Eye On The World

Barack Obama’s shameful absence from the 20th anniversary celebrations of the fall of the Berlin Wall

2009-11-09T15:19:00.003-05:00

Four Key Reasons why the President stayed away:

[...] 1/ Obama is uncomfortable with the idea of American greatness

The fall of the Berlin Wall was the direct result of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher’s determination to confront and defeat Soviet communism. Obama is distinctly uncomfortable with the notion of celebrating the successes of American global power. Practically every speech he has given on foreign soil since taking office has been marked by an apology or apologies for America’s past. A recognition of American leadership, especially an acknowledgement of Ronald Reagan’s leadership, would have been an awkward moment for a US president who seems ashamed of American greatness and exceptionalism.

2/ Obama attaches little importance to the advancement of human rights on the world stage

The Wall’s downfall symbolized the defeat of a brutal ideology, Communism, that enslaved hundreds of millions in Europe. It marked the end of a dictatorial regime in East Germany that oppressed its own people under the auspices of an evil Empire. Barack Obama simply does not view the world as Reagan did, in terms of good versus evil, as a world divided between the forces of freedom on one side and totalitarianism on the other. For the Obama administration the advancement of human rights and individual liberty on the world stage is a distinctly low priority, as we have seen with its engagement strategy towards the likes of Iran, Burma, Sudan, Venezuela and Russia.

3/ Obama cares little about the transatlantic alliance

Obama has paid less attention to the transatlantic alliance than any US president since the Second World War. With the exception of Russia, relations with Europe appear to be of only passing interest to Obama, as is the NATO alliance, unless it involves matters of European integration. The only European issue that seems to energize the Obama administration is the EU’s drive to create a federal European superstate, which is enthusiastically supported by Washington despite the threat it poses to US interests.

4/ Obama is keen to appease Russia

The Obama administration has gone to great lengths to avoid doing anything to offend the Russians, as part of its “reset” strategy. This was exemplified by its monumental surrender to Moscow by reversing the American policy of installing Third Site missile defences in Poland and the Czech Republic. In effect, Obama threw key US allies in eastern and central Europe under the bus in order to placate Russian demands. The White House no doubt calculated that Obama’s presence in Berlin would be interpreted by hawks in Russia as provocative triumphalism on the part of the Americans. Embarrassingly for Obama, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev actually showed up at the Berlin celebrations, while the leader of the free world was nowhere to be seen.

The striking absence of the leader of the most powerful nation on the face of the earth from ceremonies marking the fall of the Berlin Wall is yet another damning indictment of Barack Obama’s world leadership, or lack of it. The United States is currently faced with an array of challenges as great as those confronted by Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, from the war in Afghanistan and the global fight against Islamist terrorism, to the rise of a nuclear-armed Iran.

America today badly needs Reagan’s vision of forceful US leadership if it is to remain as the world’s dominant power. Instead its position is being rapidly undermined by a foreign policy of weakness and indecision, one that will only strengthen the hand of its enemies.

'Going Muslim'

2009-11-09T13:48:00.001-05:00

(Forbes) "Going postal" is a piquant American phrase that describes the phenomenon of violent rage in which a worker--archetypically a postal worker--"snaps" and guns down his colleagues.

As the enormity of the actions of Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan sinks in, we must ask whether we are confronting a new phenomenon of violent rage, one we might dub--disconcertingly--"Going Muslim." This phrase would describe the turn of events where a seemingly integrated Muslim-American--a friendly donut vendor in New York, say, or an officer in the U.S. Army at Fort Hood--discards his apparent integration into American society and elects to vindicate his religion in an act of messianic violence against his fellow Americans. This would appear to be what happened in the case of Maj. Hasan.

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So true.

Daily fail report: WH has "all but lost hope" for deal with Iran

2009-11-09T12:08:00.002-05:00

(NYT) [M]embers of the Obama administration, in interviews over the weekend, said that they had now all but lost hope that Iran would follow through with an agreement reached in Geneva on Oct. 1 to send its fuel out of the country temporarily — buying some time for negotiations over its nuclear program.

It took them that long to see the obvious.

