate guru wife, Lois, at 44 Broadview
Road — a hidden cul-de-sac in Amagansett that boasts wealthy neighbors, including Harvey Weinstein.
Obama
Leaving For Vacation But Troubles May Follow. [Scroll down] Reportedly staying at the same
location they rented last year, the secluded 8,100 square foot estate boasts seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a
pool, a hot tub and dual tennis/basketball court. Zillow estimates the property at more than $13 million.
Obama's
Martha's Vineyard Sojourn Four Times Longer Than Average American Vacation. The Associated Press reported that the
Obama family moved up the date of departure, extending their summer vacation to 17 days, more than four times the length of
the average American vacation. In fact, Obama's summer break is one day longer than the total amount of vacation time the
average American worker is allotted for an entire year. The first family will reside in the same $12 million mansion in
Chilmark that they rented last year. Positioned on 10 acres of land, the 8,100-square-foot home houses seven bedrooms and
nine bathrooms. The estate is enhanced by a dual basketball/tennis court and an infinity pool.
Progressive
liberals reveal their true character. Liberal Democrats love to run for office wearing
missionary robes. They proclaim that they will help the poor, that they want the minimum wage
raised, and that they want the sick, helpless, and elderly to receive money that they will take from
the rich. Republicans are not qualified to run government, Democrats say, since they are mean,
selfish corporate types who want to do nothing but grab money from the working class and keep it to
themselves. Oh, really? Look what Democrats do in Chicago, a crucible of Democratic rule.
Obama's
big $1 million take in the Big Apple. President Obama raised nearly $1 million for
Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and other Democrats' re-election efforts in Manhattan Friday
night [7/17/2015] at the uptown home of a British shipping magnate. The president headlined a Democratic
National Committee "roundtable" with some 30 donors who paid $33,400 each to attend the event held at the
east side four-story brownstone of George Logothetis and his wife Nitzia. The event was closed to the press
and the White House provided only a read-out of the name of the hosts and the amount each person paid to attend.
Hillary's
coming out speech. [Scroll down] Lest anyone think Hillary has changed her mind
since 1993, it's now clear that she is competing with Bernie Sanders for the office of socialist-in-chief.
Her speech at the New School for Social Research focused on the failings of capitalism. [...] Hillary hit all
the right notes in her coming out speech on Monday, with appeals to working women, unions, illegal immigrants,
the LGBT community, environmentalists, and other Democratic constituencies. But underneath it all
was a tired old vision of Big Government coming to the rescue of helpless citizens victimized by the rich.
That has been the orthodox progressive line in this country and elsewhere for over a century, and everywhere it
has been tried it has failed.
Obama and daughters set to attend $33K a head private soirée
on Manhattan's upper east side. President Barack Obama's motorcade will bring Manhattan to a
standstill tonight as he heads to the uptown home of a British shipping magnate for a $33,400-a-head fundraiser.
Obama and some 30 Democratic faithful will head to the luxury east side brownstone of 40-year-old George Logothetis
and his wife Nitzia for the meet-and-greet that will boost Democratic Party funds by a cool million dollars Daily Mail
Online has learned. Logothetis, who comes from a wealthy Greek family, is a strong supporter of Obama's attempts
to reform the nation's immigration rules to allow a path to citizenship for those who entered the country illegally.
Michelle Obama
Arrives in London Wearing a $1,795 Designer Dress. It's First Lady Michelle, the one
that wears J. Crew and shops at Target just like all of us...
Obama's
secret dinner with Hollywood moguls. Tinseltown is emerging as a transparency-free
zone for President Barack Obama, where for the second time he appears to have given his pool the
slip to have a private, off-the-schedule dinner with movie moguls. Deadline Hollywood reported
that Obama dined at his Beverly Hills hotel Thursday night with Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg
and director Steven Spielberg. White House spokesman Eric Schultz would only confirm that "the
president did have dinner with two of his friends last night in Los Angeles," adding, "I believe
they've been supporters of the president in the past."
Hillary
Clinton's Hamptons Quandary. For the past several summers, Bill and Hillary Clinton
have done what New York City's moneyed residents have done for decades: They spent their vacation
amid the prime beachside real estate of Long Island. In 2011 and 2012, there was the
eight-bedroom, 12,000-square-foot East Hampton rental with a heated pool that the couple took for
part of August, the kind of house that typically goes for $200,000 per month, according to local
real estate listings. Then, in 2013, they opted for an equally pricey six-bedroom mansion in
Sagaponack with a private pathway to the beach. (Mrs. Clinton worked on her memoir, "Hard
Choices," from a sunny office with an ocean view.)
Someone
Tell the Pope: Environmentalism Crushes the Poor. Yesterday [6/16/2015] the American Coalition for Clean Coal
Electricity released a report that documents how the Obama administration's war on coal (and on cheap energy generally) has
hurt poor and middle-class Americans. While I can't vouch for the calculations, the report is an impressive piece of
work, based on energy consumption and price data from the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration,
along with data from the Census Bureau and the Congressional Budget Office. Energy costs consume a substantial portion
of the budgets of lower-income Americans. This simple chart tells the story: while energy costs account for only
7% of expenditures by those who earn over $50,000 per year, those making less than $30,000 pay an astonishing 23% of their
after-tax income for energy.
Bankroller
of Democratic Voting Rights Cases? George Soros. A Democratic legal fight against restrictive voting laws enacted in
recent years by Republican-controlled state governments is being largely paid for by a single liberal benefactor: the
billionaire philanthropist George Soros. Mr. Soros, the Hungarian-born investor whose first major involvement in American
politics was a voter-mobilization drive in the 2004 presidential race, has yet to commit the many millions of dollars that Hillary
Rodham Clinton's allies hope he and other like-minded billionaires will pour into the "super PAC" directly aiding her campaign.
40
Years of Democrats Saying How Much They Want to Get Money Out of Politics. Democratic
Party platform, 1992: It's time to reform the campaign finance system, to get big money out of
our politics and let the people back in. We must limit overall campaign spending and limit the
disproportionate and excessive role of PACs. Jimmy Carter, accepting the Democratic nomination,
July 1976: Too often unholy, self-perpetuating alliances have been formed between money and
politics, and the average citizen has been held at arm's length.
The
Democrats: America's Poor Little Rich Party. Something deep in the psyche of the
Democratic Party prevents it from acknowledging that it, and its candidates, are awash in cash.
What
is wrong with Democrats? I see unions corrupt politics and teachers' unions protect
their interests and the future of their pensions over protecting the future of our children we
place in their care. The work ethic is being eviscerated. People who build things are
derided by President Obama as having not built things or dismissed as "lottery winners."
Doctors do not heal, they are greedy people who yank out tonsils and lop off legs solely for
profit — or so says the Democrats' leader, Barack Obama, and the Democrats who cheer
him. People who work in finance are "fat cats" and "one-percenters" who must be
"toppled" — or so sayeth the one percent of one percenter, Hillary Clinton, probably
the most hypocritical person in America. Why do Democrats worship her?
Inside the war
on coal. Beyond Coal is the most extensive, expensive and effective campaign in the
[Sierra] Club's 123-year history, and maybe the history of the environmental movement. It's gone
largely unnoticed amid the furor over the Keystone pipeline and President Barack Obama's efforts to
regulate carbon, but it's helped retire more than one third of America's coal plants since its
launch in 2010, one dull hearing at a time. With a vast war chest donated by Michael Bloomberg,
unlikely allies from the business world, and a strategy that relies more on economics than ecology,
its team of nearly 200 litigators and organizers has won battles in the Midwestern and Appalachian
coal belts, in the reddest of red states, in almost every state that burns coal.
The Green Behind
California's Greens. [Scroll down] Since the deaths of HP's cofounders, their heirs
have pushed the two foundations' philanthropy ever-leftward, and activist environmentalism is a prime
beneficiary. Under the direction of Packard's three daughters, the conservative Republican's
philanthropic wealth has gone to the National Abortion Rights Action League Foundation, the Feminist
Majority Foundation, and the very green Earth Action Network. This liberal giving has prompted
Packard's son, David, whose political views are closer to his father's, to withdraw his money from
the foundation and form his own nonprofit, which gives to more traditional and nonpolitical causes.
In a signature moment in green giving, the Packard and Hewlett Foundations decided in 2007 to boost their
spending on climate-change issues, funneling the money into a new, San Francisco-based nonprofit,
ClimateWorks, led initially by the former head of environmental programs at Hewlett. The Hewlett
Foundation, according to the Columbia Journalism School report, agreed to put $500 million into
ClimateWorks, with the Packard Foundation adding approximately $390 million since 2008.
New
Clinton speech disclosures reveal foundation's take. Hillary Clinton, former President
Bill Clinton and daughter Chelsea Clinton brought in more than $12 million in speaking fees since
2002 that was donated directly to their family foundation, covering a a total of 97 speeches across
the U.S. and around the world, according to data made public for the first time Thursday night [5/21/2015].
The new list of paid speeches gives a more complete financial picture of the Clintons' high-dollar public
appearances. A personal financial disclosure filed last week by Hillary Clinton shows that the couple
made over $25 million in personal income on public speeches since the beginning of 2014.
By
the Way, Bill and Hillary Have Banked More than $30 Million Since Last January. She's
running for president as a "topple the rich" champion of "everyday Americans," and he's just tryin'
to pay the bills, y'all: [...] "The former President was even paid $175,000 for a speech in Miami
where he appeared via satellite." Hillary also made six figures for addressing a gathering she
didn't physically attend.
Clintons
report making $25M for speeches since Jan. '14. Hillary Clinton and former President
Bill Clinton earned more than $25 million combined in speaking fees since January 2014, Fox News
confirmed Friday [5/15/2015]. [...] Clinton has started her campaign for president by painting
herself as a champion for the middle class. However, Republicans have scrutinized her about the
wealth she and Bill Clinton have amassed since she left the White House. That includes their ability
to command six-figure fees for delivering speeches and the finances behind the Clinton Foundation
because of its acceptance of donations from foreign governments.
$1.3M
loophole for Elizabeth Warren. Federal law requires members of Congress and other federal
officials to annually disclose their financial assets and liabilities, including mortgages. In a
form filed last week, Warren stated she and her husband, Bruce Mann, had no debt liabilities in 2014.
But according to a Middlesex South Registry of Deeds record, Bank of America holds a $1.3 million
mortgage on the Cambridge home owned by Warren and Mann. An aide for Warren said the amount represents
a home equity line of credit, not a mortgage.
Dem.
Congressman With Millions in Legal Bills Demands Pay Raise. A Democratic congressman
who still owes millions of dollars in legal bills racked up while fighting corruption allegations
said on Monday [5/18/2015] that members of Congress need a raise in order to cope with the District
of Columbia's rising cost of living. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D., Fla.) said at a Monday Rules
Committee hearing that members of Congress, who make an average of $174,000 per year, "aren't being
paid properly." "Members deserve to be paid, staff deserves to be paid and the cost of living
here is causing serious problems for people who are not wealthy to serve in this institution," he
said. Observers scoffed at the comments, saying congressional pay and benefits are quite generous.
George
Stephanopoulos' future — and $105M contract — in danger. The
"Good Morning America" and "This Week" anchor renewed his contract last year for $105 million, TV
industry sources told The [New York] Post Monday [5/18/2015]. The seven-year deal —
which dwarfs the five-year, $50 million contract scored by since-suspended NBC rival Brian
Williams — was supposed to keep Stephanopoulos in front of ABC's cameras through 2021.
But now his credibility, and future, have been called into question since he admitted Friday that he
had donated $75,000 to the Clinton Foundation since 2011, just as the presidential race gears up
with Hillary Rodham Clinton the leading Democrat.
Obamas worth
millions, disclosure forms reveal. President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama's
assets total somewhere between $1.9 million and $6.9 million, according to financial disclosure
forms released Friday [5/15/2015] by the White House. The bulk of the Obamas' wealth is invested
in U.S. Treasury bills and notes, the total being estimated between $1.25 million and $5.25 million.
Obama
Disapproves: 'Kids Start Going to Private Schools... Private Clubs'. President Barack
Obama told a gathering at Georgetown University on Tuesday that the problem isn't racial segregation,
it's wealth segregation, manifested by "elites" who "are able to live together, away from folks who are
not as wealthy." "Kids start going to private schools," he said. (Just as he did and his own
kids do.) [...] Even before he was elected president, Obama campaigned on the promise of wealth
redistribution. Throughout his presidency Obama has been a champion of the middle class and an
adversary of the wealthy. When he called for tax hikes on the wealthy in September 2011, he
insisted it was "not class warfare," but "fairness."
Barack and Michelle the Poverty Pimps.
Obama was never poor. He lived a charmed and privileged life, including the photographed chapter
where he was the spoiled and spiffy little darling of his well-heeled maternal grandparents.
Ditto for the woman he was later to make his wife. Crying poor mouth by the Obamas has about
as much validity as the rich-by-billions Clintons trying to get away with crying poor mouth.
Michelle
Obama Needs To Get Over Herself. [Scroll down] I don't know who was far-fetched enough to
say Mrs. Obama was "uppity." I think it's perfectly normal to travel the world on the super-generous
taxpayer's dime to places like Ireland and Africa, to the tune of approximately $10 million.
A date night in New York for $11,000? Chump change and so truistic. They probably ate at dumb,
cheap places like Per Se or Le Bernardin and just drank water and nibbled on a bread basket, you
know? And it's totally not cronyism to hang out with Gwyneth Paltrow, Jamie Foxx, or George Clooney.
Those people are so pedestrian and dreary. You know what baby mamas cannot do? They cannot afford
to purchase and wear designers like Isabel Toledo and Jason Wu.
Earth
to Chuck Todd: George Soros Backs New 'Progressive Agenda' with $159 Million. According to Rolling Stone,
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio held a closed-door meeting at his mayoral residence on April 2, 2015, to create the
Progressive version of the 1994 Republican "Contract with America." De Blasio called his update the "Progressive Agenda"
and its stated purpose was to address "income inequality" in the U.S. A dozen far-left leaders attended the closed-door
meeting, including George Soros' son Jonathan Soros. Jonathan claims to support removing money from politics, yet
hypocritically serves on several boards at the Open Society Foundations (OSF). OSF has given more than $550 million
to liberal organizations.
Fidel's Millions
and Streisand's Lawn. The routine is as simple as it is ageless. Divide people by
class and race, convince the don't-haves that somehow they have been robbed by the haves —
and when the don't-haves aren't looking, take every last dime you can get out of manipulating the system
for yourself and your friends. Then buy yourself an island off of Cuba, light up a good Cuban
cigar, pour a glass of fine whiskey, and sit on the fan tail of your yacht and laugh. Or if you're
a rich liberal celebrity in Southern California? Just turn on the sprinkler and let it rain.
Hillary
Clinton the Populist Begins Courting the Plutocrats. One of Hillary Clinton's biggest
applause lines in her early days on the campaign trail has come when she talks about getting big
money out of politics — even when she's talking to the big-money donors. It's one of
the paradoxes of a campaign that regularly employs populist rhetoric while courting plutocrats.
Clinton can't change the system unless she wins the election, a campaign official argued, and the
only way to win the election is with the help of deep-pocketed allies.
Grifter
Granny Clinton Favorite in Poll of Millionaires. The party of old, rich white people.
Can you imagine the media reaction if a Republican candidate was the darling of millionaires? We'd
never hear the end of it.
Is
Mr. Sanders going to speak about the wealthy Clintons? The Clinton Foundation controversy is getting more
controversial by the minute. [...] Yesterday [5/1/2015], Senator Bernie Sanders announced that he is running for president.
He spoke about millionaires and billionaires. He attacked the Koch Brothers but did not mention the Soros group.
I hope that Mr. Sanders, and Mr. O'Malley, start talking about how the Clintons got rich over the last decade. Otherwise,
their attacks on the rich will be just pathetic class warfare!
Granny
Clinton Ditches 'Common American' Ruse, Flies 1st-Class Back to DC. She must have been seething to have
to drag her baggage (and boy howdy, does this woman have baggage) through Logan Airport under the glare of television
cameras and gazes of the average schlubs. This woman has spent the better past of the past quarter century flying
on Air Force One or private jets and now she has to lower herself to fly commercial.
Hillary
Clinton Flies First Class Back to Washington. With her first campaign trip drawing to a close, Hillary
Clinton traded the Scooby road-trip van for a first-class airplane seat to make the trip back to Washington. The
Democratic presidential candidate flew from Boston's Logan Airport to Ronald Reagan National Airport on Tuesday night
[4/21/2015], sitting in row one of the U.S. Airways' first-class section.
Hillary
at meeting with economists: We need to "topple" the wealthiest one percent. It takes a net worth of around $8 million to
join "the one percent." The Clintons' net worth is estimated at $55 million; Hillary alone got a cool $14 mil as an advance
for her dismal memoir "Hard Choices." The electorate's usually willing to let populists slide on their personal wealth — FDR
is the ultimate example but John Edwards was a lefty heartthrob for a time as recently as 2008 — but I wonder if they'll be so
forgiving for Hillary.
Demagoguery:
Wealthy
Hillary Clinton Lambasting CEOs For High Pay is, Well, Rich. Hillary Clinton apparently plans to
base her presidential campaign on the noble goals of greater fairness and shared sacrifice. She has
already lambasted vast differences in compensation. "The average CEO makes about 300 times what
the average worker makes," Clinton warned. She is right — but can best appreciate that fact
from her own career and family. Recently, Clinton has demanded up to $300,000 for brief 30-minute
speeches. She apparently believes in the free-market theory that on the lecture circuit, speakers —
like CEOs — should be paid as much as the market can bear. At UCLA recently, Clinton's fee
worked out to about $165 per second. In three minutes of autobiographical chitchat, Clinton pulled in
more than the average full-time fast-food worker makes in a year.
Why
are Democrats Talking about Income Inequality in the 7th Year of Obama? Did you catch
Senator Bernie Sanders on the Fox Sunday Show? Or Governor Martin O'Malley on NPR? It's
a bit strange, but they are talking about the state of the middle class and the nation's inability to
create good-paying jobs. They say that the jobs are going overseas and that wages are under siege.
They say all of these things in the seventh year of "hope and change" and after six years of a U.S. Senate
Democrat majority (2009-15). Am I the only one who finds all of this a bit surprising?
No
one is buying that Hillary is anything other than the candidate of Wall Street. It was
only a few short years ago that Democrats in high office were openly embracing the anarcho-communist,
semi-criminal Occupy Wall Street movement. There is no small amount of irony in the realization
that the Democratic Party is today prepared to nominate a presidential candidate with a history of
defending the interests of the financial classes.
Greens
against the poor. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Elizabeth Warren and the whole gang
of Democratic leaders claim that one of their highest priorities is to lift up the middle class and
reduce the income gap between rich and poor. That goal collides with what they admit is their
very highest priority: stopping climate change. Their agenda is driven by the millionaire and
billionaire Democratic donors who make the party possible. But the agenda also involves making
energy, home heating, transportation and just about everything else less efficient and more expensive
to the middle class and poor. The people who lose their jobs when the climate-change Stalinists
prevail are the people at the bottom and the middle of the income ladder. The billionaire club
members don't seem to mind this collateral damage.
By one measure, Hillary earned more
than America's top 10 CEOs. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is
drawing a populist bead on lavish Wall Street pay packages as she revs up her march to the 2016
Democratic presidential nomination, but in some respects the fat-per-speech fee she can charge puts
her far ahead of the top 10 highest-paid American CEOs.
Chipotle
Manager: Hillary Clinton Didn't Leave Anything in Tip Jar. "Her bill was $20 and some
change, and they paid with $21 and left" without putting anything in a tip jar on the counter
[4/12/2015], Charles Wright, the manager at the Maumee, Ohio, Chipotle restaurant told Bloomberg.
Hillary
Has A History of Stiffing Waitresses, Hair Stylists. While the revelation that Hillary
Clinton failed to leave a tip during her stop at a Chipotle earlier this week fell flat —
few customers tip at the fast-casual Mexican restaurant — a deeper look at the former
First Lady's tipping habits shows she does have a history of stiffing people who depend on tips to
make ends meet. [...] Clinton's tipping habits were put front-and-center on Wednesday [4/15/2015] when
Bloomberg News reported that Clinton and her aide, Huma Abedin, did not leave money in a tip jar after
ordering at a Chipotle in Maumee, Ohio.
MSNBC's
Melissa Harris-Perry and Husband Owe IRS $70K in Delinquent Taxes. According to The
Winston-Salem Journal, Wake Forest University professor and MSNBC weekend host Melissa Harris-Perry
and her husband James Perry owe the Internal Revenue Service $70,000 in delinquent taxes. A notice
filed this month in the Forsyth County Hall of Justice indicates the IRS has placed a lien on the Perrys.
'Middle
Class Champion' Hillary Plans To Raise $2.5B. You could feed a lot of 'hongry' childrens for
$2.5 billion dollars. (And who knows how much of this money will have ultimately come from her
slush fund 'foundation'? So it could be taking the food right out
of the mouths of the poor.) And don't worry, in any case she will spend far more than she raises.
(As her last campaign did.)
A
breakdown of every scandal swirling around Hillary. [Scroll down] Clinton will likely position
herself as the champion of the middle class. Yet in 2014, it was revealed that Clinton, who charges
a minimum of $300,000 per speech, also had an extensive list of demands. Most anyone who hires Hillary
to speak must also provide a private jet — a $39 million Gulfstream G450 or better —
and put her up in presidential suites. Her standard agreement requires her presence for only 90 minutes,
and 50 photos with 100 attendees — no more. Hillary has defended her enormous
speaking fees by saying she and Bill were "not only dead broke, but in debt" when they left the White House.
In 1999, Bill and Hillary bought their house in Chappaqua for $1.7 million, and in 2000 purchased a
seven-bedroom in Washington, DC, for $2.85 million.
Woman
with $14 million book advance attacks CEO pay. [Scroll down] First, she takes in
six times the annual average household income per hour for her speeches, at $300,000 a pop. It
would only take her 50 speeches to get to the same 300x metric she decries here. Furthermore,
Hillary signed a deal in 2013 for a $14 million book advance for the memoir she released last year,
which sold unimpressively for such a marquee advance. On top of that, she'd already received an
$8 million advance for her first memoir, "Living History." That totals $22 million in
advance of any work at all, or roughly 440 times what average American households gross
in a year. In the years since the Clintons left the White House, they've earned well over
$100 million. And unlike CEOs at that level, they don't employ many people, and don't
produce anything except income for their own benefit.
Hillary
Clinton's road from riches. The economic gap between Hillary Rodham Clinton and an
average, "everyday American" is wide enough to drive a Scooby van through. On Monday [4/13/2015],
the newly minted Democratic presidential front-runner had nearly completed her 1,000-mile journey
from her mansion in Chappaqua, N.Y., to a first campaign event in Iowa, in the van her staff has
likened to the rattletrap "Mystery Machine" from the 1960s cartoon "Scooby-Doo." The trip was
intended, in part, to rebrand the former secretary of state, a 67-year-old multimillionaire accustomed
to private jets and presidential suites, as a warrior for the middle- and working classes.
Obama
golfs with big money, oil moguls in Florida. Obama was joined for his round of golf
Sunday [3/29/2015] by Jim Crane, who owns the Floridian [National Golf Club].
Rain Dances in California.
On February 14, 2014, President Barack Obama arrived on Air Force One in Fresno, California, with
Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein aboard. [...] Air Force One took off again from Fresno
Airport, mission accomplished, heading toward a Palm Springs golf holiday in the super-irrigated
Coachella Valley. Obama met that evening with King Abdullah II of Jordan at Sunnylands, the
legendary Annenberg estate in Rancho Mirage, to discuss the Syrian crisis and then emerging ISIS threat.
Hillary,
Obama, and the Democrats' Vices. Since 1992, the Clintons have had exceptional, almost
unparalleled political power. From the point of view of most Americans, they've been wealthy. But
not super-wealthy. In 1992, they listed their net worth at nearly $700,000. Yes, they had
to spend quite a bit of money on lawyers during their time at the White House. But even before President
Clinton gave his first post-presidential speech or signed his first book deal, he was going to get a pension
of about $199,000 per year, plus a taxpayer-funded office, etc. She was elected to the Senate, with a
salary of $141,300. Hillary Clinton famously declared she and her husband were "dead broke" when they
left the White House; of course, around that time they bought a $2.35 million home in Chappaqua.
Between leaving the White House and beginning her Senate term she signed the $8 million book deal for
"Living History"; years later, she got a $14 million advance for "Hard Choices."
On
Ex-Im Bank, the Democrats Are the Real Corporate Shills. The [Export-Import] Bank has
been around for decades. Its primary activity is to extend cheap loan guarantees and direct loans
to foreign companies to buy U.S goods under the pretense of boosting exports and creating jobs.
Don't buy it. Economists have shown that these kinds of export credit subsidies will never
raise the overall level of trade. The subsidies are also hurtful (PDF) since they simply redistribute
wealth away from unsubsidized American firms, employees, and consumers and direct it toward a tiny number
of beneficiaries. And that is where Democrats have some explaining to do: The bank's data show
that it overwhelmingly benefits some of the biggest, most politically connected firms in America.
The
First-Class, Five-Star Rev. When he speaks at public colleges and universities, Al Sharpton flies
first-class, stays in upscale hotels, travels to events in a chauffeured vehicle, and often brings a bodyguard
or aide with him. He makes these demands on taxpayer-funded institutions, despite owing as much as
$4.5 million in unpaid taxes and penalties. "In terms of travel, Rev. Sharpton travels first class
on flights and will require a large black SUV for transportation and, if the trip requires lodging, he will
require a suite in a four/five star hotel," wrote Sharpton's assistant, Abyssinia Tirfe, in an
August 14, 2014, e-mail to Michigan State University (MSU) obtained by National Review.
Clinton
has received $16 million in post-presidency benefits. Former President Bill Clinton
has received nearly $16 million in taxpayer funds since leaving the White House, covering everything
from his pension to personnel to benefits — and renewing questions over how much
taxpayers really should spend on ex-presidents who make millions after leaving office. A new
Politico report and analysis examined the payments since he left office in 2001, and claimed it
amounts to more than any other ex-president has received. Meanwhile, Politico points out,
Clinton has a personal annual income that beats all the other living former presidents.
Won't
you please not donate $1 million to Jeb Bush's campaign. [T]his month the fundraisers
for former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush have a real problem: Too much money coming in. So much money coming
in that they're worried people may get the idea that these presidential candidates are somehow
beholden to mega-donors. You know, like Bill Clinton renting out the Lincoln Bedroom or Barack
Obama making his finance chair a Cabinet secretary. Money = access. Big money = Big Access.
Awash
in cash, Bush asks donors not to give more than $1 million — for now. An
unusual request has gone out to wealthy donors writing large checks to support former Florida
governor Jeb Bush: Please don't give more than $1 million right away. The requested limit,
confirmed by multiple people familiar with the amount, may mark the first time that a presidential
hopeful has sought to hold off supporters from contributing too much money. The move reflects
concerns among Bush advisers that accepting massive sums from a handful of uber-rich supporters
could fuel a perception that the former governor is in their debt.
The Editor says...
Almost everything else on this page refers to wealthy liberal Democrats, but for the article above an exception
was made, since Jeb Bush (in my estimation) is about as liberal as a Republican presidential candidate could ever be.
Hillary
Clinton's soapbox. It's one thing when Hollywood stars dripping in couture get up on
their soapboxes and make political statements at awards ceremonies, but quite another when an all
but announced presidential candidate earning more for a speech than most Americans will in several
years trumpets wage equality, when it already exists and she knows it.
The
real Hillary Clinton. If you want to know why Hillary Clinton thought she could get away with violating
federal regulations in order to conceal her emails when she was secretary of state, take a look behind the facade.
Mrs. Clinton pretends to be a compassionate woman who cares about the little people and will champion the middle class
if elected president. The reality is that behind the scenes, she is abusive to those same people.
Democrats
don't know how to tell environmentalist billionaire Tom Steyer to stop helping. We all
have one: The well-meaning relative or friend who is perhaps so zealous in the pursuit of your best
interests that they end up doing more harm than good in the process. Despite their best intentions,
they end up making a bad situation worse. More often than not, you wish that they would just stop
helping and, instead, maybe just write you a check. For the Democrats, that's Tom Steyer.
Meet Hillary's Welfare
Queens. Sixty companies that lobbied the State Department between 2009 and 2013, while
Hillary was secretary of state, donated more than $26 million to the Clinton Foundation over that
time period. At least 44 of the 60 participated in $3.2 billion worth of philanthropy projects by
the Clinton Global Initiative, while at least 15 were part of Clinton-created public-private partnerships.
It's not clear that any of this was illegal and it's possible that some of this supported worthwhile projects.
But it illustrates the nexus between crony capitalism and modern American liberalism as we know it.
President
Barack Obama Raises Money, Dines With Elon Musk In San Francisco. During his visit to
the Bay Area, President Barack Obama spent a night on the town Friday [2/13/2015], raising money and
enjoying dinner in Presidio Heights with Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Hillary's
Million-Dollar Air Travel. Hillary Clinton is, maybe not best know[n] for her
utter destitution upon her husband leaving office in the early 2000s, but may be most recently
known for her claim that she and Bill struggled desperately to make ends meet once they were relegated
to only two homes and lucrative speaking tours that paid in the six figures per appearance.
It now seems that those hard times were even shorter than previously imagined.
Hillary
Clinton Spent a [Lot] on Private Plane Fare for 2008 Campaign. How much plane did
Hillary Clinton do during the 2008 campaign? According to documents from her campaign, she spent
roughly $19.2 million on private, chartered flights around the country — more than nine
times the amount her next competitor, noted rich person Mitt Romney, spent on private flights.
The National Review, which unearthed the documents, pointed out that the wild discrepancy between
the two numbers was partially due to the length of their respective primary campaigns — Romney
dropped out four months before Clinton did — but even then, Hillary still managed to spend
$6.7 million on flights during that time, while Romney spent $2.2 million.
Why
Obama's Tuition Proposal Got Torched. To understand the backlash President Obama received after
proposing to remove the tax exemption for college savings accounts, it's essential to recognize how closely it
struck at the political heart of his own party. Contrary to popular stereotypes, Democrats depend nearly
as much on upper-class voters as Republicans do. Democrats represent seven of the 10 wealthiest
congressional districts in the country, and Obama also won those districts twice.
'Fruit
Loop' Obama's Peculiar Priorities. Barack Obama is a man who painstakingly sets his
priorities. Take, for instance, the recent funerals of two NYPD officers who were shot in the head
by a radical Islamist thug as they sat in their parked police cruiser. Sadly, the president was not
able to attend either Officer Ramos's or Liu's funeral. However, while the Big Apple was steeped in
unbearable heartache, with a heavy heart about being otherwise committed and under much emotional duress,
a greatly shaken Obama and the first lady did manage to soothe their grief with a $1,000-a-couple dinner
at the swanky Hawaiian Vintage Cave.
Center
for American Progress Donors Buy Clinton Access, Experts Say. Supporters of an independent pro-Hillary
Clinton Super PAC are pouring money into the Center for American Progress (CAP), a liberal think tank expected to be
the ideological nerve center of a Clinton presidential campaign and, possibly, White House. High-dollar
Democratic donors that have publicly backed Clinton's long-expected presidential bid and donated funds to the
effort featured prominently on donor lists released by CAP on Wednesday [1/21/2015]. Even before Hillary
Clinton declares a presidential run, experts say, donations to CAP can serve as a means to influence its eventual
policy platform and to gain access to Clinton's secretive and powerful inner circle.
Brian
Williams Earns 350 Times More Than The Average TV News Anchor. The perceived disparity
between a company's CEO and its average worker has been a trope of the left and an obsession of the
news media for decades. The argument goes that a CEO's pay comes at the expense of rank-and-file
workers, and fuels a level of animosity that necessitates a government response. It is a canard that
would be rightly ridiculed in any other sector of our society. Television's top news anchor,
NBC's Brian Williams, earns a reported $13 million a year to read the news. His pay packet is
350 times the earnings of the average TV news anchor, reporter or correspondent, who pull in around $37,000 a
year. This disparity far surpasses the 150-1 ratio earned by the average CEO, according to Bloomberg.
U.S.
Ambassador to France Jane Hartley is big fundraiser for President Obama. Our woman in
France got her job the old-fashioned way — raising boatloads of money for the president.
Ambassador to France Jane Hartley — the US's highest ranking representative at a rally in Paris on
Sunday that brought out 40 world leaders — doesn't have much diplomatic experience, but put in
plenty of time raising and bundling money for President Obama's campaigns. Between 2007 and 2012,
Hartley raised $2.2 million for Obama, the New York Times has reported. She's also doled out
plenty of cash from her own pockets to Democrats — including $54,000 in the 2014 campaign cycle,
The Hill reported.
Liz
Warren: Class Warrior With Heap Big Wampum. Liberals hope that the populist-sounding
Elizabeth Warren will run to the left of Hillary Clinton, whom they fear is now too rich and out of
touch. But Sen. Warren's financial records may dash their hopes.
Blue billionaires
on top. Democrats spent much of the 2014 campaign castigating Republican big money,
but, it turns out, their side actually finished ahead among the biggest donors of 2014 —
at least among those whose contributions were disclosed. The 100 biggest donors of 2014 gave
nearly $174 million to Democrats, compared to more than $140 million to Republicans, according
to a POLITICO analysis of reports filed with the Federal Election Commission and Internal Revenue Service.
HHS
execs living large, flying first class around the world. Helping America's poor, aged
and sick is the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' reason for being, but hundreds of its
top officials are traveling in style and luxury at taxpayer expense. Records obtained by the
Washington Examiner under the Freedom of Information Act show that HHS executives spent $31 million
taking 7,000 first class and business class flights between 2009 and 2013, including 253 trips for
which a one-way ticket cost more than $15,000. Half the records listed the price of a coach ticket
for comparison. For that portion alone, the upgrade boosted the cost by almost $14 million,
from $4.9 million to $18.5 million.
The
Party of Snobbish Elites. Snobbery's twin is hypocrisy. For a liberal, when the poor
waste money on $300 Air Jordans, such spending should not be criticized. But for the middle class to
supposedly squander cash on a shotgun or Jet Ski is gauche. If an undocumented immigrant has seven
children, it is not declared to be unwise family planning with the same disdain shown a Mormon blue-collar
roofer with a comparably large family.
The
Rich Liberals of Academe. Beyond just being intellectual hypocrites wholly intolerant
of thoughts or voices other than their own, there's something else college campus elites are: rich.
Average total compensation for professors at elite schools is around a quarter million dollars a year, but
that is just the starting point. Books (it helps to assign your own textbook to students), outside
lectures, and consulting fees not uncommonly double professorial salaries. Consider MIT Professor
Jonathan Gruber, whose consulting fees on Obamacare totaled into millions of dollars. A drive
through faculty parking lots at any major university in America is like taking a tour of luxury
automotive dealerships.
Another
night, another top restaurant: Obamas head to luxury Japanese eatery Nobu. Just 24 hours
after President Obama sat down for five-star dinner with the first lady, he was back in another renowned
Hawaii restaurant for a luxury meal. He took his family to Nobu, a Japanese restaurant inside the hip
Waikiki Parc Hotel where meals cost around $180 per person.
Pearl Jam and lots of
golf: Obama ends Hawaiian vacation. It was Obama's sixth visit to Hawaii as President,
and his routines on the island have become familiar to residents and his traveling entourage. He
prefers the beach at Bellows Air Force Station — which can easily be cordoned off to prevent
any photographs of a body surfing President. He's made annual visits to the collection of four-star
kitchens near Waikiki: Alan Wong's Morimoto and Nobu. This year he added another restaurant
to his repertoire: Vintage Cave, a wine-and-dine club that charges $500,000 for a charter membership
(one doesn't need to be a member to eat there).
Obamas
drop $1K for meal at Hawaii restaurant that charges $500K for membership. President
Obama and first lady Michelle Obama spent a leisurely couple hours at Vintage Cave Honolulu,
dropping an estimated $1,000 on a meal with wine at an upscale restaurant that actually charges
$500,000 for those who want to buy a membership. Mr. Obama passed on the membership at the Vintage
Cave Honolulu, but he did order the price-fix menu at $295 per plate, Mediate reported. And,
according to Honolulu Magazine, "the total bill for two, with wine, will approach $1,000."
Obamas
welcome 2015 with $295-a-head dinner at Hawaii's most acclaimed restaurant. The
president and first lady treated themselves to a five star dinner on New Year's Day at renowned
Honolulu, Hawaii, restaurant Vintage Cave, where a 15 course, prix fixe meal costs a cool $295 a
person, wine pairings add another $130 a head and the total tab often nears $1,000 after taxes and
tip. Formally an Asian cuisine restaurant, Vintage Cave recently began serving contemporary
French-American food after Jonathan Mizukami, of Napa Valley's The French Laundry fame, replaced the
restaurant's founding executive chef, the Pacific Business News reports. An example menu posted to
YELP lists courses that include caviar, cabbage from Hirabara Farm, Jidori egg yolk, foie gras, King
Crab, caramelized white chocolate and Candy Cap Cheesecake.
Hillary
Clinton veers left in search of the Democratic base. Hillary Clinton angrily condemned
the bleakest results of Barack Obama's economy in a recent speech, but didn't dare say who was
responsible for them. "What would Robert Kennedy say about the fact that still, today, more than
16 million children live in poverty in the richest nation on earth," she said in an address to an elite,
well-fed crowd in a Manhattan ballroom at an awards gala to honor the slain Democratic presidential candidate.
Obama
Didn't Spread the Wealth, He Concentrated It, Pew Study Finds. A Pew Research Center
report released on Wednesday [12/17/2014] found that the gap in net worth between the country's wealthy and the
middle class reached record highs in 2013 — the last year for which it has data. According to
Pew, which used data from the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances, upper-income median net worth in
2013 was 6.6 times greater than the median net worth of middle-income families ($639,400 vs. $96,500).
That's up from 4.5 in 2007, the last year before the recession hit, and higher than it was in 2010, when the
Obama recovery was just getting started.
US
Commerce Secretary: Obama's Amnesty Will 'Help' Economy. Commerce Secretary, Chicago native Penny
Pritzker, penned an editorial in support of Obama's amnesty policy, claiming that the president's move would be
a "source of economic opportunity" for the nation. Pritzker, a Chicago socialite and heir to the Pritzker
family fortune, began her piece equating the millions of legal immigrants in past decades to today's illegals
and said that without past immigrants America would not have experienced the progress and prosperity it has realized.
Income
Inequality Is Greatest In the Most Liberal States. The list of worst-run states — compiled by
the news site 24/7 Wall St. using things like pension funding, credit ratings, unemployment, poverty, crime and high
school graduation rates — shows that three of the bottom five are liberal. Illinois ranks dead last,
followed by New Mexico, with Rhode Island coming in at No. 5. At the other end of the spectrum, only one
of the top 5 best-run states — Minnesota — is liberal. North Dakota comes in first,
followed by Wyoming, Nebraska and Iowa. Liberal states also show up, amazingly enough, as having the greatest
levels of income inequality.
The
secret list of requirements to get a Hillary speech (Not counting the $300K). Hillary
Clinton is going to have a real problem running for president as a woman of the people. And the
evidence mounts by the day. First, you'll recall her hilarious claim of being "dead broke" upon
leaving the rent-free White House in 2001 and confronting mortgages on two mansions. We've all heard
about her scores of strictly-controlled, quarter-million dollar speeches to every convention of scrap metal
dealers and the like since jumping off the sinking S.S. Obama last year. Now comes a most amazing
compilation of regal needs and demands before the ex-first lady, ex-senator, ex-secretary of State will
condescend to accept up to $10,000 per minute to address her countrymen.
Meet
The Rich White Guy Who Is Running the Black Boycott of Capitalism. There's a white,
rich dude running the black boycott capitalism movement known as United Blackout. His name is
Michael Latt and he is the marketing director of United Blackout. "Control how Black money is spent
and you win the game," says United Blackout's campaign video. And Latt seeks to deliver.
White
House Thanksgiving; turkey, ham, 6 pies and more. President Obama is spending a quiet
Thanksgiving at the White House where the belly-stuffing menu featured all the holiday's basics.
Six pies on the Obamas'
Thanksgiving menu. Michelle Obama's campaign for healthier eating apparently has taken
a holiday. While schools across the country are offering skimpy lunches to comply with the first
lady's initiative, the Obamas will be celebrating Thanksgiving with six pies.
Hillary's hummus. When The
Washington Post exposed Hillary Clinton's contract for a March speech at UCLA, the terms looked more
like something a rock star might demand than something from a former senator and first lady.
Among the details Clinton negotiated were the color and style of the armchairs she would be sitting
on, the plates of hummus and crudités she demanded and the number of photos she would be
willing to pose for. Oh, yes, she also told the school it would have to cough up a $300,000
speaking fee on top of all this to get her. When a college representative asked if Mrs. Clinton
would consider a discounted rate because it was a public university, her people quickly responded:
This was the discounted university rate.
Hillary
Clinton charged $300k for UCLA speech, demanded crudité and diet ginger ale.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton charged $300,000 to speak to students and faculty
at University of California Los Angeles in March, even after school officials tried to negotiate the
deal. According to new documents obtained by the Washington Post under the Freedom of Information
Act, the school asked for a reduced rate for public universities, but Mrs. Clinton's representatives
said that $300,000 was the "special university rate."
America's
Richest Counties 2014. Want to live the good life? Move to Washington, D.C. Or,
specifically, to its suburbs. Six of America's 10 wealthiest counties lie within a stone's throw
of the Beltway. Plenty of lucrative jobs are available in tech contracting and other professional
services, while other big sources of employment are local school systems and major federal agencies
like the Department of Defense.
Obama's
condescending stereotype of Mexicans. It is unbelievable that the president of the
United States would say something this elitist regarding the nation's largest minority group —
and perhaps just as worse that it's gone virtually unreported. [...] Not all Mexicans do the type of work
that Obama described, especially the ones who have been in the country for several generations and have
gone to college. This is just more of the same, sadly, to be expected from this arrogant president
who jaunts around the world on luxury vacations, and whose favorite past time is golf, not charity and
actually helping those less fortunate.
Wealth
of Congress Jumps $150 Million. Roll Call has for decades calculated the "50 Richest" members of Congress
by poring through financial disclosure forms, and this year, we've taken the added step of tallying the minimum net worth
of every member of Congress. The combined minimum net worth of Congress jumped — up more than $150 million
to $2.1 billion — according to a CQ Roll Call analysis of the financial disclosure forms for every member of
Congress and delegate who filed one for 2013.
A
$71,000 necklace for Michelle Obama from the queen of Brunei and a $10,000 falcon sculpture for Barack from Qatar.
The State Department reported Tuesday [11/11/2014] that the queen of Brunei gave Mrs Obama jewelry worth $71,468 in 2013.
Sharpton
Guest Defends Hillary's Private-Jet Travel: 'American Royalty'. Appearing on Al
Sharpton's MSNBC show this evening [11/11/2014], [Chris] Witherspoon defended Hillary against an RNC
email criticizing her for expensive private-jet travel billed to the campaigns of candidates for
whom she made appearances. Witherspoon generated this gem: "they're the Clintons.
They're American royalty. I don't want to see them flying on domestic Delta flights in first
class. I mean, they were flying on Air Force One for eight years. How do you go from that
to not staying on private jets and kind of having like that luxurious travel experience?"
Tailor:
Obama prefers soft Italian fabric for his handmade suits. In his new biography,
Measure of a Man: From Auschwitz Survivor to Presidents, [Martin] Greenfield wrote that Obama
aides brushed aside his request to measure the president and instead shipped him an old suit to
copy. "Martin Greenfield doesn't copy anybody's suits. Everybody copies Martin Greenfield's
suits," he said in the book provided to the Washington Examiner.
Democratic
Candidates Spent At Least $700K To Fly In Clintons. Bill and Hillary Clinton were the
most sought after surrogates in the Democratic Party this year. He campaigned for more than 47
candidates. She for more than 26. Supporters estimate that, together, the Clintons headlined
75 rallies and fundraisers — and logged roughly 50,000 miles jetting from state to state.
When the Clintons travel, they fly private. This year, their airfare cost candidates at least
$699,000, available state and federal campaign finance reports show.
U.S.
Mid-Terms, Tom Steyer and the Death of 'Climate Change' As a Serious Political Issue.
[T]his is what is so good about the US mid-term results. Not only did they personally cost
Steyer many millions of dollars in wasted campaign expenditure — nearly $75 million
of the funding for his Nextgen Climate superPAC came out of his own pocket [...] — but
they represented the US electorate's comprehensive repudiation of the notion that "climate change"
is the most pressing political issue of our age.
Tom
Steyer, greens have rough night at the polls. For Tom Steyer and other environmentalists,
$85 million wasn't enough to help Democrats keep the Senate blue or win more than a single governor's
mansion in Tuesday's toughest races. The billionaire's super PAC and other green groups saw the vast
majority of their favored candidates in the battleground states go down to defeat, despite spending an
unprecedented amount of money to help climate-friendly Democrats in the midterm elections.
Democrat
Billionaire Tom Steyer May Have Blown $74 Million on Elections. Democrat hedge fund
billionaire and global warming activist Tom Steyer spent $74 million on Tuesday's [11/4/2014]
midterm elections, making him this election season's single-largest donor. Almost $67 million
of Steyer's campaign war chest was spent on his super PAC, NextGen Climate Action, reports Forbes.
Nancy
Pelosi raises over $100 million. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has raised over
$100 million for Democrats during this election cycle, the Democratic Congressional Campaign
Committee announced Monday [11/3/2014]. The California Democrat raised $101.3 million for her
party, including $65.2 million raised directly for the DCCC — the campaign party arm for House Democrats.
Politicians live
it up and have the lobbyists pay. On any given weekend, lobbyists in Washington head
for the airport to jet off to luxurious locations across the country. Destinations include Napa
Valley in California for wine tasting, Wyoming for fly fishing and any number of spas, golf courses,
even exclusive hunting trips. They are invited to these weekend retreats by members of Congress
and their political action committees. The cost of accepting the invite is a political donation of
anywhere from $1,500 to $5,000.
Election
Day looking like a referendum on competence. The effect of the weakest recovery in two
generations is reflected in President Obama's 13-point underwater ratings for his handling of the
economy. Moreover, here is a president who proclaims the reduction of inequality to be the great
cause of his administration. Yet it has radically worsened in his six years. The 1 percent
are doing splendidly in the Fed-fueled stock market, even as median income has fallen.
Grayson's
Wife, Kids Now On Government Assistance. The estranged wife and children of Democratic
Rep. Alan Grayson have turned to government food stamps to support themselves, despite lawyers
representing Grayson asserting that he provides them about $120,000 of assistance, WFTV 9 Orlando
reports. Grayson was named the 17th richest member of Congress this month by CQ Roll Call.
Likely
Democrat Presidential Candidate Cozies Up to the Environmentalists. As Maryland Gov.
Martin O'Malley considers a 2016 White House run, he's cozying up with groups key to positioning him
as the anti-Hillary candidate. The governor and billionaire Tom Steyer joined forces Wednesday
night [10/22/2014] at the Mercedez-Benz Superdome in New Orleans to speak to thousands of architects, designers
and central planners attending Greenbuild 2014, a conference for those interested in green living.
But the most important person in the audience for O'Malley was Steyer, the Democrats' new piggie bank.
Government Gold-Plating.
Just consider the following: the Speaker of the House currently receives an annual salary of
$223,500, and will receive a payment of roughly that amount, depending on the years of service, for
life. An annual payment of this magnitude amounts to about five times the average annual wage in the
United States. But that's not all. For those who have had different positions in Congress, their
retirements can be augmented. For example, Nancy Pelosi will not receive $223,500 for life, but
roughly double that. Why? Because she is a member of Congress, currently the House of
Representatives' Minority Leader, and a retired Speaker of the House. For purposes of computing
retirement pay, Congress adds and accumulates. They do not net.
Obama
Attends $32,400 Democratic Fundraiser As Ebola Hits NYC. Obama's attendance at
Rockefeller's $18 million palatial mansion marks the president's 62nd presidential fundraiser this
year. Media were barred from Obama's one-percenter confab — the 28th such fundraiser wherein the
"most transparent administration in history" blocked access to reporters.
Wealth
of Congress Jumps $150 Million. Roll Call has for decades calculated the "50 Richest"
members of Congress by poring through financial disclosure forms, and this year, we've taken the
added step of tallying the minimum net worth of every member of Congress.
Obama's
Bully Tactics Force Campaign Donors to Give Secretly. Democrats rail about the "secret
money" flowing into political campaigns, alarmed that Americans are allowed to donate anonymously to
political causes. A recent front-page piece in The New York Times breathlessly reported that more
than half of all campaign advertising was being funded by organizations that "disclose little or
nothing about their donors." They claim that such funds have "overwhelmingly benefited Republican
candidates." What they don't say is that Democrats are more than holding their own when it comes
to shaking down wealthy contributors.
Party of
the rich: In Congress, it's the Democrats. In Congress, the wealthiest among us are
more likely to be represented by a Democrat than a Republican.
Mary
Landrieu: My Multimillion-Dollar Home Is Not a Mansion. Democratic senator Mary
Landrieu insists that her multimillion-dollar home in Washington, D.C., isn't a mansion. At a
campaign event in Bogalusa, La., this weekend, Landrieu called a woman up on stage to explain that
the 7,300 square-foot house doesn't qualify as a mansion, and then interrupted the woman to add that
she lives next to the cleaners and her home is only 36 feet wide. "They say I live in a mansion,"
Landrieu said. "It's a townhome, which I also have a home in New Orleans." Landrieu reportedly
lives in a 7,316 square-foot house in D.C. that boasts five bathrooms, four water heaters, and 82
fire sprinkler heads. She claimed this $2.5 million residence as her address on her statement of
candidacy, but listed her parents' address in New Orleans when she was qualifying for the ballot.