It appears Bamster's administration has lost its hope for change.

Hah Who would've thought of that?

So where are the anti-war crowds?

2009-11-09T10:04:00.004-05:00

(Caracas) The peoples of Venezuela aren't happy. And no wonder. Blessed with the 8th largest fresh water river in the world (Orinoco), some of the largest deposits of hydrocarbons in the world, it is twice the size of California but has a much smaller population (26 million as opposed to 36 million).

With such an abundance of natural resources to fall back on you would think that the peoples of Venezuela wouldn't have much to grumble about.

Well, after 10 years of Hugo Chavez it seems they have. They are facing power cuts, they are facing water cuts, food prices are rising and the murder rate has never been so high. And how does Hugo react?

Well, he's only informed his nation to prepare for war with Columbia. Yup, nothing like a little bit of rabble rousing in which to get the blood flowing and irk that nationalistic spirit.

However, I don't think even the Venezuelan people are as stupid as Hugo presumes they are.

Thing is, I've not heard a squeak from the anti-war crowd.

Terrorists behead teacher who taught underprivileged youths in Muslim areas

2009-11-09T09:30:00.006-05:00

(Philippines) It seems that nothing fails to offend Islamic terrorists.

Take the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group who are fighting for their own Islamic homeland in the south of the Philippines. So offended they were by Gabriel Canizares who taught underprivileged Islamic children, they kidnapped him and chopped off his head because his family couldn't pay the ransom money.

And people wonder why Islamic children do so badly at school -- nobody other than mullahs will take the risk of teaching them.

China executes 9 for rioting

2009-11-09T09:09:00.004-05:00

(Xinjiang) Unlike the rest of the non-Islamic world, when Muslims choose to riot in China, instead of everybody backing off, the media proclaiming that "Actually, Muslims are more loyal than the rest of us" and the local chapter of CAIR demanding an apology. The Chinese just line the naughty people up and send them on their way with a bullet to the back of the head.

Which is what they have just done with the ring leaders of a bunch of Allah's finest who decided to cause a riot against the the non-Islamic Han Chinese population resulting in the deaths of over 197 people.

Hey, I'm not saying that the Chinese are right, but you have to admit, if we shot a few of the really evil people in the West, it certainly would make a few think twice before they played the victim card over why they decided to plot to murder as many people as possible.

I'm sure Human Rights Watch and Ham-nasty international won't agree with the above.

Fort Hood gunman had told US military colleagues that infidels should have their throats cut

2009-11-08T23:05:00.003-05:00

(Telegraph) Major Nidal Malik Hasan, the gunman who killed 13 at America's Fort Hood military base, once gave a lecture to other doctors in which he said non-believers should be beheaded and have boiling oil poured down their throats.

He also told colleagues at America's top military hospital that non-Muslims were infidels condemned to hell who should be set on fire. The outburst came during an hour-long talk Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, gave on the Koran in front of dozens of other doctors at Walter Reed Army Medical Centre in Washington DC, where he worked for six years before arriving at Fort Hood in July.

Colleagues had expected a discussion on a medical issue but were instead given an extremist interpretation of the Koran, which Hasan appeared to believe.

Yet according to Hasan's family, he wasn't an extremist at all. What does it make him, your out-of-the-mill mainstream moderate Muslim terrorist?

Meanwhile, Obama, Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Casey urge us to be politically correct and not to rush with the conclusion that the massacre was religiously motivated.

It was the latest in a series of "red flags" about his state of mind that have emerged since the massacre at Fort Hood, America's largest military installation, on Thursday.

Hasan, armed with two handguns including a semi-automatic pistol, walked into a processing centre for soldiers deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan, where he killed 13 and injured more than 30.

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Chavez Orders Troops to Prepare for War With Colombia

2009-11-08T20:16:00.002-05:00

Obviously, this dumbass is encouraged by Obama's policies friendly towards Marxist and Muslim dictators.

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — President Hugo Chavez on Sunday ordered Venezuela's military to prepare for a possible armed conflict with Colombia, saying his country's soldiers should be ready if the United States attempts to provoke a war between the South American neighbors.

Chavez said Venezuela could end up going to war with Colombia as tensions between them rise, and he warned that if a conflict broke out "it could extend throughout the whole continent."

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Generation O: SEIU Members Beat California State Worker Bloody

2009-11-08T20:12:00.002-05:00

Turkish PM Erdogan: Israel war crimes worse than Sudan

2009-11-08T20:02:00.002-05:00

Just when you think Erdogan hits bottom, he keeps digging deeper.

(Haaretz) Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday accused Israel of committing greater crimes against Palestinians during its war in the Gaza Strip than those for which Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir had been indicted.

Erdogan said he would rather confront Bashir, indicted for orchestrating crimes against humanity in Darfur, than discuss state killings of civilians with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Turkish prime minister also said that he did not believe that Bashir was guilty of the crimes for which he was indicted.

"I cannot discuss this with Netanyahu but I can easily discuss such issues with Omar al-Bashir. I can say to his face: What you are doing is wrong," Erdogan said.

Erdogan said Bashir is free to join an Istanbul summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference this week. The 57-nation group holds its main meetings Monday.

Money quote:

The Turkish prime minister said Ankara respects human rights and would not hesitate to challenge Bashir if it believed he had committed atrocities. But Erdogan said he does not believe that Sudanese paramilitary forces committed acts of genocide against African residents of Darfur.

"It is not possible for those who belong to the Muslim faith to carry out genocide," Erdogan told ruling party members.

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Yeah, Muslims in Turkey didn't commit genocide against Armenians, Greeks and Assyrians during WWI, and Muslims in Sudan didn't commit genocide against Darfurians.

Turkey can now officially kiss goodbye to its hopes for EU membership.

American Muslim created a Facebook page to support Fort Hood mass murderer Nidal Hasan

2009-11-08T19:53:00.002-05:00

I cannot believe this is happening in our country.

One fifth columnist murders American people, another one calls him a hero and creates a get well page for him, asking people to pray for a speedy recovery.

The majority of comments are left by real Americans, and they are hilarious. read as many as you can.

India deepens defense ties with Israel

2009-11-08T14:28:00.002-05:00

A natural course of action since both Israel and India fight against Islamic terrorism.

India is interested in working with Israel on submarine-launched cruise missiles, ballistic missile defense systems, laser-guided systems, satellites as well as unmanned aerial vehicles.

(JPost) Amid Israeli efforts to bolster military ties and export military hardware, the Indian Chief of Staff Gen. Deepak Kapoor arrived in Israel on Saturday for talks with IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi.

Kapoor will hold talks with Ashkenazi as well as other senior Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Ehud Barak. He will visit Yad Vashem in Jerusalem during his four-day visit, as well as the IDF's Southern Command.

Israel and India enjoy close defense ties and Israel last year overtook Russia as the number-one supplier of military platforms to India after breaking the $1 billion mark in new contracts signed annually.

According to press reports, India is interested in working with Israel on submarine-launched cruise missiles, ballistic missile defense systems, laser-guided systems, satellites as well as unmanned aerial vehicles.

The visit to Israel comes just before the first anniversary of the attacks last November in Mumbai against a hotel as well as a Chabad House, during which over 170 people were killed, including the Chabad emissary to Mumbai and his pregnant wife.

Since the attack, Israel has assisted India in beefing up its security, particularly along its coast, where the terrorists allegedly infiltrated from nearby Pakistan.

Last Tuesday, Kapoor was quoted as saying that South Asia was infested with terror groups and there was a possibility that attacks of the sort that happened at Mumbai could happen again.

"We have to take all steps to prevent any Mumbai-type attacks. We cannot rule out apprehensions of such possibilities," Kapoor was quoted as saying by news sites.

"India cannot afford to witness a repeat of 26/11. May I therefore recommend that the nation needs to forge ahead towards acquiring a nationwide architecture for facilitating speedy flow of intelligence, an updated database for providing decision support based on geographical information system and a network of quick execution of plans by the nearest suitable security agency."