Top
Dem Super PAC Gets Big Boost from Soros, Spielberg, Democracy Alliance. The Democratic
Party's top super PAC disclosed more than $9.2 million in September contributions on Monday
[10/20/2014], listing a who's who of wealthy liberal donors, many associated with the secretive
Democracy Alliance donor network. New York City businessman Ian Cumming — who "was
awarded the largest bonus for any CEO of a publicly traded company in New York" in 2012, according
to Crain's — and a company called HFNWA LLC donated $1 million each. It is not entirely
clear what that company does, but it appears to be affiliated with Franklin Haney, a Democratic mega-donor
who was accused of campaign finance violations in the 1990s.
Energy trade group, green bosses rake in green.
It pays to be a top dog in the energy and environment business — even in the nonprofit
arena. Big bosses at some of the most influential environmental nonprofits and energy trade
associations are making comfortable salaries — from hundreds of thousands of dollars to
several million per year — and many have racked up sizable raises recently.
White
House caught tweaking official Obama transcript. Usually, this White House is mopping
up verbal messes left by its vice president. But the latest wrinkle came in a bid to protect the
president from his own mouth. It occurred Monday evening [10/20/2014] at a South Side Chicago fundraiser for
about 50 supporters who shelled out $10G's apiece to meet him in a private home not far from Obama's own Hyde Park
residence. Obama rarely returns to the Windy City anymore for anything but political money harvests.
Sen.
Reid Won't Say Whether Americans Should Be Forcibly Barred From Asking Him a Question.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) did not respond to repeated questions from CNSNews.com
about whether American citizens who try to ask him a question in the Capitol hallway should be
physically barred from doing so by Capitol Police — as happened recently when reporter Jason Mattera
introduced himself, shook Reid's hand, and asked him a question about how he became a millionaire on
a government salary.
Hillary
Hypocrisy Talks About Student Debt, Hits UNLV Foundation For $225K Speaking Fee.
Despite objections from a student body which faces the burden of 17% tuition hikes during the next
four years, probable Democratic Party presidential nominee Hillary Clinton spoke to the UNLV
foundation Monday night [10/13/2014], drawing a speaking fee of $225,000. Ironically, in her
speech, she opined that more needs to be done to assure young people can achieve their dreams and
free students from debt. Ms Clinton delivered her remarks to a crowd of about 900 people
gathered in a Bellagio resort ballroom for the annual UNLV Foundation dinner benefiting the University
of Nevada, Las Vegas.
It Cost $50,000 To Fly The Clintons To Iowa
Steak Fry. An annual steak fry held by retiring Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin forked out $50,000 to fly Bill and Hillary Clinton to the state
last month to headline the event. Bloomberg Politics discovered the line-item tucked into the Harkin Steak Fry 2014 committee's campaign
finance disclosures.
From Comedy to Farce.
No president in recent memory has so hectored the American people on the dangers of elites, and no
president in the last half-century has so enjoyed the perks and culture of the elite. Unfortunately,
this is not just mindless hypocrisy, but rather calibrated medieval exemption: the more Barack Obama
berates the high life of others, the more he feels he deserves it for himself.
Concierge
Service for Obama Donors at the Department of Homeland Security. That's the state of
liberalism in the Obama era: the President gets paid by some billionaires to say mean things about
other billionaires. Some are looted so that others can be subsidized. Political connections
are the most valuable resource in a controlled economy.
It's
more expensive to live in D.C. than New York, study says. The Washington region ranks as the most expensive place
to live in the country, ahead of the pricey markets of New York and San Francisco, according to a government study. The
surprising statistic comes from a Bureau of Labor Statistics report that shows that — on average —
Washingtonians spend more on housing and related expenses (utilities, furnishings and equipment) than New Yorkers and San
Franciscans.
Not
a Parody: Obama Fundraises with Rich Guy Named Rich Richman. A terrible slaughter is
coming in the Middle East, Ebola virus has invaded our shores, and President Obama is in the
affluent Manhattan suburb of Greenwich, Conn., for a Democratic fundraiser at a $16 million
estate owned by a rich guy whose actual name is Rich Richman.
Obama
meets with rich Democratic donors, warns about 'interests of billionaires'. President Obama raised money Tuesday [10/7/2014]
from wealthy Democrats who have benefited from his policies and warned supporters in an email that if Republicans win both houses of
Congress in the midterm elections, "the interests of billionaires will come before the needs of the middle class." Mr. Obama
attended private fundraisers in New York City and in Greenwich, Connecticut. At the first event, about 25 donors paid
up to $32,400 each to attend a closed-door discussion with the president. The events brought to 56 the total number of
Democratic fundraisers that Mr. Obama has attended this year.
In
a week of crisis, Obama focuses on fundraising, gourmet meals, elite schmoozing.
Kicking off a week of travel to raise political money, yesterday [10/6/2014] President Obama pushed
"immigration reform" at a $10,000 a plate fundraiser held at a restaurant belonging to celebrity
chef Jose Andres.
Latte liberals, literally.
Remember those early mornings back in high school, waiting in the limo line, craving an organic
vanilla apricot soy latte from your favorite artisanal coffeesmith, and thinking about how great it
was to be a member of America's upper crust? Those were the days. Sidwell Friends, the elite
D.C. private school where the Obamas send their kids, is hiring a barista to "prepare smoothies and
espresso drinks" for children who are too rich to fail. The position, which pays $125,000 a year*,
could be a great opportunity for a young person suffering under the failed Obama economy.
Realistically, it will probably go to a former student who recently moved back in with his political
consultant parents to pursue his dream of writing a Catcher in the Rye for the digital age.
Obama
Heads Home — Without Family — for Night. President Obama has
arrived in Chicago, where he'll spend the night before two public events in his hometown. The
president did not travel with his family. He's now dining out with top adviser Valerie Jarrett
and various friends, according to the White House pool report. They're at the steak house RPM Steak,
where a nice cut can cost up tp $155, according to the restaurant's website.
What's
Michelle Obama really campaigning for? There's much more to come in the 31 remaining
days. The cover story is both Obamas are dutifully trying to help Democrats. Because of his own
unpopularity and that of his programs and scandals, the president's not being invited to do the
hands-in-the-air joint campaign appearances that Mrs. Obama has. He's bent on fundraisers,
usually high-priced events ($32,400 on up to $100,000 per person) tacked on to to some official
presidential appearance to help split the travel costs of Air Force One.
The
anti-Mary Landrieu ad that is catching fire. Republican Louisiana State Sen. Elbert
Guillory in an ad this week savaged vulnerable incumbent Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., for living a
life of luxury while many African-Americans in the Pelican State live in poverty.
Who
Are You Calling the Party of the Rich? One in four working-age Americans is out of a
job. Wages have stagnated. Debt is off the charts. Obamacare has increased the cost of health
insurance. Immigration reform is no longer popular. Inequality, supposedly the holy grail of
Democrats, has increased on Obama's watch.
Protect
the Poor — From Climate Change Policies. In a more rational, moral,
compassionate, scientifically literate world, this Cornwall declaration would not be needed. It
assesses the "far-reaching, costly policies" that the world's governments are adopting, supposedly
to prevent global warming and climate change. It calls on governments to focus instead on protecting
the poor, who desperately need the affordable energy that those policies circumscribe.
Obama
Tells Fundraiser Islamic Terror Fight Not as Big of an 'Existential Threat' as Cold War. Obama left the Waldorf
Astoria hotel in the early evening [9/23/2014] to head over to a private home at West 90th and Central Park West for the
Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee event, which was attended by DSCC Chairman Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Sen. Chuck Schumer
(D-N.Y.) and senior adviser Valerie Jarrett. [...] That 40-minute meeting at the Waldorf included King Abdullah of Jordan,
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, and the foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain.
Why
Won't Democrats Talk About Obama's Fundraising? Last week, President Obama headlined a $100,000-a-plate fundraiser
at the swank Jefferson Hotel in downtown Washington on behalf of the Democratic Party's Senate campaign arm. The
ticket price was high — even by modern standards. But beyond that, there was almost no information
to be found about it.
Democrats Unfazed.
Obama hasn't lost one single billionaire donor. They are holding firm. It is only independents who
are running away from the Democrat disaster — citing Obama's record on terrorism, foreign policy,
immigration, the economy, and health care. The puzzle is that 84% of Democrat voters are completely unfazed.
De Blasio has sent 1,412 homeless
packing. Mayor de Blasio has sent 1,412 homeless people packing since taking office in January — keeping
pace with Mayor Bloomberg's bum-banishment program despite lambasting his Republican predecessor's homeless policies. Liberal
advocates for homeless New Yorkers slammed de Blasio for ignoring his own "Tale of Two Cities" campaign rhetoric to "push poor
people out of the city." "This is ridiculous," said Luis Tejada, former head of the Mirabal Sisters Cultural and Community
Center in West Harlem. "I worked for [de Blasio's] campaign. We expected more from him. This is a big surprise."
How
Democrats Use the Minimum Wage Issue To Exploit The Poor. The Democrat Party of the U.S. has gained and kept
political power by portraying themselves to the masses of people as the only political party that cares about the working
middle class and the vulnerable poor. You need us, Democrats love to say at every election cycle, to help you achieve
a better life. And as the November election nears, they are once again bringing up the minimum wage issue. Their
position is that the Republicans are too insensitive to the needs of the poor to raise the minimum wage. Voters must
elect Democrats in order to see a minimum pay raise. But at some point American voters, particularly the working middle
class and poor, may begin to wonder whether or not Democrats are incompetent or something else is at play.
Top
campaign donors mostly live in California, New York. Labor Day weekend is over, which
means one thing to political junkies: The fall campaign season kicks into high gear. Specifically,
candidates and committees tap into all that cash they've raised over the last two years to inundate
the airwaves with advertising for the final two-month stretch (yes, even more than they already have).
Obama
Explains to the Very Rich. At a fundraiser in the home of an occasional Obama golf
partner and former president of UBS Investment Bank, Obama spoke before an audience paying $15,000 a
couple to bask in his aura. Let me tell you about the very rich. They are different from you and
me. They want to hear more Obama, and they can afford his policies.
Landrieu
claims parents' home as her own, raising questions of Louisiana residency. In
Washington, Sen. Mary Landrieu lives in a stately, $2.5 million brick manse she and her husband
built on Capitol Hill.
5
Liberal Mega-Donors Nearly as Dangerous as George Soros. As the 2014 midterm
elections approached, the media were quick to criticize conservative donors like the Koch brothers
for backing issues important to them. But journalists largely ignored the incredible financial power
being used to promote the liberal agenda. Five top donors — Michael Bloomberg, Warren Buffett,
Pierre Omidyar, Tom Steyer and George Soros's own son, Jonathan — are major funders of the left.
Together, they have contributed at least $2.7 billion since 2000 to groups pushing abortion, gun
control, climate change alarmism and liberal candidates. That's not how major media depicted them.
Broadcast networks applauded when billionaire hedge fund manager Tom Steyer promised $100 million to
influence environmental policy. CBS News praised Steyer for "giving back" and ABC News called the
billionaire an "everyman."
Bill
Clinton Now Enjoys $1,000 Cigars. Bill Clinton enjoys a Gurkha cigar, "the Rolls Royce
of the cigar industry." He "loves the Gurkhas," Gurkha chief executive officer Kaizad Hansotia,
maker of the HMR cigar, which stands for His Majesty's Reserve. It is, according to Hansotia, "the
world's most expensive cigar." One box is $25,000 — and the price will rise next year
to $30,000. "The cigars are close to $1,000 each," says the cigar boss to Bloomberg.
Kansas
Democrat Senate candidate Dave Domina got rich — very, very rich — while
"looking out for the little guy". Democratic Senate nominee Dave Domina bills himself
as a champion of the little guy, but his financial disclosure shows he is fabulously wealthy.
Domina is one of the most prominent trial lawyers in the state and worth between $20 million and
$82 million, according to the financial disclosure forms he submitted to the secretary of the U.S.
Senate. [...] He would rank 19th on Roll Call's list of the 50 richest members of Congress.
Fundraising,
Or Hate Speech? What is the point of being in power if you can't help your friends and
screw your enemies? That is the Democratic philosophy. Thus, the Democrats hand out massive tax
breaks, subsidies and mandates to their "green energy" supporters like Tom Steyer, who in turn pledge tens of
millions of dollars in campaign contributions to help the Democrats maintain control of Congress. So
they can continue to subsidize the businesses that make Steyer a billionaire. Same thing with Wall
Street, which supports the Democratic Party almost monolithically. And, of course, while both parties
use cash to "buy control of Congress" — i.e., try to persuade voters by putting ads on
television — the Democrats always have more money to "buy control of Congress" than the Republicans.
For
Hillary Clinton, Nothing Less Than A Gulfstream G450 Will Do. Wherever Hillary Clinton
is going, she needs at least a Gulfstream G450 to get there. The once nearly "dead broke" former
First Lady now makes steep demands when she gives speeches to corporations, groups and universities,
according to emails between Clinton's agent and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where Clinton
will earn $225,000 for a 90-minute speech in October.
Hillary
Clinton requires 'presidential suite,' stenographer for speaking engagements, report says. Hillary Clinton
has not yet announced whether she will be running for president in 2016, but a new report suggests that she has a taste
for luxury to match any world leader. The Las Vegas Review-Journal obtained Clinton's contract and related documents
related to a scheduled October 13 speech at a University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Foundation fundraiser.
The documents show that Clinton received $225,000 to speak at the fundraiser, a discount from her initial $300,000
asking price. But the fee was only the first of Clinton's many stipulations.
10
Things You'd Have to Offer Hillary Clinton In Order to Have Her Speak at Your Event.
[#10] A speaking fee of between $225,000 and $300,000, depending upon the situation. [...] [#7] A
TelePrompter. [#6] A stenographer. [#5] Meals and incidentals for Clinton, her travel
aides and advance staff, as well as all phone charges.
Too
rich for her own blood. Numerous reports have revealed that top Democratic 2016
presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton is living a lavish, over-the-top affluent lifestyle
befitting — you guessed it — a mean old One-Percenter. She and her fellow
Democrats pretend they're the party of the poor, the "hammered" middle class — the
99 percent. Well sorry, Hillary, but average Americans don't vacation in the Hamptons in
$18 million homes, fly private jets, get paid more than $200,000 a pop for speeches or stay in
presidential suites while traveling.
Landrieu
to reimburse taxpayers for private charter flight to fundraiser that may have broken federal
law. When you're in a tight race, it's never good to be billing the good people of
Louisiana, many of whom will never see the inside of a chartered plane, $6,000 for your cushy seat
and in-flight mimosa in an election year.
Nancy
Pelosi Spearheads $1B Project Aiding Left-wing Mega Donor Tom Steyer; Networks Ignore.
A new report suggested that liberal billionaire Tom Steyer's hedge fund profited from a $1 billion
San Francisco light rail project pushed by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. Steyer was
also a big supporter of Pelosi. Despite being quick to criticize conservative political donors, the
morning and evening news shows on ABC, CBS and NBC have all ignored the allegation since the Washington
Free Beacon broke the story Aug. 12.
Is
Nancy Pelosi About to Break Campaign Fundraising Law? According to Politico, Nancy
Pelosi is holding a meeting in Napa Valley with a number of distressed Democrats. Heavyweights
like Google's Eric Schmidt are also on hand, along with billionaire leftist Tom Steyer. If they were
Republicans, Democrats would accuse Schmidt and Steyer of trying to buy elections. [...] House Majority
PAC's presence is problematic. As a super PAC, the Democrats are legally forbidden from coordinating
with them.
Mission
Bay Maps. Brilliant work by Lachlan Markay at the Washington Free Beacon that
highlights the corruption of D.C. and the ruling elites, especially the hypocrites in the Democrat
Party. I decided to excerpt some key graphs and illustrate just how diabolical these mega-wealthy
oligarchs are, gorging on borrowed money as the federal government sinks into bankruptcy.
Obama
Donor Sells Internship for Five Figures. [Film studio executive Harvey] Weinstein is a
major Democratic donor, giving thousands to Democratic candidates across the country during the 2012
election cycle, including $5,000 to President Barack Obama. Weinstein also hosted a $35,800 a
plate fundraiser for the president. The fundraiser netted the president $2.3 million.
Obamas
and Clintons Will Party Together on Martha's Vineyard. President Obama and First Lady
Michelle Obama and Bill and Hillary Clinton are apparently in the mood to party. The foursome is
expected to attend an event at the Farm Neck Golf Club on Martha's Vineyard this Wednesday
[8/13/2014]. The Obamas are renting a vacation home on the island while the Clintons have landed in
the Hamptons for some R&R.
[The]
Bidens [are] in [the] Hamptons to Begin [their] Third Vacation in [a] Month. The
Hamptons are in Long Island. Last week the Bidens were in Wyoming for another vacation. "It's
summer vacation time for the vice president," USA Today reported on August 7. "Joe Biden and wife
Jill began some time off Thursday in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, his office said, and will
be there through Monday." The week before that one, the Bidens vacationed in Rehoboth Beach.
Dems
stand for poor, vacation like the wealthy. The Obamas and Clintons sure know how to
summer! And you have to hand it to them, they aren't letting their position as standard-bearers of
the party committed to end income equality get in the way. While the president and his family
enjoy a lavish getaway in tony Martha's Vineyard, the woman who wants his job is also indulging in a
glitzy summer vacay. Hillary and Bill Clinton spared no expense for their digs in the
Hamptons — shelling out a cool $100G for a three-week stay in one of America's most
exclusive summer destinations.
Obama
claims US is 'stronger' than 'when I first came into office' as economy weakens, debt soars. President Barack Obama
claimed Monday night [8/11/2014] during a Democratic Party fundraising dinner that the United States is 'stronger' than it was when he assumed office in
January 2009. [...] 'In all sorts of ways,' Obama told Democratic partisans who paid between $15,000 to $32,400 to hear him speak, 'we are not just
stronger than when we — where we were when I first came into office.'
No
Matter What Happens, Politicians Will Live Very Well. For readers who perhaps missed
it, an African economic summit that included a talk by President Obama was held in Washington, D.C.
last week. As one would expect, leaders of the 54 African nations were in attendance. And if the
Four Seasons lobby was at all indicative, many of the African leaders booked rooms for themselves and their
staffs at some of D.C.'s finest hotels. The scene in the lobby was perhaps more notable mainly
because Africa is a tragically poor continent.
The
Clintons downsize their summer home to pay $100,000 on $18m Hamptons property after 'dead broke' gaffe. The
Clintons are 'downsizing' their summer home to a simple, $18million house in the pretty Hamptons hamlet of Amagansett. [...]
Sources tell MailOnline they are paying $100,000 for their three-week stay — saving $100,000 from last year's
luxury rental in Sagaponack.
Fundraiser
in chief breaks 400 donor events, while on vacation. Vacationing President Obama is
hosting his 401st fundraiser Monday night [8/11/2014] on Martha's Vineyard, Mass., continuing his record-setting
pace that has had him collecting checks from donors at events on average every five days since becoming president.
Press
Shunned from Obama's 400th Fundraiser Charged to Taxpayers. As we celebrate President
Barack Obama's 400th fundraiser since taking office five-and-a-half years ago, it should be noted
that of all the thousands of people who have attended, one group has been barred from ever entering
the events: The press. Now, fundraisers can be a dicey place for the media to be. You (almost)
never know what kinds of things are said in what is supposed to be behind closed doors — just ask
Mitt Romney. To that end, our current president — who greatly benefited from that infamous Romney
recording — has barred the press from all fundraising events. No pictures, no recordings, and no
questions asked of the richest one-percent in the room paying for exclusive access to the most powerful person
in the world. And of course, no questions for the president, either.
No 'DREAMers' in Dem Disneyland. The Vineyard is
the dream destination of every carbon footprint-obsessed Democrat billionaire with his own private
jet — an island, four miles out into the ocean, far, far removed from the foul breath of
the plebeians. Martha's Vineyard — the ultimate gated community. Every imaginable
amenity is at Obama's beck and call, except one. There are no "DREAMERS" on Martha's Vineyard. Oh
sure, a handful of illegals may be lurking about the local resort spas, but the island has largely
avoided, well, integration. It's astounding, this lack of diversity, because we all know how
sincerely Barack and his pals cherish the migrant urchins, who are "fundamentally transforming" America.
Inside
Obama's Vineyard vacation rental. The Obamas will unwind at a nearly $12 million
property that features a seven-bedroom house along Vineyard Sound. The home, on Gosnold's Way, is in
a more secluded spot than the South Road house the first family rented last year, a location that
caused traffic headaches. This summer's 8,100-square-foot rental home has sweeping views of the
Elizabeth Islands, a combination basketball and tennis court and an infinity pool, but is not
located on a swimming beach.
Fair
share: Al Sharpton and his organizations owe $4.7 million in unpaid taxes. Sharpton
[...] insists the actual sum he owes is "significantly less" than public records indicate, and that
the debts are "being paid down." The MSNBC host is, naturally, an ardent advocate for raising
taxes on "the rich."
Robert
Reich Sticks It To Poor People With $242,613 Salary For Teaching One Class This Semester. Robert
Reich, who served as U.S. secretary of labor for four years under Bill Clinton, is currently a public policy
professor at the University of California, Berkeley. The ultra-progressive economist — inasmuch
as a mere law school graduate can be an economist — raked in an impressive income of $242,613 from
the taxpayer-funded school in 2013, according to EAGnews.org. For that sweet salary of $20,217 per month,
Reich is slated to teach exactly one course this fall.
Senators
spent $1 million on charter flights last year. Last summer, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., embarked on what his office
trumpeted as a four-day, 1,000-mile trip across his state, with press releases noting he "woke up early to hit the road," making
stops at a minor league ballpark, a craft brewery and a Roanoke rail yard, among others. But for several hundred of those
miles, Warner was not hitting the road — he was flying a chartered plane at a cost to taxpayers of $8,500.
Warner was one of two dozen U.S. senators who flew taxpayer-funded charter airplanes to, from or around their home state
last year at a total cost of just under $1 million, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Senate spending records
compiled by the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation.
Secretive
far left network uncovered. Mediatracker, a website that tracks media stories and works for
transparency in government, has uncovered a heretofore unknowm group made up of some of the most powerful
and influential leftists in the country. [...] Like Journolist, the advantage of a group like this is that
talking points and political attacks can be highly coordinated. Most of the biggies on this list are
frequent media guests, and being able to closely coordinate responses to news of the days amplifies the message.
$5
million, $50 million or even more — just how rich is Hillary Clinton? Ever since
Hillary Clinton drew attention to her finances by claiming her family was "dead broke" when they
left the White House, speculation has focused on a seemingly simple question: Exactly how rich are
the Clintons? [...] In 2010, then-Secretary Clinton's financial disclosures revealed a net worth
totaling between roughly $10 and $50 million. In 2012, the last year for which she disclosed
finances, Clinton's net worth was estimated to be between $5 million and $25 million.
Senate
Report Ties Soros Group to 'Billionaire's Club' Dictating EPA Actions. An "elite group of left
wing millionaires and billionaires" fund "the far-left environmental movement, which in turn controls major
policy decisions," according to a U.S. Senate report released on July 30. The report singled out,
among other groups, the secretive Democracy Alliance, a group founded in part by liberal billionaire George
Soros. The report stated that "DA flouts transparency and public participation as the group emphasizes
secrecy in all its operations." It also said that the influence of the DA and groups like it could be
traced through other liberal groups to environmental regulations mandated by the EPA.
Obama,
Clinton could collide on Vineyard. President Obama and Hillary Clinton will both be on
Martha's Vineyard next month at the same time, The Boston Globe reports. [...] The trip by
Clinton overlaps with Obama's Aug. 9-23 vacation at Martha's Vineyard.
Want A
Real Anti-Poverty Plan? Stop Amnesty! While cynical politicians prattle on about
protecting the American Dream, they're working together to destroy it. If these elected officials
care so much about reducing poverty, why are they working so hard to import more of it from around
the world? Leaders in both political parties have thrown struggling Americans under the bus to feed
the cheap illegal alien labor machine. The working poor are the biggest losers in D.C.'s amnesty game.
Report:
US, Foreign Elites Pay Greens To Push EPA Policies. Environmental organizations are
often portrayed as homegrown groups fighting back against the tide of corporate boogeymen like Big
Business or Big Oil. But this is not the case, according to a new congressional report. A report
by Republicans on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee says environmentalists are being
backed by "an elite group of left-wing millionaires and billionaires." This "Billionaire's Club"
funnels money to environmental groups who then lobby on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency
to help promote its agenda, in return, getting access to generous tax write-offs and federal funding.
What is Obama Hiding at His
Wealthy Donor Fundraisers? A common complaint about George W. Bush's second term is that he was "insulated"
and cut off from the outside world, and increasingly so from what he perceived to be a hostile press. This alleged
isolation caused many liberal commentators to begin to derisively refer to President Bush as a "Bubble Boy." It
has taken considerably longer for the press to openly criticize Obama for the same tendencies given their largely shared
ideological heritage but finally the Press is starting to carp openly about Obama's refusal to allow them basic access to
Presidential events.
Michael Moore's class act.
The marriage was officially ended this week. But in the process of securing their divorce, Moore and
Glynn's filings have again confirmed that the filmmaker who styles himself a champion of the working class has
wealth that would be the envy of many a Wall Street banker. For all his proletarian pretenses, Moore is
worth nearly $50 million, and doesn't seem to mind owning all this wealth.
Report:
Obama Fundraiser Admission Price Slashed 80%. A donor who attended one of two events
at which the president spoke told the [San Francisco] Chronicle on condition of anonymity
that he paid $5,000 instead of the initially-requested $25,000 donation to sit down with POTUS.
The event took place at the Four Seasons Hotel located on Market Street.
Between high end fund
raisers, Obama talks middle class issues. On Wednesday evening [7/23/2014], Obama
appeared at a fundraiser at the Hancock Park home of television impresario Shonda Rhimes, creator of
the hit ABC show "Scandal." About 450 supporters there contributed up to $32,400 each to the
Democratic National Committee.
Joining
fundraising spree, first lady asks for 'biggest, fattest' checks. First lady Michelle
Obama jumped into the White House fundraising spree on Thursday [7/24/2014], prodding supporters in
Chicago to hand over the maximum campaign contribution in an attempt to shore up Democrats' chances
in upcoming midterm elections.
Michelle
Obama says money in politics is bad, asks donors for 'big, fat check'. First lady Michelle Obama on Thursday
night [7/24/2014] urged Democrats to "dig deep" into their pockets and "write a big fat check" before the midterm elections,
but minutes later complained of too much money in politics.
Democrats
have no problem with people cutting them the 'biggest, fattest checks,'. Michelle Obama spoke
at the event, which cost between $500 and $10,000 per person and up to $20,000 per couple, for maybe
20 minutes. The first lady's fundraising plea is especially rich considering it comes at a time
when Democratic lawmakers have complained often and loudly about the negative influences of money in politics.
Michael
Moore's lavish property empire is revealed in court documents. The lavish wealth of
underdog-defending filmmaker Michael Moore has been laid bare in his divorce battle with now-ex-wife
Kathy Glynn, and their breakup is the talk of their small Michigan community. [...] According to
Celebritynetworth, Moore and Glynn are worth $50 million, much of his success coming from
documentaries protesting capitalism.
Five
Things You Need to Know About Chelsea Clinton. [#3] Chelsea began her business career
making MBA degree salary, despite having no experience[.] NBC was criticized for Chelsea's
$600,000 "special correspondent" salary, but that is not the most absurd offer sheet that Chelsea
has agreed to. After deciding that various career paths weren't right for her, Chelsea settled
at the age of 23 for a $120,000 a year salary at premier consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
She was their youngest hire that year and made as much as consultants with MBA degrees, even though
her Stanford degree was in history.
The left's dark money.
Philip Gara LaMarche is a secretive political operative who funnels billions of dollars from undisclosed
donors to nonprofits and astroturf groups. But you won't hear unhinged Harry Reid railing Queegishly
about him on the Senate floor. Why? Here's why: LaMarche is a militant leftist philanthropist.
He's a protected elite — Columbia University grad, former ACLU leader and Human Rights Watch
official — with ready access to the White House. He and the left's other dark money managers
preach transparency and openness, while plotting behind closed doors to secure power at every level of government.
Senators
Blast Dem Mega-Donor Over IRS Investigation into Tax Avoidance Scheme. A major
Democratic donor who is funding some of the left's most politically active electioneering groups was
subject to bipartisan condemnation this week in the midst of a federal investigation into his hedge
fund's tax avoidance schemes. Senators from both parties blasted efforts by Renaissance
Technologies, a hedge fund owned by Democratic mega-donor Jim Simons, to shield itself from federal
income taxes during a Tuesday [7/22/2014] hearing.
First
Lady Michelle Obama in Chicago to raise money for Dems. Speaking to an estimated 150 people
in the fifth-floor ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria Chicago in the Gold Coast at a Democratic National Committee
event, the First Lady repeatedly urged donors to "dig deep." [...] Donors paid from $500 per person to $20,000 per
couple, and the First Lady asked them to give more.
On
Multi-Million Dollar Fundraising Trip, Obama Proves He's a Comedic Genius. The
President is in the middle of a three-day fundraising trip to the West Coast, costing us taxpayers
millions of dollars. This practice is not new with him, to be sure, as it's become standard
practice over the last 30 years for presidents to sprinkle official events amongst their
money-seeking events.
Barack
Obama locks out the press — again. President Barack Obama went to the West
Coast to meet donors from two top Democratic super PACs, but the press wasn't invited. Tuesday
[7/22/2014], the reporters and photographers traveling with the president on Air Force One and in
his motorcade were left on the gravel path not even within sight of former Costco CEO Jim Sinegal's
house in the Seattle suburbs where Obama sat for a Senate Majority PAC fundraiser with a $25,000 entrance fee.
Obama
heads off to raise money on the West Coast. Obama on Tuesday [7/22/2014] was starting
a three-day West Coast trip, scheduled to attend at least five fundraising events in Seattle, San
Francisco and Los Angeles less than four months ahead of midterm elections that could change
Washington's balance of power.
President
To Dem Donors: 'You're Chronicling The Slow Deterioration Of Barack Obama'. The luncheon,
sponsored by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, was hosted by real estate mogul George Marcus
at his home in California's Los Altos Hills [7/23/2014]. Tickets started at $10,000, with a VIP option
available for just $32,400 — the maximum amount an individual can contribute to the DCCC in one year.
Signs
of donor fatigue at Obama's Bay Area fundraisers. There was no listed price for
tickets for Obama's morning appearance [7/24/2014] at a roundtable in San Francisco for the House
Majority PAC — the type of intimate gathering for which admission is usually $32,400 per person, the
legal maximum. Some donors said tickets had been offered for a deep discount.
Obama
set to rake in millions, despite criticism of fundraising during tumult. Based on
descriptions of Obama's fundraisers from Democratic officials, Obama could raise north of $6 million
during the trip, which comes at the same time as an Israeli ground invasion into Gaza and international
outcry over the downing of a jetliner over Ukraine. That figure is based on estimates of attendance
at Obama's five fundraisers, using the highest in a range of possible ticket prices. The total sum
could be far less.
Clinton
Earns $12 Million Speaking, Writing After Service. Hillary Clinton has earned at least
$12 million in 16 months since leaving the State Department, a windfall at odds with her party's
call to shrink the gap between the rich and the poor. Clinton's income since her resignation as
secretary of state in February 2013 is derived mostly from her latest memoir, speeches and paid
appearances at corporate retreats, according to an analysis of data compiled by Bloomberg.
Obama
Donor Fights to Keep Riff-Raff Away From Private Beach. A wealthy venture capitalist
and major Obama donor is fighting tooth-and-nail to prevent others from accessing his private
Northern California beach, according to Bloomberg News. Vinod Khosla's support for Obama
has paid off in the form of millions in taxpayer subsidies for green energy companies in which
he has invested.
Poor Hillary Clinton. Is this really what
"dead broke" looks like? Seems like the Clintons should be just fine with their two multi-million
dollar houses. No need to add the "White House" to the list.
Obama
Headlines Fundraiser for Democracy Alliance Group at DA Donor's Home. A major donor to
a secretive club of wealthy Democratic financiers hosted President Barack Obama at her home last
week for a fundraiser benefitting one of that club's most politically active organizations. The
event came as the president faced withering criticism for raising money as international crises
proliferate, and just days ahead of a hearing of Democrat-backed legislation to force "dark money"
political donors to disclose more information about their finances. House Majority PAC is one of
the most nakedly political recipients of cash from the Democracy Alliance, a shadowy network of
liberal millionaires and billionaires that doles out tens of millions of dollars to top left-wing
groups each year.
Mogul
shells out $500K for lunch with Bill and Hillary. A mogul spent six figures to win lunch for two
with Bill and Hillary Clinton at a charity auction benefiting the Clinton Foundation — but when the
winner asked to bring his two kids along, he was told he'd have to double his bid to $1 million.
Clintons
Demand $1 Million to Allow Donor's Kids at Benefit Dinner. A Chinese businessman paid
$500,000 to have dinner with Bill and Hillary Clinton. But when he asked if his kids could join, the
former first couple demanded another half-million, the New York Post reports.
Obama
library raises at least $850,000. The foundation planning Barack Obama's presidential
library has raised between $850,000 and $1.75 million, the organization said Tuesday [7/15/2014].
The Barack Obama Foundation has pledged to release the names of donors that contributed more than $200 on its
website on a quaterly basis. Tim Collins, Cari and Michael J. Sacks, and Marilyn and Jim Simons
each contributed between $250,001 and $500,000. Lise Strickler and Mark Gallogly contributed between
$100,001 and $250,000. All of them raised money for Obama during his campaigns or have served on
various baords.
Obama
plans 16-day Martha's Vineyard vacation on $12m estate. It's going to be hot tubs,
basketball, tennis and golf for the first family this summer, having set plans for a 16-day vacation
in Martha's Vineyard, Mass., on a $12 million, 10-acre forested estate on the southwestern corner of
the island. Reports from the Bay State indicate that President Obama and his family will vacation
August 9-24 at the 8,100-square foot, beachfront home of a Democratic donor that includes a pool,
hot tub, basketball and tennis court.
University
at Buffalo paid $275,000 for Hillary Clinton speech. When Hillary Rodham Clinton
agreed to address the University at Buffalo, the largest campus of the State University of New York
system, she negotiated a few requirements in addition to her pay of $275,000. The potential 2016
presidential candidate's agent requested that the university provide "a presidential glass panel
teleprompter and a qualified operator," that Clinton's office have "final approval" of her
introducer and the moderator of any question-and-answer session, as well as "the sets, backdrops,
banners, scenery, logos, settings, etc," and that the topic and length of the former secretary of
state's speech would be at her "sole discretion."
Hillary
Clinton's $275K Speaking Fee Comes with Diva Demands. Former Secretary of State and
almost-certain 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton not only demanded $275,000 to speak at
the University of Buffalo, her nine-page contract is filled with the kinds of demands that Pop Divas
like Madonna are regularly mocked for.
Keywords; imperious, arrogance, control freak
Hillary's
$2,777 PER MINUTE speaking contracts demand a 'presidential' teleprompter, let her cancel 'for any
reason whatsoever'. Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of state who is preparing to
run for president on a populist platform of fighting income inequality, demanded $2,777 per minute
for two university speaking engagements and insisted on contracts that cut off reporters' access to
her and limited the number of photos she would take with well-wishers. [...] The once-and-maybe-future
White House resident is routinely granted iron-grip control over the circumstances surrounding her speeches.
Jay Carney cashes in.
Jay Carney just left the White House podium and he's already joined the ranks of George W. Bush, Tom
Brokaw and Mike Ditka in one profitable enterprise: lecturing on the private speaking circuit.
The former Obama administration flack signed on this month with the Washington Speakers Bureau, a gig that
came with a signing bonus and is likely to yield payments as high as $100,000 per speech to share his personal
presidential anecdotes and analysis of the next two election cycles.
Here
are some of the lobbyists and business PACs trying to drive Justin Amash out of Congress. Rep. Justin
Amash, R-Mich., is probably the most libertarian member of the U.S. House, which means he's made some enemies on
K Street. They are funding his primary opponent, Brian Ellis. The latest campaign filing from
Ellis's campaign shows some of the business interests that want Amash gone.
NY
Times Columnist Slams Chelsea's Buckraking for 'The Rapacious, Gaping Maw of Clinton Inc.'. Team
Hillary is staring daggers at New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, the one journalist who actually won a
Pulitzer (for commentary) on a Clinton scandal (Lewinsky). Dowd had the audacity to knock Chelsea Clinton
for giving speeches for $75,000 a pop, even if it went to the Clinton Foundation, which is designed for the
further aggrandizement of the Clinton reputation.
The
hypocrisy of Obama's 15-day Vineyard vacation. One-third of people aged 18-29 have
moved back in with their parents. Millions of Americans this summer will enjoy yet another
"staycation": They just can't afford to go to the beach or the mountains, even for a
week — again. Swipe cut to President Obama: He's eating shave ice in Honolulu; playing
golf (some 180 rounds so far); jetting off to Martha's Vineyard for a 15-day vacation in a $12 million
house on the beach. He's playing pool in Colorado (he turned down an offer from a young
heckler to smoke some weed); eating barbecue with a college student in Minnesota; hitting fundraiser
after fundraiser across the country (at $228,000 an hour for his swank 747 super-jumbo jet).
Report:
Obamas will return to Martha's Vineyard to vacation in $12 million home. While an
estimated 400 illegal immigrant children stream across America's southwest border every day in
August, President Barack Obama will take a 15-day vacation in a $12 million home nearly as far away
as it's possible to travel in the continental United States. The pricey real estate belongs to a
wealthy Connecticut widow whose late husband, then a General Electric executive, made $6,900 in
donations to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2007 and 2008 — then the maximum
allowed by law.
Obama to Take
15-Day Vacation in August. President Obama will embark on a 15-day vacation next
month, even as the nation and the world are engulfed in crises from the border with Mexico to the
Middle East. The Obamas will depart Washington on Saturday, August 9th and head for Martha's
Vineyard, staying in a $12 million vacation home until Sunday, August 24th, reports the Martha's
Vineyard Times.
Check
Out Obama's Multimillion-Dollar Martha's Vineyard Vacation Pad. President Obama and the first lady are
planning a two-week vacation at a seven-bedroom, nine-bathroom home in Chilmark, the Martha's Vineyard Times reports.
The first family will travel to the island from Aug. 9 to Aug. 24, making the 15-day getaway
the longest summer vacation of Obama's presidency. While the location of their vacation home was
supposed to be under wraps, neighbors confirmed to the local newspaper that the Obamas will be staying at a
luxurious home owned by Joanne Hubschman, whose late husband, Henry, was a former executive at General Electric.
Hillary's
Biggest 2016 Competitor: A Native American Millionaire Who Also Pretends Not to Be Wealthy. A
huge question in Democratic politics — other than "When is Hillary going to announce?" — concerns
whether or not Senator Elizabeth Warren (D — Cherokee Nation) will run for president.
If Hillary does not run, it is almost certain that Warren will. Well-known for her populist and
Occupy-esque perspectives on healthcare, taxes, income redistribution and everything in-between, she is
one of the rising stars of the Democratic party. Anticipating that it could happen, we're getting
out in front and establish her as a storyteller, to put it nicely, about her wealth.
Billionaires
Call For Amnesty As Obama Plans To Legalize Millions of Illegal Aliens With Executive Power. Billionaires
Warren Buffett, Sheldon Adelson and Bill Gates have teamed up to call for amnesty for America's illegal immigrants as a
solution to the ongoing crisis at the border as President Barack Obama mulls granting amnesty to millions via executive power.
The
BBQ joint where NO ONE cuts the line... except Obama. The president was seen cutting
the line at Austin's Franklin Barbecue Thursday afternoon, while in town to raise money for the
Democratic Party. Lives at the eatery are infamously long, and have been known to stretch as long
as three hours wait. But Mr Obama did no waiting today, as he showed up at the restaurant, shook a
few hands and made his way straight to the register to order more than $300 worth of meat.
Chelsea
Clinton Follows Parents' Lead as a Paid Speaker. There is a new Clinton paid to
deliver speeches — Chelsea, the former first daughter — and she is commanding
as much as $75,000 per appearance. Aides stressed that while Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton
often address trade groups and Wall Street bankers, Ms. Clinton, now 34, focuses on organizations
whose goals are in line with the work of the family's philanthropic organization, the Bill, Hillary
& Chelsea Clinton Foundation. Organizers said her star power helped sell tickets and raise money.
Lefty
Professor Who Speaks Out Against Income Inequality Gets Paid $205,400 for One Class.
University of North Carolina School of Law's Professor Gene Nichol is a real opponent of income
inequality. That's why he gets paid $205,400 to teach one class, plus more to run the Poverty Center
at the school. Nichol's noble opposition to income inequality puts him in a class with other great
academic class warriors like Elizabeth Warren, who was paid $350,000 by Harvard Law to teach a
single course and Clinton's former Labor Secretary turned inequality campaigner Robert Reich who
pulls in $235,791 a year from a public university at UC-Berkeley to teach a course on "Wealth and
Poverty" making him one of the highest paid state employees.
What's behind Chicago's
carnage. Tens of thousands of children are flooding across our border illegally, on the scent of
Obama's executive-order amnesties. Advocates of open borders, such as progressive grandees Mark Zuckerberg
and Nancy Pelosi, assume that these impoverished Third World children will not enroll in the private academies
attended by their children or grandchildren, or need housing in one of their vacation estates, or crowd their
specialists' waiting rooms. They do not worry about the effects of illegal immigration on the wages
of low-income Americans. Dealing first-hand with the ramifications of open borders is for unenlightened,
illiberal little people.
The
Golf That Divides Americans. President Barack Obama is fond of describing the deep
inequality afflicting American society. And then he goes off to play golf. He's getting near the
200-round mark for his entire presidency, a sporting feat perhaps worthy of Teddy Roosevelt for its sheer
audacity. Golf is the most unequal sport in America, demanding expensive fees or country club memberships.
Hillary
Clinton donates big speaking fees to a nonprofit foundation — her own. To
give the organization its full name, that's the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation
(originally, the William J. Clinton Foundation). Set up the year after Bill Clinton
finished his second term as president, the Clinton Foundation says its mission is "to bring people
together to take on the biggest challenges of the 21st century," including economic development,
global health, climate change, and empowering women and girls. The Wall Street Journal
reported recently that the foundation has collected between $750 million and $1.7 billion
over the years. That's a lot of clout for influencing the public — i.e., political
— discussion on major issues, something any other politician with presidential stars
in his or her eyes could only envy.
With
Democrats split on inequality issues, Obama shifts talk away from income gap. After
making fighting income inequality an early focus of his second term, President Obama has largely
abandoned talk of the subject this election year in a move that highlights the emerging debate
within the Democratic Party over economic populism and its limits. [...] The pivot is striking for
a president who identified inequality as one of his top concerns after his reelection, calling it "a
fundamental threat to the American Dream, our way of life and what we stand for around the globe."
Michelle
Obama returns to NYC to mine Wall Street funds for DNC. Just when we thought there
couldn't be any more Democratic donors on Wall Street with money left to channel to the DNC,
Michelle Obama is back in town for another "intimate" fund-raiser. Evercore Partners' Charles
Myers is hosting a "round-table discussion" with the first lady at his Midtown home July 10 with
tickets from $10,000 to $32,400.
Hillary
Takes Six-Figure Speaking Fees From Universities Raising Student Tuition. The
Washington Post reports that likely 2016 presidential contender Hillary Clinton made somewhere
around $1.8 million from eight universities in just nine months. While paying the former Secretary
of State anywhere from $200,000 to $300,000 per speech, some of these schools were raising tuition
prices on students already burdened by the growing student loan bubble. Clinton was paid $251,250
from the University of Connecticut not long after the school hit its students with 6.5% tuition increase.
At
time of austerity, eight universities spent top dollar on Hillary Clinton speeches. At
least eight universities, including four public institutions, have paid hundreds of thousands of
dollars for Hillary Rodham Clinton to speak on their campuses over the past year, sparking a
backlash from some student groups and teachers at a time of austerity in higher education. In one
previously undisclosed transaction, the University of Connecticut — which just raised
tuition by 6.5 percent — paid $251,250 for Clinton to speak on campus in April. Other
examples include $300,000 to address UCLA in March and $225,000 for a speech scheduled to occur in
October at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas.
White
House: Staff salaries total $38M. The White House pays out $37.8 million a year in
salaries to 456 staffers, according to a new report to Congress released by the Obama administration.
That averages to an annual salary of $82,844 per year, although staff salaries are top-heavy: the
median salary is $70,700 per year. [...] Some 22 senior administration officials, including chief of staff
Denis McDonough and senior advisers Valerie Jarrett and John Podesta bring home the maximum $172,200 salary.
Why
Democrats insist on lying about how 'poor' they are. Hillary Clinton claimed that, at
the moment she and her husband were signing up for $18 million in book deals, that they were "dead
broke." Harry Reid (who lives in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel) said liberals are getting bullied by
Republican billionaires but the Democratic Party "doesn't have many billionaires" behind it. Joe
Biden (family earnings: $407,000 last year plus a free house, driver, meals, etc.) claims he "I
don't own a single stock or bond... I have no savings accounts... I'm the poorest man in
Congress." (Triple fail: Joe isn't poor, isn't in Congress and wouldn't be the
poorest member of it if he were.)
Chelsea Clinton's
wealth can't buy her class. Chelsea Clinton, the former and potential future first daughter, has
stiff competition for the title of Most Tactless Human. Greedy reality-TV creature Kim Kardashian is a
contender. Chelsea's mom, the once-"dead broke" Hillary Rodham Clinton, might rank even higher on the scale
of bad taste. Chelsea, 34, has jabbered like an overeducated trailer-park habitué about her family's
No. 1 obsession — money.
How
the Clintons went from 'dead broke' to rich: Bill earned $104.9 million for speeches.
Over seven frenetic days, Bill Clinton addressed corporate executives in Switzerland and Denmark,
an investors' group in Sweden and a cluster of business and political leaders in Austria. The
former president wrapped up his European trip in the triumphant Spanish Hall at Prague Castle,
where he shared his thoughts on energy to a Czech business summit. His pay: $1.4 million.
That lucrative week in May 2012 offers a glimpse into the way Clinton has leveraged his global
popularity into a personal fortune.
Bill
and Hillary Clinton go to the grocery just like us. Bill Clinton and his wife are just regular
folks, you should know. He says they talk to towns people near both of their mansions. They go to
the grocery store on weekends and perhaps squeeze the fruit, as careful shoppers would watching their dollars
in this stagnant Obamaconomy. Never mind the burly guys in cool shades nearby with curly wires running
into their ears and machine guns under the jackets. Or their specially-trained defensive driver.
Or the friends' private jets that whisk them to another $200K speech.
Here's
How Little Chelsea Clinton Cares About Money, In Dollars. [Chelsea] Clinton is
currently pulling down $600,000 per year for the kind of no-show job you probably thought had
disappeared with the demise of the American mafia. She is officially employed as an on-air
correspondent for NBC News even though she hasn't appeared on NBC for the past four months. Clips
of Clinton's work for the Peacock Network are hard to find online, and one of the few accessible
segments — her interview with the GEICO gecko — reveals that NBC's coaching
failed to improve her affectless voice, lazy delivery and absolute lack of charm, charisma or talent.
Joe
Biden and Hillary Clinton shouldn't pretend to be poor. On Monday morning, at a White
House summit on policies to help working families, Vice President Joe Biden reflected on his
wealth. He said that while he wore a "mildly expensive suit" and was vice president of the United
States of America, he didn't own a stock or a bond, and as a senator, was the poorest member of the
club. This bit is a longstanding part of Biden's shtick, but was interpreted — most
loudly by the Republican National Committee — as a dig at possible presidential rival
Hillary Clinton.
Hillary
Clinton will collect massive speaking fee from Nevada university as students grapple with tuition
hikes. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will collect a $225,000 speaking fee
from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in October, it emerged on Tuesday. The massive expense
was confirmed just weeks after the university formalized a 4 percent tuition increase for each of
the next four years. Rate hikes have nearly tripled tuition costs there since 2004. Clinton will
deliver the keynote address at an invitation-only gala for philanthropists and other high-dollar donors
who support UNLV. The university said private funds are being tapped to pay her speaking fee.
Bill
Clinton defends family wealth, says Hillary 'not out of touch'. Former President Bill
Clinton on Tuesday defended his wife's modest depiction of the couple's wealth, saying their
affluence does not mean Hillary Rodham Clinton is out of touch with the concerns of average
Americans. Speaking in Denver at an annual meeting of his philanthropic organization, Clinton
said his wife was correct to state they were "dead broke" when the couple left the White House in 2000.
Biden
one-ups 'dead broke' Hillary by boasting he's 'the poorest man in Congress'. At a
White House summit for working families Monday, Vice President Joseph R. Biden tried to relate to
the audience by calling himself "the poorest man in Congress." While acknowledging that he was
wearing "a mildly expensive suit," Mr. Biden said he's not as wealthy as most of his peers in
Washington. [...] Mr. Biden and wife Jill reported $407,009 in adjusted gross income in 2013,
including $230,700 for his salary as vice president.
Bill
Clinton Budgeted to Receive Nearly $1 Million in Taxpayer Money in 2014. An April
Congressional Research Service (CRS) report shows that the Government Services Administration
(GSA), which is in charge of supporting federal disbursements, budgeted $950,000 for former
president Bill Clinton in the 2014 budget. Clinton will collect a $201,000 pension in 2014, a
figure four times larger than the median family income in the United States. The Clintons have
received a total of $15,938,000 in federal money since 2001.