"Hezbollah getting ready for new war"

2009-11-08T14:14:00.003-05:00

Hezbollah doesn't even make it a secret they are rearming, which goes against the UN Security Council Resolution 1701 mandating, among other things, that Hezbollah disarms.

(JPost) Fearing Israel will launch an assault on Hizbullah before a strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, the Lebanese guerrilla group is getting ready for a new war, the Observer reported on Sunday.

According to the British newspaper, Hizbullah has been "busy reinforcing fixed defense positions" north of the Litani River, and after losing many of its bunkers in the south during the Second Lebanon War, is preparing "a new strategy" to defend villages there.

"Sure, we are rearming, we have even said that we have far more rockets and missiles than we did in 2006," a Hizbullah commander, speaking on condition of anonymity, was quoted as saying by the newspaper. "We had to blow up or leave some of our bunkers and fighting positions, but we still have plenty of capabilities in the south. We expect the Israelis to come soon, if not this winter, then they will wait until spring, when the ground isn't too soft for their tanks."

The report comes less than a week after the Israel Navy seized a cargo ship loaded with hundreds of tons of weaponry sent to Hizbullah from Iran.

Andrew Exum, a military expert on Hizbullah at the Centre for New American Security, was quoted by the Observer as saying that Hizbullah no longer controls the border, due to the presence of UNIFIL.

"They appear to be hardening the villages for this next round of fighting, while pushing their fixed positions north away from UNIFIL to protect the approaches to Beirut and the Bekaa Valley," he said.

Pakistan: Suicide bomber kills anti-Taliban mayor, 11 others

2009-11-08T13:04:00.003-05:00

A suicide bomber targeting an anti-Taliban mayor blew himself up Sunday in a crowded market in northwestern Pakistan, killing the mayor and 11 other people.

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomber blew himself up Sunday in market in Pakistan's northwest crowded with shoppers ahead of a Muslim holiday, killing 12 people, including a mayor who once supported but had turned against the Taliban, officials said.

A purported commander for the militant group claimed responsibility for the bombing, saying the official was targeted for "interfering in our matters."

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New York-Based Radical Muslim Hails Fort Hood Massacre

2009-11-08T12:58:00.001-05:00

And, unbelievably, his hate speech is protected by the First Amendment.

NEW YORK (FOX News) — A New York City bicycle cabbie who mocked the murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl and posted a prayer on the Web calling for the murder of Jews is now sending a "Get Well Soon" message to the suspected Fort Hood gunman, the New York Post reported.

Yousef al-Khattab, 41, a radical Muslim in the borough of Queens who runs RevolutionMuslim.com, claims on the site that the soldiers massacred at the Texas base deserved to be massacred, and he insists the victims are in "eternal hellfire." As for the suspected gunman — Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan — Al-Khattab hails him as a hero.

"An officer and a gentleman was injured while partaking in a pre-emptive attack," al-Khattab wrote on the site. "Get well soon Major Nidal. We love you."

Al-Khattab, a Jewish-born New Jersey native formerly named Joseph Cohen, converted to Islam in 2004. Known by the FBI for posting radical messages online, al-Khattab claims that the 13 murdered and 38 wounded soldiers at Fort Hood were "terrorists" who deserved to die.

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Politburo passes health plan, 220-215

2009-11-08T12:50:00.002-05:00

Don Surber at Daily Mail nails it:

Without bothering to get any input from Republicans;

Too ashamed to read the bill out loud in public;

Breaking an oath to write the bill on C-Span;

Breaking a pledge to have bipartisan support;

Breaking a promise to post it online for 72 hours before the vote;

Sight unseen;

Democrats passed 220-215 another budget-busting bill that no one has read and that no one in their right mind would support.

The railroad went through — again.

Don’t worry. This will cover abortions. This will cover illegal aliens. This will cover sex-change operations. This will hacve 111 bureaucratic agencies decide who lives and who dies.

This is the opposite of what voters were promised a year ago. It is closed and hyper-partisan government of the lobbyist, for the insiders and by the tax cheats.

They will do it in conference committee.

It is the Cult of Personality. The Won.