White
House officials will meet with billionaire activist during new climate push. Senior
White House officials and Treasury Secretary Jack Lew are set to meet this week with Tom Steyer, an
environmental activist pledging to pump up to $100 million into the November midterm elections, as
part of a new campaign to promote President Obama's green agenda. "On Wednesday, senior White
House leadership and Secretary Lew will meet with former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, former
HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros, Cargill CEO Greg Page, and Tom Steyer [to] discuss the results of
their soon-to-be-released Risky Business report — which assesses the economic risks of
climate change," a White House official said, previewing the meeting. The gathering between the
big-money donor and senior White House officials is likely to draw criticism from watchdog groups,
which have accused Obama of embracing the pay-to-play politics he once so actively decried.
Democrats
criticize White House over meeting with billionaire Tom Steyer. Senior political
officials on Wednesday are scheduled to host a mega-donor with plans of making a nine-figure
investment in the 2014 midterm elections. No, Washington Republicans aren't meeting with Charles
and David Koch, the deep-pocketed energy titans — and public enemy No. 1, according to
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and many Democrats. Instead, the White House, which has
repeatedly bemoaned the influence of big money in politics, will open its doors to Tom Steyer, the
environmental activist who has pledged to spend up to $100 million on November's elections to
promote his climate-change agenda. Steyer is also a high-profile opponent of the Keystone XL
pipeline, a project the Obama administration is still reviewing.
'I
don't care about money': Says Chelsea Clinton, who is paid $600,000 by NBC for doing
nothing. Chelsea Clinton lives a charmed life, but don't be fooled: secretly, she's
not attached to the oodles of money she and her hedge fund manager husband make each year, the
former first daughter said in an interview published over the weekend.
Chelsea
Clinton tried to care about money but couldn't. The daughter of former President Bill
Clinton and ex-secretary of state Hillary Clinton explained in a recent interview why she left
lucrative professions and opted for working with her family's philanthropic foundation. 'I was
curious if I could care about (money) on some fundamental level, and I couldn't,' she said.
White
House's Valerie Jarrett dines with Rupert Murdoch to plot immigration strategy.
President Obama's longtime senior adviser Valerie Jarrett confessed to breaking bread this week
with conservative media titan Rupert Murdoch, a new White House frenemy of sorts on immigration
reform. The two dined at the posh Blue Duck Tavern on Tuesday night [6/17/2014] in
Washington's Foggy Bottom, and Jarrett described the evening as "very enjoyable." "Good
policy sometimes makes strange bedfellows," she told reporters at a breakfast hosted by the
Christian Science Monitor Friday, adding that she was impressed by Murdoch's passion for passing
comprehensive immigration reform.
Harry
Reid: Democrats Do Not 'Have Any Billionaires'. This is categorically false. After
all, the Democrats have the support of Tom Steyer, George Soros, and many, many others.
Tapper
Calls Out Reid for Saying Dems Don't Have 'Many' Billionaires. CNN's Jake Tapper
caught this odd statement and called out Reid for overlooking all the billionaires who actually
do support Democrats. Tapper played the video of Reid and said, "The left doesn't have
many billionaire backers? Oh, really? Well, you could name George Soros, David Shaw, Irwin Jacobs,
to name a few." He also singled out Tom Steyer, the billionaire philanthropist and environmentalist
who has taken on climate change and killing the Keystone XL pipeline as big issues.
Barack
Obama golfs while the Middle East burns. Last weekend Barack Obama played his 175th
and 176th rounds of golf as president. He played first at Sunnylands, the famously private course
on the Rancho Mirage, California estate of the late billionaire Walter Annenberg. Obama next played
at Porcupine Creek, the equally private course on the nearby estate of the very-much-alive tech
billionaire Larry Ellison.
President
Obama on vacation in California. Despite temperatures above 100 degrees, Obama was able to golf
at two nearby courses — Saturday at the Sunnylands estate and Sunday at the Porcupine Creek Estate
owned by software billionaire Larry Ellison.
Obama
to Visit Southern California, Deliver UCI Commencement Speech. Obama will attend a
private Democratic National Committee fundraising event at a home in Laguna Beach at 9:45 a.m.
before heading to Anaheim for his commencement address, according to the White House.
Bill
and Hillary Clinton top the list of richest ex-first families. They may have left the
White House "dead broke," as Hillary Clinton claimed, but she and Bill Clinton cashed in so fast
and big that they sit atop the list of former first couples who struck gold after the presidency.
Since leaving office, according to financial records and news reports, they have earned at least
$155 million from speeches, salaries and book deals, easily outpacing the post-White House incomes
of other former presidential families and distancing themselves from the time when Bill Clinton
deducted $2 apiece for used underwear donated to an Arkansas charity.
Prez
schmoozes and country loses. Today [6/11/2014], President Obama flies in to do what
he does best: schmooze with one-percenters at a $32,000-a-head fundraiser in Weston.
Clintons
'dead broke' after White House? Actually, they earned over $12M that year.
Technically, Bill and Hillary Clinton were in debt when they left the White House. Financial forms
filed for 2000 show assets between $781,000 and almost $1.8 million — and liabilities
between $2.3 million and $10.6 million, mostly for legal bills. But as the outgoing first
couple, they had tremendous earning potential. And within just one year, their financial troubles
were effectively gone. Hillary Clinton's Senate disclosure forms show that in 2001, they
reported earning nearly $12 million. Most of that came from Bill Clinton's speechmaking,
and the rest came from an advance for Hillary Clinton's book.
DEMOCRATS
tear into 'imperial' Hillary after major gaffes about her enormous wealth. Hillary
Clinton's fellow Democrats smell blood in the water after her recent gaffes over her considerable
wealth and they began pouncing on the presidential hopeful on Monday. Dick Harpootlian, a former
Democratic Party chairman in South Carolina, framed his insult in terms the fictional aristocratic
Crawley family and their servants could understand. 'I don't know whether it's just that she's
been "Madam Secretary" for so long, but she's generating an imperial image,' Harpootlian told The
Washington Post.
Hillary
Clinton's impoverished claims. All this matters for several reasons. First, how she
made her money and to whom she is indebted matters greatly. Between the two of them, they've taken
in a whole lot of speaking fees from industries that do a lot of business with or are regulated by
the federal government. She runs in circles with the richest of the rich, at a time when government
cronyism is a pressing public issue. Second, if it mattered how much Mitt Romney made —
in part because it reflects on his ability to relate to average people — then it matters
for Hillary Clinton. And, finally, there is something distasteful about a woman supposedly so
dedicated to women and kids and the world's needy who spends her time making millions upon millions
of dollars speaking to rich people.
Bill
Clinton: Why doesn't anyone believe we were poor? Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
has had a rough time of it ever since she asserted that both she and her husband were "dead broke"
and "struggled" after leaving the White House in 2001. "A few weeks before they left the White
House, the Clintons were able to muster a cash down payment of $855,000 and secure a $1.995 million
mortgage," Politifact observed. "This hardly fits the common meaning of 'dead broke.'" Clinton
might have taken the public backlash over this minor gaffe in stride, but she didn't.
Hillary
Clinton Says She Isn't 'Truly Well Off'. Clinton responded to criticism of her wealth
in an interview with the Guardian newspaper published Saturday night [6/21/2014] by suggesting Americans won't
be concerned about the more than $100 million her family has reportedly earned in recent years
because they're not "truly well off." "They don't see me as part of the problem," Clinton said of
Americans who are upset about income inequality, adding, "Because we pay ordinary income tax, unlike a
lot of people who are truly well off, not to name names; and we've done it through dint of hard work."
The Editor says...
Making speeches is not particularly hard work, especially if one enjoys the services of professional speech writers.
And for people like the Clintons, making $100,000 overnight
in cattl
futures isn't
especially difficult, either.
Hillary
Clinton was 'dead broke' leaving White House despite more than $780,000 in assets. At
the end of Bill Clinton's presidency, the couple had big legal bills from investigations of
Whitewater and the Monica Lewinsky affair. Hillary Clinton's first Senate financial disclosure
forms, filed for 2000, listed assets of $781,000 to $1.8 million, and legal debts of $2.3 million
to $10.6 million. Still, as the Clinton presidency ended, the couple bought a $2.85 million home
in Washington and a $1.7 million spread in Chappaqua. And Hillary landed an $8 million advance for
her book, "Living History."
2001
was Hillary's Year of Great Fortune, not of being "dead broke". The problem is not
that the Clintons made a fortune. This is America, after all. People are entitled to make a fortune
so long as they do so lawfully, and we've not yet reached the point where the law dictates when
people have made enough. The problem is that Hillary is not being straight with the public. [...]
In mid-December 2000, a month before Bill left office, Hillary signed a book deal with a near
record $8 million advance.
Hard Knocks Hillary. Democratic
presidential candidate Hillary Clinton thinks everyone should shut up and stop second-guessing her
(and her husband's) voracious appetite for money. Clinton, who charges up to $200,000 to give
one-hour speeches to Goldman Sachs executives and others, claims that she and Bill were "dead
broke" and in debt following their eight years in the White House, and "struggled" to pay the
mortgages on their multiple mansions and finance their daughter Chelsea's education at Stanford,
Oxford, Columbia, and Oxford (again).
Political
reporters unload on Hillary's gaffetastic day. Clinton's first gaffe of the day was
revealed in a clip of an interview she gave ABC's Diane Sawyer. In that interview, Clinton
attempted to relate to the working man by saying that, in spite of her family's current
multimillion dollar annual income, they were "dead broke" and "struggled" after leaving the White
House. They were so broke that they couldn't afford the mortgage on multiple houses, including
the house Hillary had to purchase in New York in order to run for U.S. Senate.
Hillary
Received $8 Million in Book Advance Before Leaving White House 'Broke' in 2000.
Hillary Clinton may not have been as "dead broke" as she's claimed her family was upon leaving the
White House in 2000. In the final month of her husband's presidency, Clinton reportedly inked a
near-record book advance deal worth millions. In an interview with Diane Sawyer to air on Monday
evening [6/9/2014], Clinton explained that she and her husband had to earn millions from speaking engagements
because they were so deep in debt. "We had no money when we got there, and we struggled to piece
together the resources for mortgages for houses, for Chelsea's education — it was not easy," she
told Sawyer.
Hillary:
We 'Struggled' to Buy 'Houses' After White House. Hillary further explains, "Bill has
worked really hard — and it's been amazing to me — he's worked very hard.
First of all, we had to pay off all our debts, which was, you know, he had to make double the money
because of obviously taxes and then pay off the debts and get us houses and take care of family
members."
The Editor says...
It is amusing to hear Hillary Clinton complain about taxes, which are painfully high because
of left-wing tax-and-spend liberals like her.
Poor
little rich girl. If you're a Clinton, it's not easy to play poor mouth. She has
earned $5 million in speaking fees since she left the State Department, and got a further $8 million
in advance for her new book. Together she and Bubba have scooped up $109 million over the
past seven years. They're entitled, but she could show a little perspective.
The Editor says...
Enough with the derisive mockery, already! Well... maybe just one more:
Ready for Blatant
Censorship. According to Hillary, after her husband was forced to retire from his job
as President of the United States, the impoverished couple lacked financial resources with no
future job prospects or source of income for Bill. Hillary, with a husband and one child to
support, was forced to find work, any work she could. And she did. All by herself.
The financially strapped Clinton family moved to New York State, somehow scraped together money for
a down payment and qualified for a mortgage on a $1.7 million home in a town inhabited by the
upper 10% in wealth. Adapting to her new situation, plucky Hillary soon found a job as
U.S. senator from her new home state based just on her totally awesome skills.
The Editor says...
I'd let this subject drop if I were Hillary. But no ...
Hillary
Clinton doubles down on poverty claim and says 'relentless persecution' by Republicans made them 'deeply in debt'. Former
secretary of state Hillary Clinton told the German magazine Der Spiegel on Tuesday that she and her husband Bill were indeed 'deeply in
debt' when they left the White House and blamed 'relentless persecution' by Republicans for her legal bills after his presidency.
The claim has added fuel to the fire Clinton herself touched off last month when she claimed they were 'dead broke' after their time in
the White House. The former first lady earns $200,000 or more every time she makes a public speech. The former president has
earned a reported $104 million in speaking fees since he left the Oval Office behind him.
Dialing It In. One evening
in March, during a visit to Italy, President Obama asked the U.S. ambassador to round up a bunch
of — and I quote — "interesting Italians" for a dinner at the ambassadorial
residence. [...] The menu that evening included a variety of pastas, and wines from Tuscany and the
regions around Venice. Dinner lasted four hours. In this sumptuous and Baroque setting, amid these
beautiful artifacts of long-gone civilizations, enjoying the finest foods and most delicate wines, President Obama
was at home.
Guess
Which Loyal Obama Voter Block Will Be Punished The Most By EPA's Climate Change
Regulations. Black households have the lowest average incomes and highest
unemployment among demographic groups. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, black
households income was at $33,321 in 2012 which is the lowest median income among race groups
according to a report by the U.S Census Bureau. As promised by Obama in 2008, his climate change
regulations will make electricity prices "skyrocket." A study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
estimated that climate change regulations like the EPA's recently announced new rules for existing
power plants will result in added electricity expenses of $17 billion a year through 2030.
That $17 billion in added costs are going to hurt black families a lot more than Obama's billionaire
donors [...]
Lunch
with Clintons auctioned for more than $300K. The Clinton Foundation has auctioned off
a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to sit down for a private lunch with Bill and Hillary Rodham
Clinton for more than $300,000. Charitybuzz, the website where the auction was held, would not
disclose how much the lunch was actually sold for, but a report by the Daily Caller published less
than three hours before the auction's close showed the bidding war had reached at least $305,000 by
a bidder named "moatistheke." The price exceeds the foundation's goal of $250,000.
Who
pays for first lady's fabulous fashions? The financing of the first lady's wardrobe is something that the Obama White
House is loath to discuss.
CA
Legislators Are Highest Paid in USA. Stateline's data, which indicated California legislators are
averaging a base salary of $90,526 per year, is a few months old, and that base salary will be raised to $95,291 in
December as a result of a decision last year by the California Citizens Compensation Commission. The Commission
is also considering a further raise. In addition, the legislators receive an additional tax-free "per diem"
of $141.86 per day every day the Legislature is in session. The closest average salary to the California legislators
is in Pennsylvania, where the average salary is $84,012.
New
Education Department rules help elite college students at the expense of poor and minorities.
You have to hand it to President Obama: He sure does do a good job of socking it to the folks he claims
to be helping. Tuesday marked the end of the comment period on the Education Department's proposed new
"gainful employment" regulations. While the administration says it wants to expand educational opportunities,
the proposed rules would target community colleges and for-profit colleges — institutions that educate
disproportionately poor, minority, and working-class Americans.
Lord Obama. [Scroll down]
The very wealthy are with him also because he instructs them how to indulge, to ignore the problems
of others, to be narcissistic and self-absorbed with a veneer of hipster cool. Golf, shoot hoops,
wear shades, hang with Jay-Z and Beyonce, talk about your rap menu on your iPhone, fluctuate your
cadences, do you Final Four predictions — all that means you can be cool and very rich
and very self-absorbed while fooling hoi polloi and feeling great about your privilege at the same
time. If you are a jean- and T-shirt wearing Silicon magnifico, Obama is your guy.
Hillary
Clinton's wealth complicates image as populist champion. When your own minimum wage reportedly is in the
neighborhood of $200,000 a speech, it might be difficult to sell yourself as the populist champion of the working class.
In recent weeks, Hillary Rodham Clinton has begun a calculated transition from respected diplomat to fierce advocate for
the 99 percent, using a "haves versus have-nots" message to build support among progressives who are desperate for a
strong voice to battle Wall Street, protect entitlement programs such as Social Security and promote income equality.
But for Mrs. Clinton, a rich, successful woman and part of one of America's most powerful political families, there are
questions about how effectively she can carry that banner if she runs for president in 2016.
Billionaire
plans to target Republicans in seven states. Billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer will target Republicans in
seven Senate and governors' races this year, as he pushes to make climate change a top issue in November's elections, his political
aides announced Wednesday. [...] Steyer also will spend heavily to shape governor's races in Maine, Pennsylvania and Florida, another
presidential swing state, where Gov. Rick Scott has said he is not convinced that climate change is caused by human activity.
Obama
raises money for Durbin in Chicago. President Barack Obama used a pair of hometown fundraisers Thursday [5/22/2014] to
defend Democratic control of the Senate against potential gains in the fall mid-term elections by what he called "ideologically rigid"
Republicans. Donors paid as much as $35,000 for a ticket to the campaign events for Illinois' senior senator, Dick Durbin,
and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Obama to raise cash for
Dems at Texas BBQ dinner. Tickets start at $10,000 per person and go up to $32,400 for a couple.
Wendy
Davis hosted by Hollywood stars. Director Steven Spielberg is among the hosts of the "celebration and
fundraiser honoring Davis" on the rooftop of the Bad Robot in Santa Monica, California. Besides Davis, it benefits
Battleground Texas, dedicated to making Texas competitive for Democrats. The tab for hosts is $25,000, while
contributions range down to $1,000 at the "friend" level.
Hillary Clinton's Speaking Circuit Payday: $5 Million (and Counting). Since
leaving [the] State [Department], Clinton has made more than 90 speeches and notable appearances. Her hosts have included
private equity firms, investment banks, nonprofit galas, trade association conventions, and a slew of colleges and universities.
At least two-dozen of those were paid speeches. With her usual fee of $200,000 a speech, Clinton has banked close to $5 million
for her speeches and appearances in the last 15 months.
Obama
to Fundraiser: We're Debating 'About What, Benghazi? Obamacare? It's Not Serious'.
Ticket prices for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee fundraiser ranged from $10,000 to
$32,400. The White House pool reporter said the press pool was socked away in a second-floor
bedroom of the home while waiting for Obama's remarks.
President
Obama golfs with Bain Capital lobbyist. One of President Barack Obama's golf partners
this weekend was a lobbyist for the financial firm Bain Capital. According to a White House pool
report, Obama hit the links on Saturday at the exclusive Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in
Gainesville, Va., with Joe O'Neill, president and CEO of the lobbying and public affairs firm
Public Strategies Washington. Rounding out the foursome was U.S. Trade Rep. Ron Kirk and Milton
Carroll of CenterPoint Energy.
White
House downplays Obama's golf round with lobbyist. President Obama's weekend round of
golf with a veteran lobbyist didn't weaken his pledge to narrow the influence of K Street, the
White House insisted on Monday [5/19/2014]. White House press secretary Jay Carney dismissed a question on
whether the president's round with Joe O'Neill, the president and CEO of Public Strategies
Washington, violated his promise to limit lobbyist access to the White House. "I think he played
a game of golf," Carney said.
Barack
Obama's Net Worth Has Risen 438% Since Running for President. While the average US
citizen has a median income of roughly $51,000, Obama rakes in the cash with an annual presidential
salary of $400,000. In addition, he receives money from book royalties and other investments.
Hypocrisy isn't a stranger to the liberal elite. Michael Moore's fifty million dollar fortune came
from creating documentaries that makes free enterprise look like the same as corporatism. The
activist left said Mitt Romney was too rich to be president, but had no problem supporting John
"I'm Wealthier Than Romney" Kerry when he ran for the same post in 2004.
Obama
speaks at the Upper East Side home of investment banker Blair Effron. Tickets for the
event, which followed a DNC roundtable in NYC with the same pricetag, were $32,400.
Harry
Reid speaks with Jon Stewart. "Billionaire Tom Steyer has rapidly become one of America's most
visible environmental advocates, vowing to punish lawmakers who oppose climate change action and pledging to
spend up to $100 million to put the issue center stage in the November 4 elections." (Reuters)
"Fortune built on Asian coal: It turns out that much of Steyer's wealth is the fruit of immensely profitable
investments in development of Indonesian and Australian coal." (Washington Examiner) "Forbes
estimates the former hedge fund manager is worth $1.5 billion. He has used that fortune to
advance his anti-oil, anti-coal, and climate-concerned political agenda." (Washington Free Beacon)
Nuclear physicist sues Oprah Winfrey over trail access
near her new megamansion in Telluride. A hiking-trail dispute between an 86-year-old
nuclear physicist and Oprah Winfrey, one of the world's wealthiest and most famous women, has
sparked a lawsuit as she prepares to build a megamansion high above Telluride. An attorney for
retired physicist Charles D. Goodman has filed a lawsuit in San Miguel County District Court
claiming that Winfrey's Yellow Brick Road company, the couple who sold the property to Winfrey and
Mountain Village made a below-the-radar deal to close off access to trails that Goodman's family and
his neighbors have had rights to use for nearly three decades.
Tom Steyer's Dirty Energy Record.
Billionaire Tom Steyer has rapidly become one of America's most visible environmental advocates, vowing to punish lawmakers
who don't oppose climate change and pledging to spend up to $100 million to put the issue center stage in the Nov. 4
elections. His in-your-face tactics have made him fierce enemies on the right who accuse him of hypocrisy and claim
that he made much of his fortune through investments in fossil fuel energy at Farallon Capital Management, the San Francisco-based
hedge fund he founded in 1986.
Why
Are Democrats Afraid of Tom Steyer? Democrats have made casting conservatives as beholden to the ultra-rich
central to their 2014 strategy, and that makes it awkward when a billionaire of their own puts himself front and center.
[...] Steyer's persona, the skeptics feel, opens Democrats up to charges of hypocrisy, and leaves too much of the party's
profile in the hands of a man who has been popularly elected to exactly nothing.
Warren Buffett has
given $1.2 billion to abortion groups. May 13, 2014, marks one year since Philadelphia abortion Dr. Kermit Gosnell
was convicted of first-degree murder "in the deaths of three babies who were delivered alive and then killed with scissors at
his grimy, 'house of horrors' clinic," according to the Associated Press. Gosnell instantly became the face of abortion
in the prolife community. But there's another, more recognizable face pushing abortion in the U.S. — liberal
billionaire Warren Buffett. The so-called "Oracle of Omaha" has donated more than $1.2 billion to abortion
organizations from 2001 to 2012.
Law-Flouting
David Gregory of NBC Parks Illegally Outside Fancy D.C. Jewelry Shop. NBC's David Gregory drew special treatment
from the District of Columbia for illegally possessing a high-capacity magazine and displaying it on national TV. There
must be an exemption for "educational" media-bias reasons. So he won't worry about any fine for illegally parking his
SUV the other day outside the "upscale bauble shop" Tiny Jewel Box, whose website advertises items for "Above $5000."
Angry heckler at $32,400 a ticket Democrat fundraiser in California.
Obama was the headline speaker at four California fund-raising events, raising his two-day total to five. His last was
a Silicon Valley event in San Jose co-hosted by Y Combinator President Sam Altman and Yahoo Inc CEO Marissa Mayer.
About 250 people paid between $1,000 and $32,400 to attend.
Obama to
Headline Fundraiser at Palatial Home of Billionaire Bundler. President Barack Obama will attend a fundraiser on
Thursday [5/8/2014] at the palatial San Diego home of Qualcomm founder and Democratic mega-donor Irwin Jacobs. The
$10,000-per-plate event will benefit the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, according to local news reports.
Meet The
Radical Billionaires Controlling the Democrat Party. While top liberal organizations blast
the right for accepting dark money, the Alliance's entire business model is based on maintaining secrecy
akin to the Illuminati. [...] The group requires some hefty financial backing. It costs $25,000 just to
join, yearly dues of $30,000 and an additional $200,000 donation to Alliance causes.
Guess
the Party Affiliation of the Investor Who Just Bought a Beach House For a Record $147
Million. Activist investor and hedge fund owner Barry Rosenstein just set the record
for the highest residential sales price for home. Paying $147,000,000 for a beachfront home in the
Hamptons, his new neighbors will include Jerry Seinfeld, along with other, well-known entertainment
industry and business tycoons. The previous record set was $120 million, just a couple of weeks
ago, by another hedge fund manager for a home purchased in Greenwich, Conn.
Liberals:
Exempt from Scrutiny. Too many modern liberal fetishes are predicated on the medieval
notion of exemption, and should not be taken as anything much other than useful pretensions or
smart career moves — something like joining the Masonic lodge in the 1920s in
small-town America. Charter schools are bad, and troubled public schools are noble, but the
coastal elites, whether at Sidwell Friends or the Menlo School, assume that they should not
sacrifice their children on the altar of their own ideology. [...] Concern for the Sierra toad and
frog should stop logging-road and mountain development, but incinerating fauna with solar mirrors or
grinding up eagles and hawks in wind turbines is the necessary price of green membership.
Read
the Confidential Document Left Behind at the Democracy Alliance Meeting. The Democracy
Alliance takes pains to ensure that its work disbursing millions of dollars to top left-wing
organizations remains secretive and free from public scrutiny. But a document left on the floor of
the group's recent gathering reveals for the first time the names of a number of individuals
involved in the effort. It lists new Democracy Alliance "partners," individuals who every year
must pay $30,000 in dues and contribute at least $200,000 to the groups that DA supports.
Teachers
Union Boss Randi Weingarten: My Salary's Only $360K. American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President
Randi Weingarten, who was paid $543,150 last year, defended her compensation by claiming her pay is $360,000 and
other reported expenses simply prove the union's "transparency." [...] "Justice means that hardworking people
must have access to a living wage," Weingarten wrote. AFT paid Weingarten $556,981 in 2012 and $543,150 in 2013.
If
You Criticize the President's Vacation Spending You're Probably Racist or Something. To put these
figures in perspective, the administration spends every 5 hours what the average American family spends each
summer on vacations. [...] Is there any conceivable way to justify a monthly average travel and vacation budget
of $625,000? For a President that constantly harps on about income inequality and shared sacrifice, his
lavish presidential lifestyle is the epitome of hypocrisy.
One-percenter
Liz Warren milks system then slams it in phony soundbites. While U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren sleeps
in her $5 million mansion in Cambridge, and got paid $350,000 to teach just one class at Harvard, she had the
audacity to say in an interview with Jon Stewart this week that "the system is rigged to benefit the rich."
Yes, Sen. Warren, that would be you. Under a free-market, capitalist system, you became a U.S. senator and
multimillionaire whose own net worth hovers around $14.5 million, according to personal financial disclosure
reports filed in 2011.
Michelle Obama spotted at the Salamander Resort in
Middleburg. First lady Michelle Obama spending a quiet weekend in Middleburg with
daughters Malia and Sasha in tow at the tony Salamander Resort. While the president was being
trailed by flashing cameras and notebook-wielding reporters on a four-country tour through Asia,
Michelle Obama's itinerary was a tad bit more low-key. On Friday she was spotted in the lobby of the
luxury resort owned by multimillionaire Sheila Johnson.
Greens Are Reds.
The dirty little secret of the modern environmental movement is that it has become a luxury good for
the uber-rich. Its policies — from carbon taxes, to renewable energy standards, to crushing
regulations on coal plants — would impose high costs on the people who can least afford to pay the
green tab. A Pew Research Center poll released in March offered further confirmation of this
truth. It found that only two major voting groups oppose the construction of the Keystone XL
pipeline: Democrats who make more than $100,000 annually and Dems with a college or advanced degree.
Oligarchy in the Twenty-First
Century. "To see what is in front of one's nose," George Orwell famously wrote, "needs a constant
struggle." In front of my nose as I write this is a copy of last Sunday's New York Times. I have
opened it to the business section. Below the fold is one of many Times articles on Thomas Piketty, the French
economist and author of Capital in the Twenty-First Century, which argues that America has entered a second
Gilded Age of vast inequality, inherited fortunes, and oligarchic politics, where the shape of public discourse and
public policy is determined by a wealthy few.
Obama
only ate HALF of the pricey dinner at the 'world's best sushi restaurant'. President Obama reportedly
only ate half of the expensive sushi dinner he was treated to last night in Tokyo. Instead of savoring every
morsel of the made-to-order 20-course meal at Sukiyabashi Jiro — dubbed the world's best sushi restaurant and the
subject of the 2011 documentary 'Jiro Dreams of Sushi' — the President reportedly put his chopsticks down after
only 10 pieces.
Five Alarmist Celebs and Their Double Standards.
Showtime's new climate change series, "Years of Living Dangerously," premiered April 13, 2014, slightly
more than a week before Earth Day 2014. It relies on several wealthy, Hollywood celebrities to spread fear
about climate change. While these actors and directors talk a lot about reducing carbon footprints
and saving the world, they haven't given up their own enormous mansions and private jets. Director
James Cameron, former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and actors Harrison Ford, Matt Damon and Ian Somerhalder
who are worth a collective $1.2 billion, according to Celebrity Net Worth, were just some of the Hollywood
types involved in Showtime's nine-part series.
America
is an oligarchy, not a democracy or republic, university study finds. America is no longer a
democracy — never mind the democratic republic envisioned by Founding Fathers. Rather, it
has taken a turn down elitist lane and become a country led by a small dominant class comprised of powerful
members who exert total control over the general population — an oligarchy, said a new study
jointly conducted by Princeton and Northwestern universities. One finding in the study: The U.S.
government now represents the rich and powerful, not the average citizen, United Press International reported.
Dems
May Regret Steyer's Keystone Payoff. After a lengthy study of the plans for the construction
of the Keystone XL pipeline, the U.S. State Department issued an 11-volume report back in January confirming
what most experts had already concluded long before then: the vital project would not damage the
environment or increase the rate of carbon pollution. But liberal activists weren't happy and have
used the 90-day automatic review process that followed that report to furiously lobby the administration
to stop the construction of the 1,700-mile pipeline from Alberta to the Gulf Coast refineries. The
key player in that effort was Tom Steyer, the billionaire environmental extremist who has pledged to give
$100 million to Democratic candidates who do his bidding.
Bidens
Earned $400,009 in 2013 — 5% Went to Charity. Vice President Joe Biden and his wife,
Jill, reported an adjusted gross income of $407,009 in 2013, from which they contributed 5% to charity, or
a total of $20,523, according to their 2013 income tax return, which was released by the White House on
Friday [4/11/2014]. Among that charity-total — $20,523 — a sum of $15,300 was
royalties earned from Jill Biden's 2012 children's book, Don't Forget, God Bless Our Troops.
Excluding those book royalties, the Bidens' charitable contributions of $5,223 equaled 1.2% of their income.
NYC
Mayor De Blasio Pays 8.3% Effective Tax Rate. As predictable as the media silence to
follow comes the news that New York City's new left-wing mayor, who ran on a platform based in large
part on raising taxes, paid an effective 8.3% tax rate in 2013 based on a total income of over $200,000.
Income
Inequality Institute Will Pay Paul Krugman $25,000 Per Month. According to a formal
offer letter obtained under New York's Freedom of Information Law, CUNY intends to pay Krugman
$225,000, or $25,000 per month (over two semesters), to "play a modest role in our public events"
and "contribute to the build-up" of a new "inequality initiative." It is not clear, and neither
CUNY nor Krugman was able to explain, what "contribute to the build-up" entails.
Poor
Little Rich Man. Being a "distinguished professor" of economics at the City University
of New York is nice work if you can get it. "During year-one," the boss explains in a letter to the
new hire, "you will not be expected to teach or supervise students." In subsequent years, "you will
teach one seminar per year." In addition, the boss informs the distinguished professor that he "will
play a modest role in our public events" and "will be asked to contribute to the buildup" of one of
the university's programs. The pay is $225,000 a year, plus a $10,000 expense budget — and the
distinguished prof gets summers off.
HHS
nominee got $1.2M at 'zero' salary job at Wal-Mart. Her White House biography touts
her key private-sector experience as president of the massive foundation, but Internal Revenue
Service records show that the job is unpaid and the more than $1.2 million in salary, deferred
compensation and bonuses paid to Ms. Burwell came through her lesser-known role as a vice president
at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., according to a government ethics filing. James Joseph, a tax lawyer at
Arnold & Porter LLP, said such arrangements are common among corporate foundations.
Lois Lerner sits in her lavish house on $2.4 million
property as she awaits possible contempt charge. Ex-IRS official Lois Lerner is living
the life of a private citizen at her more-than $2.4 million property in Bethesda, Md. while
Republicans consider holding a House floor vote to hold her in contempt of Congress. The House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted 21-12 to hold Lerner in contempt last week after she
waived her Fifth Amendment rights but continued to stonewall the committees investigation into the
IRS targeting scandal. The measure was opposed by all 12 of the committee's Democrats, including
Ranking Member Rep. Elijah Cummings, whose staff requested information from the IRS about a
conservative non-profit applicant group under agency scrutiny.
Rep. Joe Kennedy
sees support from NYC's most fashionable. Our spies say 80 people packed into [Sam] Hamadeh's
4,000-square-foot loft — which has been a filming location for "Gossip Girl" and photo shoots for Cosmo
and Elle — for the event, which raised around $40,000 for the 33-year-old Kennedy scion who is kicking
off his re-election bid.
Export
subsidy fight pits Maxine Waters against Mike Lee. Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters — "a
dynamic liberal Democrat who champions the causes of the poor and downtrodden," as the liberal press calls her —
held a rally of sorts at the Capitol on Tuesday. Waters' cause: supporting the federal agency called the Export-Import
Bank, which subsidizes exporters, banks and foreign companies. Among the needy on stage with her was the top lobbyist
for Boeing, the prime beneficiary of Ex-Im.
2
Obama fundraisers after grieving Fort Hood deaths, one at $17 million home. From the White House pool
report: ["]Later today, the president will headline two fund-raising events in Houston. The first, for
the DNC, is closed press. Background from a DNC official: "The President will attend a roundtable
discussion for the DNC at a private residence in Houston with approximately 30 supporters who will contribute
up to $32,400."["]
7
fun facts about President Barack Obama's tax return. [#1] The Obamas paid $98,169 in total federal income tax on
adjusted gross income of $481,098. That's an effective tax rate of 20.4 percent. [#2] The Obamas are due
a tax refund of $19,108. What should they spend it on? [#3] Besides his salary, Obama reported $104,809 in
business income from book sales. That's down from $258,772 in 2012.
The Editor asks...
How much of the income from his book sales are due
to Bill Ayers?
Obamas
pay $98,169 in taxes on income of $481,098. [Mr. and Mrs. Obama] paid an effective federal income tax rate
of 20.4 percent and donated significantly less to charity than they did the year before.
Report:
Obama To Attend Dem Fundraiser In Texas. The Associated Press obtained an invitation to
the April 9 event where tickets start at $16,200 a person and go up to $64,800 for a couple.
Democrats:
The Real Party Of The Rich. By almost every measure, in fact, it's the Democrats, not the Republicans, who are
the party of the rich. Start with Congress itself. Who are the wealthiest members? Well, there are
269 millionaires among Congress' 535 members. And most of them are Democrats. And contrary to
the hand-wringing on the left about the Supreme Court's 5-4 McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission ruling
Wednesday [4/2/2014], Democrats far outspend Republicans on elections. It isn't even close. According to
OpenSecrets.org, from 1989 to 2014 rich donors gave Democrats $1.15 billion — $416 million more
than the $736 million given to the GOP. Among the top 10 donors to both parties, Democrat supporters
outspent Republican supporters 2-to-1.
Dem
Rep.: 'Members of Congress Are Underpaid,' Can't Afford to 'Live Decently'. Do you think members of Congress
are overpaid or underpaid? Most likely you'd go with the former, but Democratic congressman Jim Moran argues it's
actually the latter. In an interview with CQ Roll Call, Moran says, "I think the American people should know that
the members of Congress are underpaid." The House recently took up a bill to freeze members' paychecks, placing
another halt on the annual cost-of-living pay increases they would normally get and keeping annual salary at $174,000.
Testing and Detesting SGO. At
week's end, retiring Cong. Jim Moran (D-of course, VA-unfortunately) told Roll Call that Congress was underpaid.
Before we could see clearly through our laughter-teared eyes, he added that "I understand that it's widely felt that they
underperform, but the fact is that this is the board of directors for the largest economic entity in the world." And
he said all that with a straight face.
Which Party
Represents the Wealthier U.S. Districts? In order to appeal to everyday, average Americans, both
political parties like to trot out the attack that the other side is the party of the rich (or super-rich,
just to make it stick more). Well, the Associated Press looked at the financial stats for every
congressional district and concluded that most of the wealthiest districts in America are represented by
Democrats.
Environmentalists
to the Peasants: Drop Dead. California is going through a terrible drought and 2013 was the driest
on record in the state. So who is suffering, financially and otherwise, from its effects? Hint:
it is not the coastal elite. The water still flows to the upscale neighborhoods of La Jolla, Malibu, and
Marin County. Their lawns are watered, their BMW's washed and polished, their swimming pools full.
No, it's the farmers in the Central Valley and the agricultural workers who are idled as 500,000 acres of the
best farmland on the planet lies fallow. Where is their water going? To save the environment.
The Progressive
Aristocracy. If, as I suspect, the currency of progressivism isn't policies or results, but emotions,
what does that approach build? What kind of a country do you get when political leaders are driven by a desire
to feel that they are more enlightened, noble, tolerant, wise, sensitive, conscious, and smart than most other people?
The evidence before us suggests progressives' ideal society would be one where they enjoy great power to regulate the
lives of others and impose restrictions and limitations they themselves would never accept in their own lives.
Very few people object to an aristocracy with special rights and privileges as long as they're in it.
Why
is Obama administration blocking Detroit River bridge? Why isn't the Obama administration willing to
finance the customs plaza for the new international bridge over the Detroit River between Detroit and Windsor,
Ontario? That's a question raised by this article in the Wall Street Journal. As the Journal notes,
the government of Canada has agreed to pay, as part of a public-private partnership, about $3.65 billion for
building the bridge, including a $550 million link with Interstate 75 in Detroit. The new bridge
would provide an alternative for the privately owned Ambassador Bridge, which was opened in 1929. Yet the
Obama administration isn't ponying up $250 million to build a customs plaza. [...] Why is the Obama
administration withholding the $250 million for the customs plaza? One possible reason: to propitiate
Matty Maroun, the Michigan billionaire who owns the Ambassador Bridge and profits handsomely from tolls and concessions.
Your
Political Leaders Are Unsurprisingly Terrible at Empathizing with Your Salary. Democratic
Rep. Jim Moran of Virginia wants you to know that, at $174,000 a year, members of Congress are underpaid.
Because Jim Moran, like others, doesn't understand actual economic hardship and, frankly, isn't that great at
politics either. Moran is not the only public official to make a dubious claim about salary hardship in
the past 24 hours.
Fish Instead of
People, Ideologies without Consequences. There is a great sickness in California, home
of the greatest number of American billionaires and poor people, land of the highest taxes and about
the worst schools and roads in the nation. The illness is a new secular religion far more zealous
and intolerant than the pre-Reformation zealotry of the Church. Modern elite liberalism is based
on the simple creed that one's affluence and education, one's coolness and zip code, should shield
him from the consequences of one's bankrupt thoughts that he inflicts on others.
Party of the rich: In Congress, it's the Democrats.
Republicans are the party of the rich, right? It's a label that has stuck for decades, and you're hearing it
again as Democrats complain about GOP opposition to raising the minimum wage and extending unemployment benefits.
The Left's War on Horses. [Scroll
down] Animal rights activists and their real estate backers have more money than horse carriage drivers. The modest stable buildings
are no match for the liberal real estate developers seeking to put up pricey hotels and progressive animal rights activists easily overwhelm
drivers who may get only eight fares a day. The anti-horse activists of Homo progressivus spent $1.3 million on Bill de Blasio.
The drivers bring their own coffee with them in a thermos because a Starbucks coffee is too pricy for their budgets. Bill de Blasio
refused to visit the stables where the horses are kept. The money has changed hands, his mind is made up and he doesn't want to be
confronted with the anger and suffering of the working men whose jobs he is taking away.
Bill Clinton cashes in on
struggling nonprofit hospital. Bill Clinton accepted a $225,000 speaking fee from the nonprofit Washington Hospital Center
smack in the middle of two big rounds of layoffs in 2012 — one of a number of tax-exempt organizations that have paid big money
to hear the former president talk. The $225,000 payment wasn't made public by the hospital on its annual Internal Revenue Service forms,
but rather appeared among dozens of lucrative speeches by Mr. Clinton reported on his wife's final ethics filing as secretary of state.
Spoiled Rotten Kids of DC's
Elite. Connected children of political families catching a break is something we Americans are plenty
used to — there would be no Kennedy or Bush dynasties without the public's acceptance that some people
just raise their kids up all square-jawed and rolled shirtsleeves, ready to run for office. But the nexus of
private business and politics is always one that's skated over lightly in high school civics classes.
Lucky Jim. Earlier this week, inside a ballroom at the luxury Mandarin
Oriental hotel in D.C., President Obama met with Organizing for America. OFA, as it's called for short, raised $26 million
last year, much of it from an assortment of heirs, heiresses, hedge funders, and Hollywood executives.
Fat Cats and Democrats. Consider the Center for
Responsive Politics' recently released list of "Heavy Hitters," the biggest donors among political organizations from 1989 to 2014. Number 1
is ActBlue, "the online clearinghouse for Democratic action," as it styles itself, that bundles individual contributions for distribution to Democratic
candidates. ActBlue has already raised $12 million for the 2014 election cycle. In 2012 it tallied $33 million. All but
4 of the top 16 "heavy hitters" give the overwhelming majority of their funds to the Democrats. Only 2 of the top 20 give
to Republicans.
'Torquemada' John Dingell. On Monday
the 88-year-old [Representative John] Dingell [(D., Mich.)] announced his retirement. His media and political allies celebrate him as a populist
man of the middle, but the reality of who he is couldn't be more different. Over his record 57 years in Congress, Dingell has been one of the key
architects of centralizing regulatory power in Washington to the benefit of big-business lobbyists — and to the detriment of the little guy.
The Biggest Donors In American Politics Give To
Democrats. Contrary to what the Democrats tell you, the Koch brothers are not the biggest donors in American politics. In fact, very few of
the top donors give to Republican candidates. By far, they give to Democrats. [In the accompanying chart], you have to go down to number 17
before finding one with a Republican tilt. And that one is UPS. Also notice that most of the biggest donors to Democrats are unions, including
public employee unions who survive on our tax dollars. Remember this the next time you hear liberals whining about money in politics.
Obama Plays Water Guzzling Desert Golf Courses
Amid California Drought. President Barack Obama traveled to California on Friday to highlight the state's drought emergency at two events near
Fresno, calling for shared sacrifice to help manage the state's worst water shortage in decades. He then spent the rest of the weekend enjoying the
hospitality of some of the state's top water hogs: desert golf courses. Vacationing with DVDs of his favorite television shows and multiple golf
outings with his buddies, the duffer in chief played at two of the most exclusive courses in the Palm Springs area.
Obama plans bachelor Valentine's
Day golfing weekend in California. President Obama is traveling to California on Friday to discuss the severe drought that is threatening farmers'
livelihood and meet with the king of Jordan. [...] The president will spend the evening of Valentine's Day dining with King Abdullah II of Jordan followed by
two days of golf, according to a senior administration official to the New York Times.
President Obama golfs at Larry
Ellison's Porcupine Creek. President Barack Obama, in town since Friday and fresh off a meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II, left the Sunnylands
estate Sunday morning for a little more golf. He didn't have far to go. The destination was Porcupine Creek, the private golf course owned by
Oracle co-founder and BNP Paribas owner Larry Ellison.
After decrying
inequality, Obama golfs at personal course of mega-billionaire. Inequality in America is a terrible thing, unless it results in a nice afternoon
at a golf course so private that "uncrowded" does not begin to describe the solitude a presidential foursome can enjoy. Few things in this world are more
unequally enjoyed than the luxury of a personal golf course. But our inequality-hating president found the time to enjoy one yesterday [2/16/2014].
Barack
Obama spends holiday weekend playing Oracle billionaire nineteen-hole golf course as Michelle hits the slopes. First lady Michelle Obama and her
daughters, Sasha and Malia, are in Aspen for the President's Day weekend while Barrack has been golfing in sunny Southern California with childhood friends.
'She likes it here,' Pitkin County Sheriff Joe DiSalvo said, noting that this is Mrs Obama's third consecutive trip to Aspen over the holiday weekend.
Media Sidestep
Five-Figure Price Estimate on Mrs. Obama's State Dinner Dress. Michael W. Chapman of our sister site CNSNews.com reports on cost estimates
for the hand-sewn gown Michelle Obama wore at Tuesday's state dinner for the prime minister of France. Think five figures. If Ann Romney were
First Lady now, would that escape the media's politicized scrutiny?
Obama Tees Off on Billionaire's Private Golf
Course. President Barack Obama is teeing off on a private California golf course owned by supporter Larry Ellison, the billionaire co-founder of
the Oracle software company. Ellison ranks third on Forbes' annual list of the 400 richest Americans, with an estimated $41 billion fortune.
His 249-acre desert property in Rancho Mirage came with a 19-hole private golf course. The extra hole is available for playoffs.
Obama's
state dinner for France: Let them eat beef, caviar, fudge and cotton candy. Tuesday's state dinner was the usual self-indulgent
Washington lavishness oblivious to the unemployed, food-stamped lives of millions of back-country Americans. The 350 strutting attendees
playing dress-up were a combination of Obama cronies, B-level Hollywood types, media, campaign bundlers and assorted beltway politicos who can
consider themselves D.C. royalty until Jan. 20, 2017. They were over-fed and entertained in what passes for the Palace of Versailles
in Washington, a heated tent on the White House lawn decorated like a Monet spring painting.
Michelle
Obama [wears] $12,000' Carolina Herrera gown at the White House state dinner. Michelle Obama chose Venezuelan-American
designer Carolina Herrera for the gown she wore Tuesday [2/11/2014] to the state dinner honoring French President Francois Hollande.
CNN: Michelle Obama's
'Dress Probably Cost Around $12,000'. The dress first lady Michelle Obama wore at last night's state dinner was the topic of
discussion last night on CNN. [...] Another guest on CNN last night thought the cost was about $12,000. "Well, by the way, I think
that dress probably cost around $12,000. But that's just my guess," said Sally Quinn.
Michelle Obama
chooses Carolina Herrera for state dinner dress. The first lady chose a dramatic Carolina Herrera ball gown with a
voluminous skirt and lace-overlay top. The blue and black gown is the first dress with sleeves Obama has worn to a state dinner.
Previously she donned one-shouldered pieces from Peter Soronen and Doo-Ri Chung, and a strapless gown by Naeem Khan for the administration's
first official state dinner in 2009 for India.
Hereditary Democracy? Bill and Hillary
Clinton left office in 2000. They were all but broke. Legal bills had been a draining burden. Flash forward. Bill
Clinton made $17 Million last year in speaking engagements. Hillary can knock out $400,000 for a monotone vapid speech rife with
platitudes and banalities.
Michelle's dogs apparently dine on china and
crystal. Poverty and unemployment are at near-record levels, the economy is stalled, and a record 47 million Americans are on food
stamps, yet aides for first lady Michelle Obama's tweeted out a picture of her two dogs apparently dining at a table laid with crystal and china.
Stunning insensitivity from Michelle
Obama. Michelle Obama's lust for luxury has always been a bit of a problem for her husband and Democrats in general. Jetting
off to five star resorts with a large entourage has too much dissonance with the rhetoric denouncing inequality currently in favor with the left.
But the First Lady has now outdone herself, and because a picture is worth a thousand words, the damage may be a bit more serious than the
occasional grumble over designer shoes and livin' large.
Obama's Opulent
State Dinners Cost The Taxpayer About Half A Million Dollars Each. Obama is having a grand old time with his socialist buddy
President Francois Hollande of France on his visit, and for the first time ever, Americans will get a view of just how much a State dinner
costs them. It took thirteen months for the State Department to respond to the request for the costs of such dinners, but here they are!
Obama, first lady go out on the
town. Three days before they throw a state dinner for the president of France, President Barack Obama and his wife are
whetting their appetite for — Mexican food.
[Extraneous punctuation in original.]
Hillary's Billionaires. Billionaires Alice Walton, George Soros,
and Marc Benioff all made major contributions to the Super PAC supporting Hillary Clinton's presidential run in 2016, according to recent
Federal Election Commission filings. The three each contributed $25,000 to Ready for Hillary PAC, the maximum allowed donation, Bloomberg
reported on Sunday [2/2/2014]. Walton is the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. She is the world's 13th richest person and has
an estimated worth of $33.9 billion.
First Lady, Barbra Streisand Raise
Cash for Dems, Warn of GOP Resurgence. Barbra Streisand, Tim Robbins and other progressive stars helped First Lady Michelle Obama
fill Democrat coffers yesterday [1/29/2014] to keep both the House and Senate out of the GOP's mitts. The L.A. fundraiser, held at the home
of Everybody Loves Raymond creator Phil Rosenthal, also included James Brolin, Paul Reiser, Dolores Roberts and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti.
The event netted $700,000 for the liberal cause.
Here's what
Michael Tusk served Michelle Obama at Cotogna. But in middle of the day, Ms. Michelle Obama and a number of her guests dined at
Cotogna. It looks like the Obamas are fans of Lindsay and Michael Tusk's Pacific Avenue restaurants; back in 2012, Michael Tusk cooked
for President Obama (in a private home), serving him dishes like cheese-filled tortelloni and poularde in various preparations. On
Thursday [1/30/2014], this was the menu presented to the First Lady and company: [...]
Obama's
'Operation Choke Point' Will Only Hurt Working Poor. The Obama administration thinks driving payday lenders out of business will help the
urban poor. In fact, a Fed study suggests it will only drive them into the jaws of loan sharks.
Report: Obamas,
Bidens spent $295,437 on just one vacation weekend. According to new records obtained by the taxpayer watchdog group Judicial
Watch, three separate jaunts taken by President Obama, first lady Michelle Obama, and Vice President Joe Biden during last year's Presidents Day
weekend cost at least $295,437. And that's mostly just for security, not Air Force One or other official costs. The records were
obtained from the U.S. Secret Service and details some of the "security and/or other services" of Obama's mid-February 2013 golf trip to West
Palm Beach, Fla., the annual Aspen, Colo. ski trip taken by the first lady and her daughters, and the Biden family trip, also to Aspen.
Millionaire
Congresswoman: Income Inequality is 'Existential Threat' to U.S.. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), who is worth millions of dollars
according to her congressional financial disclosure statement, says Congress needs to tackle income inequality because it "poses an existential
threat to our nation and our way of life."
Obama vs. Obama. [Scroll down] So who is responsible for this
state of affairs? Consider the trillion and a half dollars handed over to the banks and other financial institutions shortly after Obama took office.
This money was supposed to be extended as credit to businesses — including small businesses — in a bid to supercharge the economy according
to the old Keynesian formula. Instead it went directly into the markets, where it triggered the growth of the current market bubble, generating plenty in the way
of paper profits, bonuses, and so forth along the way. Also consider the $65 billion a month handed to the banks in the form of "quantitative easing."
Liberalism in Brooklyn. I am watching them take my country from
me — the Obamas, the de Blasios, the Holders, the generic Democrats with their imaginary sincerity and their simplistic complaints about income inequality.
As if excellence and the ability to earn are wicked traits. In the meantime, Obama and his ilk are living pretty well. They are not sleeping in boxes on cold
urban streets. Like thieves in the night, they try to steal the votes from the poor so that they can live even richer lifestyles. They pretend to identify
with the middle class, as if their lifestyles and prestige even resemble such a thing as "middle class."
White House
imposes secrecy rules on First Lady's lavish, celebrity-filled birthday party. There was a party in the East Room of the White House Saturday night
[1/18/2014], an affair attended by a reported 500 people, a lavish celebration with celebrities galore, appearances by some of the world's most popular performers,
lots of dancing and powerful government officials, including, of course, the most powerful official of all, the President of the United States. And the White
House wants to make sure you know as little as possible about it. [...] [M]aybe, since the president has announced he is devoting the rest of his time in office to
an "inequality agenda," the White House felt photos of a champagne-soaked, star-studded party would be somewhat off-message.
Maryland
is for millionaires! Of all the states in the nation, Maryland once again reported the highest concentration of millionaires,
according to an annual survey conducted by a wealth research firm. A report released this week by the New York-based Phoenix Marketing
International showed that there were just over 6 million millionaire households in the nation — an increase of 53,000 from
the year before.
More Democrats than
Republicans Sit on 10 Richest Members of Congress List. While Republicans often get the reputation for being "the party
of the rich," seven of the 10 richest members of Congress are Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP).
CRP compiled a list of the 10 richest members of Congress using 2012 personal finance disclosure information, the latest available.
These wealthy Democrats are not afraid to use their big bucks and high-powered connections to get ahead.
Obama's ambassador picks,
by the numbers. $436,000 to Democratic causes — that's from former White Sox outfielder Mark Gilbert, the nominee
for the U.S. Embassy post in New Zealand. [...] $291,000 in contributions to Democratic campaigns and committees — that's from
"The Bold and the Beautiful" executive producer Colleen Bell, who is up for the job of ambassador to Hungary.
Taxpayers foot the
bill for First Lady's extended Hawaiian vacation. The White House conceded on Monday that the federal treasury will foot the bill to fly First Lady Michelle
Obama back to Washington, D.C. on a separate government aircraft after she finishes her extended vacation at the palatial 12-bedroom Hawaii home of talk show legend Oprah
Winfrey. Dedicated vehicles, Secret Service costs, and security sweeps of the Winfrey estate on Maui will add considerably to the total tab.
Michelle Obama spending extended vacation
at Oprah's Maui home. Michelle Obama is spending her extended Hawaiian vacation at Oprah's "exquisite" Maui getaway, The Daily Caller has learned.
While White House pool reports indicate the first lady stayed behind this week in Hawaii to chill out with friends before her 50th birthday, there weren't many specifics.
1 percent pay
raise latest pinch for troops, veterans struggling to pay bills. President Obama on Monday [12/23/2013] signed an executive order giving
military personnel and civilian federal workers a 1 percent pay raise, the first raise for civilians in four years. But for military families,
it was another hit. Military members had been receiving an annual pay increase of 1.8 percent, and ther order comes as more benefit cuts
loom on the horizon for military families due to tightening budgets.
The Editor says...
The President was on vacation in Hawaii on Monday the 23rd. Did he sign this executive order on the beach or the golf course?
Obamas Go Out on the Town in Hawaii.
[Scroll down] Later in the day, the First Family headed out again, this time to dinner at Morimoto Waikiki, an upscale restaurant from Masaharu
Morimoto, the star of "Iron Chef" and "Iron Chef America." No word on what the Obamas ordered, though the restaurant boasts a $140-per-person
"omakase" chef's choice tasting menu.
You Call This Tax Fairness? Imagine lower-income
families watching their incomes drop while their tax burden goes up. Patently unfair, right? Yet it actually happened under President Obama.
Michelle
Obama wears controversial J Mendel jacket again despite backlash over its $6,800 price tag. Michelle Obama has once again stepped out in
her $6,800 J Mendel jacket, despite fielding a backlash last time she wore the pricey garment. The First Lady looked suitably festive as she
joined her family yesterday for the taping of TNT's Christmas in Washington at the National Building Museum. But the last time she wore the
embellished garment, in July 2012 at a Buckingham Palace reception in London, political commentators took issue with the fact that she had spent
so much on fashion while so many in the U.S. are suffering financially.
Who the Democrats Really Are. The richest Americans
divide their votes evenly between the two parties, depending on how they earned their wealth. The Democrats are the party of the super-rich.
Republicans are the party of the great middle.
Who Funds the Far Left? You'll Be
Surprised. The Center for American Progress is a left-wing organization that is closely associated with the Obama administration.
Its principal product is a web site called Think Progress. Think Progress is part of the internet cesspool that modern liberalism has become.
Written by hack left-wing bloggers, it is bitterly hostile to free enterprise. It is a low-rent site that traffics in the most absurd smears and
conspiracy theories. Many have wondered for some years who finances far-left web sites like Think Progress. As of today, we know at least
part of the answer, as CAP released its corporate donor list for the first time.
GE, Walmart, AT&T, Google Among Center for
American Progress Donors. On Friday [12/13/2013], the Obama- and Clinton-allied Center for American Progress finally revealed its long-sought
corporate donor list after heavy pressure arising from CAP's quasi-lobbying history. That scrutiny ratcheted up following the announcement that CAP
founder John Podesta would be formally joining the Obama administration. Both Politico and The New York Times called for the donor list to meet
the public eye. And so CAP handed over the list to the leftist Huffington Post.
Celebrity Hypocrites. I'm
annoyed that so many Hollywood celebrities hate the system that made them rich. Actor/comedian Russell Brand told the BBC he wants "a
socialist, egalitarian system based on the massive redistribution of wealth." Director George Lucas got rich not just from movies but
also by selling Star Wars merchandise. Yet he says he believes in democracy but "not capitalist democracy." Actor Martin Sheen
says, "That's where the problem lies ... It's corporate America." And so on.
Latter-Day Marxist. A week ago, the White House
Marxist declared that income inequality was the "defining challenge" we face. If Obama really means what he says (which he almost never does)
he could begin by giving up the millions he has already pocketed and the fancy houses and the fancy vacations he funds with taxes coming from
Americans who are scraping to make ends meet. Or he could close down Obamacare, the largest redistribution of income from the have nots
to the haves in our lifetimes.
'Income Inequality' —
The Biggest Lie of All. In the last few days Barack Obama has attempted to change the subject of public discourse from
healthcare to income inequality, which he has dubbed "the defining challenge of our time." Now he tells us! Since POTUS
hasn't paid much attention to this problem for the first five plus years of his administration, even with African-American unemployment
through the roof and the middle class disappearing from American economic life, [...] this should come as some surprise.
America's Royalty On
Its Coasts Decides How The Rest Live. The densely populated coastal corridors from Boston to Washington and from San Diego to Berkeley are
where most of America's big decisions are made. They remind us of two quite different Americas: one country along these coasts and everything else
in between. Those in Boston, New York and Washington determine how our government works; what sort of news, books, art and fashion we should
consume, and whether our money and investments are worth anything. The Pacific corridor is just as influential, but in a hipper, cooler fashion.
President
Obama has nine different types of pie for White House Thanksgiving dinner. President Barack Obama is celebrating
Thanksgiving with a quiet family dinner at the White House — where he will be feasting on a choice of nine pies.
New survey: Despite
Michelle Obama, Americans are eating less healthy. According to the Obama White House, the first family consumed a Thanksgiving dinner of
turkey, honey-baked ham, cornbread stuffing, oyster stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, greens, green bean casserole, dinner rolls and macaroni
and cheese. Then, the family washed all that down with nine kinds of pies: huckleberry, pecan, sweet potato, peach, apple, pumpkin, banana
cream, coconut cream and chocolate cream.
Obama Hailed as
'the Greatest Leader in the World' at Magic's House. President Obama partied with the stars in Beverly Hills on Monday
night [11/25/2013] to raise cash for the Democratic House and Senate campaign committees. [...] In a tent on the grounds of Magic
Johnson's mansion, the former Lakers star hailed Obama as "the greatest leader in the world." With ticket prices between $2,500
and $15,000 a head, the crowed included Samuel L. Jackson and Diane Keaton along with some L.A. Clippers players and
members of Congress.
Obama leaving D.C.
for three-day West Coast fundraising blitz. With his popularity sinking and his faulty health care law endangering Democratic
candidates, President Obama headed out of Washington on Sunday [11/24/2013] to show he's still an asset to his party — by raising
campaign money. Mr. Obama embarked on a three-day swing to the West Coast, where he'll raise millions for Democratic congressional
candidates at stops in Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Along the way, he'll mingle with celebrities such as former NBA star
Magic Johnson and DreamWorks studio CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg.
Keyword: uppity
Obama
Donor Complains About No Valet Parking at White House. One of President Obama's wealthy supporters complained about the
lack of valet parking at the White House — during a campaign event in California. Haim Saban needled the president
about parking at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue during a high-dollar fundraiser for Democrats. The event was held at Saban's sprawling
Beverly Hills estate.
Obama to visit DreamWorks
facility in boost to major donor. President Obama will deliver an economic speech at a DreamWorks Animation facility Tuesday [11/26/2013],
giving a major presidential favor to Jeffrey Katzenberg, the film studio's CEO and one of Obama's largest donors.
Obama: The Affirmative Action President.
Unfortunately, minorities often suffer so that whites can pat themselves on the back. Liberals routinely admit minorities to schools for which they
are not qualified, yet take no responsibility for the inevitable poor performance and high drop-out rates which follow. Liberals don't care if these
minority students fail; liberals aren't around to witness the emotional devastation and deflated self esteem resulting from the racist policy that is
affirmative action. Yes, racist. Holding someone to a separate standard merely because of the color of his skin — that's affirmative
action in a nutshell, and if that isn't racism, then nothing is. And that is what America did to Obama.
Obama's Fallout for the Left.
Obama has left other dilemmas for liberals. He was the largest recipient of Goldman Sachs and BP money in history. His financial
team — notably Peter Orszag, who left the administration for Citigroup, and Jack Lew, who came to the administration from Citigroup — are
proverbial revolving-door Wall Street fat cats who, in the parlance of Occupy Wall Street and Elizabeth Warren, did not really build their own
wealth. It will be hard to take seriously any future liberal critique of a Republican cozying up to Wall Street.
Immigration staffers
pressured to rush visas for wealthy investors. Staff at a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services field office in California were
regularly pressured by senior officials to fast-track visa applications from wealthy and well-connected foreign investors, causing
security concerns so severe that the program was moved to Washington this year.
D.C.
awash in contracts, lobbying wealth. The winners in the new Washington are not just the former senators, party consiglieri and
four-star generals who have always profited from their connections. Now they are also the former bureaucrats, accountants and staff
officers for whom unimagined riches are suddenly possible. They are the entrepreneurs attracted to the capital by its aura of prosperity
and its super-educated workforce. They are the lawyers, lobbyists and executives who work for companies that barely had a presence in
Washington before the boom. During the past decade, the region added 21,000 households in the nation's top 1 percent. No
other metro area came close.
Richer Than Romney: Jon Stewart Hides Mansions Under
Pet's Names. Jon Stewart, the left-wing star of the low-rated "Daily Show," might not be richer than Romney today, but the pace he's
currently on means that someday he may very well be. Of course that means nothing to Stewart as he continues to carry Obama's water and launch
divisive class warfare attacks from the platform of a super PAC known as Comedy Central to attack Mitt Romney's wealth.
President Obama has a meal fit for a king in Miami.
Politics aside, a president's gotta eat. Just ask Barack Obama, who was feted with a few fundraisers Friday [11/8/2013]. At the
Pinecrest home of businesswoman/philanthropist Leslie Miller Saiontz, a 30-person dinner was catered by Chef David Catering, whose menu included
Kobe hot dogs and tenderloin filet. Then there was the one at the Coral Gables home of personal injury attorney Ralph Patino, catered by Caffe
Abbracci, where restaurant owner Nino Pernetti witnessed the Commander in Chief munching on pumpkin tartlette with crumbled amarettini cookies and
miniature chocolate ganache cake.
Obama's second-term ambassador
nominees raised more than $16 million for him. President Obama's second-term nominees for foreign ambassadorships raised more than
$16 million for his presidential campaigns and inaugurations. Obama has nominated 24 campaign bundlers that have raised at least $16.6 million
for his presidential efforts, according to a database created by the Center for Public Integrity. Eight six-figure Obama bundlers have already
been confirmed to key posts including Singapore, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, and Italy.
At least one group of Americans loves
ObamaCare. For those on the left who thought that ObamaCare would mean large health insurance companies might get their comeuppance,
they might want to look at UnitedHealth. Wall Street analysts expect the giant to see its stock price rise 40 percent over the next two
years, thanks to expanding profit margins. The company has also won big contracts to help implement the rollout. Quality Software Services,
Inc., a major contractor for Healthcare.gov, is a subsidiary of UnitedHealth. One of President Obama's most reliable fundraisers in both 2008
and 2012 was Anthony Welters, executive vice president of UnitedHealth. He raised more than $500,000 for the 2012 election, according to
opensecrets.org
Winners and Losers: ObamaCare Exposes the 'Soylent Green
Liberals'. America is learning that under ObamaCare there are losers — millions of them — and almost all among
the working and middle class. Up to 20 million will lose the insurance President Obama reassured them they could keep, and as the cost of
premiums and deductibles spike, they will find their health care choices limited. But the only reaction to this human carnage from America's
"Soylent Green Liberals" is that it is all for the greater good.
Obama
Decries 'Winner-Take-All' Economy to Rich Folks 'Who Are Doing Very Well'. President Obama attended a Democratic fund raising
event in Weston, Massachusetts Wednesday night [10/30/2013] at the home of Alan and Susan Solomont. Among the 60 attendees were a
number of high-profile Democrats, according to the Boston Globe. [...] The Globe also noted that the fund raiser "ticket prices
ranged from $16,200 per person to $64,800 per couple. The DCCC would not say how much Obama expected to raise in total."
Obama to raise
Democratic money at Weston fete tonight. Tickets range from $16,200 per person to $64,800 per couple. DCCC officials declined to discuss
how much money the event is expected to raise.
First lady dines at Bibiana.
Spotted: Michelle Obama sitting down for a meal at a downtown Washington Italian restaurant on Wednesday [10/16/2013], just hours before
Congress passed legislation to fund the government and avert a default. The first lady was seen dining with two companions at Bibiana,
arriving at 7 p.m. and staying for nearly three hours.
First lady cancels Bay Area fundraisers.
Democratic insiders said there was queasiness at the prospect of the first lady raising millions from wealthy donors and campaigning for Democratic causes while
thousands of federal employees are furloughed because of the partial government shutdown.
Serving Our Government Masters. [George] Washington
once said that government is "a troublesome servant and a fearful master." Government has long ceased being a troublesome servant and has become our
fearful master. Today the servants of the people have more servants of their own than many kings and queens. The government shutdown has forced
Obama to make do with only a quarter of his 1,701 person staff. That would leave 436 "vital" employees. The 90 people who look after his
living quarters would be slashed to 15 to "provide minimum maintenance and support".
Obama: Transforming America.
Plenty of presidents have proved vicious, but few so adept in attributing their own base behavior to others. Damning fat cats and corporate-jet
owners allows a president to hold serial $50,000-a-head fundraisers. Ridiculing Romney's elevator seems to make vacationing in Aspen, Costa del Sol,
Vail, and Martha's Vineyard perfectly natural.
Chelsea Clinton gets $750,000 break on new
condo. Chelsea Clinton and hubby Marc Mezvinksy paid $9,250,000 for a four-bedroom apartment in the celebrity-studded Whitman
condominium building on Madison Square Park, city records filed this month show. That is $1.2 million less than the $10.5 million
asking price, and $750,000 below what the building's other two occupants paid for their 5,000-square-foot units.
Ruling class Princess Chelsea Clinton.
I propose Chelsea Clinton as the poster girl for the Ruling Class. She is a princess of the ruling class, a "tell" of the techno-feudal
nature of power in the new order of things. By virtue of her birth, she has been handed many things unavailable to the serfs by ruling
class organs. Her gig at NBC News is a prime example of how things work when the RC is taking care of its young.
Party of the Rich? That's the Democrats.
Another liberal storyline in shambles. Could it be that "Reaganomics" and the "Bush tax cuts" actually favor the middle class more, and the rich less,
than the corresponding liberal policies enacted under Clinton and Obama? Nearly three and a half decades of data suggest that this may be the case.
House CR Forks Over $174,000 for Late Senator's Wife.
There are many things House Republicans liked about the government continuing resolution. It defunds Obamacare, locks in the sequester spending cuts and
keeps the government running. But there's one provision tucked into the CR that may anger constituents back home: Among the various sections of the
House-passed CR are 28 words that would pay $174,000 to the widow of the late Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg, D-N.J. [...] Before Lautenberg's death, he was
No. 8 on Roll Call's 50 Richest Members of Congress with a net worth of at least $56.8 million.
Update:
House eliminates payout to wealthy senator's
widow. After an outcry, the House has dropped a $174,000 payment to the widow of the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg from its stopgap spending bill.
Obama's Middle-Class 'Mission Accomplished'.
Just before he delivered his Chattanooga speech, claiming victory on the "durable" jobs front, he had been on Martha's Vineyard vacationing at the exclusive Blue
Heron Farm, the $22-million estate owned by Lord Norman and Lady Elena Foster of Great Britain. There, in the course of his ten-day retreat, Obama got in
six rounds of golf with the likes of Jim Kim, President of the World Bank, and Eunu Chun, a wealthy attorney and prominent Democratic fundraiser. Just
kicking around with ordinary middle-class folks, the kind Obama cares so much about.
Life is good for Janet Napolitano.
Higher education is an enormous industry, heavily subsidized, and the people who run it consider themselves entitled to the lifestyle of the mega rich.
Even at taxpayer-owned institutions. Take the example of Janet Napolitano, newly installed president of the University of California.
UC leases housing at $9,950 a month for
president Napolitano. The University of California has leased an Oakland residence for incoming system president Janet Napolitano
for $9,950 a month, officials said Monday [9/16/2013. Napolitano, the former U.S. secretary of Homeland Security and former governor of
Arizona, will be provided the housing plus an annual $570,000 salary, $8,916 a year for car expenses and $142,500 for one-time relocation costs.
Al Qaeda
rises, the economy sinks: What progress, President Obama? You would never know from taking our chief magician at his word, but America is
actually sliding backward towards chaos and the economic abyss as we approach autumn. Discontent is rising across the entire political spectrum even
after we hear President Obama's many soothing sentences. Young adults now rightly fear war without end as they wonder where the decent paying jobs are.
ObamaCare Subsidies: Not For Low-Income Young
People. Young people making as little as $20,394 won't be eligible for any ObamaCare subsidies, thanks to the way that the subsidies are
calculated, according to a study released on Monday [9/16/2013]. The study also found that, overall, young people will get far less generous subsidies
from ObamaCare than older people.
Obama's Economy Hits His Voters Hardest.
Mr. Obama was re-elected with 51% of the vote. Five demographic groups were crucial to his victory: young voters, single women, those
with only a high-school diploma or less, blacks and Hispanics. He cleaned up with 60% of the youth vote, 67% of single women, 93% of blacks,
71% of Hispanics, and 64% of those without a high-school diploma, according to exit polls. According to the Sentier research, households
headed by single women, with and without children present, saw their incomes fall by roughly 7%. Those under age 25 experienced an
income decline of 9.6%.
Obama Postpones $32,000-a-Head Hollywood Fundraiser Amid Syria
Crisis. The Sept. 9 Hancock Park fundraiser with Obama was set to include an exclusive $32,400-per-person "off the cuff" roundtable
discussion with the president, as well as a photo line for those who donate $5,000 to the party — and raise an additional $20,000 from others.
PETA: Obama in 'doghouse' for choosing
breeder pup over a rescue. Fans of cute animal photos were overwhelmed Monday [8/19/2013] to find the Obama family had brought home a new buddy
for Bo. But animal-rights activists were not pleased that the First Family once again ignored the millions of dogs waiting to be adopted in shelters in
favor of an expensive breeder.
The Editor says...
According to two reports
[1]
[2]
the Obamas paid $2,300 for their new dog.
Ambassador
post filings show Caroline Kennedy could be worth up to $500M. Caroline Kennedy may be worth far more than previously thought, with
newly filed documents reportedly pegging her personal wealth as high as a half-billion dollars. The notoriously private Kennedy refused to
release her financial information back in 2008, when she briefly sought an appointment to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton.
But her nomination last month to be ambassador to Japan has forced her to file her financials with a federal government ethics office.
Caroline
Kennedy 'is worth up to $500m'. Caroline Kennedy has been forced to reveal her net worth by submitting financial statements in order to be considered as
the next American ambassador to Japan, and it is believed she may be worth up to $500 million. The former first daughter's wealth has been a closely-guarded
secret for decades, but now that President Obama has nominated her to represent the United States abroad, she has to list the sources of her massive income.
Caroline Kennedy discloses financial information for
ambassadorship. Five years after Caroline Kennedy refused to release financial information during her bid to take over Hillary Clinton's US
Senate seat, newly filed documents reveal a personal fortune that could be as high as $500 million.
Bubba just 'plane' extravagant. Bill Clinton's foundation has spent more than $50 million on
travel expenses since 2003, an analysis of the non-profit's tax forms reveal. The web of foundations run by the former president spent an eye-opening
$12.1 million on travel in 2011 alone, according to an internal audit conducted by foundation accountants. That's enough to by 12,000 air tickets
costing $1,000 each, or 33 air tickets each day of the year.
Larry David, Carly Simon
headline star-studded Obama Vineyard party. President Obama and other top administration officials rubbed shoulders with stars of screen and stage
during an exclusive Martha's Vineyard cocktail party hosted by Comcast CEO Brian Roberts earlier this week, according to a report from the New York Post.
In addition to the president and first lady, top Obama fundraiser and Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein was in attendance, as was "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star
Larry David and singer Carly Simon.
Power-packed Vineyard party for Obama. Comcast CEO Brian
Roberts' cocktail party for President Barack Obama and wife Michelle in Martha's Vineyard last night was attended by a host of notables close to the administration. [...]
Roberts has reportedly been close to the president for years and endorsed the Affordable Care Act.
It's good to be king. Barack Obama is off on yet another vacation — his
third this year and fifteenth since taking office. And while Obama vacations, the American people are forced to cut back as he, his family, and his cronies are
living like royalty on the taxpayers' tab. With unemployment at 7.4 percent and the economy failing to create enough jobs to keep up with population growth,
most Americans cannot even afford a night out — let alone a luxurious Obama-type vacation in what Politico calls "the playgrounds of the rich and famous."
How much did it
cost U.S. taxpayers to airlift Bo, the First Dog, to Martha's Vineyard? This is the worst kind of arrogance and hubris ever displayed by a U.S.
president when millions are struggling to put food on the table.
The Obamas Taste The Sweet Life. President Obama proved Sunday night that
even as he fights for "the middle class" he prefers to hang out with "the upper class," indulging in an expensive repast at the overpriced "The Sweet Life Cafe" on
Martha's Vineyard. Dinner can easily run above $200 for two, even if the Obamas stick to the Let's Move diet plan and share dessert.
Obamas dine at posh DC restaurant
for president's birthday. President Obama and Michelle Obama had a date night Thursday in honor of the president's birthday. The
couple dined at Rasika West End on New Hampshire Avenue, according to a White House pool report. [...] On Saturday, the Obama family heads to Martha's
Vineyard, Mass., for an eight-day vacation.
The
Clintons rent a new house in Hamptons this summer. The Clintons have decided to rent a different house in the Hamptons this summer after
they only received a small portion of their security deposit back from the home they rented last year. The famous Democrats have been frequent
visitors to the expensive summer getaway in Long Island, and rented the same beachfront house in 2011 and 2012. Even though they pencilled in
a month-long stay in the Hamptons this year, they won't be making it a hat-trick as they decided to rent a different home due to the expensive utility
costs at their prior rental.
The Editor says...
There must be a really good reason that they forfeited a large portion of their security deposit. I wonder what happened.
Let Them Eat Wind. [Scroll down] Democrats are the
Government Party, the Washington Party, and not the party of working people. The whole of their lives, these leftist elites lecture helpless
college students, threaten businessmen with litigation and other similar shakedowns, and advance proposals to create wealth by the failed mechanism
of taking money from those who engage in useful work and giving that money to those who do not — after, of course, a healthy "piece of the
action" for leftist cadres.
Biden Vacationing in the Hamptons.
The Hamptons will play host to not one but two potential 2016 presidential aspirants this month, with Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
arriving this week for a vacation in Southampton. Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has rented a house for August here in
East Hampton, the next township over.
Obama
vacation: Martha's Vineyard the playground for black elites. In a few days, President Obama and his family will arrive on Martha's
Vineyard for a family vacation. For centuries, Martha's Vineyard and the town of Oak Bluffs in particular has been the epicenter of black
elitism. It has been said, "it does not matter where America's wealthy black families winter ... they summer in Martha's Vineyard."
The Death of Populism. Gas has gone up about
$2 a gallon since Barack Obama took office. Given average yearly rates of national consumption, that increase alone translates into an extra
$1 trillion that American drivers have collectively paid in higher fuel costs over the last 54 months. Such a crushing burden on the
cash-strapped commuter class is rarely cited in the liberal fixation on cap-and-trade, wind and solar subsidies, and the supposed dangers of fracking.
Obama Says Income Gap Is Fraying
U.S. Social Fabric. "If we don't do anything, then growth will be slower than it should be. Unemployment will not go down as fast
as it should. Income inequality will continue to rise," he said. "That's not a future that we should accept."
Carson
Refuses To Live On Left's Racist Plantation. [Dr.] Ben Carson isn't just a brain surgeon, but an inspiring voice of wisdom and
liberty who, like Clarence Thomas, is a threat to a leftist establishment that cannot stand, as Thomas put it over 20 years ago, "uppity
blacks who in any way deign to think for themselves, to do for themselves, to have different ideas."
Black America's True
Nemesis: Liberals, Not Zimmerman. In the midst of all the racial hullabaloo stirred up by so-called advocates for
black empowerment after the Zimmerman trail, guess who is really being harmed? Answer: black America. All of you
black pastors, black politicians, and black celebs who have joined Sharpton and the MSM's lynch mob to "get Zimmerman" should be
ashamed of yourselves. You are doing a huge disservice to the very people you claim to champion by chasing a straw man while
ignoring the real issues that are devastating black America.
Hillary Clinton,
Queen of Profit (Cattle Futures Aside). Hillary Clinton is getting $200K per speech. I think that qualifies as
"cashing in." I also think it qualifies as "trading on one's public office." I have used some pretty old-fashioned
phrases here. We heard them in 1989, when Ronald Reagan went to Japan for a week and came back with $2 million. (An
old Reagan hand described this as "the Reagans' retirement fund.") There was a storm of condemnation. Has there been any
storm over Hillary Clinton? Over Bill Clinton, and Al Gore? Haven't they made tens of millions or hundreds of millions
of dollars?
Al Sharpton, Posh Populist.
Named by Business Insider as one of the "11 exclusive clubs Wall Streeters are dying to get into," the Grand Havana Room is where
power brokers and celebrities hobnob with captains of industry in one of the last places where it's still legal to smoke in the Big Apple. [...] The
one question I have is: Who's paying for Al Sharpton's membership? "The Rev" is an omnipresent member of the club. After
his MSNBC show, he'll swing by for dinner and cigars amid the other Masters of the Universe.
President Obama and family expected to vacation
in Chilmark. Though not confirmed by the White House, the Obamas are expected to stay in a four-bedroom house valued at $7.6 million
with an attached two-bedroom guesthouse on Snail Road, off South Road and surrounded by woodlands.
Another of Obama's fundraisers nominated for top ambassador post. Campaign finance chairman
Matthew Barzun is set to move into the sumptuous residence in London's Court of St James which boasts a sprawling garden second only in size to
that of Buckingham Palace. Obama raised a record-breaking $1.1 billion to defeat Mitt Romney last year, of which his big money donors, or
'bundlers' as they are known in Washington, brought in an estimated $286 million.
Egypt Crisis Finds Washington Largely
Ambivalent and Aloof. In polo shirt, shorts and sandals, President Obama headed to the golf course Friday morning with a couple of old friends,
then flew to Camp David for a long weekend. Secretary of State John Kerry was relaxing at his vacation home in Nantucket.
Michelle Obama Arrived in Senegal Wearing
a $1,295 Designer Dress.
(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza.)
The Editor says...
Just as a sidebar topic, I have noticed that the Obama's two daughters, in every photograph, appear to be put out and disgruntled about having to
travel on Air Force One or on the Marine Corps helicopter — which would be a once-in-a-lifetime thrill ride for the rest of us.
Criticism of the surly, ungrateful Obama brats is strictly off-limits in the mainstream press, but not on this site.
Keywords: insolent, arrogant, snooty, brat, snob.
First
Daughter looks unimpressed while on a bicycle ride during the family's stay on Martha's Vineyard. The 'First
Daughter' looked spectacularly unimpressed while on a bicycle ride with her family during their vacation on the Massachusetts
island of Martha's Vineyard. Malia Obama was photographed peddling in between her mother and father along a path in
Vineyard Haven. While biking, the 17 year old appeared to be in a sour mood.
Keywords: Sourpuss, royalty, ungrateful.
The
Obamas look downcast as they return home from two-week break on Martha's Vineyard. En route to the capital on
Sunday [8/23/2015], they stopped off at Cape Cod to swap their first helicopter for the President's plane Air Force One, and
they managed to smile at crowds on the tarmac. But as the family disembarked Air Force One at Andrews Air Force base,
before taking another helicopter back to their official residence, the happy faces had vanished.
Well, it appears the Obama family
had a simply delightful time on their 17-day, multi-million dollar vacation. I wouldn't be surprised if Michelle Obama's
middle name was Antoinette.
Amazing
picture of the Obamas coming home to the White House. It doesn't look like being on vacation improved the spirits of the Obama family.
The Editor says...
With the exception of Mr. Obama, who is a professional politician, the whole family looks like they just came back from Mississippi in 1958, and had to ride
in the back of the bus. I've never seen three pampered celebrities look as put out with their miserable lives as the Obama women do.
Obamas
jet off on their Christmas vacation but Sasha and Malia don't look too impressed. President Obama and the First Family have
landed in Hawaii tonight for a 17-day holiday together. The family flew overnight in Air Force one, direct from Maryland to Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii. They are not expected to return to Washington D.C. until January 4.
Sasha
and Malia can't hide their disdain as Obama saves turkey from the slaughterhouse. It
is a time-honored tradition — but Sasha and Malia would rather have been anywhere else than having
to watch their dad crack lame jokes as he pardoned the National Thanksgiving Turkey. Shuffling
awkwardly and rolling their eyes like any teenage girls would while their father laughed at his own mildly
controversial jokes Malia and Sasha made no attempt to appear anything other than bored stiff.
The Editor says...
Once again, here we have two teenagers who live in the lap of luxury, yet they act as if their lives are so-o-o-o tough.
Apparently I wasn't the only person to get the same impression.
Congressional
Staffer Apologizes for Saying First Daughters Acted Classless at Turkey Ceremony. A communications director
for a GOP congressman has apologized for saying the first daughters weren't showing "class" and were wearing clothes fit
for a "spot at a bar" during this week's turkey pardoning ceremony. [...] Elizabeth Lauten, a former Republican National
Committee staffer and current communications director for Rep. Stephen Fincher (R-Tenn.), posted an open letter to the
girls on her Facebook page. "Dear Sasha and Malia, I get you're both in those awful teen years, but you're a part
of the First Family, try showing a little class. At least respect the part you play. Then again your mother
and father don't respect their positions very much, or the nation for that matter, so I'm guessing you're coming up
a little short in the 'good role model' department," Lauten wrote.
US
lawmaker's aide draws ire over first daughter scolding. A US lawmaker's communications
director was facing social media calls she be sacked after her Facebook rant about President Barack
Obama's daughters prompted widespread anger. Elizabeth Lauten, spokeswoman for Republican
Congressman Stephen Fincher of Tennessee, wrote a scathing post to her Facebook account scolding
Malia and Sasha Obama, 16 and 13, for looking bored while attending a public event with their father
on Wednesday [11/26/2014].
Malia,
Sasha, and the turkey affair. How it became political. [Scroll down] That was just too much for
some conservative commentators, who felt the need to weigh in — not only on the girls'
turkey response but on their appearance. "I don't think you would have ever seen the Bush
daughters in dresses that short. Class is completely absent from this White House," sniffed Amanda
Shea at a web site called "Mad World News," which describes itself as "firmly devoted to bringing
you the truth and the stories that the mainstream media ignores." But it was Elizabeth Lauten,
communications director for US Rep. Stephen Lee Fincher, (R) of Tennessee, who has gotten the most
attention.
The Editor says...
The article immediately above is the first in which I saw a wider shot of the Obama girls, and you must admit they do appear to lack
proper guidance. One wonders how the girls dress and act when they're not prepared for a photo-op with the national news media.
Update:
GOP
aide resigns after online digs at Obama daughters. Republican congressional aide
Elizabeth Lauten resigned Monday morning [12/1/2014] after making controversial comments about
President Obama's teenage daughters, Fox News confirms. Lauten, the communications director for
Rep. Stephen Fincher of Tennessee, had posted on Facebook about their casual demeanor during last
week's annual White House turkey pardon. She wrote that Sasha, 13, and Malia, 16, should "try
showing a little class." "Rise to the occasion. Dress like you deserve respect,
not a spot at the bar," Lauten wrote. "And certainly don't make faces during televised,
public events."
RNC
Calls Out Media Mob For Coverage Of Comments About Obama Daughters. The chief
spokesman for the Republican National Committee is criticizing the media for piling on a GOP House
staffer for her widely-reported negative comments about President Obama's daughters. It was
announced Monday that Elizabeth Lauten, the spokeswoman for Tennessee Republican Rep. Steven
Fincher, plans to resign her position for a weekend Facebook post telling the first daughters to
"try showing a little class." After a media firestorm, Lauten deleted and apologized for
the post. But the RNC says the media mob doesn't cover stories to this extent when it has
to do with Democrats.
Hill
staffer Elizabeth Lauten resigns after remarks about Obama daughters. Embattled Hill
staffer Elizabeth Lauten has resigned amid a backlash over critical remarks she posted on Facebook
Friday about President Obama's daughters. Lauten, communications director for Rep. Stephen Lee
Fincher (R-Tenn.), came under fire over the weekend after posting derogatory remarks about Sasha and
Malia Obama regarding their appearance at the president's annual Turkey pardoning.
Networks
Continue Hyping Resigned GOP Staffer After 'Snarky Posting' About First Daughters. On
Monday night [12/1/2014], the "big three" of ABC, CBS and NBC each spent portions of their evening
newscasts reporting on the resignation of a House Republican staffer after she criticized Sasha and
Malia Obama on her personal Facebook page. This marks the second full day of coverage since the
first reports aired on Sunday morning and provides another example of a media double-standard
between Democratic and Republican administrations.
CNN:
'Slow News Cycle' Led to Media Hype About 'Cyber-Bullying' GOP Staffer. On Monday's At
This Hour, CNN's Brian Stelter brushed aside a regular conservative critique about the media —
that the press has a double standard about covering controversial remarks from Republican/conservative
officials, while ignoring similar comments from Democrats/liberals.
Elizabeth Lauten
and the 'kids are off limits' canard. On Monday, the media claimed a scalp. A
formerly obscure staffer for a still relatively unknown Republican congressman was outed in the
press over the slow holiday weekend after she had the temerity to notice (and be offended by the
fact) that the Obama daughters were not especially thrilled to join their father for the annual
pardoning of the Thanksgiving turkey.
Criticism
of the Royal Family Will Not Be Tolerated. When Jonathan Gruber, the architect of
ObamaCare, was caught on tape admitting to the massive fraud necessary to shove the program through
Congress, it was scarcely treated as news by Big Media (although Jake Tapper at CNN was a notable
exception.) When President Obama straight-up lied to the American people about his association with
Gruber, the media yawned and relayed the lies with little objection or criticism, essentially taking
the attitude that it was a non-story because everyone knew Obama was lying out of obvious political
necessity. But a staffer for a Republican member of Congress says something critical of the Royal
Family, and look out — it's an instant four-alarm fire, complete with an Internet flash
mob — the laziest form of pressure ever invented — and a head swiftly rolls.
Elizabeth
Lauten Did Not Deserve What Happened to Her. I don't think any child asks for their
dad to be President or run for office. They don't deserve the spotlight. But that did not keep
the media from making a spectacle of the Bush daughters. That did not keep the media from making a
spectacle of the Palin family, including speculating on why Trig Palin was not aborted and, by a credible
media figure, whether or not Trig Palin's paternity was legitimate. It did not stop Carol Costello
from laughing about Bristol Palin. In the past this did not stop media hilarity over adopted children
into the Romney family and the Bush family. This rule apparently only applies to Democrats and their
children. I disagree with Elizabeth Lauten, but the level of character assassination on her by the
Washington press corps in a coordinated attack by the White House itself was uncalled for.
This is getting completely off-topic, but ... just one more update:
Media
in Frenzy Over Hill Staffer's Comments on Obama's Daughters. Five days after Elizabeth
Lauten published a Facebook post criticizing the outfits worn by President Barack Obama's daughters,
the previously obscure Republican Hill staffer is being inundated with threatening messages and
major media outlets are pouring resources into tracking her moves and digging into her past. Two
network news vans camped outside of Lauten's parents home in North Carolina on Tuesday, one day
after she resigned as communication director for Rep. Steven Fincher (R., Tenn.) due to the controversy.
Pelosi's wealth falls to $24.4 million.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) substantial personal wealth dropped for the second year in a row after she took on more
debt with her husband, according to her latest financial disclosure report. Pelosi's personal fortune was at least $24.4 million
in 2012, according to her financial disclosure statement released on Friday [6/14/2013]. That's an almost 8 percent decline
from her minimum net worth of $26.4 million for 2011.
Obama,
Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are America's great dividers. This statement appears on the House Minority
Leader's web site: "Democrats are building an economic approach that lifts every American, not just the privileged
few. The average American CEO earns more before lunchtime in one day than a minimum wage worker earns all year.
This is not the kind of America we want our children to grow up in. Today's economic challenges result from years
of Republican inaction and failed policies that have left more and more Americans behind." In Pelosi's world,
Democrats are for "every American," while Republicans favor only "the privileged few."
Supreme Court Justice
Sonia Sotomayor nets over $3 million from memoir. Being a Supreme Court justice has not only been good for Sonia
Sotomayor's legal career, it's also helped her bank account. The justice on Friday [6/7/2013] reported that she's received
more than $3 million in advance payments for her best-selling memoir, "My Beloved World." Her annual financial
disclosure forms show that Knopf Doubleday Group paid Sotomayor $1.925 million in 2012 in anticipation of her book.
This comes in addition to the $1.2 million in advance payments she received from the publisher in 2010.
President woos Hollywood donors for DNC
campaign coffers. The event, at the home of media executive Peter Chernin, featured a mix of celebrities and high-level politicos.
President Obama wooed some of Hollywood's elite at a $10,000-a-plate Santa Monica fundraising luncheon Friday afternoon [6/7/2013] for the
Democratic National Committee (DNC).
The California Captivity of the Democratic
Party. This is a story about politics and power in the golden land, and it begins with the money. In early
May a luxury resort in Laguna Beach, Calif., hosted a five-day semi-annual meeting of the Democracy Alliance, a secret,
invitation-only organization of liberal moneybags that since its formation in 2005 has directed some $500 million in
contributions to progressive groups. Never has a wolves' den been so posh. The Alliance discloses neither its
members nor its beneficiaries, but some of the details of its structure have leaked out over time.
JNF pays Bill Clinton $500,000
for 45-minute talk. The Peres Academic Center has paid former US president Bill Clinton $500,000 for a headlining
appearance in Rehovot on June 17. Clinton will feature at a reception, and then do a one-hour speech and Q&A session.
Guests were last week sent invitations requiring them to stump up NIS 3,000 (just over $800) apiece to attend the gala dinner, and
thus to help cover his fee, but that requirement has now been canceled.
Obama sells access to the highest bidder. How would
the media have reacted if George W. Bush had done the same?
Electric
Car Lover Rejected After Liquidating Savings to Meet Obama. Paul Scott, 60, was willing to do just about anything
to get President Obama's ear for a few minutes about his lifelong passion for electric vehicles. So the car salesman raised
$32,000 by taking out money on credit cards and liquidating stock that constituted much of his life savings to attend a June 7
Democratic National Committee fundraiser the president plans to attend in California.
Salesman pays $32,400 to
lobby Obama for two minutes. A Los Angeles car salesman and electric car advocate is shelling $32,400 out of his retirement
savings so he can make a pitch directly to President Obama at a "private, off-the-record" Democratic fundraiser next week.
Obama: Fundraiser in
Chief. On Thursday [6/6/2013], he plans to be the main attraction at a $32,400-a-person fundraiser in Portola Valley,
Calif., and a reception in nearby Palo Alto, and on Friday he will be featured at a Democratic fundraiser in Los Angeles.
Then he is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping Friday and Saturday at the Southern California estate of publisher
Walter Annenberg. Democratic sources say President Obama will participate in several other fundraisers in the coming weeks,
hauling in millions of additional dollars, but those events have not yet been announced.
Obama
Advocates for Gay Marriage at Swanky $50,000 Donor Dinner. While Barack Obama visited his rich donors at a swanky Chicago dinner where tickets
cost $50,000, the common rabble were dying in the streets without protection against criminal gun violence because of Chicago's stringent gun laws.
Even
the mainstream media has given up on the hopey-changey stuff. There was a time when Obama couldn't get a bad headline in this town.
Now he's the new Nixon. [...] When Nixon was stuck in Watergate he used to escape to friendly territory to meet with his few remaining admirers and
console himself with their loyalty. On Wednesday the President of the United States took time off work to visit two Chicago Democratic
fundraisers — the cost of flying aboard Air Force One to his home town was an astonishing $180,000 an hour. He met with 70 friends
at the home of longtime supporters Bettylu and Paul Saltzman, the kind of fans prepared to spend $32,400 per head to have dinner with the Prez.
Travels of the President Under a Microscope
in an Era of Belt Tightening. On Wednesday [5/29/2013], President Obama left the White House for two Chicago fund-raisers in the hope of
helping Democrats retake the House in next year's elections. The cost of flying aboard Air Force One to his hometown: $180,000 per hour.
The same day, Michelle Obama traveled to Massachusetts to lunch with rich donors who had paid up to $37,600 per ticket at the Taj Boston Hotel.
The meal included roasted Chilean sea bass with a fricassee of asparagus.
New York Times questions Obama's expensive travel. The New York Times on Thursday
[5/30/2013] reports on President Obama's frequent travel aboard Air Force One at a time when government employees are suffering furloughs and budget cuts.
Emanuel reports gifts from the rich and
famous. A stay at the house of a Hollywood entertainment mogul, transportation on the tabs of millionaire venture capitalists and, for the second
straight year, sports tickets, meals and more from his close adviser Michael Sacks. These perks and others are listed on Mayor Rahm Emanuel's annual
economic interest statement, and once again illustrate how Chicago's chief executive moves in some of the country's elite entertainment and financial circles.
Four
Things to Know About Penny Pritzker, a Billionaire and Obama's Commerce Secretary Pick. [#4] With a net worth of
an estimated $1.8 billion, this heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune, which her family founded, has become one of the leading
philanthropists in the Windy City. The Pritzker family name is one of the most prominent in Chicago.
Commerce
nominee tangled in massive bank collapse that cost depositors millions. President Obama's nominee for Commerce secretary was
embroiled in a massive bank failure more than a decade ago, in a collapse that cost depositors and federal insurers millions of dollars.
The 2001 collapse of Superior Bank FSB now appears likely to re-emerge, more than a decade later, as Commerce nominee Penny Pritzker
prepares for a confirmation hearing and Republicans already draw attention to the bank implosion.
Diane
Feinstein's husband's company lands big high-speed rail contract. The group lead by Tutor Perini bid $985,000,000 to build the initial 29-mile
stretch, roughly from Fresno to Madera, which doesn't include the costs for electrification and land purchase. And, as Laer points out at Crazifornia,
they started with this section because it's the cheapest. (I can't wait to see what the bids are to lay track through the mountain passes...)
Dianne
Feinstein's Husband Bags High-Speed Rail Construction Contract. Sen. Diane Feinstein's husband Richard Blum won a
construction contract for California's high-speed rail project, reports the California Political Review. Author Laer Pearce says
Perini-Zachary-Parsons, a construction group partially owned by Blum's investment firm, Blum Capital, and their investors, bagged the
nearly billion dollar contract.
Sarkozy
and Carla gave Obama and Michelle $40,000 worth of gifts in just one year. Former French President and pop singer
wife Carla Bruni gave America's first couple more than $40,000 worth of gifts in a single year, it emerged today [4/26/2013].
Presents included a designer Hermes golf bag and Baccarat crystal statuettes of players, according to newly released records.
Inaugural
group amends report: Pritzker gave $250,000, not $500,000. Chicago billionaire Penny Pritzker, under consideration to lead
the Commerce Department, gave the president's 2013 inauguration a contribution of $250,000, not $500,000, according to an amended report
filed Tuesday [4/23/2013].
Obama Schedules Whirlwind Fundraising
Week for DNC, Planned Parenthood. On Wednesday [4/24/2013], President Obama is slated to head to Dallas, Texas, to attend the
opening of the Bush Presidential Library, along with Presidents Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, and George W. Bush.
But he's using the opportunity to fundraise for 2014. Obama will be headlining a $10,000-per-plate fundraiser for the Democratic National
Committee at Naomi Aberly's home on the night before the library opens. That fundraiser will mark Obama's third for the DNC this year.
Former Obama Advisers Cash In. From the first lady's
former communications director now the vice president of Siemens corporate affairs, to individual consulting deals for Obama campaign
operatives like Stephanie Cutter and David Plouffe, there is a new generation of "Obama millionaires." For instance, [Noam] Scheiber
notes, former UBS president Robert Wolf has opened shop with a new firm called 32 Advisors, which advises domestic and foreign
business clients.
Obama back in NYC for cash.
The president will appear at a cozy reception for fewer than 65 guests with tickets priced at $32,400 per couple at the Manhattan home of
movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and his designer wife Georgina Chapman on May 13, Page Six has exclusively learned. The invitation
explains attendees get "a frank and intimate discussion with the president" where they can ask questions, and afterward Obama will "say thank
you to each guest and take a photo with them."
Another Exclusive Party
at W.H. — at Taxpayer Expense. [W]hile the performers are known, the guest list for the private event has not yet
been released. One imagines it's a tough ticket to come by. To attend any event at the White House, one must be invited.
Protesters greet Obama on S.F.'s Billionaires'
Row. Barack Obama is an addict. And his drug of choice is the money showered on him by Bay Area billionaires. The lure of
endless cash and boundless adoration is just too much to resist, and so for the umpteenth time since 2008 he once again scheduled a fundraising trip
through San Francisco, this time on April 3 to benefit Nancy Pelosi and her quest to reclaim the Speakership of the House: since Obama
himself no longer needs campaign donations, all the money gathered on this trip would go to Democratic congressional candidates.
Versailles on the Potomac.
The American people are enduring 0.4 percent GDP growth and 7.7 percent unemployment. A record 48 million citizens
are on food stamps. Meanwhile, those in America's royal palace are enduring tropical beaches, country clubs, and ski resorts.
As Joseph Curl recalled in Sunday's Washington Times, the Obamas rang in 2013 in a 6,000-square-foot, $8 million estate in Oahu's
Paradise Point. That's when Obama played his 100th presidential golf round, one of five during the first family's 17-day Hawaiian
getaway.
The $32,400 brunch. President Obama kicked
off his DNC fundraising in California Thursday [4/4/2013] with a $32,400-per-head brunch at the Atherton home of investment guru
Mark W. Heising and his wife, Liz Simons. [...] The intimate affair included only roughly 30 guests, who for the price
of admission got a photo with the president and to listen to his remarks [...]
Obama
decries "perpetual campaign" at $2.5 million House Democrat fundraiser. Hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer hosted Obama's
cocktail party at his San Francisco mansion Wednesday night [4/3/2013], before Obama transitioned to an even more exclusive
$32,400-per-person dinner at Ann Getty's mansion in Pacific Heights ($32,400 is the maximum amount any one person can give a
national party committee in one year.)
White
House 'Memphis Soul' Concert to Feature Justin Timberlake, Al Green, Queen Latifah, and Others. Next week Justin
Timberlake, Al Green, Queen Latifah, and many others will perform at the White House in a "Memphis Soul" concert, the White House
announced today [4/2/2013].