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President visits Fort Hood, wounded soldiers

2009-11-07T18:34:00.002-05:00

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — Former President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, have visited wounded soldiers and their families after the mass shooting at Fort Hood.

The Bushes made their private visit to Fort Hood's Darnall Army Medical Center on Friday night. Bush spokesman David Sherzer said in an e-mail that the couple thanked Fort Hood's military leaders and hospital staff for the "amazing care they are providing."

Nidal Malik Hasan linked to September 11 terrorists and used a gun nicknamed the "cop killer"

2009-11-07T17:35:00.003-05:00

Major Nidal Malik Hasan worshipped at a mosque led by a radical imam said to be a "spiritual adviser" to three of the hijackers who attacked America on Sept 11, 2001.

That spiritual adviser, Anwar al-Awlaki, was also cited as the inspiration behind the Toronto 18 terror plot, and is known in the US, Canada and the UK for his incitement of the homegrown terrorism.

(Telegraph) Hasan, the sole suspect in the massacre of 13 fellow US soldiers in Texas, attended the controversial Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Great Falls, Virginia, in 2001 at the same time as two of the September 11 terrorists, The Sunday Telegraph has learnt. His mother's funeral was held there in May that year.

The preacher at the time was Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born Yemeni scholar who was banned from addressing a meeting in London by video link in August because he is accused of supporting attacks on British troops and backing terrorist organisations.

Hasan's eyes "lit up" when he mentioned his deep respect for al-Awlaki's teachings, according to a fellow Muslim officer at the Fort Hood base in Texas, the scene of Thursday's horrific shooting spree.

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(Telegraph) Major Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, used an FN Five-Seven, a semi-automatic pistol popular with SWAT teams, that can fire armour-piercing bullets.

A total of 13 people died in the bloodbath at the Texas military base and 38 were wounded.

Hasan had bought the weapon legally at a gun store close to Fort Hood in August and practiced at a nearby shooting range.

During the attack he also carried a Smith & Wesson .357-calibre revolver but it was not clear if he used it.

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Fort Hood killer Nidal Malik Hasan described himself as "a Muslim first and an American second"

2009-11-07T16:18:00.002-05:00

On top of being opposed to the war on terrorism and praising Islamist suicide bombers.

A former classmate has said Hasan was a "vociferous opponent of the war" and "viewed the war against terror" as a "war against Islam." Dr. Val Finnell, who attended a master's in public health program in 2007-2008 at Uniformed Services University with Hasan, said he told classmates he was "a Muslim first and an American second."

Member of Fort Hood shooter's mosque: "I will not, absolutely not, condemn him for what he had done" and "I honestly have no pity" for those he killed

2009-11-07T15:16:00.002-05:00

The BBC's Gavin Lee interviews 'Duane' at the Islamic Community of Greater Killeen the day after the killings at Fort Hood.

Duane : I'm not going to condemn him for what he did. I don't know why he did it. I will not, absolutely not, condemn him for what he had done though. If he had done it for selfish reasons I still will not condemn him. He's my brother in the end. I will never condemn him.

Gavin Lee : There might be a lot of people shocked to hear you say that.

Duane: Well, that's the way it is. I don't speak for the community here but me personally I will not condemn him.

Gavin Lee : What are your thoughts towards those that were victims in this?

Duane : They were, in the end, they were troops who were going to Afghanistan and Iraq to kill Muslims. I honestly have no pity for them. It's just like the majority of the people that will hear this, after five or six minutes they'll be shocked, after that they'll forget about them and go on their day.

Afghanistan: Obama pressured Karzai's rival to withdraw from the presidential race

2009-11-07T14:57:00.002-05:00

The report is that Karzai's rival Abdullah Abdullah "withdrew under US pressure", which once again shows Obama's hypocrisy, especially in light of the declaration he made at the US General Assembly: "In an era when our destiny is shared, power is no longer a zero-sum game. No one nation can or should try to dominate other nation. No world order that elevates one nation or group of people over another will succeed."

Islamabad, 6 Nov. (AKI) - By Syed Saleem Shahzad - The United States put pressure on Afghan president Hamid Karzai's rival, Abdullah Abdullah, to withdraw from the country's presidential race and hand victory to Karzai, sources have told Adnkronos International (AKI).