Obama Fundraiser at Home
of Exec Who Sits on Board of Stimulus Recipient. President Obama is scheduled to headline a Democratic National Committee
fundraiser next week at the home of a California private equity executive who also sits on the board of a company that received stimulus
funds. The fundraiser will be held at the Atherton, Calif. home of Mark Heising. Tickets to the event cost $32,400.
Joe
Biden runs up bill of $585,000 for just one night in five-star Paris hotel. Paris may be known
as the City of Light, but that title certainly doesn't mean that visitors are light on spending as Vice President Joe
Biden's one day trip cost taxpayers more than half a million dollars. When Mr Biden and his hefty entourage stayed
in Paris for an evening in early February and it cost $585,000.50 for that single night.
Biden's $459,388.65 Hotel Bill.
Vice President Biden and his entourage spent a little time in London in early February during his first foreign trip of the second term of
the Obama administration. A document released today [3/22/2013] revealed that the cost of lodging in London alone was close to half a
million dollars.
Sequester Joe Biden. Vice President Biden's hotel
bill in Paris — the Drudge Report headlines it at $585,000.50 for a night at the Intercontinental, not including the ride in
from the airport — is prompting the futureofcapitalism.com to wonder why Amtrak's most famous passenger failed to stay at the
sprawling palace that serves as the residence of the American ambassador in the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré. A good question,
to which we'd add our own: What was Mr. Biden, whose only constitutional duty is to serve in the Senate as its president, doing in
Paris in the first place?
Joe
Biden's trip abroad gets even costlier with $322K limo bill ON TOP of $1million hotel stays. Vice President Joe Biden's
costly trip to London and Paris last month just got more expensive. A newly uncovered receipt from the February trip shows the vice
president's office spent $321,665 to a limousine company in Paris, in addition to the previously reported hotel tabs of $585,000 for one
night's stay in the city and and $459,338 for a night in London. State department officials say Biden's staff members, who are not
allowed to drive themselves, used the limo company to get around the city.
Biden's $321,665 Limo Bill.
After two items last week on the cost of lodging for Vice President Joe Biden's early February trip to Europe, other news organizations
began to investigate further. Wolf Blitzer's show The Situation Room on CNN uncovered a contract apparently also related
to the same visit to Paris: ["]Also on the receipt was $321,665 for a limousine company.["]
How Obama Turned America into Venezuela. Seven of the 10 richest counties
in America are now in the Washington D.C. area. Arlington County alone added $6,000 to its average income in one year alone.
D.C. and its bedroom communities got rich at twice the rate of the rest of the country and in the last election; Obama won 8 of
the 10 richest counties in the country. Washington D.C. is richer than Silicon Valley. Median income in the D.C. area
hit $84,523 despite the city itself having horrendous unemployment and poverty statistics.
Will Smith Revealed as Obama
'Superbundler'. Over the weekend we learned Smith was one of President Barack Obama's superbundlers, a term used
for those who cleverly work around current campaign finance laws to raise oodles of cash for a politician. [...] This wouldn't
have mattered four years ago, but Obama's recovery-free recovery continues to pound ordinary Americans.
Obama camp identifies more
bundlers. The Obama campaign is identifying high-dollar fundraisers for the fourth quarter of 2012. The updated list
of bundlers on the campaign's web site includes roughly a dozen new names in the $500,000 and above category. They include actors
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith, as well as clean-energy venture capitalist Steve Westly. Westly was bumped up from the $200,000
to $500,000 range, while the Smiths are on the list for the first time.
Will
Smith among new additions to Obama campaign bundlers. The Obama-Biden campaign released an updated list of bundlers from
the fourth quarter of the 2012 campaign on Saturday [3/2/2013]. Those bundlers — which the campaign refers to as
voluntary fundraisers — are able to collect large sums from other donors. Actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith
landed on the list, having hosted a fundraiser at their Los Angeles home, in the $500,000-and-above category. Filmmaker Tyler
Perry is also billed in the top category.
Want to meet Obama? It will cost you $500k. One of my
favorite scenes in Lincoln takes place at the White House. Petitioners from across the United States wait in the
lobby for an audience with the president. [...] Those days are over — needless to say. Unless, that is, you
happen to have a spare $500,000. In which case you too can meet with the president, on a quarterly basis, provided the
$500,000 finds its way to Organizing for Action (OFA), the nonprofit, social welfare organization "established to support
President Obama in achieving enactment of the national agenda Americans voted for on Election Day 2012."
Obama
Talks Out of Both Sides of His Mouth on Campaign Finance. Last Friday, a story by Nicholas Confessore of the New York
Times revealed that President Obama's political team is trying to raise $50 million to fund the conversion of his reelection
campaign into Organizing for Action, a "powerhouse" new national lobbying group. The story said that at least half of the
organization's budget will come from a small number of well-connected donors who each raise or contribute more than $500,000.
In return, those donors get a spot on a national advisory board, the right to attend quarterly meetings with the president and
access to other White House meetings.
President
Obama doesn't (really) care about campaign finance reform. Organizing for America, the new grassroots lobbying and
advocacy organization being run by top aides to the 2012 campaign, has set a budget of $50 million with at least half of that
total coming from large checks written by a handful of very wealthy donors, according to the New York Times' Nick Confessore.
The group has also been set up as a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization, meaning that it can not only accept unlimited donations from
individuals but that it is under no requirement to disclose the sources of those contributions.
5 Reasons Barack
Obama is a Creep. [#2] What he says is completely unrelated to what he does: Barack Obama is like an alcoholic
who pledges to quit drinking and then gets hammered every night. [...] This is how Barack Obama can demand a sequester and then turn
around and run against it or yammer on incessantly about transparency while he stonewalls on Fast and Furious. We're talking
about a man who's worth nearly 10 million dollars, who has campaign events with celebrities and millionaires on a regular basis,
and who just seems to squeeze in a little bit of work in between lavish vacations and golf outings with Tiger Woods; yet he spent
most of last year campaigning against rich people.
S.A. Democratic stalwart
eyed. Seven months after hosting a private $35,800-a-plate fundraiser for President Barack Obama at his home in The
Dominion, nationally recognized plaintiff's lawyer and Democratic Party stalwart Mikal C. Watts finds himself under federal
investigation over the legitimacy of his client list in a case stemming from the 2010 BP oil spill.
Explaining the Inexplicable.
The president, as is his wont, blasted the "one percent," the "millionaires and billionaires," and the "well-connected" in his
recent State of the Union speech — and then he flew off to golf and hang out with the one percent of the one percent in
South Florida while his wife and kids jetted to Aspen to ski.
Obama and his 1 percent.
In the State of the Union, Mr. Obama once more went after "the few," and "the wealthiest and the most powerful," whom he blasted
as the "well-off and the well-connected" and the "billionaires with high-powered accountants." Like clockwork, the president
then jetted to West Palm Beach, Fla., for yet another golfing vacation at one of the nation's priciest courses, replete with
lessons from a $1,000-per-hour golf pro to improve the presidential putting.
Hollywood's Pious Hypocrisy.
Hollywood stars routinely tout the virtues of the little guy battling the rich and powerful. They are legendary in their
support for the income-leveling agenda of Barack Obama-while enjoying a sybaritic lifestyle (multiple houses, servants, nannies to
act as proxy parents, chauffeurs) that make them the 1% of the 1%. They have access to private planes (John Travolta has a
veritable air fleet) to avoid long lines and exposure to the hoi polloi at airports. These are the same planes that Barack Obama
condemned while vilifying the rich. Of course, Barack Obama and his family hypocritically revel in the same luxe lifestyle.
Obama
selling White House access to wealthy donors who support Organizing for Action. The group 'Organizing for Action' is a
reorganized version of President Obama's 'Organizing for America' campaign juggernaut — now a tax-exempt "advocacy" group where
federal contribution limits don't apply. According to the Times, wealthy donors who give $500,000 or more get to join the
group's "national advisory board" which allows them to attend quarterly meetings with the president "along with other meetings
at the White House."
White
House denies claims that a $500,000 donation 'buys' face time with the president. The White House defended itself today
after suggestions that high-dollar donors to President Obama's new non-profit advocacy group would 'buy' face time with the
Commander-In-Chief. [...] There have been reports that those who contributed more than $500,000 to his cause would be invited to
quarterly meetings with the president in a pay-to-play.
Obama's
Backers Seek Big Donors to Press Agenda. President Obama's political team is fanning out across the country
in pursuit of an ambitious goal: raising $50 million to convert his re-election campaign into a powerhouse national
advocacy network, a sum that would rank the new group as one of Washington's biggest lobbying operations. But the rebooted
campaign, known as Organizing for Action, has plunged the president and his aides into a campaign finance limbo with few clear
rules, ample potential for influence-peddling, and no real precedent in national politics.
Cost of Obama Hawaii
Vacation Could Save 160 Teachers' Jobs. The $7 million price tag for President Obama's most recent Hawaii vacation
could pay the salaries of about 160 teachers for a full year.
President Obama's latest uphill
battle: Playing golf in Florida with Tiger Woods. President Obama played golf Sunday with Tiger Woods during the president's
long holiday weekend in Florida, amid concerns from the media about a lack of access before, during and after the newsworthy outing.
The foursome at the Floridian National Golf Club, in Palm City, Fla., included U.S. trade representative Ron Kirk and Jim Crane, a
Democratic donor who owns the club and the Houston Astros baseball team.
$1000/Hr: Obama Books World's
Top Golf Pro for Vacation. Economic growth is in the negative, unemployment is on the rise, Walmart's forecasting a
disastrous February for retail sales, poverty's up, gas prices are up, the cost of health care premiums are up, middle class incomes
are falling, consumer confidence is at a two year low, our deficit is unsustainable, and Barack Obama has just signed up for private
golf lessons with two of the top teachers in the country.
Long
after Election Day, major donors keep giving to Obama. President Obama's special large-donor campaign vehicle, which can
accept donations of more than $100,000 — far more than individuals can give to standard campaign committees —
continued to take in money weeks after the election, raising $1.8 million between November 27 and December 31, record show.
Nancy Pelosi Meets with Barbra
Streisand, Plots Dem House Comeback. Hollywood Democrats aren't happy that one half of Congress remains out of their
control. So a gaggle of big name celebrity donors, including Barbra Streisand, convened at the home of liberal activist/producer
Norman Lear to plot a comeback strategy and watch a little must-see TV.
Nancy Pelosi Meets with Barbra
Streisand, Plots Dem House Comeback. More than 40 Hollywood politicos — including Barbra Streisand, James
Brolin and Haim Saban — gathered Thursday night [1/31/2013] at a closed-door meeting at Norman Lear's Westside mansion,
where they heard Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi lay out the party's plans for recapturing the House in the 2014 mid-terms.
Twinkie-Killer Donates To Dem Super PAC.
Timothy Collins, the CEO of private equity firm Ripplewood Holdings, was the lone donor to the Super PAC dedicated to helping Democratic
Senate candidates disclosed in the year-end filing. Collins contributed at least $10,000 to Majority PAC, according to the dark
money group's most recent FEC filing.
Gun Control Frenzy — Proof
Democrats Are The Real Racists. There is no doubt that the Sandy Hook school massacre was an unspeakable tragedy but I doubt
seriously that had the murdered children been killed at an inner-city school, Presidential Obama would be holding a conference using
children as a dramatic prop for his dictatorial gun control agenda. Nor would there be hysterical politicians calling for tighter
gun control laws nor column after column from leftwing writers exploiting the tragedy. The sad truth is that none of these
demagogues care one bit about murdered black or Hispanic children unless the perpetrators of these crimes are white.
'All My Babies' Mamas'
reveals liberals opinion of blacks. All My Babies' Mamas is characteristic of liberals' typical bigotry of lowered
expectations regarding minorities. Liberals accuse black conservatives who reject liberal racist stereotypes of being traitors to
their race, trying to be white, and "selling out." Long-suffering courageous black conservatives offer blacks real empowerment:
liberation from crippling victimhood and entitlement mindsets. Due to liberals' resentment/hatred for America and traditional values,
they are repulsed when black conservatives encourage blacks to get an education, work hard, revive traditional black community morality,
and go for their dreams.
Obama hosts 'benefactors' at White
House. President Obama hasn't been seen in public today, but he hasn't been idle either — he's been entertaining
financial backers at the White House. The president and first lady Michelle Obama hosted donors and other supporters in town for second
inauguration weekend. A "Benefactors' Brunch" took place at the White House from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., says pool reporter
Alexis Simendinger of Real Clear Politics.
Elon Musk: Poster Child of
Obama Gilded Age. We live in the gilded age of crony capitalism. If you have any doubt about that fact look no further
than Elon Musk's purchase of a $17 million mansion in Bel Air, California. Who is Elon Musk? He struck it rich with the
invention of PayPal. Lately, though, he has cashed in on the Obama "green energy" and government giveaway bonanza. He plays
the game well.
A Conspiracy So Immense. The brainchild of Michael Brune,
Phil Radford, Larry Cohen, and Ben Jealous, the Democracy Initiative, according to Mother Jones's Kroll, is "the first time so many
groups teamed up to work on multiple issues not tied to an election." These guys have pull. Brune is the executive director of
the Sierra Club and former executive director of the more radical Rainforest Action Network. Radford runs Greenpeace.
Cohen is the president of the 700,000-member Communications Workers of America, "the largest telecommunications union in the world."
Jealous is the president and chief executive officer of the NAACP.
The Vast Left-Wing Conspiracy.
Matthew Continetti writes at the Washington Free Beacon about the formation of an incredibly powerful lobbying group, composed
of organizations that boast millions of political foot soldiers, with a total income measured in the billions of dollars.
It plans to spend tens of millions of dollars pushing a rigid ideological agenda. It's a textbook example of everything we are
constantly told is "wrong" with Washington, a combination of big money, political self-interest, political influence, and secrecy.
The Democracy Initiative: a Coup in
Plain Sight. Matthew Continetti [...] picks up on a report by Andy Kroll in Mother Jones about a coordinated effort by about
36 different interest groups with reported revenues of no less than $1.69 billion, pledging millions of dollars to work together to
attack conservative supporters and organizations, to intervene directly in Democratic politics, to push for filibuster reform to better enable
a push through their agenda without any input from the opposition, and expanding "voting rights" and fighting voter registration laws to further
grease the skids for their legislative agenda.
Labor union bosses'
salaries put 'big' in Big Labor. There can be riches in standing up for the working class: The Boilermakers union
president earned $506,000, plus hundreds of thousands of dollars more for travel expenses, while the Laborers union president made
$441,000. The Transportation Communications Union leader made $300,000, bumped up to $750,000 with business expenses.
Patrick W. Flynn makes $435,000 a year in his capacity as treasurer of a 13,600-member Teamsters union local, and the $30,000 in
business expenses he collects on top of costs associated with carrying out his duties around Mokena, Ill., approach that of a typical
worker's entire salary.
Meet
The 'Bullies': Breitbat Editor Exposes Obama's Army of Thugs In New Book. President Obama and his leftist allies like to claim they're
anti-bullying. They stand up for the little guy. They stand up to the powerful. They protect victims. They're liars.
The New Liberal Aristocracy.
[Scroll down] Senator John Kerry, who will soon become secretary of state, is a tireless advocate of higher taxes while enjoying his
multimillionaire wife's multiple estates. In 2010, Massachusetts resident Kerry docked his new $7 million yacht in nearby Rhode Island in
order to avoid paying about $500,000 in taxes to his home state. Should not Kerry have welcomed the chance to chip in half a million to an
insolvent treasury, given his advocacy for higher taxes?
Al
Gore is now richer than Mitt Romney — and it's all thanks to big oil. Al Gore's strategy for saving the Earth seems to
be to raise enough money to be able to buy it. After selling his failing Current TV company to Al Jazeera, Gore is suddenly a super rich
man. Forbes analyst Ryan Mac says, "Taking into account taxes to be paid on the deal, possible earlier debt and the fact that Gore's
representatives declined to comment, Forbes conservatively estimates the former vice president's net worth to be at least $300 million."
Al Gore is now 'richer than Romney'.
Someone finally has done all the math on the recent sale of Al Gore's Current TV to the Arabic language channel Al-Jazeera for $500 million.
Jobs were lost, buzz created, employees angered, but the former vice president had little to say about it. He did walk away with a reported
$100 million — a tidy sum for a man who had less that $2 million in assets when he ran for president more than a dozen years
ago, says Forbes magazine.
The Democrats' War on Science Aids
Our Enemies. [T]his week Al Gore, anti-carbon fuel drum major, made a cool $100 million selling his 20% share in the
failing, unwatched Current TV to Arab Al-Jazeera, owned by major carbon fuel producers. (His partner, Joel Hyatt, son-in-law of
former Ohio Democratic senator Howard Metzenbaum, also benefited mightily.) It's hard to conclude that this $500 million
Al-Jazeera purchase is anything other than a payoff for effectively hampering the exploitation of American carbon fuels and advocating
openly for giving a cable entrée to this Arab-broadcasting network. Current TV isn't worth anything like the price paid for it.
Years ago, somebody was the first to sell rifles to the Indians,
and more recently, somebody else was the first to sell bandwidth to Al-Jazeera.
Terror TV Pays Al Gore
$100 Million for U.S. Media Access. Al-Jazeera, once considered the voice of Osama bin-Laden and known for anti-American
and anti-Semitic rhetoric, has announced the purchase of Al Gore's low-rated cable channel, Current TV, in a transparent attempt
to buy access to the U.S. media market for operatives of the pro-terrorist Muslim Brotherhood. Gore has reportedly made
$100 million from the $500 million deal.
The Al Jazeera Deal: How Al
Gore Race-Baited His Way to a $100M Pay Day. One of America's great legal rackets is cable/satellite television, where
somewhere around 100 million Americans pay for literally dozens of channels they never watch. As you well know, to do business
with any cable/satellite provider means being forced into expensive tiers and/or packages that include channels we wouldn't watch for
free. Because of this, we're not only forced into subsidizing junk; we're also subsidizing programming that works against our own
political and cultural beliefs, like MSNBC, CNN, OWN, MTV, etc.
Who's Worse — Al Gore or Bernie
Madoff? Whatever else he is, Gore is arguably a business genius when it comes to generating massive amounts
of income from dubious enterprises and, unlike Bernie Madoff, getting away with it.
Teachers union spends millions from membership
dues on parties and conferences. Included in the United Federation of Teachers' $166.5 million in spending last year was a hefty
$33.4 million in salary for union staffers — a slight increase from the year prior. More than 90 staffers earned
six-figure salaries between July 2011 and June 2012, the records show — including President Michael Mulgrew, who took home $275,000.
Kerry Has Investments
in Companies Accused of Violating Iran Sanctions. John Kerry, who will be nominated later today to be the next secretary of state, is the
richest member of the U.S. Senate. His estimated net worth is, at minimum, $198.65 million, according to disclosure forms. Kerry's
disclosure forms also reveal that he has invested in companies accused of doing business with Iran.
Six of country's 10 richest counties
in D.C. area. Six of the 10 richest counties in the nation are in the Washington region, as median household incomes rise and
Washingtonians benefit from a government-driven economy. Loudoun County maintained its crown as the wealthiest county in the nation,
with a median household income of $119,525 in 2011, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Democratic super PACs get jump on 2014, 2016.
Winning changes everything. It took Democrats a while to warm up to super PACs, but their glee over 2012 is — for
now — eclipsing any moral qualms about big money eroding democracy, and they're already busy at work courting their
wealthiest supporters and planning even more ambitious efforts for future elections.
The Democrats and Big Money. Like much in
the Democratic playbook, Obama's self-righteous complaint about the rising tide of big money in politics told a certain truth, but it did not tell
the whole truth, and the story of Democrats' moral posturing about money illuminates the hypocrisy and deception at the heart of the party's most
cherished self-image.
Obama
will take oath twice this time, just to be safe. [Scroll down] Because an inauguration's folderol costs tens of
millions of dollars, and even Chicago pols lack the chutzpah to demand federal funds, Obama's money-raisers must assemble the money
privately. Oh, look! Corporate donors and special interests will foot the bill.
Obama to take corporate
cash for inauguration. President Barack Obama will accept unlimited corporate donations for his Inauguration in January,
reversing his position from his first Inauguration, according to two sources close to the planning. There are no legal limits for
inauguration donations, but four years ago, the president capped all contributions at $50,000 and barred companies from kicking in any
money. Obama had also banned corporate money from the 2012 Democratic National Convention.
Christmas for Obama Bundlers. While
President Obama's lips champion the middle class, his administration's old hands are preparing to lavish rewards on the creme de la
campaign creme: his wealthiest political donors. Several media outlets reported this week that the White House is considering
fashion doyenne Anna Wintour for a possible appointment as U.S. ambassador to Great Britain or France. The rumored short list also
includes Obama campaign finance chairman Matthew Barzun and investment banker Marc Lasry. The three share one common,
er, "qualification": Each raked in more than $500,000 for Team Obama 2012.
Will
Google's Eric Schmidt join the Obama administration? Schmidt's big role in the Obama re-election campaign, Google's
$1.9 million donation to Democrats during the race, and Washington's efforts to quiet a looming Federal Trade Commission
investigation into Google are key signs that the president wants Schmidt in his cabinet, insiders believe.
The Confessions of a Confused Misfit.
I was not surprised when Susan Rice just disclosed that she is worth considerably over $30 million — and has
money in Keystone no less. Are they all part of the "one percent"? Did they pay "their fair share"? Do they "spread the
wealth"? At what point in his life did Al Gore know that he had made enough money (before barreling ahead and making more)?
The perks of being a union executive.
Wage amounts are usually public record, but are perilously difficult to pin down. What a union executive makes can be inflated in the
record by sick leave accrual or severance payouts, or can be understated because of tax deferments or allowances in lieu of pay.
Still, with that caveat in place, an examination of 2010-11 tax records reveals wages of the highest paid employees of the National
Education Association and its state affiliates — defined here as the money reported in box 1 of a W-2 form —
ranged from almost $540,000 down to less than $92,000.
Anna Wintour is a ludicrous pick for US Ambassador to London. Anna Wintour,
editor-in-chief of Vogue, is reportedly in the running to become the next US Ambassador to the United Kingdom, to succeed the
outgoing Louis Susman. According to Bloomberg, Wintour was among "Obama's biggest bundlers of donations in the campaign", raising
over $500,000 to re-elect the president. As Bloomberg notes, the Obama administration (like many previous US administrations) has a
penchant for rewarding top donors with plum diplomatic posts.
It's Good to be King: The Extravagance of
the Obama Family. On Thanksgiving, the Obamas had a feast that would have made Marie Antoinette green with envy. President Obama
spends outrageous sums of money for lavish dinners and his family gets multiple vacations per year.
White House Thanksgiving: Six Types of
Pie. As food pantries across the United States are overwhelmed by the newly poor and food stamp use is the highest it's ever been, the
Obama first family is enjoying a Thanksgiving meal with six different types of pie.
Wal-Mart heir funding Obama big time. This is at first
surprising for a couple of reasons. First, the Waltons tend to be Republican. Second, the conventional wisdom is that megacorps like Wal-Mart are a Republican
thing. But Sam Walton gave the maximum $30,800 to the Obama Victory Fund in 2008, and $40,000 to the OVF this election.
Medical giant Stryker
cuts 1,170 jobs, citing ObamaCare. The company will cut 1,170 jobs, or five percent of its worldwide workforce, despite the fact that
the founder's grandson was one of the largest contributors to President Obama's re-election campaign. Medical tech scion Jon Stryker, whose net worth is
currently estimated at $1.2 billion, contributed $2 million to the Priorities USA Action super PAC and has given $66,000 in contributions to Obama
and the Democratic Party.
Letter: Menendez Must Be Investigated. New Jersey Republicans are accusing
Sen. Bob Menendez (D., N.J.) of having violated Senate ethics rules by failing to disclose or seek Senate permission for air travel and lodging
provided by a wealthy campaign donor. [...] Records indicate Menendez made at least four trips on a corporate jet owned by Salomon Melgen, a Florida
ophthalmologist who has donated more than $220,000 to Democratic candidates and committees since 1993. Melgen gave at least $12,600 to
Menendez during that period.
Fundraiser
luncheon for Michelle Obama: tickets cost $2,500-per-head. TMZ reports that to simply attend, and presumably eat, at the
event, each person will have to pay $2,500-per-head. The tickets go up in those increments depending on how much access each
individual wants.
Liberals'
green-energy contradictions. Al Gore is about 50 times richer than he was when he left the vice presidency in 2001. According to an
Oct. 11 report by The [Washington] Post's Carol D. Leonnig, Gore accumulated a Romneyesque $100 million partly through investing in
alternative-energy firms subsidized by the Obama administration.
Lies come home to roost.
Granny Warren, the fake Indian, is now portraying herself as the tribune of the middle class, the people Middle Class Joe Biden said
have been buried for the last four years, and you can believe him, because he always tells the truth. [...] Granny lives in the People's
Republic of Cambridge, and bought her Victorian for $447,000 in 1995, the year she drifted into Massachusetts. It's now assessed at
$1,749,000. The mansion itself is so incredibly posh that last year, when a magazine writer wanted to interview Warren there, the
campaign insisted that the house itself was "off the record." During the past four years, the Warrens have averaged $845,000 a year
in income.
World's Richest Man Gets
Richer Supplying 'Obamaphones' to Poor. Make one wonder how many more rip-off programs that we are paying for.
Mexican
billionaire making millions from American government program that gives poor free cell phones. The richest man in the world, Mexican
billionaire Carlos Slim, is making millions in profits from a government program that supplies poor Americans with free cell phones. Mr Slim, who
is worth an estimated $69 billion, owns the parent company of both the service provider and phone producer which creates the phones used in the
Lifeline program.
More
about free cell phones.
Who gets rich off 'free' government phones?
One of America's fastest-growing wireless carriers is a company you've probably never heard of: Tracfone Wireless. It's the
U.S. arm of a telecom empire controlled by the world's richest man, Carlos Slim, and it's the biggest player in an increasingly lucrative
market: subsidized mobile phones for low-income Americans.
Obama Flying
to LA to Reassure Hollywood Donors. Presidential pal [George] Clooney will make a special appearance to introduce [Stevie] Wonder.
Afterward, Obama will head next door for a $25,000-per-plate dinner at Wolfgang Puck's chic WP24.
Obama appoints wife of Univision owner to UN diplomatic
post. President Barack Obama appointed Cheryl Saban, wife of the owner of Univision, as U.S. representative to the United Nations,
according to reports from various news blogs. According to the Politico blog, Haim Saban, owner of the television network, backed Hillary Clinton
in 2008, but during the summer donated $1 million to groups supporting the campaigns of Democrats.
First Lady: Cost-Free Contraception Is 'Basic
Preventive Care'. The first lady spoke [10/2/2012] at the Westin Hotel in Seattle where, according to the White House press pool report,
about 700 attended, paying between $500 and $10,000.
On the Road to Benghazi. In
retrospect, the Democratic Convention highlighted a liar, Elizabeth Warren. She was hired by Harvard law school because
she lied about her ethnicity to gain affirmative action benefits, exaggerated her scholarship which was shoddy, practiced law
for years in Massachusetts out of her law school office without being a member of that state's bar — and possibly
at the time a member of no bar at all. She gummed on before the crowd about working for the middle class hiding from
the audience that she had made hundreds of thousands of dollars representing big corporations in disputes against steel workers
and asbestos victims among others.
Democrat Senate Hopeful Warren Exposed As
Complete Fraud. On top of fraudulently claiming minority Indian status without any documented ancestry, the Harvard law professor has now
been busted practicing law in Massachusetts without a state license. Worse, her client list includes the type of corporations that Ms. Populist has
demonized on the campaign trail as greedy polluters and exploiters of the "little guy." Turns out working-class champion Warren in 1995 hired herself
out as a legal gun for LTV Steel to help the conglomerate fight thousands of retired coal miners who wanted more health and pension benefits, the Boston
Herald says. She pocketed a cool $10,000 in the case. Records show in 2009 she also defended insurance giant Travelers against asbestos victims.
Elizabeth
Warren represented large utility seeking to liquidate rural electric cooperative. I'm not from Massachusetts, and I'm perfectly willing to
let the good people of Massachusetts decide who their Senators should be without my assistance. But I do think you're entitled to the facts before
you vote, and in at least one respect Professor Warren is not being accurate in her description of one of the cases she handled. Rather than
working to save a rural electric cooperative, Warren represented a large utility which sought to liquidate the cooperative and purchase the cooperative's
main asset, a large coal burning plant north of Baton Rouge.
More
about Elizabeth Warren.
Obama's Class Warfare Rhetoric Is Preparation for Tyranny. Mitt Romney
was entirely correct when he alluded to the efforts by Obama and the Democrats to create a faction of people dependent upon the government, and therefore
upon themselves, who therefore would form a reliable voting bloc. Indeed, this has been the Left's modus operandi since FDR's time —
lure Americans into the addiction of government handouts, continually make the income tax code more and more "progressive" so that greater and greater
numbers of us in effect do not pay any income taxes while shifting the burden more and more to the capital-providing, jobs-producing rich. By
draining and driving out these victims of redistribution, the government then generates more "need" for hand-outs and assistance as jobs disappear and
the economy systematically slows down. Obama has been working for the last four years to accelerate these trends because he is making a concerted
effort to grasp total power.
Obama Oct. 7 LA Fundraiser Locks In Exclusive Dinner Location & Concert Performers. Jeffrey
Katzenberg will be co-hosting the now $25,000 a ticket dinner scheduled after the 30 Days To Victory Concert at the Nokia Theatre.
Harvey Weinstein may also come on board as a co-host for the intimate meal between the incumbent and his wealthier supporters.
The poor people Obama left behind.
Four years after Barack Obama's historic election as president, little seems to have changed for the African-American communities on Chicago's South Side.
The lack of change — or the sense that these neighborhoods are getting worse — is eroding the president's standing among African-Americans
in his hometown. In 2011, Chicago suffered the third-highest black jobless rate among the nation's major metropolitan areas, at 19 percent,
according to the liberal Economic Policy Institute.
Obama Books Another Lavish La-La-Land
Fundraiser. What else to expect from the same President who dashed off to a Vegas fundraiser the same day the Middle East blew up and we
learned of the assassination of Ambassador Stevens.
Obama pulls in
$4M at Jay-Z, Beyoncé fundraiser. After enduring a little ribbing on "Late Show With David Letterman" in New
York on Tuesday [9/18/2012], President Obama collected $4 million at a fundraiser hosted by Jay-Z and Beyoncé at their
lounge bar, Manhattan's 40/40 Club. About 100 donors who paid $40,000 each to attend the event sat on sofas in a
large, glass room, according to the pool report.
Beyoncé & Jay-Z host NY Bam
ba$h. When President Obama addresses an elite roster of hipsters and multimillionaires, including hosts Beyoncé and
Jay-Z, in New York tonight, he will do so next to a custom-designed tower of $800-per-bottle champagne that dominates the main room at
Jay-Z's 40/40 nightclub.
Speaking to the 47%:
The
$105,000 champagne tower featured at Obama fundraiser hosted by Jay-Z and Beyonce. President Barack Obama attended a
fundraiser at Jay-Z's 40/40 Club in Manhattan that featured a champagne tower of 350 bottles worth $105,000 — more than twice the
median household income of an American family. The tower of $300-a-bottle Armand de Brignac Brut Gold, known as 'Ace of Spades'
because of its label, is a permanent fixture at the club.
Obama has time to meet with Jay-Z and Beyonce at fund-raiser, but can't fit
Netanyahu into his schedule. The fund-raiser hauled in about $4 million for Obama and the Democrats. Guests, who included Yankee
ace pitcher CC Sabathia, sipped $800-per-bottle Armand de Brignac champagne. "Beyoncé could not be a better role model for my girls," Obama
told the crowd.
Rep. Nita Lowey collects an extra $10G pension
on top of her salary. Rep. Nita Lowey is the wealthiest member of New York's congressional delegation and one of the
richest members of Congress. She's also a double dipper. The Westchester Democrat, who is worth at least $14.3 million,
collects a $10,302 annual state pension on top of her $174,000 congressional salary.
Report:
Top Obama Bundlers Bag Millions in Taxpayer Money. An investigation by the Government Accountability Institute found
that more than half of the most politically active 50 campaign bundlers for President Obama were either appointed to a presidential
council, committee, board, or other White House post. Many bundlers' businesses or relatives' businesses also received millions
of dollars in taxpayer-funded federal contracts, grants, loans, or other crony perks. In all, the top 50 bundlers received
three council appointments, one ambassadorship, two committee appointments, and a whopping 20 State Dinner invitations.
Obama attends fundraiser in nation's capital.
The event Friday night, at a private residence in the nation's capital, attracted 35 donors who each contributed $40,000.
Meet the Bundlers.
Bundlers are fundraisers who gather high-dollar donations and "bundle" them together for their favored candidates.
Recently, we at the Government Accountability Institute decided to look at some bundlers to see whether they, their
relatives, or their businesses have received government contracts, loans, or other perks.
Not all Obama bundlers are on his
public list. President Obama's campaign has left off its public list of "bundlers" at least 25 names its own finance team
considers to be among their most valuable funders, including seven who live in foreign countries, a review of records by The Washington Times
found. In one case the campaign's own internal documents listed Cynthia Stroum as bundling $400,000 this election cycle, yet she is not
on the campaign's official public list. Mr. Obama tapped Ms. Stroum to be ambassador to Luxembourg after she raised half a million for
his 2008 campaign.
Dr. Biden's Mystery Necklace. Dr. Jill Biden wore an
expensive Van Cleef & Arpels Vintage Alhambra necklace in Pink Gold and Pink Sevres Porcelain as she arrived at the Charlotte
airport on Tuesday [9/11/2012] with the Vice President for the Democratic National Convention. [...] Because the necklace cannot be
bought in the United States, the
Washington Free Beacon cannot determine its exact price. We estimate, based on similar
necklaces, that it would cost between $10,000 and $14,000. The per capita individual annual income in the United States between
2006 and 2010 was $27,334.
Wasserman
Schultz's Luxury Cars and Growing Net Worth Raise Questions. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has famously
stated that she is a "middle class American," and it was this very claim that prompted many of her critics to openly question
whether or not it was a realistic assessment of her personal income and assets. Wasserman Schultz' Republican congressional
opponent Karen Harrington has called on her to release her personal tax income tax returns in response to her repeated calls for
Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney to do the same.
Democratic Millionaires
Spew Hate On The Rich. The most ridiculously annoying aspect of the Democratic political run for offices in 2012
is the incredibly long line of leftist millionaires who continually spew extreme hate and venom on the wealthy. Every
time a financially successful person gets up before the masses and promotes the leftist's class warfare by denouncing the
successful and wealthy persons and businesses among us, it is the most bizarre thing happening in the current elective
campaign process.
Fact Check: First
Lady's False Fairy Tale of Struggle. First Lady Michelle Obama's pitch to voters last night relied on the premise that she
and her husband understand what it is to struggle to make ends meet. She spoke movingly about their early years — about
how a young Barack Obama drove a car that was "rusted out" and found his furniture "in a dumpster," how they both came from families that
had to "scrape by." Her fairy tale — however well-delivered — was one great, big, colorful lie.
Media Fail to Fact-Check Michelle's
Speech. The basic premise of Mrs. Obama's speech — that she and her husband had struggled economically like so
many other Americans — is false. Not only did they enjoy many advantages that others do not, but CNS News reports that
Barack Obama inherited half a million dollars in stock from his grandmother, a bank vice president who Michelle misleadingly cited as a
victim of gender discrimination. These fibs are not new for the Obama camp.
10 Celebrities Who Have Made Big Donations To
Obama. Clint Eastwood, Chuck Norris, Kid Rock, Jeff Foxworthy, Vince Vaughn, and Jon Voight have all endorsed [Mitt] Romney without giving the
candidate a dime. President Obama, on the other hand, has received considerable support from his high-profile supporters, some of whom even spoke at
the Democratic National Convention this week.
Yes, that was Clooney's voice on Obama
film. Deadline notes that Clooney hosted a dinner for Obama at his LA home that brought in a record $15 million
for the campaign on May 10, and attended a Democrats Abroad fundraiser in Geneva that raised $625,000 last month.
Dem. Keynote
Speaker a Beneficiary of Bain Capital, Refuses to Release Tax Returns. Maryland governor Martin O'Malley, who is giving a keynote
address tonight [9/4/2012] at the Democratic convention in Charlotte, is a beneficiary of Bain Capital, the private equity firm Republican
presidential candidate Mitt Romney helped create. The irony is that Democrats have tried to argue, throughout this campaign, that Bain
is bad — that the company has put other, smaller companies out business, and helped ship American jobs overseas. But, when O'Malley retires,
he'll receive $135,000 annually from the Maryland state retirement and pension system.
Michelle Obama's day and
perks reserved for the big donors. Major donors will experience a very different convention than rank-and-file delegates who will
fill the arena on Tuesday and Wednesday night and the Bank of America stadium on Thursday. [...] The best VIP perks go to those who donated at least
$75,800 to the joint Obama campaign/Democratic National Committee fund-raising committee with more perks going to donors who have a track record of
giving at least $122,400 from Feb., 2009 to June 1 or who raised $350,000 from Jan. 1, 2011 through June 1.
Real Estate Market Recovers for
Senior White House Advisor. Valerie Jarrett currently owns an 11-percent equity interest in Kingsbury Plaza, a 46-story luxury
apartment complex developed by Habitat between 2005 and 2007 at a cost of more than $100 million. She valued the investment at
between $1 million and $5 million on her 2011 financial disclosure form, up from $250,001 in 2010. A Jarrett spokesmantold
the Washington Times that the investment was "a direct result of her 13 years working for Habitat."
Not exactly the 99%: Top union leaders'
salaries. Advocating for the working man doesn't pay too poorly, it seems. Here's a list of the annual salaries and benefits
earned by the nation's top labor officials, according to the Labor Department. This data is based on 2011 filings:
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka — $293,750.
National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel — $460,060.
Service Employees International Union President Mary Kay Henry — $290,334.
American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees President Gerald McEntee — $512,489.
International Brotherhood of Teamsters President James P. Hoffa , Jr. — $372,489.
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten — $493,859.
Obama Hoops-Themed Fundraisers to Net
Millions. A trio of hoops-themed fundraisers, hosted by Michael Jordan and other current and former NBA stars, is expected to net at
least $3 million for Obama and the Democrats, according to figures provided by his campaign. The "Obama Classic" includes a
$250 per-person autograph signing event, a $5,000 skills camp and shoot-around, and a $20,000 per-plate dinner co-hosted by Jordan and
120 guests. The events are slated to take place in various venues at Lincoln Center.
Obama
slammed for fundraising with 'pro-drug dealing, anti-police' NBA player. Obama is in New York City raising campaign cash with 'NBA
Heroes' — a selection of former and current basketball stars including Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning. But the
all-star line up also includes New York Knicks player Carmelo Anthony, who is currently seen in a YouTube video and DVD that promotes drug use and
threatens people who 'snitch' to police about drug dealers and other criminals.
Secret 'Menu' Details Perks for Big Democratic
Donors. Those seeking invites to the most lavish receptions at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, "gold ticket" access to "dialogues," and private
breakfast briefings with party luminaries, can expect a hefty price of admission. A list of high-end convention packages circulated by the Charlotte in 2012
Convention Host Committee, and obtained by ABC News, shows that those and other perks are being offered to donors who raise $1 million or donate $100,000 to the
convention's nonprofit planning arm.
The Left-Wing Money Machine.
With the overwhelming financial advantage of the left-wing money machine, it is hard to take seriously a president who castigates
Republicans as the party of the rich.
Liberal Bigotry. Progressives —
liberals — are the worst offenders of their own axioms when they talk about the "evils" of those who dispute liberal
versions of facts, policy, or, especially, morality. The bigotry liberals direct toward those with whom they merely disagree is
7staggering. Liberals believe in free speech, unless it offends someone's tender sensitivities (meaning only that liberals
disagree with it). They protest the "wealthiest 1%," but exempt from their condemnations billionaire liberals and wealthy movie
and rock stars, most of whom share the same ideology.
Obama Set For $35,000-Per-Person
Dinner At Movie Mogul Weinstein's Connecticut Home. The events include a $500 per person reception at the Stamford Marriott and a $35,800 per person
dinner at the Westport home of movie producer Harvey Weinstein.
Miscellaneous reports of celebrity fundraisers: [
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Trio of Hollywood Elite Hosting Obama Fundraiser
Tonight. [Scroll down] The president will hold two fundraisers in Connecticut today [8/6/2012], a firmly Democratic state. In
Stamford, he will speak at a reception for 500 supporters, who will pay $500 each to attend the event, before heading to the $35,800 per person
star-studded dinner.
Connecticut beaches closed so Obama can
fund-raise with Hollywood mogul. Amid the peak summer season, two of Connecticut's popular public beaches — maintained with taxpayer
money — were closed Monday [8/6/2012] to accommodate President Obama's fundraising excursion that ends with a $35,800-per-plate event at movie
mogul Harvey Weinstein's mansion.
Who's Afraid of Wealthy Politicians?
Among recent prominent American politicians, it's challenging to find a single one who is not a millionaire. Harry Reid has a net worth estimated at
between $2.6 and 5 million. Nancy Pelosi recently lost $8 million, bringing her net worth down to $26.4 million. John
Boehner is said to have $1.7 million. Hillary Clinton, one of the most popular political figures in the country, is worth about $85 million.
No one objected to her wealth when she ran in 2008, and no one suggests it would be a handicap in the future.
Jordan,
NBA players to hold basketball-themed fundraisers for Obama in New York. [Michael] Jordan, who played for the Chicago Bulls, Obama's favorite NBA team, and
NBA Commissioner David Stern are co-hosting a $20,000-per person fundraising dinner with the president later in the day [on 8/22/2012].
Obama brings
Manhattan to a standstill AGAIN for $40,000-a-head fundraiser. Barack Obama last night returned to New York City for
a $40,000-a-head fundraising dinner which was expected to bring rush hour traffic to a standstill. The trip came just six weeks after a
star-studded event at Sarah Jessica Parker's house in Manhattan which raised $4.5 million for the President's re-election campaign.
Michelle Obama
Sports $6,800 Jacket to London Soiree. The jacket cost more than the average American family makes in a month ($4,284).
And, she does this as Americans continue to suffer through a deep recession and record unemployment.
Michelle
Obama sparks fury after splashing out on $6,800 designer jacket. Political commentators have expressed their fury over the fact that
Michelle Obama wore a jacket worth $6,800 to the pre-Olympics Opening Ceremony reception at Buckingham Palace on Friday [7/27/2012]. Though the
dazzling J Mendel jacket and skirt won critical acclaim from the style set, some pundits are furious that she elected to spend so much money on a
garment while so many in the U.S. are suffering financially.
Ann
Romney slammed for $990 Shirt, Michelle Obama praised for $6,800 jacket. Back in May, Ann Romney, wife of Republican
Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, wore a $990 Reed Krakoff silk shirt for a media appearance. The item of clothing set off a
media firestorm, with the Romneys widely accused of being "out of touch" with average Americans. In particular, the Washington
Post wrote that the $990 blouse "will not help her husband change those perceptions, no matter how many Laundromat photo ops are
on the campaign's itinerary." Fast forward to last Friday...
Mrs.
Obama's $6,800 Jacket OK; Mrs. Romney's $990 Blouse Not. The media's double standard when it examines the wealth and privilege
of the two presidential candidates was on display again this week. The analysts of haute couture and its intersection with politics were
silent when First Lady Michelle Obama showed up to meet the Queen of England in an very, very, very, very expensive jacket. But in May, the
media were ready to erect a guillotine after they saw Ann Romney, the wife of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, appear on television in a
blouse that cost about one-seventh as much as Mrs. Obama's attire.
More examples
of media bias in Obama's favor.
Obama gets personal on Planned
Parenthood. [Scroll down] About 200 people are expected later Tuesday night [7/24/2012] in the Seattle suburbs at a
$5,000-per-plate dinner at the home of Jim Sinegal, the co-founder of Costco. He'll also attend another fundraising roundtable with 20 people
at $35,800 per ticket. [...] Obama's stop in the Rose City Tuesday was for a pair of fundraising events: a roundtable with about 25 people
with $30,000 individual tickets and a $500 admission for his speech.
Obama Crosses Picket Line. Penny Pritzker, the billionaire heiress whose
family owns the Hyatt hotel chain, took a ride on Air Force One this afternoon from San Francisco to Portland, Ore., where President Obama was making
a series of fundraising stops. The ride came hours after the announcement of a global boycott of Hyatt Hotels by Unite Here, the nation's
largest hospitality workers union. That boycott has been joined by the National Organization for Women, the National Gay and Lesbian Task
Force, the National Black Justice Center, and the National Football League Players Association. Pritzker was the national finance chair of
Obama's 2008 campaign.
Lost Obama donor Penny Pritzker surfaces on Air Force One. Penny
Pritzker is a billionaire who raised gobs of money for Barack Obama in 2008, then emerged as a central figure in two recent media stories about rich
Democratic donors who are down on the president, in part because they feel unappreciated and stiffed on presidential perks. But there she was
Tuesday [7/24/2012] on Air Force One, hitching a ride from San Francisco to Portland with Obama. Coincidence? There are few coincidences
in politics.
Obama fund raises at "ruthless" out-sourcer's penthouse at $25,000 a pop event. Immediately
after bashing Mitt Romney for allegedly out-sourcing American jobs overseas at Bain and claiming he wants "to be a pioneer in in-sourcing," yesterday [7/18/2012]
Obama's motorcade sped to the luxury penthouse of former Dell exec Tom Meredith, on record as priding himself in being "ruthless"
in cutting American jobs in Texas and other states, while preserving them in Asia to cut costs for Dell. [...] One would think the media might be
interested in reporting Obama's brazen hypocrisy but I guess not.
Rich Liberal Hypocrites! In 2011, you couldn't swing a dead cat in
Congress without hitting a multi-millionaire, many of them Democrats. John Kerry who ran against George Bush has a net worth of $193.07 million,
much of it the result of marrying rich wives. Jay Rockefeller whose very name suggests wealth has $81.63 million. The California ladies,
Diane Feinstein comes in at $55.07 million and Nancy Pelosi is worth $35.20 million. The Daily Caller recently reported that
Rep. Pelosi's 2011 financial disclosure statement included between $1 million and $5 million earned from partnership income with Matthews
International Capitol Management, a firm that invests exclusively in Asia where much U.S. outsourcing occurs.
Dem.
Chair Invested in Swiss Banks, Foreign Drug Companies, and the State Bank of India. Disclosure forms reveal that Democratic
National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a member of Congress from Florida, previously held funds with investments in Swiss
banks, foreign drug companies, and the state bank of India. This revelation comes mere days after the Democratic chair attacked
presumptive Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney for holding money in Swiss bank accounts in the past.
Obama's Millionaires. President Obama's latest proposal
to raise taxes on high-income earners would effectively cut taxes for a number of senior White House advisers whose net worth
exceeds $1 million. At least five millionaires currently employed in senior White House positions would receive a
tax cut under Obama's plan, an initial Washington Free Beacon review of financial disclosure records has found.
Air Jordan and the 1%.
What does Michael Jordan tell us about income inequality in the United States? The U.S. has greater income inequality than
nearly all other developed nations, and the former basketball star earned far more in most years than the typical American earns
in a lifetime. So is our system unfair and stacked against the middle class?
Joe
Biden 'considers $379,000 income middle class'. Joe Biden considers himself to be part of America's middle
class, despite his $379,000 income. Speaking to the National Council of La Raza in Las Vegas about home ownership,
the vice president said that the upper class 'doesn't get it — for middle class folks like me and you, owning a
home is the single most consequential element to our existence.' President Obama has been heavily campaigning his
$250,000 threshold that would cause income taxes to rise for the wealthy.
7 Unhappy Truths About
Politicians. [Scroll down] The median net worth of members of Congress is about $913,000. On top of
that, members of Congress have staffers who do everything for them and treat them like god-kings in the process. These
aides schedule their lives, read everything for them and regurgitate back what they think they need, and incessantly tell them
how wonderful they are. Most members of Congress have more in common with celebrities like Madonna or Barbra Streisand
than they do with the teachers, factory workers, and small business owners who vote them into office.
Awkward! Obama
hosts those congressional laggards for a picnic. Since everything is running so smoothly across the country, it was a good time for
another summer party at the Obama White House. Last night the current first family had an outdoor picnic with hot dogs and hamburgers and some
uniformed Marines providing musical entertainment. "It is spectacular," Obama admitted at his own party, having just returned from another
$40,000-for-a-cup-of-coffee with POTUS fundraiser.
Obama's
Tone-Deaf Fundraiser. After Obama's attempt to reassure the public about the economic recovery fell flat Thursday [6/14/2012],
he jetted off to a celebrity fundraiser in Manhattan hosted by Anna Wintour and Sarah Jessica Parker — and the contrast could not
have been more tone-deaf. As AP reports, Obama seemed to temporarily abandon his middle class warrior routine, telling the $40,000-a-plate
dinner guests that they were the "ultimate arbiter" of the country's future.
Obama attends
fundraising events in Maryland. President Barack Obama swung through Baltimore on Tuesday [6/12/2012] for a trio of
fundraisers intended to energize the deep-pocketed donors his campaign will need to compete amid the onslaught of money flowing
into this year's presidential election. [...] About 100 people attended the first fundraiser, which cost between $10,000
and $50,000 apiece.
Only in America...
• Only in America could the President talk about the greed of the rich at a $35,000 a plate campaign
fund-raising event.
• Only in America could people claim that the government still discriminates
against black Americans when we have a black President, a black Attorney General, and roughly 18%
of the federal work force is black while 12% of the population is black.
• Only in America could we have had the two people most responsible for our
tax code, Timothy Geithner, the head of the Treasury Department and Charles Rangel who once ran
the Ways and Means Committee,
both turn out to be tax cheats who are in favor of higher taxes.
Where
is President Obama Today? Fundraising and Partying with Rich and Radicals. Fridays usually include a video wrap-up of the week just completed.
But so far today [6/1/2012], nada. If and when the White House gets around to emailing the official schedule out, it will note
that on the day that we learned unemployment has ticked back up to 8.2% and previous jobs numbers have been revised negatively,
President Obama is not focused on the economy at all. His schedule would show that Obama is holding six fundraisers
for his re-election campaign. And chances are, you can't get in to see him.
A New Level of
Shamelessness. John McCain actually did believe in "campaign-finance reform," but candidate and President
Barack Obama most certainly did not: He was the first presidential candidate in the general election to renounce
public campaign financing in the history of the legislation so that he could go on to out-raise McCain three to one.
He raised the most money in campaign history, and was the largest recorded recipient of Wall Street cash. In
three-and-a-half years, he has held the most fundraisers of any sitting president; he has accepted super PAC money
when he said he would not; he has allowed big donors to receive preferential treatment in green-company subsidization.
Mayor
Bloomberg shells out $25 million for two new houses. New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg has added two new multi-million dollar
properties to his already extensive real estate portfolio. America's richest mayor gave a glimpse of his wealth on Friday [5/25/2012],
allowing reporters to look at a redacted mock-up of his tax returns and his annual city financial disclosure. The tax returns show the
mayor purchased a 33-acre estate in Westchester County in June last year at a cost of $4.55 million.
Obamateurism of the Day. If you think life is tough, Chicagoans, just
consider the hard life of ...
Barack Obama. Angry that the NATO conference tied up traffic for hours? That's nothing, says President Obama.
Why, he had it so tough that he had to stay at a
five-star hotel.
Biden Calls Himself 'Middle Class Joe,'
Owns Mansion. Joe Biden, speaking in Ohio today [5/17/2012], said that he is "tired of being called a 'Middle Class Joe.'" While it's
not clear who actually calls the vice president that, it is clear that his house and finances tell a different story.
Democrats who cheat on their taxes
want us to pay more. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner did not pay the taxes he owed; Charles Rangel (D-NY) who as chairman of Ways and
Means wrote tax laws, has run afoul of tax authorities for years' worth of malfeasance; and the latest: Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill of
Missouri — a stalwart supporter of Barack Obama and one of the richest members of Congress. Lest we forget, Tom Daschle, Obama's
putative first choice for HHS Secretary had to drop out when it was disclosed that he also failed to pay taxes he owed. These are all members
of the 1% Club. Meanwhile, the staff of the IRS is being boosted by thousands of new auditors to snoop on our taxes to make sure we pay our "fair
share" and Democrats rail against the "rich" who don't pay their fair share of taxes.
President Obama raised most from private equity,
hedge funds in 2008. President Obama raised far more cash from hedge fund and private equity donors than any other candidate in the 2008 election
cycle. According to an analysis by the nonprofit group Open Secrets, Obama took in nearly $3.5 million from large private-equity donors that
year — nearly twice what his general-election rival, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), pocketed.
Transparency? Secret, Soros,
Left-Wing, 1% Summit Meeting Held Behind Closed Doors. A luxury resort in Miami, Florida with police-guarded closed doors was the home of a secret
George Soros-backed summit attended by deep-pocketed left-wing donors over the weekend of May 12. They met to plan their strategy for the 2012 elections
and beyond. Yes, it was all hush hush and secret-like — so much for all that "transparency" those lefties are always braying about. The
event hosted by the leftist group Democracy Alliance was reported upon by the Washington Free Beacon from afar. I say from afar because the Soros-paid
group refused the reporters access to the event.
Lovitz's Latest Obama Slam: Clooney Fundraiser Reeked of
Hypocrisy. The "Saturday Night Live" alum took aim at George Clooney's Obama fundraiser this time, calling the president hypocritical for trashing the
rich while letting them line his campaign coffers.
Obama Courts Private Equity Cash at New York
Fundraiser. Hamilton "Tony" James — the president of the Blackstone Group, the nation's largest private equity firm — is
hosting a $35,800-a-head dinner for Obama, with 60 Democratic allies expected to attend, according to a campaign official. Many in attendance are
expected to have ties to the private equity sector.
Godfather of the Left Gives $550 Million
to Liberal Causes. It's easy to see George Soros's imprint on most major American left-wing organizations. All you have to do is
look at their financial forms. George Soros aids hundreds of left-wing groups in America each year under the auspices of his Open Society
Foundations. In just 10 years, Soros has given more than $550 million to liberal organizations in the United States. And
that's really just a beginning. That total represents about 27 percent of the $2 billion given out by the American branches of
his Open Society Foundations from 2000 to 2009.
Clooney's Obama party full of 'Hollywood
hypocrites'. They say tonight's soiree for President Obama at George Clooney's house in Studio City is supposed to gross $15 million,
and the operative word is "gross." Yeah, pardon me for being such a party pooper, but isn't it a little offensive that 150 of L.A.'s high rollers
would shell out $40,000 to kiss Clooney's ring and get maybe 10 seconds of face time with Obama?
Obama campaigns for cash at George
Clooney's house. Fresh from announcing his support of same-sex marriage, President Obama headed Thursday night for a Hollywood campaign
fundraiser that was projected to bring his re-election campaign nearly $15 million — a record for such an event — at the home
of actor George Clooney.
Marin County: Garden of Delusion. The population of Marin is
overwhelmingly white, Democrat, and financially well-off. In 2008, nearly 80% of the vote went to Obama. The main minority consists of Spanish-speaking
immigrants who prosper by providing services such as gardening, house-cleaning, and child care. The going rate for babysitting is close to $20 an hour.
Although official statistics say that the Hispanics have low incomes, those statistics are based on the assumption that landscapers and babysitters, often in the
country illegally, carefully report their earnings to the government.
Rogue Democrats Loot Detroit As Nation
Sleeps. Few readers will be surprised to learn that decades of incompetence and entrenched corruption in Detroit's government have not only
helped wreck the city; firms linked to former Democratic mayor Kwame Kilpatrick also looted the pension fund. The latest scandal, which leaves even
hardened observers of the abysmal Democratic machine that has run the city into the ground bemused, involves a real estate firm which gave the felonious
mayor massages, golf outings, trips in chartered jets and other perks as this enemy of the people went about his hypocritical business of pretending to
care about the poor while robbing them blind.
Hey, Big Spender. Even as Ann Romney's wardrobe becomes an issue in the 2012 presidential election,
critics of her sartorial choices have turned a blind eye on first lady Michelle Obama's frequent appearances in pricey designer outfits. When the wife of the
presumptive Republican nominee appeared on television last week wearing a nearly $1,000 blouse, pundits were quick to point out the price tag. MSNBC's Lawrence
O'Donnell called the blouse "a really ugly T-shirt" that is "yet another example of how out of touch the Romney family can be with how 99 percent of Americans
live." The first lady's expensive designer clothes, however, rarely warrant mention.
Clooney's Obama Fundraiser Expected
to Collect Record $12 Million. Campaign sources say the May 10 event will be the biggest in presidential election
history.
Smartest Guy in the Room. [Senator John] Kerry's net worth as
listed on his 2011 financial disclosure form is at least $193 million and likely much higher, making him the wealthiest member of the
Senate. He is also a prolific investor, maintaining an array of stocks and other holdings through a mix of family trusts, marital
trusts, and commingled fund accounts with his wife, Big Ketchup baroness Teresa Heinz.
Michelle O wears $2700 sweater. In March, the
first lady visited her British counterpart Samantha Cameron wearing a L'Wren Scott sweater in a trendy bright yellow hue.
The embellished cardigan costs $2,720. Obama, widely regarded as a fashion icon, likes the brand so much that she wore a
peach cardigan from the same line last week during the Take Your Child to Work Day festivities. The next day, she wore
another sweater from L'Wren Scott, this one white with red trim from the Spring 2011 ready to wear collection, for a visit
to Fort Stewart with the president.
Obama wraps another
fundraising month with a chilling plea. Money = Access. No coincidence that about three dozen guests at that
recent state dinner for British Prime Minister David Cameron were Obama bundlers. On May 10 [George] Clooney will
throw open the doors to his 7,000-square-foot LA home to welcome the president and enough Obama supporters, at $40,000 per head,
to give the Chicagoan a one-night haul of about $6 million. There, this Democrat will talk yet again about how much
he needs so much money to fight for America's struggling middle class.
Obama Attends
Two $40,000-Per-Person Fundraisers — That Are Closed to Press. President Barack Obama is mingling
with donors at two high-dollar fundraising events, aiming to raise about $2 million toward his re-election effort.
Silver Spoon
Obama: Is he Calling the Kettle Black? Obama has to be delusional. Just think about it, a poor black man
writes a book about the dreams of his father and he makes millions of dollars. A poor black man is born in Hawaii and he
goes to a private school in Hawaii. A poor black man on his way to Harvard Law School takes a little time (a month) to fly
to Kenya to meet his relatives. I think Obama may be confused by the notion of a silver spoon.
Obama
fundraises at BET chair's home. President Barack Obama attended a fundraiser Friday night at the
home of Debra Lee, chairwoman and CEO of BET. About 40 people attended the $40,000-a-plate dinner
in D.C.'s Woodley Park neighborhood.
Obama's tainted bundler.
Jon Corzine left Goldman Sachs with a net worth far exceeding even that of Mitt Romney today. Many accounts of his
tenure at Goldman suggest he "failed up" the corporate ladder.
Obama Charges
$1,000 Per Handshake. President Obama's fan base is willing to pay through the nose to get a glimpse
of him. In fact, supporters in Dearborn, Michigan showed up today to shell out $1,000 just to shake the
hand of The One.
Obama Asks Donors for A $75,800
Contribution. The Obama campaign may constantly paint presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney as the corporate fat cat candidate, but a new
fundraising invitation from the president may even break the biggest wallets on Wall Street. For $75,800, donors can attend the Obama-backed 18th Annual
National Women's Issues Conference in Washington. The price tag earns a donor the title of "chairman," special seating, a photo op and special
recognition at the conference.
Cost to Discuss War on Women? $75,800.
As President Obama continues to amp up his class warfare rhetoric and paint Republicans as in the bag for the "rich," he seems to have no problem raking in
campaign cash on backs of women by using them as political pawns and treating them (well, liberal women anyway) like victims.
Obama's Hollywood Palace Guards Pour In Big
Bucks. If you're wondering why America's so-called satirists still haven't found the fact that Obama ate a dog funny... In fact,
if you're wondering why no one in Hollywood will satirize Obama in any way whatsoever, this should help to explain a lot.
Jon Corzine Still
Bundling for Obama. Barack Obama's reelection campaign has released the most recent list of names
of fundraising bundlers. On that list is Jon Corzine, the former governor of New Jersey and embattled money
man, the former head of MF Global. Corzine, according to the Obama campaign, has once again helped raise
more than $500,000.
Axelrod
buys $1.7 million Michigan Ave condo. Longtime political strategist David Axelrod, who helped advise President Obama's presidential
run in 2008 and is serving as communications director for Obama's re-election campaign, has paid $1.7 million for a four-bedroom, 3,320-square-foot
condo unit in a high-rise condo along Michigan Avenue.
President
Obama's 'Fairness' Vision Would Bankrupt Nation. It's ironic that President Obama would make two speeches this
week in Florida about "fairness," sandwiched as they were between $10,000-a-plate fundraising dinners. But that's the
level of hypocrisy coming from the White House these days. To be polite, most of the comments Obama makes these days
about the economy, taxes and, especially, "fairness" stretch all credibility. Hearing the large number of outright
falsehoods and partial truths he uses to support his argument, it's impossible not to believe it's simply a ploy to get
votes from those who envy the rich and the successful. A full unpacking of Obama's whoppers would require a much
larger space than we have here.
Obama Family Tax Shelter. President Obama and his
wife, Michele, gave a total of $48,000 in tax-free gifts to their daughters, according to tax records made public on Friday.
[...] There is nothing illegal about the president's taking advantage of this tax shelter, but it does raise eyebrows given
that he has lamented the myriad tax exemptions used by the wealthy — "millionaires and billionaires" like
himself — to pay less in taxes.
Obama attacks
inequality while soliciting big-money donors. Pausing between $10,000-a-plate fundraisers for his re-election
campaign, President Obama called on Congress in a highly partisan speech Tuesday [4/10/2012] to approve a tax increase on
the wealthy to pay for programs for the middle class.
Joe Biden, manipulator of the working class.
Hot on the campaign trail, Vice President Joe Biden is once again trying to prove that he is a product and friend of the working class.
The facts say otherwise.
Obama on
Why Michelle Was a Working Mom (at $316K Per Year). Speaking Friday [4/6/2012] at what the administration called "The
White House Forum on Women and the Economy," President Barack Obama said that after his two daughters were born, he and his wife — both
Harvard Law School graduates — could not afford the "luxury" of having her stay home with the children. In 2005, when Obama
began serving in the U.S. Senate (and his daughters turned 4 and 7), he and his wife were earning a combined annual income
of $479,062.
The Editor says...
It must be tough to scrape out a living on such meager wages.
President
Obama raises nearly $1.5 million in 3 hours. President Obama attended a whirlwind pair of exclusive fundraisers with
top Democratic donors Thursday night [4/5/2012], further padding his reelection campaign coffers as his defense of the White House
pivots into general-election mode. At the first of the two fundraisers, 20 donors paid $40,000 apiece for an intimate
closed-press meeting with the president. Shortly thereafter, Obama crossed town for a larger fundraiser where some
250 people chipped in $2,500 apiece.
Pelosi
held over 400 fundraisers in one year. NPR reporter Andrea Seabrook recently toured with Nancy Pelosi
during a fundraising swing through Texas covering two days, five or six events, three cities. When asked by
Seabrook how often she attends fundraisers a week, she replies, "A lot, you know. They're either on the phone or
attending events. But I think they've said this year I've attended almost 400 fundraisers in nearly 40 cities."
Obama's Trust Fund Baby. Although he is not listed as a
bundler for the Obama campaign, [Rob] McKay is on the board of the Priorities USA Action super PAC and in January helped organize
a $35,800-a-head January fundraiser for Obama. McKay and his wife Anna have given more than $305,500 to Democratic candidates
and groups since the 1990 cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, including $100,000 to the America's Families
First Action Fund, the biggest Democratic-aligned super PAC of the 2010 election cycle.
Michelle Obama headlines S.F.
fundraiser. Today's [3/30/2012] fundraiser, which is expected to draw 350 people, will raise at least
$175,000 for the Obama Victory Fund. Since May, Michelle Obama has attended as many fundraisers as Vice President
Joe Biden.
Dinner
With Obama. Listening to him speak, one would never guess that a man who often criticizes the
wealthy for not sharing enough would then turn around and warmly embrace those he disparages.
Biden
at $10,000-a-Couple Dinner Says the GOP Doesn't Get the 'Middle Class'. Joe Biden, the second most
powerful man in the world, who went to a private Catholic college prep school and had his own law firm before
getting into politics, while attending a posh and very expensive dinner, says that the GOP doesn't have a
sense of average folks?
Biden
hails middle class at wealthy fundraiser. Vice President Joe Biden addressed 87 wealthy Democrats
last night [3/12/2012] attending a fundraiser at the home of Sen. John Kerry in Georgetown. As they dined on grass-fed New
York strip steaks and white truffle mashed potatos underneath a outdoor tent, Biden criticized Republicans for being
out of touch.
Biden
Says GOP Can't Relate to Average Folks at Posh Fundraising Dinner. "It's a shame that Republicans don't understand
the plight of the downtrodden," Sen. John Kerry, the evening's host, told a reporter as he pulled the antique silver spoon out
of his mouth to dip it into a bowl of Pâté de Foie Gras prepared by his personal chef.
The Myth of
"Middle-Class" Uncle Joe. The nation's vice campaigner in chief went on the attack against Republicans
this week, clad in full populist armor. "These guys don't have a sense of the average folks out there," said The
Everyman. "They don't know what it means to be middle class." But who was his audience? Nope, not
blue-collar workers in Allentown, Pa. Biden was speaking to an exclusive club of $10,000-per-couple campaign donors
gathered at the home of the Senate's $200 million man, Democratic Mass. Sen. John Kerry, in Georgetown, D.C.
Forget
red and blue, Obama coming to Houston for the green. In Houston Friday evening [3/9/2012], he will be dining with
Democratic elected officials and some 60 well-heeled supporters from around the state who will have paid $38,500 for the privilege.
The private event is sold out. At an afternoon event at Minute Maid Park's Union Station, he will shake hands with folks
who paid $500 for the privilege, or $10,000 if they want to pose for pictures with him.
Texans
rain a lot of cash on Obama. Although Texas is a not in play from an electoral standpoint, having
last voted for a Democratic presidential nominee in 1976, it does serve as a cash cow for national candidates.
Obama, who reportedly has already obtained $3.4 million from Texas donors, kicked off Friday night's fundraising
effort with a meet-and-greet at Union Station, which was open to anyone interested in buying a $500 ticket, and then
headed to a more intimate gathering at the River Oaks home of Tony Chase and Dina Alsowayel.
Fat cats pig out
for Obama. Wall Street's top Democrats were out in force Thursday night [3/1/2012] at the $71,000-a-couple,
60-person fund-raising dinner with President Obama at Jean-Georges Vongerichten's ABC Kitchen.
Money to burn:
Moran Makes It Rain. Congressional staffers
working for Rep. Jim Moran (D., Va.) received a 120 percent pay hike in the final three months of 2011,
financial disclosure records show. According to the website Legistorm, which maintains a database of
congressional staff salaries, Moran's quarterly payroll averaged $200,802 for the first nine months of 2011,
but jumped to $427,999 in quarter four, an increase of 113 percent.
Obama's Beach Bundler. One of President
Obama's major bundlers is a lawyer who helps her wealthy clients exploit the very offshore tax benefits the
president has criticized. Marjorie Rawls Roberts, a Virgin Islands tax lawyer who specializes in offshore
funds, has committed to bundling at least $100,000-$200,000 for the Obama Victory Fund 2012.
Michelle
Obama wears $2400 outfit, asks rich people to share their wealth. The punchlines are all written for
you when you meet someone who claims to believe so deeply in something, yet they can't even be bothered to fake
interest in it in public. Because Michelle Obama clearly enjoys the spoils of wealth. I mean, why
else would you walk out of that speech just to change into a $2,500+ outfit for an evening event?
Obama Taps NBA Millionaires for
Campaign Cash. President Obama held a fundraiser at Vince Carter's Florida mansion Thursday evening
[2/23/2012], raking in more than $2.1 million for his campaign and the Democratic Party, the Orlando Sentinel
reports.
Michelle
Obama Loves the Corporate Cash in Exclusive Colorado Ski Resort. Michelle Obama and her daughters are
spending the long weekend at the "huge private home" of long-time Democratic donors, Paula and Jim Crown. The
Crowns, who hail from Chicago, have given the Democratic Party plenty of money over the years, according to FEC filings.
Indeed, Michelle Obama hosted a fundraiser at the Crown home last year, too, where more than 150 Democratic donors
donated between $1,000 and $10,000 to the Obama re-election campaign.
Your picture with Michelle
Obama? That'll be $5G. What would you pay to have your photo taken with first lady Michelle Obama,
she of the ripped arms and healthy diet? If you said 5 grand, well, you're in the ballpark, because the
First Spouse is headed to Boston next month to do a parade of grip-and-grins with local Demmies, Obama-ophiles,
fitness freaks, Dougie aficionados and anyone else who can pony up the dough.
Illustration found at
Sad
Hill News.
The Little Sisters of Limousine
Liberalism. [Scroll down] So let's get down to brass tacks. How much is Sister Keehan worth
for such political interventions? The checkered Catholic hospitals Keehan represents as chief executive officer
of the Catholic Health Association stand to receive gobs and gobs of cash from the federal government if Obamacare
holds up past 2012. Consequently, the members of the association are more than happy to pony up huge salaries
to executives skilled at manipulating the Catholic electorate for Obama. Keehan is worth $962,467 to them in
total salary and benefits, according to the Schedule J (Form 990) 2010 document sent to me by CHA.
Stop Picking on
President Bully. Sadly, there's nothing remotely humorous about free citizens who not only welcome,
but willingly fund their own subjugation. Worse, they embrace a campaign which heralds the bottom donor,
even as Obama jet sets at enormous taxpayer expense to lavish, star-studded campaign events — more
than a dozen in January — some with ticket prices as high as $35,800. The campaign raised
$68 million in the last three months of 2011 alone.
Project Obama: A
Puppetmaster or a Puppet? [Scroll down] His limp-wristed demeanor, more typical of a world-weary
courtier than a king, bespeaks indolence rather than energy. What we know about his schedule is certainly
no evidence of a workaholic. Endless hours spent on the links, a net of three months over the last three
years, so that his caddy has far more face time with the president than any member of his cabinet. Frequent,
prolonged vacations in posh spots. Regular, come-hell-or-high-water parties at the White House, rubbing
shoulders with the rich and famous. Sybaritic habits and expensive tastes in food (Wagyu beef, which sells
for upwards of $150 per pound, is said to be a particular favorite) matching his spouse's exorbitant taste in
clothes.
First
lady's office will not comment 'as of right now' on $2K SOTU dress. While the president spoke about the
economic frustrations of average Americans in his State of the Union address Tuesday night, his wife, Michelle Obama
appeared at the event in a sapphire blue dress from designer Barbara Tfank's 2012 Resort collection, estimated to
cost over $2k.
Obama's Open Buffet.
While the nation drowns in debt and the economy continues to teeter, Obama devotes himself to the empty symbolism
of the "Buffett rule." He had the Omaha billionaire's secretary placed in a seat of honor near the First
Lady. Barack and Michelle are the quintessential champagne socialists, enjoying the trappings of
power — the First Lady donned an ostentatious royal blue designer dress that probably cost more than
several months of her prop's secretarial salary — while decrying the excesses of the rich.
The land of Obama make-believe. Where did
President Obama go after killing off thousands of Keystone XL pipeline construction and manufacturing jobs? Why,
Disney World, of course. Sabotaging work is hard work for Goofy and his pals. And where'd he head after
that? Why, up to Manhattan for more high-priced campaign fundraisers charging up to $38,500 per partier.
The Bank of (Democratic Party) America.
President Obama, man of the people, will deliver his presidential nomination acceptance speech at the Bank of
America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. — so that Democratic Party fundraisers can reward big donors with
skyboxes and other lavish perks. As usual, the White House and its allies are trying to camouflage naked
partisan money-grubbing in populist garb.
Environmental activism + Kennedy surname = big bucks.
Gov.
Cuomo's ex wife Kerry Kennedy in $40 million anti-oil deal. Governor Andrew Cuomo's (D-NY) ex-wife
Kerry Kennedy, daughter of Robert F. Kennedy, stands to make up to $40 million while promoting a
ridiculous $18 billion judgment from an Ecuadoran court against Chevron by indigenous peoples. That
case, where the US judge hearing Chevron's countersuit stated that much of the evidence presented in Ecuador
was "fraudulent," has been a windfall for western environmental groups who gleefully pounced on the opportuntity
to politicize a case that never should have gone to trial.
Cuomo's ex
Kennedy stands to make $40M in secret anti-oil deal. What [Kerry] Kennedy has never mentioned
during her campaign is that she is being paid handsomely for her seemingly selfless advocacy. Kennedy,
52, was secretly hired as a "public-relations consultant" by the lawyer representing the Ecuadoreans in an
$18 billion lawsuit against Chevron, according to court documents. Cashing in on her respected
family name and legacy, Kennedy raked in tens of thousands of dollars and was given a 0.25 percent
stake — worth as much as $40 million — if the $18 billion judgment handed
down by an Ecuadorean judge is ultimately upheld.
Obama's DNC
speech could move to BofA stadium. President Barack Obama's re-election campaign is considering moving
the final day of the Democratic National Convention to Bank of America Stadium to sell more skyboxes to wealthy donors,
three Democrats involved in the fundraising told Bloomberg News.
Obama raising
money in DC for Democrats. [Scroll down] At the first event Obama was to join around 25 guests
for a closed-press roundtable discussion with tickets $45,000 each and proceeds split between his campaign
and the Swing State Victory Fund, which supports Democrats in battleground states.
Middle Class Warriors
Dine Out for $260. I realize the Obamas are wealthy people, and that wealthy people have the right
to drop $260 of their disposable income on chow. But if you're going to invite Associated Press photographers
along to capture your trip to Target and stage photo ops at PetSmart and Best Buy, then I'm going to write about
your unpublicized excursion to Alan Wong's. The press pool was not invited in to take photos this time.
In fact, others were discouraged from doing so too.
Uproar
over Michelle Obama's $2,000 Sundress. We're back to Michelle Obama, and as much as I hate to say
it yet
again — it's all about the double standard. Here we have a woman who preaches
financial abstinence, but whose personal expenditures are promiscuous beyond belief. Mrs. Obama is a
harbinger of 'safe-spending' and then uncontrollably prostitutes herself on the altar of sartorial elegance
and sumptuous living. The latest controversy surrounds a $2,000 designer sundress the first lady wore
to church on her $4 million Hawaiian vacation.
Same
Politico Obsessed with Palin's Wardrobe Ignores First Lady's Pricey Duds. Personally, I don't
care what Michelle Antoinette wears on her taxpayer-funded lavish Hawaiian vacations with her husband President
FailureTeleprompterDuffer. Thanks to an autobiography that was probably ghost-written by domestic terrorist
Bill Ayers, Obama's a millionaire and more power to him. If the First Lady wants to lord over the peasantry
her fashionable dresses and skirts and purses that cost enough to feed about 500 hungry families, that's Our
Champions Of The Poor's business.
The Democratic
Party's War on the Poor. The day the American welfare system first made it more desirable to
stay on relief than to move up to just the next notch upward — that was the day that the Democrats
truly declared war on America's poor. The right may not look like Santa Claus nearly as often as the
left does, but the right is always the one with the best interests of the poor in mind.
Michelle
Obama's lavish Hawaii wardrobe revealed. Michelle Obama successfully managed to rile U.S. taxpayers
with her lavish $4m family jaunt to Hawaii this Christmas. But it seems her expensive taste has not stopped
there, as her vacation wardrobe has proved to be equally lavish.
Nancy Pelosi, Dianne
Feinstein Are Stinking Rich. According to the Center For Responsive Politics, our San Francisco
reps have a total net worth of greater than $310 million. That includes Pelosi's whopping net worth
of $196,299,990; Sen. Dianne Feinstein's $93,707,020; and Congresswoman Jackie Speier, who is the 31st-richest
rep, with a net worth of $20,527,999. Meanwhile, Senator Barbara Boxer is valued at a little more than
$5 million.
First Family Arrives in Kailua.
First Lady Michelle Obama and her daughters, Sasha and Malia, spent the night in Kailua, Oahu, on Saturday
[12/17/2011]. President Barack Obama has not yet arrived for the family's 17-day holiday vacation in a
beachfront home.
Another Load of Trickle-Up Economics.
It's the return of Trickle-Up Economics, an article of nearly religious faith on the Left these days, despite the
rather stunning volume of evidence that it doesn't work. Cast a flurry of government dollars across the
deserving poor, and their rush to spend Big Government's largesse will cause businesses to pop up all over the
place and begin hiring. Obviously liberals are in love with this fantasy, because it means Big Government
gets to exercise ever-greater control over the private sector. Taxpayer money is seized and spent, while
liberals get to posture as the selfless champions of the little guy.
The Rich Are Not Conservative.
Where is income highest in America? It is not where oil company executives live or where computer software
executives roost, but rather the environs of our nation's capital: ten of the top-sixteen highest-income
places in America are Virginia or Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C.
As
Americans struggle, the Obamas make do with 37 Christmas trees. The economy may be weak,
unemployment strong and the first family soon to vacate the White House for another half-month of vacation in
Hawaii. But the Obamas have gone all out in decorating their house this year, including a nearly quarter-ton
gingerbread White House. They have also installed 37 different Christmas trees. Thirty of the
trees are live, or were, including one nearly 19-feet tall from Wisconsin.
FLOTUS dines at
Co Co. Sala. First lady Michelle Obama enjoyed a lovely evening at Co Co. Sala on F Street
on Monday night [11/28/2011]. ... We're told Obama's favorite savory was Chef Tiptur's Moroccan Swordfish Sliders
with chermoula marinade, fennel salad, aged pecorino and hazelnut coffee dressing.
The very angry first
lady Michelle Obama. Mad Michelle this week popped down to Davis Island, Fla., to hobnob with the
very people her husband despises — the 1 percent. At a massive mansion on the bay, filled
with the wealthiest of the wealthy, America's first lady launched into a tirade about "them" — the
Republicans.
Report:
Democrat spends $9K to attend donor's wedding. Rep. Robert Andrews, D-N.J., spent more than
$9,000 in campaign funds so he and his family could be in Scotland for the wedding of a donor, a New Jersey
newspaper reports. The Star-Ledger of Newark reviewed Andrews' campaign-finance reports and found Andrews
spent $7,725 for three nights in a ritzy hotel in Edinburgh, $953 in cab rides, meals, tips and airline baggage
fees, and $463 on china as a wedding gift — all paid for out of his campaign account.
Obama's
growing disdain for American worker. The president, jaunting around the world as America's economy
crumbles and Congress lumbers along, leaderless, dropped into a high school in Australia. Talking to the
Aussie kids, he said America's public school students have "fallen behind" them in math and science. And
he said in the U.S., many children don't get the "support they need when they're very young" so they're "already
behind" when they enter elementary school. Of course, that doesn't apply to the president's and first lady's
daughters. There was no chance the One Percent Couple were going to send their own children to a public school
in the District of Columbia; they're off at a private school that costs $30,000 per child per year.
Joe Biden addresses secretive donor conference.
Vice President Joe Biden spoke at a secretive conference attended by about 150 rich liberals deciding
how to divvy up their cash in the run-up to the 2012 election. A variety of liberal groups pitched the
donors throughout the three-day conference, including a network of Democratic outside groups hoping to raise
upwards of $120 million to fund a sort-of shadow party effort supporting the reelection campaign of
Biden and President Barack Obama.
6 Million Dollar
Man: Obama Family Plans to Spend Holidays in Hawaii. "It is great to be home, great to feel that
Aloha spirit. And Michelle and the girls will be back shortly for Christmas vacation, as we do every year.
We'll see if Washington gets its business done, so I can get here as well. But that's always a challenge,"
Obama told a room of at least 300 supporters who paid $1,000, $5,000 or even $18,000 to attend his fundraiser
at the Aulani — A Disney Resort & Spa — in Ko Olina.
Michael
Moore's Mansion Beyond 99 Percent's Wildest Dreams. Left-wing filmmaker Michael Moore has
been touring Occupy Wall Street demonstrations across the country — including some of the most violent,
such as Occupy Oakland — urging activists to continue their fight against the wealthy "one percent" of
Americans. Initially, Moore tried to deny that his massive wealth made him a member of that one percent.
Nancy Pelosi's '60 Minutes' Of Fame.
[Scroll down] A version of the swipe-fee bill made it into an amendment by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., to the
Dodd-Frank bill in 2010. As the bill was proceeding, Pelosi's husband, Paul, a wealthy San Francisco investor
of the type the Occupy Wall Street mobs have targeted, bought $1 million to $5 million of Visa stock in
three separate transactions in a part of the IPO that "60 Minutes" said was offered to a select group of
investors. Interestingly, the wealthy Pelosi has voiced support for the OWS mobs, calling them a genuine
and spontaneous movement protesting the very financial wheeling and dealing that the great unwashed feel has
victimized them.
The Rich Kids of Occupy Wall
Street. People spending their free time camping out in protest of the wealthiest one percent share
more in common with that top one percent than with the bottom one percent with whom they wish more to be shared in
common. One needn't rely on visuals of the protestors' Cabela tents or iPhones. The Daily Caller has
examined the arrest records of hundreds of Occupy Wall Street demonstrators and found that they live in homes with
a median value of $305,000 versus the national median of $185,000. The median rent for apartments listed by
OWS arrestees was $1,850.
NYC arrest records: Many Occupy Wall Street protesters live in luxury.
Many "Occupy Wall Street" protesters arrested in New York City reside in more luxurious homes than some of their
rhetoric might suggest, a Daily Caller investigation has found. For each of the 984 Occupy Wall Street
protesters arrested in New York City between September 18 and October 15, police collected and
filed an information sheet recording the arrestee's name, age, sex, criminal charge, home address
and — in most cases — race. The Daily Caller has obtained all of this
information from a source in the New York City government.
Ten
richest celebs supporting OWS have collective net worth over a billion dollars. Celebrity
airheads who are supporting the occupiers are feeding Wall Street to the crocodile, forgetting that the
beast quickly gets hungry for more. Celebrity Net Worth has a highly amusing article on the subject.
More
about Occupy Wall Street demonstrations.
The very angry first
lady. Michelle [Obama] is going to break with a hundred years of tradition and play the role of attack
dog, heaping derision on her husband's political opponents like no other first lady before her. And it's
already begun. Mad Michelle this week popped down to Davis Island, Fla., to hobnob with the very people her
husband despises — the 1 percent. At a massive mansion on the bay, filled with the wealthiest of the
wealthy, America's first lady launched into a tirade about "them" — the Republicans.
Obama Rakes In Cash From Lobbyists, Enron
Executives. [Scroll down] Meanwhile, First Lady Michelle Obama will be hosting a
big-bucks fundraiser in Houston next week... at the home of a former Enron executive. Politico has
the details: ["]An upcoming Houston fundraiser featuring first lady Michelle Obama at the home of a
former Enron executive who is part of a movement to convert public pensions to 401(k)-style plans is
angering some local Democrats. John Arnold, a Houston billionaire and former Enron trader, is
hosting the Michelle Obama event with his wife, Laura Arnold, at their Houston home on Nov. 1.["]
Arnold, for the record, says he's a libertarian, while his wife is a Democrat. If you want to
reminisce about the Enron glory days with him and Michelle Obama, you'll have to fork over $10,000 for
a ticket to the event, or go for the "co-host level" gold with a $35,800 contribution to re-elect Barack Obama.
Middle Class Warrior Obama
Hits Hollywood For Millions. [President Obama joined] Actor Will Smith and basketball legend Earvin "Magic"
Johnson for dinner and Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas for post-meal canapes.
Michelle
Obama and 'the Few at the Top'. When Ms. Obama charges, "Will we be a country where opportunity
is limited to just the few at the top? Who are we?" one wonders, why, then, in the past three years of
hard times, did she insist on vacationing, in iconic fashion, at Vail, Martha's Vineyard, and Costa del Sol,
the tony haunts of "the few at the top"? In these rough times, surely a smaller staff, less travel, and
budgetary economies would have enhanced her populist message of some at the top enjoying perks at the expense
of others.
Obama
freezes local reporters out of S.F. event. President Obama is scheduled to appear before
hundreds of donors at a $7,500-a-plate noontime fundraiser today at San Francisco's W Hotel —
but not a single local reporter will be allowed inside to cover his only stop in the area, the White
House said Monday [10/24/2011].
First
Lady Asks for $10K Photo Fee. How much would you pay to have your picture taken with First Lady
Michelle Obama? When she travels to Chicago next week to tour Chicago food deserts with Mayor Rahm Emanuel
and later host a fundraiser at Plumber's Hall, she will be asking for a pretty penny. The going rate for a
photograph at the near West Side fundraiser with the First Lady is $10,000 for a family of up to six members.
Protester:
fundraisers tie Obama to 'money elite'. President Obama's high-dollar fundraisers demonstrate that
the president is "in touch with the money elite,' says a Washington D.C. protest group representative who supports
the Occupy movement against "corporate greed." Kevin Zeese observed to WMAL.com that "President Obama, with
his one billion dollar campaign, is holding fundraisers that cost $38,500 to get into." ... He added that such a
fundraiser "puts Obama out of touch with the people and very much in touch with the money elite."
Pelosi's
disclosure belated in husband's land deal. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's husband, a real
estate developer and investment banker, stands to make millions of dollars in a previously undisclosed residential
real estate project in California as a partner with the father of a woman Mrs. Pelosi helped become ambassador to
Hungary, records show. Paul F. Pelosi's investment in Russell Ranch is worth at least $5 million and
possibly as much as $25 million in a deal put together by his friend and longtime business associate, Angelo
Tsakopoulos, patriarch of a multimillion-dollar real estate development firm, according to Mrs. Pelosi's latest
personal-disclosure statement.
Alec Baldwin Fund Tied to
Wall Street, Big Oil. Well now. Isn't this rich? Morgan Stanley, the legendary Wall
Street investment banking company founded by J.P. Morgan that took $10 billion in federal bailout
funds back in 2008 during the financial crisis, is a "Corporate Partner" providing funding to the Carol
Baldwin Breast Cancer Research Fund.
Obamas
celebrate wedding anniversary at stylish $150-a-head restaurant. Restaurant Eve has two 'dining
experiences'. One is the 34-seat 'Chef's Tasting Room' with prix-fixe tasting menus costing up to $150.
Mr Armstrong's signature dishes include the heirloom tomato tart with garden basil and butter poached Maine
lobster with Eastern Shore corn.
Donors
Get Reception With Michelle Obama. First lady Michelle Obama will meet supporters who donate at
least $250 at an upcoming Washington, D.C., fundraiser for President Barack Obama's re-election campaign.
Ten Lessons
from Obama. [#5] Obama cemented the notion that liberal Democrats are the party of really big
money and of very little money — and of few in between. The next populist will have to cut
back on golf, stay at Camp David, and avoid the playgrounds of the rich and famous.
Two days,
seven fundraisers for Obama. On Sunday, September 25, Obama began his tour at 12:33 p.m.
with a fundraiser at the 27,000-square foot, art-draped home of former Microsoft chief operating officer
Jon Shirley in Medina, Washington. 65 attendees paid $35,800 per couple to join Obama at an
intimate dinner.
Hollywood
won't abandon Barack Obama. [Scroll down] In July, the President attended a fundraiser
at the house of producer John Wells. Steven Spielberg, Will Farrell, Tom Hanks, and George Clooney paid
$30,400 per couple for dinner and a photograph with Obama. That month's quarterly report said that
Obama had just passed the $85 million mark in fundraising for 2012. Forty percent of his money
was "big money bundles" that had come from, amongst others, Hollywood big-shots Steven Spielberg, Jerry
Katzenberg, and Andy Spahn.
Obama
gets $7 million from Hollywood. Among the Hollywood VIPs who turned out for Mr. Obama at
a $17,900-per-plate dinner late Monday night [9/26/2011] at the chic Fig & Olive restaurant
on Melrose Place in Los Angeles was Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg, whom the president praised for
"helping us consistently move an agenda forward that creates a more just and fair and more competitive
America."
Showbiz Heavies
Plan More Democratic Party Fundraisers. House minority leader Nancy Pelosi will be the big draw
at a Tuesday night [9/27/2011] fundraiser hosted by director J.J. Abrams and his wife, Katie McGrath.
The event will be held on the rooftop of Abrams' Santa Monica production studio Bad Robot, with all proceeds
going to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Why
Obama and Warren Buffett are suddenly best pals. First, President Obama seized upon populist
comments by multibillionaire investor Warren Buffett to make his tax-the-rich proposal more palatable.
Now, Buffett says he will attend an Obama fundraiser. He's becoming the poster boy for Obama's plans.
The Bugaboo of the Left.
Contrary to the Marxist "working class" myth, the left has always been a movement largely of and by intellectuals.
Their strong suit is propaganda, and they owe their undeniable successes in propaganda warfare to acting in a
highly disciplined fashion and strictly hewing to their own rules of the game.
The Five Million
Dollar Man. The Chicago Tribune reports that an investigation it conducted with WGN-TV found
"23 retired union officials from Chicago stand to collect about $56 million from two ailing city pension
funds." That's an average of $2.4 million each, and some will rake in even more. Dennis
Gannon, a former president of the Chicago Federation of Labor, stands to collect some $5 million.
Michelle
Obama dazzles in New York, wearing diamond bangles. The First Lady wore Katie's Lotus cuff priced at
$15,000 with 2.9 carats of diamonds, her Gothic cuff at $15,350 with 2.17 carats in diamonds and the
Quatrefoil bracelet at $11,800 with 1.73 carats in diamonds.
A
$35,800 Date With the President. [Scroll down] The location of the early reception
is the Woodside home Symantec CEO John Thompson and his wife Sandi. The entrance price at the
Thompson's is $2,500 without a picture or $7,500 with a photo of yourself and the president. The
evening meal will be far more costly. A dinner date with Mr. Obama will cost a cool $35,800.
I'm
exactly what's wrong with Barack Obama's America. Barack Obama would prefer we all be wards of the
state rather than active producers. How else can you explain the incentives he champions: endless
jobless benefits, cradle-to-grave welfare handouts, "tax cuts" for non-taxpayers, and on and on.
Thus proclaims the president who himself raked in a cool $7.2 million over the past two years, "I do
think at a certain point you've made enough money." The key word there is "you."
Mark
Levin: Michelle and Barack Obama "power hungry," "arrogant". During the 2008 election cycle,
political talking heads kept a sharp eye on the alleged extravagance of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
And decades ago they had a lot to say about First Lady Nancy Reagan and her lifestyle in the White House.
Why are there no stories about First Lady Michelle Obama? London's Daily Mail newspaper claims Michelle
Obama has spent $10 million in taxpayer money on vacations.
Expensive
massages, top shelf vodka and five-star hotels. The Obamas' summer break on Martha's Vineyard
has already been branded a PR disaster after the couple arrived four hours apart on separate government jets.
But according to new reports, this is the least of their extravagances. White House sources today
claimed that the First Lady has spent $10 million of U.S. taxpayers' money on vacations alone in the past
year.
Obama
goes hobnobbing with friends and donors. Barack Obama is spending time apart from his wife and
daughters during their family holiday on Martha's Vineyard, opting instead to schmooze with friends on the
golf course and at their private oceanfront mansions. The President has been hobnobbing some long-time
confidantes, as well as some deep-pocketed donors while on his break.
Obama's Vineyard retreat stirs criticism.
There's never an ideal time for a presidential vacation. But President Barack Obama's sojourn this week to
Martha's Vineyard — known as a playground for the wealthy and well-connected — comes in
the wake of the nation's first credit rating downgrade, with the economy sagging, the markets zigzagging and
unemployment hovering at 9.1 percent.
It's official, President to
vacation on Martha's Vineyard. The White House confirmed Wednesday [8/10/2011] what many
people on Martha's Vineyard have known for weeks. The Obama family will vacation on the Island for
the third summer in a row.
It's
no time for a presidential vacation. Is there anyone in the White House with nerve enough to
tell Barack Obama that Martha's Vineyard is the last place on earth that the president of the United States
should find himself next week?
The partier in chief.
This is the third year the Obama family has escaped to the liberal, upper-crust enclave of Martha's Vineyard.
They are staying "up-island" in the town of Chilmark, far away from the troubled cities and towns of America's
heartland. The commander in chief will relax at Blue Heron Farm, a $20 million mansion he rented
for its sprawling 28 acres of property complete with swimming pool, basketball court and putting green.
The elite island is the kind of place where Mr. Obama feels right at home.
Will ritzy vacation trip Obama up?
[Obama has] mostly played out of the spotlight, and his team has done its best to downplay the recreational
aspects of what is undeniably a very rich guy's very expensive vacation in a place regarded as a
lobster-roll-and-Chardonnay Shangri-La for the moneyed Democratic elite.
Limousine liberals don't send their kids to government schools.
Emanuel's
children going to private school this fall. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his wife have decided to
forgo Chicago public schools and send their children to the University of Chicago Lab School in Hyde Park
this fall, a source familiar with the decision has told the Tribune. Leah, Ilana and Zach will be
going to the same school once attended by Barack and Michelle Obama's daughters Sasha and Malia, the
source said.
Barack's Bankruptcy/Birthday
Bash. The elaborate Chicago event will serve as an all-in-one Obama 2012 campaign fundraiser, concert,
and birthday celebration. ... The entry fee to get into the Aragon Ballroom for Barry's big day will cost well-heeled
couples a large pile of the type of "additional income" Obama just the other day suggested they should give to
the needy. Without having to win the "Dinner with Barack and Biden" raffle, donors willing to part with
$35,800 get to enjoy a private dinner with the President and VIP seating at a birthday concert rumored to be
featuring native Chicagoans.
Prez's
vacation makes little $ense right now. Obama, who's got us panicked over this debt-ceiling
stalemate, will soon be off — again — to Blue Heron Farm, Martha's Vineyard.
Check out the pictures of this "farm" online. You practically drool. It looks like the
centerfold of "Town & Country," the magazine for aspiring zillionaires.
DNC White House Event
Included Big Money Obama Donors. A March 7 White House meeting with President Barack Obama
hosted by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for several dozen Wall Street executives also included several
big-money Obama fundraisers. The meeting, which White House Spokesman Jay Carney said "was not a fundraiser"
included many big-money donors known as bundlers, a moniker derived from the fact that they solicit large
contributions on behalf of a campaign.
Bill Clinton made $75 million from speeches.
In the 10 years since leaving the White House, former President Bill Clinton has earned more than
$75 million in speaking fees alone, including nearly $11 million last year, a report Tuesday
[7/12/2011] found.
141 White House staffers make six figures.
One out of every three White House employees makes at least $100,000 a year, according to data released by the
White House on Friday [7/1/2011]. Top earners pull down a salary of $172,200 a year, while three employees
have a salary of $0. Most staffers fall somewhere in the middle.
What Obama donors
ate last night. What did Obama supporters get for $35,800-a-plate at Thursday night's
DNC fundraising dinner at Manhattan's swanky Daniel restaurant? The menu included Maine lobster salad
with roasted beets, followed by a duo of Black Angus beef made with braised short ribs, roasted tenderloin,
baby spinach, stuffed potato and hen of the woods mushrooms.
Liberal American Jewish suckers.
At a five-star hotel [6/20/2011], eighty Jewish donors shelled out between $25,000 [and $]35,800 to attend
a fundraiser with US President Barack Obama.
Pelosi's
wealth grows by 62 percent. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) saw her net worth
rise 62 percent last year, cementing her status as one of the wealthiest members of Congress.
Pelosi was worth at least $35.2 million in the 2010 calendar year, according to a financial disclosure
report released Wednesday [6/15/2011]. She reported a minimum of $43.4 million in assets and
about $8.2 milion in liabilities.
Obama
wants credit for cleaning up 'big mess'. "My job over these first two years has frankly been
to clean up a big mess," Mr. Obama said at a $10,000-per-ticket event at a gated mansion in Miami
Beach. ... The president spoke to guests on a tented lawn with a view of the Miami skyline at the
$5.9 million home of former Samsonite CEO Steve Green, former ambassador to Singapore in the
Clinton administration.
Leave No Limo Behind.
They are buying limousines in Washington. Lots of them. The number of government limousines
increased by 73 percent during the first two years of the Obama administration. The official
justification for the acquisition (with borrowed Chinese money) of all this rolling stock is "security."
Our bureaucrats, it seems, are not safe riding around in ordinary vehicles or, perish the thought, driving
themselves to work. This, it seems, is especially true of those brave souls who toil at the State
Department, which is where most of the limos have been put into service.
New definition decreases government limo count.
Due to confusion about what a limousine is, the General Services Administration has had a hard time counting its limos in recent years, but now
insists a new definition will accurately account for the fleet of government agency-owned luxury vehicles. [...] Two months after the rise was
reported in May 2011, the GSA changed the definition of "limousine" to exclude such vehicles as shuttle buses and sedans, previously classified
as limos.
And another thing: Are Washington politicians buying furniture
from a Swedish company?
More
about President Obama, the gas-guzzling limousine
liberal.
Royals,
Obamas Sip $1,000 Vino. Finally, after two straight presidents who didn't appreciate the taste
of a fine French burgundy, Buckingham Palace tonight [5/24/2011] had a chance to put on the Ritz for a first
family who enjoy a long dinner and luscious wine. Most notable from the wine cellars of the famous
palace: A Echezeaux Grand Cru 1990, Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, that goes for $1,000 —
$1,700 per bottle in the United States.
The
world's richest dinner party. It's difficult to imagine a wealthier set of guests than those invited
to the home of Silicon Valley venture capitalist John Doerr earlier this year, in the mega-wealthy enclave of
Woodside, California. Together they represent companies worth nearly $1 trillion. By all
accounts, Obama didn't have an easy ride — many of the diners are generous political donors and
the President was criticised for slow progress on policy promises.
Obama's
$3 million S.F. dinner — the complete guest list. [Several famous people] happily
dropped $35,800 to dine with President Obama at billionaire Marc Benioff's San Francisco home Wednesday
evening [4/20/2011]. These are just some of the 85 famous names on the fundraiser's guest list
which was plainly visible to rubberneckers as attendees checked in. Combined, Obama's take for the
90-minute event was a cool $3 million — or $3,043,000 to be exact (85 guests x $35,800
each).
Obama Visits the
S(lush) F(und) Bay Area. [Scroll down] After satiating the
hoi polloi with his
Facebook stagecraft, Obama set off for some hardcore fundraisin' — the
real point of the
visit. The first, and swankiest, of his three whirlwind back-to-back-to-back fundraisers was
a $35,800/plate (not a typo) dinner at the Presidio Heights home of billionaire Salesforce.com CEO
Marc Benioff.
The
US President's $30,800 dinner menu. Celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson hosted a dinner for
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama this week at his newest restaurant Red Rooster in
Harlem. The small dinner party of 50 shelled out $30,800 (€27,710) per plate for the party
fundraiser. Samuelsson is one of the president's favorite chefs and has been called upon to cook
a handful of state dinners for him in the past.
Lead balloon. Rhode
Island federal district court nominee John J. "Jack" McConnell Jr. is due for a vote in the Senate Judiciary
Committee today. His nomination should be rejected due to ethical questions about his record. In
addition to being accomplished at the dark arts of ambulance chasing, Mr. McConnell is a political high roller.
In the past two decades, he and his wife donated $700,000 to Democratic Party groups and candidates.
Michelle Obama carries $1,000 tote. Michelle
Obama put another label name on the map this week, when she was spotted carrying a bold new handbag
to her daughter's parent-teacher conference. The teal blue leather tote by U.S. designer
Reed Krakoff has already sold out around the world — despite the fact that it costs
nearly $1,000.
Big Obama
donor quits envoy job amid criticism. As a supporter of presidential candidate Barack Obama,
Cynthia Stroum was a superstar whose financial backing of the campaign landed her a plum diplomatic posting
in Europe.
Democrats,
environmentalists pushing Blacks out of their neighborhoods. The black population of San
Francisco is less than half of what it was in 1970, and it fell another 19 percent in the past decade. ... Blacks
are being forced out of San Francisco, and out of other communities on the San Francisco Peninsula, by high housing
prices. At one time, housing prices in San Francisco were much like housing prices elsewhere in the country.
But the building restrictions — and outright bans — resulting from the political crusades of
environmentalist zealots sent housing prices skyrocketing in San Francisco, San Jose and most of the communities
in between. Housing prices in these communities soared to about three times the national average.
The Rise of the Adolescent
Mind. Just because one is a former Chicago organizer does not mean he cannot be the largest recipient
of Goldman Sachs or BP donations in history. Railing against Las Vegas jet-setters does not mean that one
cannot prefer Martha's Vineyard, Vail, or Costa del Sol to Camp David. We talk about all these "millionaires,"
but fail to include a Rahm Emanuel who managed to receive several million for his apparent fiscal and investment
"expertise" or the liberal Clintonite insiders who looted Fannie and Freddie in bonuses just before these
agencies imploded. The Koch brother are deemed evil; George Soros and Warren Buffet enlightened
billionaires about whose modes of acquisition of riches we must be indifferent.
Progressive
Ralliers Call for Lynching of Black Justice. Among Common Cause's, well, common causes, are
campaign finance reform, net neutrality, outlawing the filibuster, promoting cap and trade, and in this
particular case, herding a mass of protesters outside a nearby hotel to yell at Charles and David Koch
for being conservative and rich. Unfortunately several "haves" have missed the memo that you're not to
be both rich and conservative at the same time, and that bankrolling your pet causes is an extra no-no if
you're conservative — thus exempting left-wing billionaire philanthropists George Soros (from
whom Common Cause has received $2 million over the past eight years) Peter Lewis, John Doerr, Julian
Robertson, Nicolas Berggruen, and many others from being yelled at too.
Pelosi spent $101,000 in two years while travelling with US Air Force.
If the US Airforce did all airline food, it would be strawberries dipped in dark chocolate and grilled chicken
salads all round. Unfortunately this luxury is reserved for top US politicians alone, as new documents
detailing Nancy Pelosi's travel expenses reveal. The former House Speaker was showered with a cornucopia
of gourmet food and alcohol as she travelled over 90,000 miles around the world in just nine months last
year — all courtesy of the US Airforce (USAF).
More
about Pelosi's jet, provided at taxpayer expense.
$$ party for
Charlie. Charles Rangel wants to party away his legal bills. The embattled Harlem
congressman — who has been buried under a mountain of debt from his ethics case — is
throwing a fund-raiser next month to raise money for his legal-defense fund. Tickets to the
event — co-hosted by former state Comptroller Carl McCall — start at $250 and
go up to $5,000.
Foie Gras and
Other Healthy Fare. Recently, America was shocked to learn the Obamas' 10-day-plus Hawaiian
Christmas is costing over $1 million. The fact that the First Family shows their faces outside
the beachfront compound takes guts, especially in a season when some Americans are struggling just to eat.
Don't the Obamas know that throwing rollicking palace parties while the little people starve is the stuff
insurrections are made of? The Obamas' behavior has reduced America to a famished child with its nose
pressed against the cold windowpane of a warm bakery where Michelle and Barry, covered in cream from unlimited
Charlotte Russes, toss maraschino cherries at one another, laughing and having a wonderful time, oblivious to
the waif outside.
Obama
party stays in home taxed at $300. The absentee owner of a multimillion-dollar home being used
by President Barack Obama's visiting entourage gets one of the biggest residential property tax breaks on
Oahu. Kevin Comcowich, the Houston investment executive who purchased the nearly 5,000-square-foot
home for $9 million in January 2008, was charged $300 in property taxes this year.
Obamas Depleting U.S. Lobster
Supply. So how much lobster are you having during these precarious economic times? What? You've
had to cut back? No longer ordering it stuffed with crab meat, at least? Well, if you happen to be the President
of the United States or the First Lady, your lobster consumption is continuing at a robust pace.
Obama Has Shot 41 Rounds
of Golf as President. President Barack Obama has played a remarkable 41 rounds of golf since becoming
president, easily outpacing his predecessor and possibly damaging his ability to portray himself in 2012 as a populist
advocate of average folks.
Liberal Math. Why do
Democrats always go after the orthodontist, electrical contractor, or insurance agency owner, and never the
Buffetts, Kerrys, or Gateses?
Lifestyles of the Rich and Liberal.
In July 2010, as Bill and Hillary Clinton were throwing a $2-3 million-plus wedding for their daughter Chelsea
of which $11,000 went for a gluten-free wedding cake) and Michelle Obama was planning a lavish vacation to Spain's
Costa del Sol, the
Boston Herald revealed that John Kerry was the owner of the
Isabel, a 76-foot,
$7 million yacht custom-made in New Zealand, which he had kept at a dock in Newport, Rhode Island, to avoid
paying an estimated $500,000 in Massachusetts state tax. The boat, according to the brochure of the company,
had two VIP suites (and one for the help), a wet bar, cold wine storage, and seated six around a custom-made table
of Edwardian style ornate varnished teak. Add this to the Heinz-Kerrys' five land-based places of residence,
and they now have in all six luxury "houses," each estimated at over $4 million, for a total of $36 million.
How
Privileged Democrats Pay for Their Houses. Former senior senator from Delaware and current Vice
President Joe Biden has a custom-built house in Delaware's ritziest Chateau Country neighborhood. It is
now worth at least $2.5 million and is the Bidens' most valuable asset. Biden tapped campaign funds
to pay for his compound's lawn needs. He secured the new estate with the help of a corporate executive
who worked for Biden's top campaign donor, credit card giant MBNA. In 1996, Biden sold his previous
mansion to MBNA Vice Chairman John Cochran. The asking price was $1.2 million. Cochran forked
over the full sum.
The Obama-Soros Connection. The
first shots in the Obama Revolution, the highly unlikely campaign that elevated an inexperienced former
Chicago community organizer born in Hawaii and raised in Indonesia into the Oval Office, were fired at the
Long Island Southampton beach house of billionaire hedge fund manager George Soros. Soros is one of the
wealthiest men on the planet, with a personal fortune of at least $7 billion and additional investments of
another $11 billion or so. His collaborative group of pro-Left foundations distributes more than
$400 million a year to causes ranging from underwriting left-leaning Democrat Party candidates to
legalizing marijuana to advocating for euthanasia.
Still Hill's fattest cat.
[Sen. John] Kerry's financial disclosure form revealed that, despite the struggling economy, his minimum net
worth at the end of 2009 was $188.6 million — an increase of more than $20 million from
2008. ... Rounding out the top 10 richest members of Congress are:
2. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., $160 million
3. Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., $152 million
4. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., $83 million
5. Rep. Michael McCaul, D-Texas, $73 million
6. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., $70 million
7. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., $56 million
8. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., $53 million
9. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., $49 million
10. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., $46 million
The Editor says...
Looks like a lot of Democrats in the top ten.
The Party of the Rich.
We live in an era — the worst economically since the Depression — when the daughter of the
first couple of the Democratic Party has a multi-million dollar, Marie Antoinette-style wedding with port-a-potties
almost as luxurious as a toilette in Baden Baden; its self-proclaimed environmental leader, the first global
warming billionaire, sprouts "green" McMansions from Nashville to Montecito; and its already multi-billionaire
senator from Massachusetts moors his yacht in another state to escape taxes we hoi polloi could only dream
of paying. But wait, as they say, there's more.
Liberal Billionaires
Good, Conservative Billionaires Evil. Liberals
love their billionaires, a very long and
sometimes radical list that includes Barack Obama's special favorites Warren Buffet and George Soros. ... [But]
For liberals there is a special place in hell for
conservative billionaires who support free market economic
think tanks and causes.
Fine dining:
[Scroll down] Obama, apparently, was a big fan of chef Scott Ehrlich's beef tenderloin and short ribs,
so the prez ordered it for his entre after his appetizer of pasta with lobster. The first lady, resplendent
in a black and white Narciso Rodriguez dress and a cropped black cardi, chose local greens (because she's a
big fan of farmers) and the beef tenderloin with a lobster tail instead of the highly caloric short ribs.
The group shared four desserts including a creme brulee.
Could
you just put that $1 million in the mail next time? If you live in Los Angeles, like I do, you
already know that things went [bad] Monday night thanks to President Obama, whose arrival in town for a fundraiser
at "West Wing" producer John Wells' Hancock Park house caused utter chaos, snarling traffic all across the city's
Westside. It was ugly. It was also one of those events that may represent a tipping point when it
comes to people's attitudes about an out-of-touch politician and his wealthy supporters.
Obama
goes Hollywood at tonight's fundraiser, $30,400 apiece. Democrats like to characterize themselves
as the party of "the guy who showers after work, not before." The people bankrolling the continuation of
Obama's agenda — the ones he'll be mixing it up with tonight in Hollywood for a major Democratic Party
fundraiser — don't take showers. They take baths in tubs of caviar.
Obama:
Fighting the Yuppie Factor. From the price of arugula to vacations in Marbella, the Obamas are the
perfect yuppie couple. ... Barack Obama — the son of a Ph.D. and a Harvard-educated economist, graduate of a
Hawaii prep school, replete with Ivy League education, stylish digs in a good Chicago neighborhood, properly
tamed and presentable radical social circles, and the requisite power-couple marriage — appreciates the
ambience of a vacation spot: Who goes there and why, and what others will say and think, alone
matter. Otherwise, the sun and surf at Pismo Beach would do just as well.
Michelle Antoinette?
I think the Obamas' tone-deafness, which was on exhibit long before Michelle's Spanish vacation, more likely
results from their inexperience and the fact that if you are a significant figure in Democratic Party politics,
you spend a great deal of time with rich people. That can skew one's perspective.
Out-Of-Control
Michelle Obama's Spending Spree. After blowing nearly a half-million dollars on a Spanish
shopping spree, Michelle Obama has plans to spend a whopping $2 million in the coming year —
while the nation struggles with its worst recession ever.
The Party of the Rich.
At this moment, two of [the Democratic Party's] leaders from a supposedly disadvantaged minority are about to be
tried for ethical transgressions (read: thievery) even Congress couldn't sweep under the rug. Never mind
that these transgressions mostly exploit the very minority these people purport to represent. It's part
of the game. Convince minorities they should act like victims. Extort guilt payments from the majority
and keep the change. Meanwhile, nothing improves for the minority because it would interrupt the system.
President Obama courts wealthy donors.
Four times in the last week, President Barack Obama has quietly slipped into private, exclusive Democratic Party
fundraisers around town, glad-handing well-heeled donors away from the eyes of the press — and
contradicting his pledge to run the most transparent administration in history.
Obama
lands in Dallas for fundraiser at Highland Park lawyer's home. President Barack Obama landed at
Dallas Love Field this afternoon [8/9/2010], en route to a fundraiser at the Highland Park home of a
prominent trial lawyer.
Obama's
Dallas host is prolific Democratic donor. The host for President Barack Obama's Dallas fundraiser
is a well-known trial lawyer who has been a prolific donor to the Democratic Party. Russell Budd served as
a "bundler" in Obama's presidential campaign, raising at least $50,000 for the presidential campaign by soliciting
money from other donors. Budd and his wife, Dorothy, will host the president at their Highland Park home,
where Vice President Joe Biden also came to raise money in March.
Michelle
Obama, Sasha on Lavish Vacation While President Turns 49. Mrs. Obama and Sasha were invited for
an "official" visit with Spain's King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia during their stay — expected to
last about four days. Spain's royal couple happen to be vacationing at their summer palace on the
island of Majorca, and Mrs. Obama is likely to join them there.
Michelle and Sasha
go to Spain. Greeted by a large red, white and blue banner, Michelle Obama landed safely in
España. The First Lady and an entourage including daughter Sasha and three dozen of Michelle's
closest and most intimate friends were warmly welcomed on the Iberian Peninsula for "a private, mother-daughter
trip." Notwithstanding the 5-star rating, the Villa Padierna is a peculiar choice for a mother/daughter
moment as it is "often associated with reality TV and gangsters."
Another getaway for Mrs.
Obama. First lady Michelle Obama may catch some flak for vacationing at an expensive luxury
hotel on Spain's Mediterranean coast. By the end of the summer, Mrs. Obama will have taken eight
vacation trips — including her visit to Marbella, staying at the five-star Hotel Villa Padierna
with daughter Sasha and some pals.
Material
girl Michelle Obama is a modern-day Marie Antoinette on a glitzy Spanish vacation. While most of
the country is pinching pennies and downsizing summer sojourns — or forgoing them altogether —
the Obamas don't seem to be heeding their own advice. While many of us are struggling, the First Lady is
spending the next few days in a five-star hotel on the chic Costa del Sol in southern Spain with 40 of her
"closest friends." According to CNN, the group is expected to occupy 60 to 70 rooms, more
than a third of the lodgings at the 160-room resort. Not exactly what one would call cutting back
in troubled times.
Let them eat tapas.
The Obama family has been working hard to show their indifference to the plight of middle America. Whether
it's the president's golfing fetish, private air transportation for family dog Bo to a Maine vacation, or Michelle
Obama's taxpayer subsidized trip to the Spanish Riviera, the gulf between the White House leisure class and
the American middle class has grown to unprecedented proportions. Everyone is entitled to some R & R,
though Mrs. Obama's jaunt is her eighth holiday this summer.
Spanish
police close public beach for Michelle Obama's £250,000 Spanish holiday. Michelle Obama
today faced a fresh wave of attacks over her lavish break in Spain with 40 friends, which could easily
cost U.S. taxpayers a staggering £50,000 a day. The First Lady has been lambasted for her
extravagance at a time when the economy is still struggling. One blogger went so far as to brand her a
modern-day Marie Antoinette.
Michelle
Obama's Lavish Spain Vacation Sparking Criticism. While First Lady Michelle Obama continues sightseeing
and shopping in southern Spain with daughter Sasha and friends as "private" tourists, questions are being
raised about the cost to taxpayers and whether a lavish vacation sends the right message during tough
economic times in the U.S.
What
Was Michelle Obama Thinking? When we're in the middle of the worst recession in living memory,
it's not a good idea to take a luxury vacation that most of your countrymen could never possibly afford in
the best of times, at considerable taxpayer expense for the security, in a foreign country.
The Pain in Spain Falls Mainly on US Taxpayers.
While millions of Americans cut back on what they can spend on their vacation, Michelle Obama is concluding her last
vacation with a new vacation trip along with 40 guests to Spain billed at a cost of 300,000 dollars a day.
If Michelle Obama wants to go for a swim, an entire beach in Spain must be closed. Considering her busy
working schedule of appearing on talk shows and then appearing on magazine covers, I think we can all agree that
nine vacations is very modest. And the real tab gets much higher when you consider how many of the other
unstated expenses are being picked up by "friends", which is usually a fancy way of saying people who
expect favors in return, again, at taxpayer expense.
Even the
liberal Seattle Times questioning Obama's 'lavish' vacations. More than any presidential
couple in recent memory, the Obamas are demonstrating that they see themselves not only better than
everyone, but more privileged than the rest of us. They've made it to the penthouse and are
determined to enjoy their status to the fullest.
Pampered
populists. It's surreal to see President Obama play the class-warfare card against the Republicans
while on his way to vacation on the tony Maine coast, and even more interesting to note that now gone are the
days when the media used to caricature Bush I for boating in the summer off the preppie-sounding
Kennebunkport. The truth is that the real big money and the lifestyles that go with it are now
firmly liberal Democratic.
Obama
raises nearly $1 million for Giannoulias. The nearly $1 million fundraising event at the
Palmer House Hilton highlighted a quick visit by Obama back home to Chicago that also included a tour of a
Southeast Side Ford plant and a 49th birthday dinner Wednesday night [8/4/2010] with friends including
Oprah Winfrey.
Oprah
Winfrey Tops Our List Of The Highest-Paid Celebrities. Oprah Winfrey may have wrapped up her syndicated talk show last year
after a 25-year run, but her empire sails on.
Price to attend Obama's
birthday bash: $30,000. Happy Birthday, buddy! Sneed hears real estate mogul
Neil Bluhm is tossing a private birthday party here for President Obama, who turns 49 on Aug. 4.
The shocker: The dinner invite to the Barack bash at Bluhm's home requires a $30,000 donation to the
Democratic National Committee!
Obama Meets With Big
Donors. President Obama met with about 50 of the Democratic Party's biggest donors on Tuesday
night [7/27/2010] at an upscale Washington hotel, but aides excluded reporters from the event since the
president did not give a speech.
Obama ate
alone at fund-raiser dinner. The big spenders who shelled out $30,400 a head for dinner with
President Obama at the Four Seasons restaurant and at Anna Wintour's house didn't actually break any bread
with him. After starting Tuesday night [7/27/2010] at a dinner for 60 high-rolling Democratic supporters
hosted by hedge-fund billionaire Marc Lasry, Obama headed to a private room at the Four Seasons to wolf down
steak, potatoes and broccoli with two aides before heading to Wintour's Greenwich Village home.
John
Kerry will pay if 'taxes are owed'. U.S. Sen. John Kerry, the owner of a new, super-luxe
76-foot yacht, is not dodging a six-figure Massachusetts tax bill by docking the Isabel in Rhode Island
and will pony up to the state if "any taxes are owed," a spokesman for the alleged tax-skipping skipper
said. And it appears the senior senator may be on the hook for more than $500,000 in state and local
taxes because Kerry tied his toney tub up in Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket waters within six months of
buying her.
John
Kerry saves $500,000 by docking ultra-luxury yacht in Rhode Island. Times are tough for
everyone. Including gazillionaire John Kerry. The Massachusetts senator is under fire for docking
his brand new $7-million yacht in Rhode Island. It's not illegal to moor your boat there or
anything. It's just that Rhode Island doesn't have a boat sales and use tax anymore.
Kerry's $lick
sailing. John Kerry, the tax-happy Massachusetts Democrat, is docking his new, multimillion-dollar
yacht in Rhode Island — an eyebrow-raising decision that saved him an estimated $437,500 in sales
tax from his home state, it was reported yesterday [7/23/2010].
The
more Kerry changes, the more he stays the same. Give John Kerry this. Some things, he
learns. Republicans swift-boated him in 2004. Yesterday he swift-boated his wife for the second time
in three days, when asked about whether he ducked a half million in state taxes by berthing his $7 million,
foreign-built yacht in Rhode Island. "That depends on who owns it," he said when asked whether he's ever
docked the oh-so-posh Isabel here. Translation: Take it up with Teresa.
Benedict
Arnold's Yacht. If Massachusetts Senator John Kerry had escaped $500,000 in state taxes by
docking his yacht in Rhode Island, the offense wouldn't have been as serious as, say, plotting with the
British against the Continental Army in 1780. But then, it was Kerry himself who upped the rhetorical
ante against those who use tax loopholes for their own gain.
Update:
John Kerry's bucks stop
where? It's been more than three months since we first told you about Capt. John Kerry's
high-seas tax dodge on his new $7 million yacht, Isabel, and the town of Nantucket still doesn't have a
check from the senior senator! You may recall that Kerry lowered the flag and surrendered in July,
agreeing to pony up more than $400,000 to cover state taxes on the toney tub.
President
Obama to summer like it's 2009. President Obama, his poll numbers tanking, will return to
Martha's Vineyard — the most Democratic spot in the bluest of blue states — for his
summer vacation next month, island sources said. Our spies on The Rock report that the first family
will return to Chilmark's Blue Heron Farm for about 10 days in August.
This was apparently not intended to be satire, as far as I know, and yet...
President Obama, to see sights, eat lobster in Bar Harbor, Maine.
Exactly 100 years after the last President visited this coastal haven in Maine for old-money Republicans,
President Obama and his family are arriving Friday [7/16/2010] for the weekend. The summer playground of
the Astors, the Rockefellers and the Morgans — as well as newer social titans like Martha
Stewart — the island is positively aflutter.
Obama's
Maine Island Long Visited by Rich. Serving as a summer retreat for Rockefellers, Vanderbilts
and Morgans, this town and the surrounding area have long been known as a place where well-heeled and
well-known visitors could beat the heat — and have their privacy respected.
Obama Team
rewards Hollywood donors. Why the rush to help Hollywood? Well, midterms are
approaching, the Democratic Party is held in high disregard by many Americans, and the fundraising is
reflecting its bad poll numbers. So why not go where the money is? This is Cook County
pay-to-play politics writ large.
Clintons dealing
for $11M Westchester mansion. Looks like Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton are moving on up —
to a deluxe mansion away from prying eyes. Sources told The Post the Clintons are planning to trade their
almost-modest suburban Chappaqua home for a sprawling $10.9 million estate in the bucolic Westchester town
of Bedford Hills, complete with 20 acres of gorgeous land surrounded by New York's elite.
Kerry
and his energy companies. For all you curious as to why Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., is so inspired
to cut a deal on energy reform, wonder no longer. Apparently, the senior senator from Massachusetts is
positioned to hit the jackpot if a subsidy-laden energy "reform" bill passes. In some years, Kerry
makes more money in dividends and capital gains from these holdings than he does as a senator.
A Surreal Presidency.
Obama enjoys the top job in the country and avails himself lavishly of all its perks, posting as well an
annual income in the millions of dollars, over five million in 2009 alone. His cohorts and backers are
doing quite proudly too, not to mention Democratic godfather George Soros, one of the world's richest men.
Home foreclosures and job terminations are not an issue for these people, who are good at theoretical empathy
and not much else, apart from making the situation even worse than it already is.
Pelosi's
New District Office Costs $18,736 a Month. San Francisco is a high-rent city. Just ask
Nancy Pelosi. The House Speaker's district office in the new federal building in San Francisco costs a
whopping $18,736 a month — the highest rental paid by any member of the House — or,
more precisely, the highest rental paid by taxpayers on behalf of a member of the House.
Obama
raises $1.7 million for Boxer, Dems. President Barack Obama flew into San Francisco Tuesday
night [5/25/2010], spoke at two receptions, had dinner with some high-rolling donors and raised $1.7 million for
Sen. Barbara Boxer and Senate Democrats. This was the second fundraiser the president has done for
Boxer in just over a month, and raised $600,000 — bringing to $1.1 million the amount Obama
has brought in for her.
Barack Obama didn't part the
waters — he just made them dirtier. On the day of the memorial service for the
11 dead on the oil rig last week, Barack flew to San Francisco for a fund-raiser on behalf of the hideous
Sen. Barbara "Botox" Boxer. It was held in a mansion owned by a member of the Getty family, of Big Oil
infamy. And yet nary a word among the usual Ivy League pukes on MSNBC and in The New York Times.
A Bad Case of the Bitters.
With oil from the still-gushing, five-week-old Deepwater Horizon leak lapping unimpeded into the marshes of
Louisiana, on Tuesday [5/25/2010] the President of the United States jetted past the oily Gulf to a San
Francisco fund-raiser for Sen. Barbara Boxer, held, incredibly, at the home of the 350th richest person in
America — Gordon Getty, inheritor of the Getty Oil fortune.
Chuck
Schumer and the confluence of policy and campaign cash. Chuck Schumer has always lived at the
intersection of Big Money and Big Government. He regularly leads the Senate in raising funds from the
biggest industries. His former top staffers are now Wall Street lobbyists and his top fundraisers.
Obama's Wall Street
problem. How much credibility can a person expect to have if demonizing fat cats is the basis
for fund raising at $50,000-dollar a couple events? ... Speaking on behalf of the poor, indigent and oppressed
Obama reiterated the call for Wall Street reform and in the process raised $1.3 million from
185 donors.
The Obamas Made $5.5 Million in 2009.
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama released their 2009 federal and state income returns today [4/15/2010],
reporting an adjusted gross income of $5,505,409. Vice President Joe Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden
released their returns as well, reporting an adjusted gross income of $333,182.
Ka-ching:
Obama is rich! [Scroll down] As a side note, the White House still hasn't said where
that Nobel Prize money is going.
In case you haven't heard, President Obama won
the Nobel Prize and
apparently put the prize money in his pocket.
How Obama Himself
Made More Than 'Enough Money': In defending his administration's efforts at putative financial
reform, President Obama suggested a ceiling, perhaps government-imposed, for Wall Street executives.
Although he did not begrudge them income that is "fairly earned," he added ominously, "I do think that at a
certain point, you've made enough money." The president may be projecting guilt from his own excellent
adventures in greed.
After
beating up Wall Street 'fat cats,' President Obama takes their money. President Obama has been
happy to beat up on Wall Street "fat cats," but tonight [5/13/2010] he'll be even happier to take their money.
The President is slated to headline a superswank, $50,000-per-couple fund-raiser for the Democratic Congressional
Campaign Committee at Manhattan's gilded St. Regis hotel on Fifth Ave. The high-dollar affair will feature
fine French food, a bevy of Wall Street titans and 23 Congress members — including House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
2008 Market Crash Should be Investigated.
[Scroll down slowly] Over the years, [George] Soros has positioned himself to take control of the Democrat
Party through the hundreds of 527 organizations he has helped financed. These organizations have become a "Shadow
Party" unto themselves, and manipulate public opinion for their own end. Among them: the National Education
Association, ACORN, AFL-CIO, American Federation of Teachers, The Media Fund, the Open Society Institute, Planned
Parenthood League, the Sierra Club, America Coming Together, the Huffington Post, Moveon.org. If a left-wing
organization is in the news, it has probably received money from George Soros.
Reflections on the
Revolution in America: The present attempt to remake America is the effort of the liberal
well-to-do — highly educated at mostly private universities, nursed on three decades of postmodern
education, either with inherited wealth or earning top salaries, lifestyles of privilege indistinguishable from
those they decry as selfish, and immune from the dictates they impose on others. ... They are all battling on
behalf of "them," the poorer half of America, currently in need of some sort of housing, education, food, or
legal subsidy, whom the above mentioned elite, in the way they live, send their children to school, socialize,
and vacation so studiously avoid.
The real fat cat
party. The U.S. Climate Action Partnership, led by GE, includes many other Fortune 500 companies,
including Goldman Sachs — the company that has profited mightily from Obama's brand of hope and
change. CAP is an aggressive supporter of the Democrats' climate change scheme. Why? Because
GE and company stand to make billions from carbon pricing, thanks largely to investments in technologies that
cannot survive in a free market without massive subsidies from Uncle Sam.
The Pathology of the Rich
Socialist. People such as George Soros and Michael Moore certainly talk a good game, but the next
Mother Teresa they are not. Mother Teresa never criticized the free-market system; wealth just wasn't for
her. Soros and Moore are quite the opposite. They will never take a vow of poverty and dedicate
themselves to helping the poor. They just want our civilization to take a vow of poverty and
become poor.
Nancy Pelosi spends $2,993 on flowers.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) spent $2,993 in taxpayer money on flowers between June and October.
House Majority Whip James Clyburn has a thing for Chantilly Donuts, spending about $265 at the Virginia shop
in the past quarter. ... Pelosi, who has come under fire in the past for spending on flowers, also spent
roughly $30,610 in food and beverage and about $2,740 on bottled water, contributing to the nearly $120,531
total from all congressional leadership accounts.
It
takes this much money to eat with Barack Obama. [It took $34,000] for a couple to have dinner
with Barack Obama on Thursday night [10/15/2009] in San Francisco's Westin Hotel. And hundreds of
Northern Californians lined up to do so. It better be an abundant shrimp cocktail for that price.
Big
money buys seats at lawmakers' dinner tables. Want to dine with five U.S. senators? Then
just drop by Wednesday night and, oh, by the way, bring $30,400. That's what it costs to be a "co-chair"
of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee's Women's Senate Network party, thrown by power lobbyist
Heather Podesta.
Four of the top five are Democrats.
Report: 237 millionaires in Congress.
As Washington reels from the news of 10.2 percent unemployment, the Center for Responsive Politics is
out with a new report describing the wealth of members of Congress. Among the highlights:
Two-hundred-and-thirty-seven members of Congress are millionaires. That's 44 percent of the
body — compared to about 1 percent of Americans overall.
Insult and
Injury. The entire intellectual infrastructure behind the stimulus, the bailouts, the
auto-industry takeover, and the proposed health-care takeover rests on the assumption that the people who
staff the Obama administration are smarter, better, more caring, and more decent than you yahoos out there in
the general public, who simply cannot be trusted to make your own decisions about important matters, such as
what sort of health insurance to purchase or whether to buy a car that gets 20 miles per gallon or 22 miles
per gallon.
The Emerging Liberal Oligarchy:
Right or wrong, the age of liberal idealism is over. We live today in a different era. ... The liberal aristocracy
that once knew itself to be "the best" has become, after half a century of power, merely "the few," just another cabal of
ruthless men and women fighting to keep their hands on the levers of political power. Our liberal friends do not yet
understand how their years of political and cultural power have corrupted them; they still imagine themselves as plucky
outsiders battling for the people against the powerful. There is a word for a misunderstanding of reality like
that. The word is "delusion."
Is Democracy the Killer
of Liberty? It is a fact that, without funds, one cannot even run for the city's dogcatcher. ... How
about seeking to be the mayor of New York City? Michael Bloomberg is presently running for election to his
third term as the mayor of the city. This man is reportedly the 17th wealthiest person in the world.
He spent $73 million of his own money on his first term campaign ad and apparently he is spending at least
$18.5 million of his own funds again for a third mayoral term in 2009 campaign. Is Bloomberg, one of
the greatest contemporary titans of business, a fool to spend that kind of money for a post that doesn't pay
even a fraction of what he is spending? No. He is not a fool.
Two years later...
Mayor Bloomberg gives $50 million to fight coal-fired power plants.
New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg will donate $50 million to the Sierra Club to support its nationwide
campaign to eliminate coal-fired power plants. Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune described the
gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies, which will be spread out over four years, as "a game-changer, from our
perspective."
The Soros-Axelrod Axis?
George Soros is one of the big sugar daddies of the Democratic Party. He also is the ruler of an archipelago
of so-called 527 groups that pose as non-partisan activists groups, but in fact are often hyper-partisan (such
as MoveOn.Org), and are often employed by Democrats to influence elections. Soros, for years, has been the
top funder of such groups.
Democrats Declare War on the
Poor. The pawn shop business is very easy to understand, and if the interest rate seems exorbitant
to middle-class folks and liberal do-gooders, maybe it's because they don't understand how grateful pawn shop
customers are for the service. Who else offers on-the-spot credit to those who might otherwise have no
source of quick cash? It is idiotic that, on the one hand, Democrats demanded that taxpayers bail out the
mortgage industry, while on the other hand they are trying to put pawn shops out of business.
Obama vacations where the elite meet.
As the health care debate rages on, President Barack Obama will begin a weeklong vacation Sunday [8/23/2009] in
Martha's Vineyard, an enclave of liberal royalty far from middle America, where his approval numbers are
starting to stall. Already, at least one group on the right is taking a jab at Obama over his beach
vacation — at a 28-acre farm, said to rent for up to $50,000 a week.
Obama's
Martha's Vineyard lair: 28 acres. The place where the Obama family plans to spend the
last week of August will offer some room to roam on the remote island off the coast of Cape Cod. The
Blue Heron Farm, a 28-acre retreat in the town of Chilmark, once deemed one of the most expensive towns in
America, is among a stable of resorts that fetch $35,000 to $50,000 a week, according to an island correspondent,
Sam Bungey...
A $6,000 purse?
Michelle
Obama flashes expensive taste. Talk about luxury in the woods! Michelle Obama showed off her more
expensive taste in fashion by carrying a $5,950 VBH black alligator manila clutch while strolling the wooded landscape
outside of Moscow, Russia this week.
Update:
Bag
manufacturer: Mistaken identity on First Lady's clutch. Italian luxury goods manufacturer VBH boasted
yesterday that First Lady Michelle Obama had toted their $5,950 alligator manila clutch earlier this week while on a trip
to Russia. No way, said the White House, which countered that the First Lady was carrying an $875 VBH patent
leather clutch.
The Editor says...
Oh! It's only an $875 purse. Everybody has a couple of those, right?
First Lady Michelle Obama steps out in Lanvin sneakers and they're only
$540! While volunteering Wednesday at a D.C. food bank, the First Lady sported her usual J.Crew
cardigan, a pair of utilitarian capri pants and, on her feet, a sneaky splurge: trainers that go for
$540. That's right: These sneakers — suede, with grosgrain ribbon laces and metallic
pink toe caps — are made by French design house Lanvin, one of fashion's hottest labels.
Fashionable First
Lady Michelle Obama helps the poor in $540 sneakers. First Lady Michelle Obama, who's become
quite the fashion role model with her J.Crew wear and buff-arm-spotlighting sleeveless frocks, is under
scrutiny for what she wore on her feet the other day. They're trendy Lanvin sneakers. Which look
really nice and comfy and all. Trouble is, they cost $540. If you can find a pair anywhere.
Michelle Obama orders thigh-high
boots. Michelle Obama has kicked aside controversy over her expensive French sports shoes
and ordered thigh-high luxury boots from the same country, her new shoemaker said today. ... In April,
Mrs Obama attracted a flurry of comment after she wore a fashionable $540 pair of Lanvin sneakers
when she handed out food to the poor at a Washington food bank.
Pardon
Me, But Did He Just Ask for Grey Poupon? [Scroll down] And that burger "joint" — well, it's
not exactly a glorified White Castle or Steak and Shake — or even a Five Guys, it's a spot where you can drop up
to $17.50 on a burger. You can get yours with foie gras, bordalaise sauce, and even white truffle oil. Just
like Mickey D's, right? It turns out that maybe the cool "let's-show-them-we-are-just-like-them" adventure was
at least a little flawed, but you'd never know it by the news coverage.
Obamas made $2.7M in 2008,
paid $855K federal tax. President Barack Obama's long tenure on the best-seller list is paying
off: He and his wife, Michelle, made $2.7 million last year, nearly all of it from his books.
While the income was far more than the U.S. median household income of about $50,000, it was far less than
the $4.2 million the Obamas made in 2007.
Obamas fly in chef 860 miles... just to make pizza. When you're the
president of the United States, only the best pizza will do — even if that means flying a chef 860 miles.
Chris Sommers, 33, jetted into Washington from St Louis, Missouri, on Thursday [4/9/2009] with a suitcase of dough,
cheese and pans to to prepare food for the Obamas and their staff. He had apparently been handpicked after the
President had tasted his pizzas on the campaign trail last autumn.
Rich, Raise-Your-Taxes
Populists. The tragedy is that moralists like Daschle, Geithner, Solis, etc. have far more access to tax
lawyers and are far less likely to pay the consequences when caught than the putative "rich" that the liberal left, for
the last year, has so cavalierly trashed. Something larger and really weird is going on here. Liberal tax
raisers are not paying taxes. The majority of big Wall Street money (cf. AIG, Fannie, Freddie, Goldman-Sachs,
etc) is going to the Democratic Party.
Everyman Obama
courts socialites. While publicly identifying with the nation's have-nots, the Obama
administration has been quietly cultivating the Beltway social elite behind the scenes.
Obama's Billionaires. Despite funding the majority of his
presidential run with paltry $5 donations from everyday Americans, President-elect Barack Obama has had a slew
of billionaire backers with him on his journey to the White House — plutocrats who provide economic
and political advice and help to raise money. Lots of money.
Obama's billionaire buddies: Ever
since he ran for the Senate in 2004, Barack Obama has had a wealth of 10-figure tycoons advising — and
funding — him.
Caroline's Crib.
Forget Chappaqua. This amazing Martha's Vineyard spread will be the next home-away-from-the-Beltway for
New York's junior senator if Caroline Kennedy is tapped to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton. The 366-acre
estate — worth at least $50 million — just underwent a major renovation and rezoning that will keep
it the exclusive province of Kennedy, 51.
Democrat fat cats.
The Democratic House Caucus retreat was held this weekend at a Williamsburg luxury spa, to the cost of half a
million dollars for the American taxpayer, and Mr. Obama flew the 155 miles on Air Force One (after
getting to Andrews AFB by Marine One) for a brief appearance. This is not just blatant hypocrisy by the
president, it is downright political folly. ... Mr. Obama, who was all fire and brimstone for two years on
the campaign trail, expressing solidarity with the poor and underprivileged in America, should be a bit more
circumspect in events such as this.
The Editor says...
How many of you would take an airplane on a 155-mile trip? It would be twice as fast to drive to
your destination, because of all the delays
and
hassles at the airport. Mr. Obama
is above all that. This incident also shows Obama's poor judgment: For a lot less money,
he could just as easily have taken the Marine Corps helicopter all the way to his destination. But
you see,
your money doesn't matter to him.
Superdelegate system is pure
elitism. In 1903, Wisconsin's "Fighting" Bob La Follette organized the first primaries in the
United States. La Follette hated boss-controlled conventions. The aim of the primaries, he once
said, is to remove the nomination from the hands of professionals. There were no superdelegates prior to
the 1980s, when Walter Mondale, one of the early architects of the superdelegate system, repudiated
La Follette's democratic philosophy. With the explicit aim of preventing voter insurgencies, Mondale
helped to create a bloc of unelected kingmakers drawn from the Washington establishment.
Obama campaign flush from
wealthy California donors. Howard Marks, chairman of Oaktree Capital Management in Los Angeles, donated
$57,000, as did musician Herb Alpert. Others include actors Harrison Ford and George Clooney, who gave $30,800
each; Rob Reiner, who gave $33,100; and Jennifer Aniston, Larry David, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington,
Renee Zellweger and several other Hollywood figures, who gave $28,500.
Washington's elite abuzz as
Obamas settle on a school. In a city where social status is conferred by proximity to political power,
the Obamas' decision on where to educate their two daughters, Malia, 10, and Sasha, seven, had assumed outsize
importance — in no small part because of the potential social opportunities it offers to Washington's elite and
wealthy parents.
Limo
Shortage for Denver Dems. Limousine liberals may be forced to take the bus at the Democratic National
Convention this month because Denver simply does not have enough limos and black cars to go around.
Big Money Still Has
Prominent Seat at Parties' Conventions. When Senator Barack Obama gives his acceptance speech before
70,000 people at Invesco Field on Thursday in Denver, most supporters will be sitting under the open night sky.
But a group of lobbyists and corporate executives will watch the event from plush skyboxes, with catered food and a
flowing bar, and a price tag of up to $1 million.
The new world devised by Maurice Strong and George
Soros. In spite of the hype coming out of the Office of the President-elect, Obama is merely a fop
for the global elite. He is their, and not the people's true agent of change. The January 20
inauguration with its promise of 5 million observers in Washington, D.C. will be the extravaganza of a
lifetime, deepening recession notwithstanding. It is Obama's job to demoralize the 58 million people
who did not buy into his campaign and for all of those who do not want One World Order. Starring among
all the glitterati at the Inauguration Ball, Barack and Michelle are like the stick figures from a
kindergartener's drawing, for this is an emperor who truly has no clothes.
Pelosi's
Wealth Greater Than Other Congressional Leaders. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is
the wealthiest of the top congressional leaders, with total assets valued at somewhere between $30 million
and $131 million, according to federal financial disclosure statements.
Where's the wealth gap? Try Congress.
Together with her husband, Paul, [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi owns a vineyard in St. Helena, Calif., valued
at $5 million - $25 million; a town house in Norden, Calif., valued at $1 million - $5 million;
rental property in Napa, Calif., valued at $500,000 - $1 million; and a Wells Fargo bank account
containing $100,000 - $250,000.… Rent from the Napa property totaled $15,000 - $50,000; rental
income from the vineyard totaled $50,001 - $100,000.
House members doing well
despite economic slump. Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., one of the wealthiest members of
Congress, and her real estate-magnate husband Paul Pelosi spent between $1 million and $5 million to
buy the home they'd been living in on San Francisco's Broadway. They also own a vineyard in St. Helena,
Calif., worth between $5 million and $25 million and a town house in Norden, Calif., valued between
$1 million and $5 million, according to annual financial disclosures released Monday [6/16/2008].
Filings provide a glimpse of corporate
Clintons. A close look at the delayed financial disclosure report of Sen. Hillary Rodham
Clinton for 2007 should banish any lingering thoughts that she and the former president are distinct
entities. As she entered the 2008 election year, the New York Democrat and Bill Clinton were clearly a
corporation and they were rich. … They sold 165 separate securities accounts in April, 2007. The
valuation tables employed in the form indicate they were worth up to $25,440,000. Significantly all
165 accounts were marked "J," meaning joint.
Lawyer in Edwards saga bankrolls Texas
Democrats. The Dallas lawyer who helped John Edwards' former mistress move across the country
has donated $3.5 million since 2005 to help fuel a Democratic resurgence in Texas, a newspaper reported
Saturday. Fred Baron has been by far the largest donor to a group called the Texas Democratic Trust, and
Republicans are now taking aim at candidates who take money connected to him.
A perfect
match: Barack Obama and the dogma-lite elite. Barack Obama's presidential campaign
has rested on two very different sources of financial support. The first has been well documented:
the million or so small donors who gave less than £100 each, largely through Obama's peerless website
and social networking efforts. The second is less well known, but far more significant in terms of
his future administration. These are the financiers, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists who
perceive in him not only a likely winner, from an investment perspective, but also a man whose rise
and ideology-lite politics closely mirror their own.
Help! I'm
a Hollywood Republican. It is, I kid you not, a badge of honor in Hollywood to hate
America. These airheads who have amassed millions through the free market economy constantly
spout nonsense about the need for a Scandinavian style socialist government. They don't even
know that the Scandinavian countries are economic basket cases. I'm not making this up. They
actually cruise Sunset Strip in their Bentleys and accuse Republicans of being greedy.
It Can't Get Any Worse?
Idling behind a Lexus this morning I saw the latest bit of agitprop from the Obama campaign — a
"Got Hope?" bumper sticker. The first question that popped into my mind was, "How bad can it be if
you're driving an ES 350?"
Obama's Little Red Schoolhouse.
[Barack Obama] recently told an interviewer that he opposes school choice because "although it might
benefit some kids at the top, what you're going to do is leave a lot of kids at the bottom." Not being
left behind are Obama's daughters, who attend the private University of Chicago Laboratory Schools.
There, tuition ranges from $15,528 for kindergarten to $20,445 for high school.
Joe Biden and
the American nomenklatura. In large and prosperous non-profit organizations I have
gotten to know, I have observed all sorts of compensation to senior executives that doesn't show up as
income. Lavish offices, ample free time (some even offer paid "sabbaticals"), flexible work schedules,
expense accounts, first class travel to exotic destinations for conferences, research, and other pleasant
activities, superb dining facilities and cuisine, and on and on. The net effect of wealth is
transferred without the appearance of wealth.
Joe
Biden's his own worst enemy. You want more proof that Joe Biden is Joe Six-Pack? "Walk into Home Depot
with me where I spend a lot of time." To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, if a man will lie to you about hanging out at Home
Depot, he'll lie to you about other things as well. Home Depot? What was Sen. Biden picking up, chlorine for
the pool? It surely wasn't a hammer, or work gloves. When did the Home Depot start selling arugula?
Michelle Obama says $600 is the price
of a pair of earrings. Michelle Obama said in Pontiac, Mich., on Wednesday [7/9/2008] that if her husband is
elected he will offer more than a "quick fix" on the economy. "You're getting $600 — what can you do with
that? Not to be ungrateful or anything, but maybe it pays down a bill, but it doesn't pay down every bill every
month," she said. "The short-term quick fix kinda stuff sounds good, and it may even feel good that first month
when you get that check, and then you go out and you buy a pair of earrings."
Obama's Fancy
Snack: While he [Barack Obama] was at a meeting at the Waldorf-Astoria at 4 p.m.
Wednesday [10/15/2008], Michelle Obama called room service and ordered lobster hors d'oeuvres, two whole
steamed lobsters, Iranian caviar and champagne, a tipster told Page Six.
'O' Ring: 30G
Bling for Michelle. The country's economy is in shambles, but President-elect Barack Obama is reportedly
sparing no expense when it comes to bling for his first lady. Obama is giving wife Michelle a $30,000
diamond-encrusted Harmony ring made of "black gold" — rhodium — the world's most expensive
metal, London's Daily Mail reported online last night.
Obama aide denies ring story.
The communications for Obama's transition, Dan Pfeiffer, flatly denied a Daily Mail report that Obama is buying
an exotic $30,000 ring to thank his wife "for her support during the election."
The Editor says...
Does Obama himself deny it, or just some disposable "aide"? Is Obama denying the
purchase itself, or just the motive given by the Daily Mail?
Reality sets in about Obama.
After abandoning his pledge to abide by public financing, this apostle of cleansing the political culture is now going
after the high rollers. As the July 3 New York Times reported, "Last week, the Obama campaign collected about
$5 million at an event featuring celebrities in Los Angeles. The evening began with a dinner at the Dorothy
Chandler Pavilion for more than 200 people who had contributed $28,500 per couple, or raised $50,000."
Obama's Liberal Shock Troops:
In 2005, billionaire investor George Soros convened a group of 70 super-rich liberal donors in Phoenix to evaluate why their
efforts to defeat President Bush had failed. One conclusion was that they needed to step up their long-term efforts to
dominate key battleground states. The donors formed a group called Democracy Alliance to make grants in four areas:
media, ideas, leadership and civic engagement. Since then, Democracy Alliance partners have donated over $100 million
to key progressive organizations.
Cutting Off Energy: The super luxury Kingsmill Resort,
owned by Anheuser-Busch, sprawls over 2,900 lush, rolling acres along the James River in Virginia. It's
an incongruous place for a meeting of liberal Democrats who never tire of attempting to ingratiate themselves
with America's blue-collar workers, folks who could never afford the luxury of traveling to Kingsmill for a
round of golf followed by a session in the spa for the "gentlemen's skin renewal" or "revitalizing pedicure"
services.
Democracy Alliance: Billionaires for Big
Government. Corporate America now leans left. A year ago, six of the ten top-giving industries gave more
to the GOP, but the watchdog Center for Responsive Politics finds that all are now giving more to Democrats. (The
Politico, October 15, 2007) Of more than $577 million donated by business, 56% has gone to Democrats, 44% to
Republicans.
Flatbed Hillary: One of the
more bizarre developments of this campaign season has been to see Hillary Clinton, of all people, turned into
an electoral favorite of blue-collar white voters. The reality is that very few people in politics have
more contempt for white workers than does this product of Park Ridge, Wellesley, the Senate Watergate Committee,
and the super powered Rose Law Firm.
The Democrats'
recurring nightmare: The Party of the Little Guy appears to be caught in what Marxists like to
call a contradiction. Their rhetoric is all about compassion and helping, and taking care of the
unfortunate. But their political philosophy is anchored in elitism: the notion that the government
(and the elites running it) know better than Everyman what is good for him. … It turns out that Obama is
as much of a snob as Kerry, albeit with a wife who thinks she is poor when they earn a million bucks a year,
and feels aggrieved at the cruel way America has treated her.
Media have a
knack for hyping up the news. Journalists still love to claim that the Democrats are the party
for the poor and middle-class workers, while the Republicans cater to the rich. If the truth be told and
emphasized, the Republicans gain more of their political contributions in smaller amounts compared to the huge
personal and political donations by the fat cats and corporations to the Democrats.
Rangel Rents
Apartments at Bargain Rates. While aggressive evictions are reducing the number of
rent-stabilized apartments in New York, Representative Charles B. Rangel is enjoying four of them,
including three adjacent units on the 16th floor overlooking Upper Manhattan in a building owned by one
of New York's premier real estate developers.
Congressman Charlie Rangel Facing Questions About His Harlem
Rental Apartments. The New York Times reports that Rangel — who is chairman of the House Ways and
Means Committee — has three adjacent apartments at a building called Lennox Terrace. He also has a fourth
apartment which he uses as an office despite regulations that require a rent-stabilized apartment to be used only as
a primary residence.
Mr. Rangel's Very Good Deal.
Rent-stabilized apartments in New York City are supposed to be a way for the city to retain residents with moderate
incomes — teachers and police officers, for example. These apartments are very hard to get and even harder
to keep. And in recent years, too many senior citizens or struggling families have been evicted from their
apartments — and the city itself — as landlords upgrade buildings and raise prices.
Only after getting caught...
Rangel:
I'm Evicting Myself. Rep. Charles Rangel said today he will give up one of his four rent-stabilized
apartments, for which he has paid about half of market rate for more than a decade. "The decision has
been made to relocate as soon as possible," said Rangel spokesman Emile Milne, as the Harlem Democrat faced
a storm of controversy.
Rangel's
$trangle. Embattled Rep. Charles Rangel has become an albatross around the necks of
congressional candidates across the country. In at least a dozen contests, Republican challengers are
demanding their Democratic rivals return donations from Rangel, who is under fire for having four
rent-regulated apartments.
Rangel
Calls for Probe into Letterhead of Law. Embattled Rep. Charles Rangel said yesterday [7/17/2008] that
he will seek an ethics ruling on whether it is proper for him to continue using congressional stationery to solicit
funds for a controversial Harlem center named for him. However, Rangel said the House Ethics Committee had no
business probing his leases on four rent-stabilized apartments in Harlem, which critics have blasted as improper.
Clintons' wealth skyrockets by 5,600
percent. Hillary and Bill Clintons' wealth has skyrocketed to more than $20 million last year, a
staggering 5,600 percent increase since President Clinton left the White House, according to their newly released tax
records. In Clinton's last full year in office, 2000, he and Mrs. Clinton earned $357,026. Last year, their
estimated total income was $20.4 million. That is an increase of more than 5,600 percent.
The Clinton Cash Register: Bill Clinton collected
$10,085,000 in speeches alone in 2007, a figure that underscores his continued rock-star credentials on the
international lecture circuit, according Sen. Hillary Clinton's financial disclosure forms for 2007, which
were released Wednesday morning by the Secretary of the Senate.
Rapid rise of
Hillary's fortune: The meteoric rise of the Clintons to the ranks of America's wealthiest families has
presented a challenge to Hillary Clinton's presidential ambitions at a critical stage in the battle for the Democratic
nomination. The Clintons left the White House burdened by debt but have earned $109 million in the past eight
years, putting them among the 14,500 richest families in the country and presenting a stark contrast to the impoverished
families championed by her campaign.
Canada a cash cow for Clinton.
Bill Clinton landed at Pearson International Airport one day in the autumn of 2005, and by the time he boarded
his plane at the end of the day the former president's excellent Canadian adventure had earned him $475,000.
In that one day in the GTA, he had earned double his annual salary as president of the United States.
Bill
Clinton just keeps on getting. Bill charges as much as half a million dollars to deliver the
platitudes, homilies and dramatic pauses that made him bigger than Oprah. … Obviously, the most effective
way to save lives and deliver hope to young people the world over is to hobnob with corporate tycoons and give
speeches at half a million dollars a pop. And so that is what Clinton has done. Tirelessly.
For eight long, wearying years.
Bill Clinton Earned
$15.4 Million From Burkle Firm Since 2003. "Most people who make that much money work
for it," said Yale University tax law professor Michael Graetz, a former Treasury Department official in
President George H.W. Bush's administration. "What are they being paid for, and if it's the
Sheikh of Dubai paying the husband of somebody who might be the next president of the United States, what
do they think they're paying for?"
Boy,
That's Rich, Bubba! Bill and Hillary Clinton have earned a staggering $109 million since
leaving the White House — fueled by the former president's lucrative paid speeches, books and
business deals at home and abroad, according to tax returns released late yesterday [4/4/2008]. The records give
the most detailed glimpse yet of the one-man cottage industry that Bill Clinton has become since 2001.
Clintons Report
$109 Million in Income Over 8 Years. It's good to be the Clintons. On the same day that she proposed
creating a cabinet-level position devoted to ending poverty, Hillary Clinton and her husband reported earning more than
$109 million over eight years in newly released tax data.
Are We an 'On Your Own Society'?
America has become a heartless "On Your Own Society," Hillary Clinton argues, where "the fruits of our modern
global economy are showing up in the corporate bottom line, not in workers' paychecks." This is hardly
new rhetoric from Democrats. … So if Clinton isn't original, is she at least correct in her assessment?
Liberals
and Their False Idols: Politicians, unlike cops, firemen and members of the military, are not
called upon to do anything dangerous, heroic or the least bit self-sacrificial. Instead, they build up
fiefdoms on your tax dollars, go on junkets around the world, receive the sort of health care only millionaires
can dream of and the sort of pensions no working stiff can even imagine.
Al Gore's $100 Million Makeover:
Al and Tipper used to fret occasionally about money. Not anymore. They have a new multimillion-dollar home
in a tony section of Nashville and a family home in Virginia, and have recently bought a multimillion-dollar condo at
the St. Regis condo/hotel in San Francisco. Available data indicate a net worth well in excess of
$100 million.
Al
Gore's Convenient IPO: What's an Emmy worth? If you're former Vice-President Al Gore,
it's worth just north of $1 million a year and roughly another $48 million in stock. That's a
hefty sum for a guy who of late has traveled the globe as a goodwill ambassador for mankind, stressing the need
for humanity to wake up to the dangers of global warming. Where's Gore getting the dough? From a
tiny, lightly watched cable TV channel called CurrentTV.
Why the Obamas don't advertise their standard of
living: Campaigning for her husband in Zanesville before the Ohio primary, Michelle Obama described to a group
of women how hard it had been for her and Barack to make ends meet: "We spend between the two kids, on extracurriculars
outside the classroom, we're spending about $10,000 a year on piano and dance and sports supplements. And summer
programs... Do you know what summer camp costs?"
Obamas Donated Less
Than 1% of Their 2000-2004 Income. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and his wife
Michelle gave $10,772 of the $1.2 million they earned from 2000 through 2004 to charities, or less than
1 percent, according to tax returns for those years released today by his campaign. … Bill Burton,
a campaign spokesman, said the Obamas gave as much as they could afford.
Obama's
Former Pastor Getting $1.6M Home in Retirement. A two-week FOX News investigation ... has
uncovered where Wright will be spending a good deal of his time in retirement, and it is a far cry from
the impoverished Chicago streets where the preacher led his ministry for 36 years. FOX News has
uncovered documents that indicate Wright is about to move to a 10,340-square-foot, four-bedroom home in
suburban Chicago, currently under construction in a gated community.
Wright Moves On Up.
The concept of practicing what you preach is apparently lost on Wright. After decades of lecturing blacks
to remain loyal to the black ghetto and eschew the white suburbs, he's now building a 10,340-square-foot mansion
in the white suburbs. Among its amenities: an elevator, a rubberized exercise room and room for a
future theater and indoor swimming pool.
McMansion Marxism:
Padding between his reported whirlpool and circular driveway, or maybe while fishing out a snack from the
butler's pantry, Wright can develop some thoughts for volume one of his memoirs on the blinding racism of
bourgeois living in the USA. Not that Wright is alone in his McMansion Marxism. That's the familiar
posture of most radicals: the farther they get from Marxism, the better it looks; the more America
protects their celebrity, status, and wealth, the more secure they feel in denouncing it.
A Rich Irony:
Democrats have always insisted their party is the friend of the poor and unfortunate. But a new
analysis suggests their carefully cultivated image is false. By crunching Internal Revenue Service
data, the Heritage Foundation has found that the Democratic Party is the party of the rich. Democrats
now represent a majority of the country's wealthiest congressional districts.
Inconvenient Al Guzzles More
Electricity Than 20 Average Right-Wing Climate-Change Deniers. [Al] Gore's mansion, [20-room,
eight-bathroom] located in the posh Belle Meade area of Nashville, consumes more electricity every month
than the average American household uses in an entire year, according to the Nashville Electric Service
(NES). In his documentary, the former Vice President calls on Americans to conserve energy by
reducing electricity consumption at home.
Gore Travels in Style.
Take for instead, his mode of both, air and ground transportation. Since Gore only travels in hybrid
vehicles, the Lexus that got him from the airport to the Brandt Centre was just that — an $80,000
hybrid. Turning now to the air, with the fuel Gore's private plane used for this trip, you could probably
take your vehicle and travel back and forth between Vancouver and Halifax about four-and-a-half times.
The great environmentalist?
Tennessee
mine enriched Gore, scarred land. Al Gore Jr. received more than $500,000 in royalties
from the owners of zinc mines who held mineral leases on his farm near Carthage, Tenn. Now the mines
have a new owner and are scheduled to reopen later this year. Before the mines closed in 2003, they
emitted thousands of pounds of toxic substances and several times, the water discharged from the mines into
nearby rivers had levels of toxins above what was legal.
Party of the Rich: Using data
provided by the Internal Revenue Service, [Mike] Franc looked at single-filer taxpayers earning more than
$100,000 per year and married joint-filers earning more than $200,000 per year. Franc discovered
that the Democratic Party is the "party of the rich." Franc said, "Electing Democrats is very closely
correlated with how many wealthy households are in a district."
Bill Clinton May
Get Payout of $20 Million. Former President Clinton stands to reap around $20 million — and
will sever a politically sensitive partnership tie to Dubai — by ending his high-profile business
relationship with the investment firm of billionaire friend Ron Burkle.
Clinton
loaned her campaign $5 million. Senator Hillary Clinton confirmed at a press conference in
Virginia this afternoon [2/6/2008] that she'd loaned her campaign $5 million … She's drawing on a
pool of personal wealth estimated to be as much as $41 million, as well as a reported payout to
Bill Clinton of $20 million from the Los Angeles billionaire manager Ron Burkle.
Clinton gang sets
up $1 million heist in the Hamptons. The Clintons are heading for the beach this summer
along with the Hamptons moneyed elite. Next weekend they will be attending five fundraisers that could
collect $1 million for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign war chest.
Clinton Foundation Raised $135 Million. Former
President Clinton's nonprofit foundation raised more than $135 million last year as his wife ramped up her
bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, according to tax forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service.
The
Clintons' New Escape: Bill and Hillary Clinton have their eyes on the ball when it comes to
2008, but in the meantime, has anyone noted that they bought a piece of beach property in the Dominican
Republic right next to the beautiful domain of designer Oscar de la Renta and his wife, Annette?
Clinton made $10 million
for one year of speaking. Bill Clinton has taken home more than $10 million for his speaking
engagements in the last year. The former US President is one of the best-paid speakers on the lucrative
US circuit, but his biggest single fee was £230,000 paid for a talk in London last September.
To
Avoid Conflicts, Clintons Liquidate Holdings. Concerned that their personal finances might become
a political liability once again, Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton in April sold the millions of dollars of
stocks held by their blind trust after learning that those investments included oil and pharmaceutical
companies, military contractors and Wal-Mart, their aides said Thursday.
Bill Clinton: $10
Million Haul for Talks. Former President Clinton, who might someday be the first spouse,
traveled the globe last year, making more than $10 million giving speeches at corporate retreats, trade
group gatherings and motivational venues. The speaking engagements and their top-dollar fees were
detailed in Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's Senate financial disclosure report, made public Thursday. The
report showed that the former president and his presidency-seeking wife had assets of at least $10 million
and might have as much as $50 million with no liabilities.
$10
Million Blabber Bubba. A globetrotting Bill Clinton raked in a whopping $10 million last
year on the speaking circuit — his most successful year since leaving the Oval Office — pushing the former
first couple's nest egg to as much as $50 million. New personal financial records filed in the
Senate by Hillary Rodham Clinton showed the ex-president hit the talk tour with gusto, delivering speeches
across Europe, and in Australia, Canada, the Bahamas and South Africa.
Hillary Defends Corporate Jet Use.
On Wednesday, Hillary Clinton was challenged by the press about the Clinton family's acceptance of more than
$900,000 in free private travel from Infousa, a company linked to scamming the elderly. … And it's not like
the Clintons couldn't afford to buy an air ticket — the family income since 2001 has been more than
$63 million! So why do they have to freeload from rich friends?
2008
Candidates Rely on Private Jets. A flock of small jets took flight from Washington Thursday
[4/26/2007], each carrying a Democratic presidential candidate to South Carolina for the first debate of the
political season. … No one jet pooled, no one took commercial flights to save money, fuel or emissions.
Corzine
earned $6.1 million last year. Multimillionaire New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine earned about
$6.1 million during his first year as governor, nearly $50 million less than what he earned in 2005,
according to income tax estimates released Thursday by his office.
Save the Green Movement by Stopping
the Insanity. Laurie David has been labeled a "Gulfstream liberal" by Eric Alterman, himself a
proud member of the Left and a regular columnist for the Nation. He recognizes that Ms. David's
brand of environmentalism is nothing more than a facade, a distraction from the financially secure yet
intellectually boring life of the fabulously wealthy. But this hobby has dire consequences for the rest
of us.
Call
him 'Dollar Bill' Clinton. No one brings in money for the Democratic Party like Bill Clinton.
Before the former president and party mega-star even took the stage at Newark's Performing Arts Center for New Jersey
Democrats' annual fundraiser Friday night, the party has pulled in $1.3 million and counting. Some of
the money was raised because of Clinton's unmatched ability to draw out deep-pocketed donors.
Ex-presidents'
big payday. We learned last week that in the six years since Bill Clinton left office, he has
pocketed a staggering $40 million in speaking fees. Tirelessly working the lecture circuit, he has
delivered hundreds of speeches, often at a price of $150,000 and up. Two-thirds of his speaking money
has come from foreign sources, according to the Washington Post, including "Saudi Arabia's Dabbagh investment
firm, which paid $600,000 for two speeches, and China's JingJi Real Estate Development Group, run by a local
Communist Party official, which paid $200,000 for a speech."
All the ex-President's money.
Former President Bill Clinton is one of a kind, but we knew that already. No president before
him has managed to cash in from his time in office with such shameless abandon. A Washington
Post story by John Solomon and Matthew Mosk is staggering in its revelations of Clinton's greed.
In the six years since he left the presidency, Clinton has taken in nearly $40 million — between
nine and 10 million of it last year. Clinton averaged "almost a speech a day" in 2006.
Twenty percent of his fees reportedly "were for personal income." The rest of his speeches,
says the Post, were for no fee or for donations to Clinton's foundation.
Clinton and the Boardrooms: Senator Clinton has
spent the past few months raising tens of millions of dollars in campaign contributions from corporate
America. She splits her time between a $2.8 million mansion in Washington and a $1.7 million,
five-bedroom house in Chappaqua.
Hill
Hauls In a Cool $10 Million. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's weekend trip to California capped off
a breathless week of fund-raising that hauled in nearly $10 million, revealing the reach of her network
of wealthy supporters.
Deval says state police helicopters
are at his service. Throwing caution to the political wind, Gov. Deval Patrick is hopping state police
helicopters for beat-the-traffic trips, and aides say he'll keep using the taxpayer-funded chopper chauffeur despite
his predecessor Jane Swift's public slapdown for similar flights. "The state police helicopter is there for his
use when he needs it for official business," said Patrick spokeswoman Cyndi Roy. "The governor during the
campaign pledged to be governor of the entire state," she added. "He's not going to be a governor who sits
in his office on Beacon Hill."
A
spendy dinner for Obama backers. More than 350 generous campaign contributors — some
of them donating $28,500 to dine with a presidential candidate — cheered Democrat Barack Obama on
Wednesday [8/7/2008] at an exclusive fundraiser for him at the Hilton Minneapolis Hotel.
Hillary and Barack battle it out
for Hollywood elite's millions. Barack Obama's surging campaign for the White House is winning
him new friends in Hollywood, where chequebooks speak louder than political opinions and some of the most
influential entertainment industry figures are already promising big-money contributions that might otherwise
be going to Hillary Clinton.
Hollywood heavyweights set
to rake in cash. One of the first major fund-raisers for the budding Barack Obama presidential
campaign will be hosted by entertainment moguls David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg — that's the Hollywood
buzz.
Oprah
Winfrey is TV's richest celebrity. Winfrey, whose media empire includes a magazine
and stakes in syndicated daytime talk shows by Dr. Phil McGraw and Rachael Ray, earned an estimated
$260 million between June 2006 and June 2007.
The Porkbusters Hall of Shame: If you're a
West Virginian, you have to recognize a central truth: it's Robert Byrd's state — you're just living
in it. In his over forty-eight years (!) in the United States Senate, Senator Byrd has achieved a
pork record that is second to none. From the Robert C. Byrd Expressway to the Robert C. Byrd
Freeway; the Robert C. Byrd Institute to the Robert C. Byrd Federal Building (both of them), Senator
Byrd has truly left his mark on West Virginia — and the federal budget. It would be appropriate to
erect some kind of monument to his century-spanning resume — except that he already did so himself.
Pelosi's
Four-Day 'Coronation' Draws Conservative Criticism. The swearing-in of Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)
as the first female speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives next week will be the focus of four days of
concerts, church services and fund-raising events that conservative analysts called a "coronation" that will
emphasize partying over policy.
Billionaires
for Big Government. The Democracy Alliance does not endorse candidates for public office. … This
emerging vanguard of the proletariat is hardly open to the common rabble because its members must satisfy one
requirement: They must be rich. Members, who are called "partners," pay an initial $25,000 fee and
$30,000 in yearly dues. They also must pledge to give at least $200,000 annually to groups that the
alliance endorses. Partners meet two times a year in committees to decide on grants, which focus on
four areas: media, ideas, leadership and civic engagement. Recommendations are then made to the DA
board, which passes them on to all DA partners. The alliance discourages partners from discussing DA
affairs with the media, and it requires its grant recipients to sign nondisclosure agreements.
Why
Kerry's crack matters. Despite their pose as "the party of the little guy," the dominant Democrats
are patronizing elitists who were born to privilege — people like Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, Ted Kennedy,
Nancy Pelosi and, yes, John Kerry. As a matter of fact, the very phrase "little guy" or "little people"
is obviously condescending. The people who volunteer for our armed services aren't little in any
sense: they're big and self-reliant and proud and powerful and determined, and rightly annoyed by
Kerry's demeaning but revealing attitude. Predictably, major veterans' organizations (including the
American Legion) have demanded his apology.
The elite doesn't understand
the South. The know-it-alls in New York and Washington don't have a clue about the American
South. They don't comprehend its political might and economic muscle, and thus the ultimately crippling
impact Katrina is going to have on them, too. It's that simple.
Kerry Asked About
Campaign Donations. Democrats could win the House and maybe even the Senate next month. So
why isn't John Kerry, the party's 2004 presidential nominee, opening his wallet to help? That's the
question raised on a Web site, heyjohn.org, which points out Americans gave more than $300 million to the
Massachusetts senator's bid for the White House two years ago and argues Kerry should be more generous.
Kerry
is pressured to share campaign wealth. As he campaigns extensively on behalf of House and Senate
candidates, Senator John F. Kerry is under increasing pressure from Democratic Party leaders and activists
to tap his $14 million campaign account and spread the money around to help the party's efforts.
Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, has given less than $15,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee
since the beginning of 2005.
Kerry's inconvenient truth.
While running for eco-moralizer-in-chief in 2004, Kerry was asked by The Detroit News editorial board what car
he drove. Without any hint of irony, he said: "Well, we have a couple of Chrysler minivans.
We have a Jeep. ... and a PT Cruiser up in Boston. ... and we have some SUVs. ... and an old Dodge 600 that
I keep in the Senate. ... and I also have a Chevy. A big Suburban."
Lifestyles of Lear Jet
liberals: Limousine liberals, move over. You've been out-glammed by Lear Jet liberals who
burn beaucoup fossil fuels in the sky as they soar around the planet fighting global warming. Last week,
they flew to their Mecca, the Clinton Global Initiative conference in New York City. For the left-leaning
and loaded, this is the meeting that has it all — the mega-rich paying to be seen caring about poor
people and the environment, while posing for photos with former President Bill Clinton.
The Top 1% ... of What? As many
others have done, Virginia's Democratic Senator-elect Jim Webb recently complained in The Wall Street Journal
of an "ever-widening divide" in America, claiming "the top 1% now takes in an astounding 16% of national
income, up from 8% in 1980." Those same figures have been repeatedly echoed in all major newspapers,
including The Journal. Yet the statement is clearly false.
Former President Rakes
in $7.5 Million. Life after the White House has proven lucrative for former President Clinton,
who made nearly $7.5 million in speaking fees last year and sometimes earned as much as $350,000 for a
single appearance.
Liberals pledge
millions to revive US left. Scores of the US's richest people have pledged
$1,000,000 or more towards a new attempt to reinvigorate the American left and counter the
powerful Republican political machine. The money will be funnelled through an organisation
called the Democracy Alliance which, according to a report in the Washington Post, will help fund
a network of thinktanks and advocacy groups seeking to halt the shift to the cultural and
political right.
Who would have thought Hillary would be perceived as too conservative?
Stars take the shine
off Hillary's bid. From George Clooney to Sharon Stone to Susan Sarandon, the
Beverly Hills set has turned on Clinton. … Hollywood liberals are a vital source of
election funds. "Hollywood is like a piggy bank for the Democrats. No one wants
that cut off," said one senior Democrat activist.
Guest-worker
plan is un-American. Sen. Ted Kennedy may do a lot of talking about his love for
the little guy, but if two major proposals he has made in this Congress were to become law, it
would be a disaster for the poorest American workers and a blow to American freedom.
Kennedy to Cash In.
A bidding war has erupted for the rights to Sen. Ted Kennedy's (D-Mass.) autobiography, which could end up well
into the mid-seven figure range. The floor price to get in the running is believed to be around
$2 million.
Liberals and class: Part
II. Having imagined a world in which each individual has the same probability of success as anyone
else, intellectuals have been shocked and outraged that the real world is nowhere close to that ideal.
Liberals and class: part
III. Sometimes it seems as if liberals have a genius for producing an unending stream of ideas
that are counterproductive for the poor, whom they claim to be helping. Few of these notions are more
counterproductive than the idea of "menial work" or "dead-end jobs."
Rich Liberals: John Kerry and his
wife, Teresa, are worth an estimated $500 million. Along with a $35 million
private Gulfstream V jet and an $800,000 boat, they own five homes in the
U.S. (Source: MSNBC.com)
There is much more information about John Kerry (in case you've
forgotten)
here.
Social Security reform threatened by
elitist liberals. According to public record, one of every three members of the Senate and one out
of every four members of the House are millionaires. Despite popular stereotypes of Republicans as the party
of the rich and Democrats as the party of the working class, the wealthiest member of the Senate (John Kerry of
Massachusetts) and the wealthiest member of the House (Jane Harman of California) are both Democrats. Of
the top six wealthiest senators, five are Democrats.
Easy money in California:
Much of this exclusionary agenda is pushed by people who inherited great wealth and are using it to buy a sense of
importance as deep thinkers and moral leaders protecting the environment. The foundations and movements they
spearhead are driving working people out of areas dominated by limousine liberals, who are constantly proclaiming
their concern for the poor, the children and minorities.
The oldest fraud: Election
frauds are nothing new and neither are political frauds in general. The oldest fraud is the belief that the
political left is the party of the poor and the downtrodden. The election results in California are only the
latest evidence to give the lie to that belief. The most affluent counties were where Kerry had his strongest
support.
Party stereotype update.
Democrats: the party of the little guy. Republicans: the party of the wealthy. Those
images of America's two major political wings have been frozen for decades. The stereotypes were always
incomplete, but for a long time they reflected rough truths. Over the last generation, however, that has
dramatically changed.
John Kerry, Useful Idiot.
While Kerry's handlers might try to cast their candidate as a man of the people, he is anything but. Remember,
this is a man who has twice married multimillionaire heiresses; a man who has multiple mansions on multiple continents;
a man who windsurfs (poorly) off tony Nantucket; a man who rides a bicycle that costs more than some new cars; a
man who spends, oh, maybe $15,000 to jet his hairdresser cross country for a trim. Yes, John Kerry is
the latest in a line of "inheritance-welfare liberals" — those who were raised dependent on
inheritance rather than self-reliance. Is it any wonder, then, that the character and values of these
inheritance-welfare liberals are all but indistinguishable from the character and values of those who depend on
state welfare?
Kerry's Class Warfare: "Working Families" vs. "The
Privileged". In his victory speech at the Iowa caucus, John Kerry uttered a line that exquisitely
captured a staple of his Leftist politics — class warfare. "Count the cost that working
families are paying while the privileged ride high and reap the rewards," he said.
Vote your gun. Gun owners
and hunters, don't let Kerry fool you with his "I'm a gun owner and hunter and I respect the Second Amendment" bovine
scatology. Kerry is about as pro-gun and pro-hunting as I am pro-Dixie Chicks, Michael Jackson, Cat Stevens
and Hans Blix. Have you seen any video or stills of Kerry handling a gun? He looks about as
knowledgeable, natural and comfortable with a firearm as Al Gore does trying to French kiss Tipper.
Here's your
bill. There is no bigger name in making a business out of post-presidential life than
Mr Clinton. Reports have him earning well over $130,000 a speech, and this week he is making
at least three….
John Edwards
Edwards' haircuts cost a pretty penny.
Looking pretty is costing John Edwards' presidential campaign a lot of pennies. The Democrat's
campaign committee picked up the tab for two haircuts at $400 each by celebrity stylist Joseph
Torrenueva of Beverly Hills, Calif., according to a financial report filed with the Federal Election
Commission.
John's $400
Trim: Democratic White House hopeful John Edwards insists on first-class
pampering — enjoying $400 haircuts on the road and plunking down nearly $500 for swank
spa treatments, according to campaign records. Edwards, who touts himself as the poor man's
champion and even launched his bid from New Orleans' hurricane-devastated Lower Ninth Ward, tucked
the vanity treatments into his 5,236-page first-quarter Federal Election Commission filing under
"consulting" expenses.
Update:
Cost Of Edwards' Haircut Hits
$1,250. Beverly Hills stylist Joseph Torrenueva tells the Washington Post that one of his haircuts
for Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards cost $1,250 because Torrenueva had to fly to Atlanta and missed
two days of work as a result. … Torrenueva, a Democrat, said he began cutting Edwards' hair for free but wound
up charging him $300 to $500 per haircut, plus the cost of airfare and hotel stays. That's because Torrenueva
was often forced to meet Edwards on the campaign trail to shear his locks.
Hair
comes the groomed. Poor John Edwards. He follows Barack Obama on the
podium at a conference of mostly anti-war Democrats and it's like watching air whistle out of
a balloon. Obama, a charismatic candidate for change in the mould of Bill Clinton and
John F. Kennedy, has just worked the crowd brilliantly. Then Edwards walks
in….
The Breck
girl and (tax-funded?) haircuts. John Edwards has acknowledged that one haircut (and almost
certainly at least two others) he received during the 2004 general-election campaign, when he was the
Democrats' vice presidential nominee, cost $1,250. His staff insists that Mr. Edwards paid for the
haircuts himself, but it has declined to provide the evidence in the form of cancelled checks or credit-card
statements.
Edwards touts
record as trial lawyer. Democrat John Edwards says his experience as a trial
lawyer makes him the presidential contender best able to give voters hope — and to give
the establishment grief.
The evolution
of John Edwards: John Edwards tells voters that there are still two Americas. What Iowa
caucusgoers must decide is if there are two John Edwardses. Four years ago, the fresh-faced then-North
Carolina senator defended his support for the Iraq war, prescribed a gradual approach to health care reform
and told Iowa caucusgoers not to expect him to criticize his fellow Democrats running for president.
Today, he calls his Iraq vote a mistake, embraces universal health care and regularly attacks party
front-runner Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York.
Two Americas. When
Sen. John Edwards ran for president four years ago, the North Carolina Democrat declared that President Bush
had divided the nation into "two Americas ... one America that does the work, another America that reaps the
reward." Turns out that the other America lives right next door to the 28,000-square-foot,
$5.3 million mansion Mr. Edwards has built near Chapel Hill, N.C.
Edwards
Takes Heat Over Lavish Estate. With a current building value of $4.3 million, the unfinished
Edwards estate is already about $1 million more expensive than any other house in the county, according to
tax records. It sits on land worth about $1.1 million. Edwards first purchased the land in
2004, during his failed run as vice president. He recently sold his mansion in Washington's tony Georgetown
neighborhood for $5.2 million.
How
John Edwards makes his millions grow: Edwards' sprawling, 48-page campaign-finance disclosure for
2006 reveals substantial investments in limited partnerships, subprime-mortgage lenders and an offshore hedge
fund. The latter two run contrary to stands he has taken as a candidate.
The Party of
the Rich. The GOP has historically been the party of both Main Street and Wall Street. But
over the past decade, the plutocrats have increasingly become Democrats. Billionaires for Bush are
increasingly outnumbered by billionaires who hate Bush. And Republicans in limousines are being
outpaced by Democrats in Lear Jets.
In the Beverly
Hills Style: Candidate's $400 Coiffure. John Edwards, the North Carolina Democrat,
announced on Thursday that he was reimbursing his campaign $800 to cover what his aides said was the cost of
two haircuts. … Mr. Edwards has presented himself in the Democratic field as an advocate of
working-class Americans, lamenting the nation's growing economic disparity.
$400 haircut could ruin one's image.
Granted, John Edwards is a wealthy man and he can pay whatever he wants for a trim. But those of us in the
cheap seats are likewise entitled to think his pricey coif sends a message jarringly at odds with the populist
theme of Edwards' campaign. After all, this is the guy who likes to style himself the "son of a
millworker," standing up for the common man. The common man, not to put too fine a point on it, doesn't
pay $400 for a trim.
Edwards
Got Rich Hurting the Poor. Trailing in the polls, John Edwards spent the past week telling the poor
and downtrodden how much he cares about them. He even insisted that his Kennedy-esque "poverty tour" was
not part of his campaign to capture the White House. Yeah, just like all those years he spent latched
to the back bumper of an ambulance were all out of the goodness of his heart.
Don't shut Edwards up.
"They want to shut me up," says John Edwards, who apparently thinks jokes about his $400 haircuts are part of a
plot to keep him quiet. I am on his side. Leave the man alone. Let his jaw keep flapping at
100 mph. With every word the Democratic candidate for president utters, the public learns that much
more about his demagogic, hypocritical phoniness. Even in a recent Creston, Iowa, tantrum about scary forces
spouting trivia to drown out his seriousness, he was busily providing evidence that bunkum is his specialty.
Poor Scam:
John Edwards is hawking only himself. Last week, we learned that Edwards received $55,000 to give
a speech, "Poverty, the Great Moral Issue Facing America," at the University of California, Davis. The
poor students who attended were charged more than $17 a ticket. Earlier this month, it was reported that
despite the fact he denounces predatory lending and subprime mortgages for the poor, Edwards made nearly
$500,000 as a consultant to a hedge fund involved in that business.
Is
Edwards running for king? He already has a castle. When it comes to big houses, how big is too big?
The answer apparently is 28,000 square feet, which is the size of John Edwards' North Carolina home. If
Edwards wants to continue being in the top tier of Democratic presidential hopefuls, he may well have to put
a "For Sale" sign on his behemoth of a house and move into ordinary rich man's digs, like, say, a 12,000
square foot mansion.
Elizabeth
Edwards Favors "Rage". How in the world did these vile women find positions as the official
bloggers in the Edwards campaign? According to Men's Vogue magazine, they were hired by, you guessed it,
St. Elizabeth. And even after their wretched bigotry triggered a national outcry, John Edwards
refused to fire them. But Elizabeth Edwards wasn't confronted on a single one of these statements during
any of her media appearances.
That Was No Lady — That Was My Husband.
The Edwards campaign is apparently still running low on donations, so this week they went back to their top fundraiser: me.
Nonprofit center benefited Edwards.
John Edwards ended 2004 with a problem: how to keep alive his public profile without the benefit of a presidential
campaign that could finance his travels and pay for his political staff. Edwards, who reported this year
that he had assets of nearly $30 million, came up with a novel solution, creating a nonprofit organization
with the stated mission of fighting poverty.
Edwards
Returns Lobbyist Money. Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards, who reiterated his commitment
Tuesday [7/24/2007] to never accept campaign donations from special interest groups, recently returned $3,400
from lobbyists. Edwards spokeswoman Colleen Murray said the campaign returned some money donated by a
registered lobbyist last week, and money from two others was refunded Tuesday after The Associated Press
inquired about the donations.
The Man Behind
the Haircut. Last month, Elizabeth Edwards complained: "We can't make John black, we can't
make him a woman. Those things get you a lot of press, worth a certain amount of fund-raising dollars."
That's right: All Edwards has is a wife with cancer. And as fiercely as the couple tries to play
that victim card, Edwards remains in third place.
Edwards'
finances and populism clash. Once again, John Edwards' money is getting in the way
of his message. His Democratic presidential campaign spent yesterday responding to a front-page
Wall Street Journal report showing that a company Edwards worked for and has invested $16 million
in, Fortress Investment Group, owns mortgage companies that have moved to foreclose on homeowners in
hurricane-ravaged New Orleans. The newspaper identified 34 homes in foreclosure suits.
Edwards backs mandatory
preventive care. Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards said on Sunday
[9/2/2007] that his universal health care proposal would require that Americans go to the
doctor for preventive care.
It's easy to throw somebody else's money at the country's problems.
Edwards Calls For Universal Preschool.
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards rolled out a program for reforming primary education in the United States
on Friday [9/21/2007], proposing to pay teachers up to $15,000 more in high poverty areas and initiating universal
preschool. Edwards was to detail the proposals, which also include longer school years and reforming
No Child Left Behind, later in the day in a speech at a Des Moines middle school.
John Edwards Thinks He's Wiser than Ben Franklin.
Franklin you see, believed in the wisdom of the individual rather than the government, and he spoke often about
the need to guard against the growth of government and the inevitable intrusion on individual rights.
Believing he and government know best, Edwards has now announced more details about his plan for government to
take over the healthcare decisions for every man, woman, and child in America.
Two Edwardses: Once a
great hope, now unliked in party. The dynamic performance by John Edwards at last Sunday's
Democratic presidential debate, assailing his competitors for the nomination, got high marks from political
reporters, Republican politicians and left-wing activists. But not from the Democratic establishment.
Once their great hope for the future, Edwards now is massively unpopular among party regulars who neither
like nor trust him.
Edwards
plans big for presidency. John Edwards says if he's elected president, he'll institute a New
Deal-like suite of programs to fight poverty and stem growing wealth disparity. … Edwards, a former
Democratic senator from North Carolina, says the federal government should underwrite universal
pre-kindergarten, create matching savings accounts for low-income people, mandate a minimum wage
of $9.50 and provide a million new Section 8 housing vouchers for the poor.
John Edwards gets $50,000 to make a speech about poverty
An embarrassment of
riches for John Edwards. Democrat John Edwards has eloquently established his credentials as an
advocate for the poor with a presidential campaign focused on the devastating effects of poverty in America.
But the former North Carolina senator's populist drive has hit some land mines: a pair of $400 haircuts, a
$500,000 paycheck from a hedge fund, and now a $55,000 payday for a speech on poverty to students at the
University of California-Davis.
John Edwards Charged $55,000 to Speak About Poverty, Media Mum.
If a Republican presidential candidate like Rudy Giuliani or John McCain charged a $55,000 fee to speak at a
major university about poverty, would the media be all over it like white on rice?
Immigration
Inconsistencies. There is, of course, the hilarious inconsistency and largeness of John Edwards
charging $50,000 to give a college speech on poverty; specifically noting that we live in two Americas, one
rich (those who get paid $50,000 for a half-hour speech) and one poor (those who have to take out a long-term
loan to pay for their college textbooks — and whose college payments paid for Edward's $50,000
speaking fee).
Edwards'
bumper sticker: Last month he was the poster boy for hair bling and offshore fund-dumping.
Last week he was spanked for receiving $55,000 to speak to a group of students at a public college about poverty
and getting a cut of the booty from the recovery of $500 million in sunken treasure.
Conservatives are more generous than liberals
Tax Returns: Romneys Gave More than Obamas. Tax returns for 2011 set to be released today [9/21/2012]
by Mitt and Ann Romney reveal that they gave away a higher percentage of their income to others than did Barack and Michelle Obama, when both taxes and
charity are taken into account.
Romney the giver. We learned
yesterday [9/20/2012] that last year Mitt Romney paid $1.9 million in taxes on an income of $14 million — and gave $4 million to
charity. The year before, he made $21.6 million, paid $3 million in taxes and gave $3 million to charity. So, to
recap: Mitt Romney has, in the past two years, paid almost $5 million in taxes while giving away $7 million.
Study:
Religious — Not Rich — Americans Give Most to Charity. The
Chronicle of Philanthropy on August 20
issued the findings of a new study of Americans and their patterns of giving, based on the itemized deductions for 2008 tax returns, the
most recent year available, with the data broken down by zip code. Among the findings was that the most religious Americans — not
the richest — were the most likely to give to charities. The five most generous states, in order, were Utah, Mississippi, Alabama,
Tennessee, and South Carolina. The stingiest states, in order, were New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.
Conservatives More Charitable than Liberal Scrooges.
During this holiday season, it is worth remembering some classic examples of liberals not putting their money
where there mouths are. For instance, reporters discovered that Vice President Joe Biden donated an
average of $369 a year to charity. In 1997, reporters unearthed that then-Vice President Al Gore
only donated $353 to charity the previous year. ... These examples of liberals being miserly perfectly
symbolize the class of elite liberals who want to fund every pet cause with everyone else's money but their
own.
Money, time, blood. Arthur C. Brooks spent
12 years as a professional French horn player with the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra and other
ensembles. Then he entered academia and is now Professor of Public Administration at Syracuse
University. In his well-researched book, "Who Really Cares: the Surprising Truth About
Compassionate Conservatism" (Basic, 2006), Brooks uses statistics to demolish years of propaganda.
Why are conservatives more
generous to the poor? So what are we to make of the fact that conservative Americans donate
30 percent more to charity than liberal Americans? A new book called Who Really Cares, by Syracuse
University professor Arthur Brooks, is not going to please the Howard Dean crowd. The book states
flat-out that religious Americans who vote Republican are far more likely to be generous to the downtrodden
than secular-progressives.
Professor Stumbles on
the obvious: Conservatives More Generous Than Liberals. When it comes to the charitable
impulse, liberals are only compelled to give away other peoples' money. Left to their own devices,
they'd just as soon pass the plate up and have somebody else fill it.
Who really
cares? People who identify themselves as conservatives donate money to charity more often than
people who identify themselves as liberals. They donate more money and a higher percentage of their
incomes. It is not that conservatives have more money. Liberal families average 6 percent
higher incomes than conservative families.
Charitable
Nation. The further to the left you are — particularly to the secular left —
the less likely you are to donate your time or money to charity. … What's interesting to me is that
Europeans are uncharitable for the same reason liberal secularists tend to be. In America, as in
Europe, the more you think the state should provide for everything, the less you think anybody else should
provide anything.
Why
the 'Christian Left' is not. Who was it that brought relief in record supply to Tsunami and Katrina
victims — not the leftist Academics, spoiled Hollywood starlets, or the National Organization for Women.
It was the bible-believing, faith practicing, church going religious right. For biblical Christians to
associate themselves in any way with the progressive leftists in America today is to associate oil with
water. So take your pick, choose to be a faithful, biblically centered Christian, or a godless, amoral
leftist — but the two do not go together.
Liberals
Give 'Til It Hurts (You). In 2009, the Obamas gave 5.9 percent of their income to charity,
about the same as they gave in 2006 and 2007. In the eight years before he became president, Obama gave
an average of 3.5 percent of his income to charity, upping that to 6.5 percent in 2008. The
Obamas' charitable giving is equally divided between "hope" and "change." George W. Bush gave away
more than 10 percent of his income each year he was president, as he did before becoming president.
Anti-capitalism
Much of the effort to "watch out for the little guy" is the result of the political left's
jealousy of other people's wealth, or guilt about their own wealth. Either way,
liberals can't stand it when capitalism succeeds. But it is a mistake to believe
that poor people are built up when rich people are torn down.
More class warfare.
A key element of the John Kerry-John Edwards campaign is an us-versus-them theme, where "us" are the poor and
middle class and "them" are the greedy rich. Edwards famously characterized this dichotomy as "Two
Americas" during his run for the Democratic nomination. The clear implication of the Democrats' message
is that the rest of us would somehow be better off if the rich were worse off.
'Depleting'
water, 'poisoning' drinks. For nearly four years a worldwide network of Leftist activists has been
trying to blacken the name of The Coca-Cola Company. The purpose of this corporate campaign is to put a
halt to ostensibly unjust business practices, particularly at Coke bottling plants in Third World countries.
Led by Ray Rogers, a renowned New York-based hired gun for organized labor, the campaign shows no signs of
slowing down. Exactly where Rogers' Campaign to Stop Killer Coke is getting its money is a separate,
if intriguing issue.
The
Few Jerks That Make Everybody Suffer. Every time [an overpaid executive] in effect pillages a
publicly held company, it provides more fodder for Democrats and liberals who perpetually seek to "tax the
rich." In "rich," of course, they usually include families with three kids and parents who are not
multimillionaires, but who might make a combined $250,000 yearly. In fact, the new Democratic Congress
may shove into higher tax brackets families earning far less than that.
Dems
to tackle "income inequality". Understanding [Barney] Frank requires understanding the deep
recesses of the Democrats' psyche about wealth and its creation. Recall former House Democratic Leader
Dick Gephardt of Missouri, who once said people of wealth in America are "the people who have won the lottery of
life." Obviously, Messrs. Frank and Gephardt consider the old hard-work formula dated and dysfunctional.
"Corporate Social Responsibility"
Environmentalists
practice Corporate Social Irresponsibility. It's trendy to talk about "corporate social
responsibility." The idea is companies have obligations beyond making a profit for their shareholders
or creating products and services that their customers want; they have responsibilities to wider society
as well. So, CSR may sound harmless, even noble. But in practice it can be deeply injurious to
some of the world's poorest, least advantaged, and most vulnerable people.
Shame on You! During
the past decade social and environmental activists have been wildly successful convincing thousands of business
executives to embrace corporate socialism. The so-called Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) movement had
business executives spending corporate capital on programs and policies that contribute very little to profitability
and, in some cases, harmed their companies' bottom lines. ... Guess what all of you corporate appeasers, CSR is
about to become real mandatory!
CSR: Corporate
Shakedown Racket. For those who value private property, unfettered competition and the principle
of taxation
with representation, wake up and smell the new generation of power-hungry socialists hiding
within a Trojan Dragon called Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Corporate
Social Responsibility: Picking 91 Million Pockets. Corporate executives are responsible for
obeying laws and regulations. However, the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) movement is all about
business leaders spending company resources (a.k.a. other people's money) on social and environmental programs
that are not mandated by law. It does not take an economics guru to conclude that diverting corporate assets
away from activities that improve earnings endangers the financial wellbeing of millions of Americans.
General
Electric and Al Gore Scheme to Undermine Domestic Oil Drilling. It's tragic that key corporate giants
are on the wrong side of the energy debate. Rather than recognize that our current economy is dependent on fossil
fuels, too many CEOs have been seduced by the notion that corporate responsibility is defined by Al Gore's view of
climate science.
Forty Years of
Perverse "Social Responsibility": Lewis Carroll's "Looking Glass" logic too often seems to be a
guiding principle for environmental and corporate social responsibility (CSR) activists. They claim to be
committed to people and planet, not just profits — and to honesty, transparency, accountability and human
health. One would expect that such basic ethical standards would apply equally to for-profit companies
and nonprofit advocacy corporations. However, the activists who defined CSR standards routinely exempt
themselves and use the terms primarily to pressure companies, raise money and advance political agendas.
Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR) is the Rope that will hang Capitalists. Karl Marx once remarked, "The
last capitalist we hang shall be the one who sold us the rope." However, Marx had no idea the rope would
be corporate social responsibility (CSR) and not greed. In keeping with CSR doctrine, CEOs are opening
their doors to activist groups with great fanfare in hopes of maximizing both "the social good" and corporate
profits. Regrettably, these CEO's are maximizing neither.
The responsible
corporation. Does anybody believe that companies should be socially
irresponsible? I
don't think so. The problem is that few people seem to agree on what corporate social responsibility
actually means.
Putting Class Warfare in Context:
Even if you took every last dollar of profit and redistributed it into wages and benefits, it would
amount to a 21.6% hike across the board. And then the economy would collapse, because no sane
businessman will stay open (and thus provide jobs) if he's forbidden to make money.
GE Irresponsibility: CSR activists call
themselves stakeholders, and demand a controlling voice in all matters corporate. But they weren't
elected. They have little or no ownership interest in the company. And their only real "stake" is
a desire to advance their ideologies. Their agendas typically oppose energy development and emphasize
distant, minor, conjectural or exaggerated risks like global warming and "endocrine disruption."
Corporate Social
Responsibility cuts both ways. It is tiresome to note that Americans are divided
politically. Despite this fact, companies are becoming ever-more entrenched in political
issues. Not just any issues mind you; contentious issues that have already driven a wedge
through our country's political institutions.
Shining
the Light on Wal-Mart's Corporate Social Responsibility Blind Spot. Wal-Mart's emphasis on
fluorescent lighting illuminates a much deeper problem. First, it illustrates the company doesn't understand
the nature of its battle or the motivation of its adversaries. For the Left and its socialism leanings,
Wal-Mart is a symbol of capitalism and free enterprise. This represents a mortal threat to labor unions and
aspiring liberal politicians who value economic equality through wealth redistribution.
The economics
of CSR: Economics matters; the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) movement obscures basic
economic principles by redefining the meaning of a private transaction. Should this redefinition be
successful, our economic growth and vitality will suffer. Right now, the prognosis is not good because
the Corporate Social Responsibility movement is steadily gaining prominence in the business community.
CSR
and the Democratic takeover. It?s official. Nancy Pelosi is going to be the next Speaker of
the House and Harry Reid will be the next Majority Leader of the Senate. Should the Left consolidate its
power past 2008, the future of tax cuts and pro-growth legislation would be in doubt and economic growth would
suffer as a result. There is, however, another less obvious implication from the election that may
significantly affect the economic well-being of our country: the Democratic takeover of the Congress
hands the political levers of power to people who support the efforts of the Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) activists.
The
Economic Recession and the Future of CSR. It was against CSR's initial rise that Milton Friedman famously
wrote: "That is why, in my book Capitalism and Freedom, I have called it [CSR] a "fundamentally subversive doctrine" in a
free society, and have said that in such a society, "there is one and only one social responsibility of business?to use
it resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game,
which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud."
"Socially Responsible"
Corporations: Whose Wealth Are They Spreading Around? Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) departments are much in vogue among Fortune 500 companies, but what do they really do? In
Africa, Asia, Latin America, and elsewhere around the world, large corporations frequently boast about
the social welfare CSR projects they fund as a way for them to "give back." Such comments raise this
question: If these corporations are so flush with cash, why don't they reinvest it to grow their
businesses, or "give it back" to their customers in the form of lower prices or their shareholders
as dividends?
Corporate
social responsibility as corporate welfare. Walter Olson and blogger Professor Bainbridge make the
case that the notion of "Corporate Social Responsibility" can be a smoke screen for efforts to kill smaller
competitors.
Michelle Obama's apocryphal lingerie shopping binge:
Editor's note:
This event may or may not have happened. See recap/commentary at the bottom of this subsection.
Agent
Provocateur sales boosted by US First Lady Michelle Obama. The First Lady is better known for
shopping at more modestly priced High Street brands. But along with the the Queen of Qatar, Sheikha
Mozah, she closed off part of Madison Avenue to spend time in the luxury lingerie shop. Their purchases
contributed to a market-spanking 12.5pc lift in sales. Agent Provocateur, which is styled on vintage
Hollywood glamour, sells handmade Calais lace corsets that sell for up to £900, which could ruffle the
feathers of more than just President Obama in an election year.
Undie-Gate at the White House.
At a time of budget cutting and belt-tightening in the U.S., the White House found itself in the awkward position
of having to deny several stories that ran in British newspapers on Monday that claimed First Lady Michelle Obama
loosened her purse strings last year to go on a $50,000 lingerie shopping spree at Agent Provocateur on Madison
Avenue in New York. The Telegraph, one of several British publications that ran the story, claimed the
high-end lingerie shop had to close temporarily last year so the First Lady could shop with the Queen of
Qatar, Sheikha Mozah.
Michelle
Obama 'spends £32,000 on lingerie'. Like the Duchess of Cambridge, Mrs Obama is known for
shopping on the high street. But she took advantage of a private visit to one of the firm's New York stores
alongside the Queen of Qatar, Sheikha Mozah, after part of the city's Madison Avenue was closed off to the public.
Editor's note:
If you're keeping track of the number of news outlets reporting this story as fact, it was also reported in a tabloid called
the
Mirror,
but it was accompanied by too many salacious illustrations for my taste, so I hesitate to even mention it.
Is
Michelle Obama America's Agent Provocateur? [Scroll down] But what we do know is that
Mrs. Obama would have zero problem brazenly shutting down a street in New York City; she did it before for
date night, and if in need of shopping therapy in a sexy skivvy shop, she'd likely do it again. Despite
White House denials, it could be that at one point Michelle did shop at the Madison Avenue boutique, and if
she did, reports are that she allegedly rang up a $50K tab.
White
House "Fury" Over Queen Moochelle's $50K Shopping Spree Story. Come to think of it, that
choreographed trip to Target sure looks like some pre-emptive damage control.
The Editor asks...
You remember
Michelle Obama's Target trip, don't you?
At the time, I filed that under
Obama manipulates the media.
White House fury at 'false' claims Michelle Obama [spent] $50,000 on lingerie'.
The expensive wardrobe she packed for her $4 million Hawaii Christmas break, including a $2,000 dress and
$1,000 skirt, also sparked a reaction. ... The First Lady's striking cobalt blue Barbara Tfank dress, worn for
last week's State of the Union address, is believed to be worth approximately $2,000.
Sheer nonsense: Carney
busts lingerie story. The report by a British newspaper that the first lady accompanied the queen
of Qatar on a $50,000 lingerie shopping spree is false, White House Spokesman Jay Carney said on Monday.
Carney, however, declined to offer any evidence of his denial, simply insisting that the British press can't be
trusted.
Michelle
Obama's lingerie spree? No way, says White House. The White House is slamming claims that Michelle
Obama singlehandedly boosted sales at a British lingerie store with an outrageous shopping spree. The first
lady's director of communications shot down rumors that she ran up a $50,000 bill at Agent Provocateur last
year. ... Britain's The Daily Mail, The Sun and the Telegraph all reported the story, claiming Obama was the
reason the risqué shop saw a 12% sales hike last year.
The Editor says...
Whether the lingerie shopping spree story is true or not, this much is apparent: (1) Given Michelle Obama's past
behavior, this anecdote is
believable, except that I would think that she and the Queen could probably buy every item
in a lingerie store for less than $50,000. (2) Three British newspapers reported it, but the American press did
not, except for WLS radio
*
and Women's Wear Daily,
*
which would be exactly the coverage one would expect if the story were true. (3) The White House press
secretary will say whatever he is told to say, even if it is
transparently
false.
That is his job. His vigorous denial doesn't carry much weight, in my opinion. (4) On the other hand, the
British tabloids tend to specialize in indecent and sexually suggestive stories about public officials and self-appointed
celebrities (of which Michelle Obama is the latter only), and some of the stories in the tabloids are dubious at best.
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