Sources said the American pressure was part of a deal struck last week with the Pakistani military, which in exchange agreed to establish direct contact with the Taliban and obtain peace with Taliban-led insurgents in Afghanistan.

The deal was said to have been negotiated during US secretary of state Hillary Clinton's visit to Pakistan last week, when she met army chief of staff Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and the head of Pakistan's military intelligence Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha.

As part of the deal, the US ended negotiations with Abdullah which included offering him the position of chief executive officer of Afghanistan.

Instead the US swung its full support behind Karzai, said an unnamed senior Pakistani diplomat involved in Af-Pak-US negotiations, speaking on condition of anonymity.

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Italy: Al-Qaeda allies 'may carry out attacks'

2009-11-07T14:49:00.001-05:00

Italy's interior minister says Al-Qaeda isn't present in Italy but there are terror cells that identify with it and may carry out attacks in its name.

Rome, 6 Nov. (AKI) - Italy was susceptible to terror attacks by allies of the Al-Qaeda network, the interior minister Roberto Maroni said on Friday. Maroni warned there were terror cells that identified with Al-Qaeda and they had "authorisation" to carry out attacks in Italy.

"Al-Qaeda is not present in Italy, however we are investigating terror cells who identify with it and have somehow obtained authorisation from Al-Qaeda," said Maroni.

He was speaking during a media conference at Rome's foreign press club.

"We are very worried," he said, warning that terrorists could be training in Italy to carry out attacks inside the country.

"We think there could be terror cells in Italy that are being created, financed and trained to carry out attacks against us."

Maroni said after the attack last month by a Libyan citizen against an army barracks in the northern city of Milan that "the conditions have changed" and that the event marked a "turning-point" in regard to this type of activity in Italy.

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Obama: Don't jump to conclusion about Fort Hood shootings

2009-11-06T23:35:00.003-05:00

Moron.

"This morning I met with FBI Director Mueller and the relevant agencies to discuss their ongoing investigation into what caused one individual to turn his gun on fellow servicemen and women. We don't know all of the answers yet, and I would caution against jumping to conclusions until we have all of the facts."

Just because he was screaming "Allahu Akbar!" as he murdered our soldiers doesn't mean it was religiously motivated. All kinds of people scream "Allahu Akbar!" while killing unarmed people.

Pelosi: Buy a $15,000 Policy or Go to Jail

2009-11-06T20:37:00.004-05:00

Isn't that nice?

Today, Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee Dave Camp (R-MI) released a letter from the non-partisan Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) confirming that the failure to comply with the individual mandate to buy health insurance contained in the Pelosi health care bill (H.R. 3962, as amended) could land people in jail. The JCT letter makes clear that Americans who do not maintain “acceptable health insurance coverage” and who choose not to pay the bill’s new individual mandate tax (generally 2.5% of income), are subject to numerous civil and criminal penalties, including criminal fines of up to $250,000 and imprisonment of up to five years.

In response to the JCT letter, Camp said: “This is the ultimate example of the Democrats’ command-and-control style of governing – buy what we tell you or go to jail. It is outrageous and it should be stopped immediately.”

Key excerpts from the JCT letter appear below:

“H.R. 3962 provides that an individual (or a husband and wife in the case of a joint return) who does not, at any time during the taxable year, maintain acceptable health insurance coverage for himself or herself and each of his or her qualifying children is subject to an additional tax.” [page 1]

- - - - - - - - - -

“If the government determines that the taxpayer’s unpaid tax liability results from willful behavior, the following penalties could apply…” [page 2]

- - - - - - - - - -

“Criminal penalties

Prosecution is authorized under the Code for a variety of offenses. Depending on the level of the noncompliance, the following penalties could apply to an individual:

• Section 7203 – misdemeanor willful failure to pay is punishable by a fine of up to $25,000 and/or imprisonment of up to one year.

• Section 7201 – felony willful evasion is punishable by a fine of up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment of up to five years.” [page 3]

When confronted with this same issue during its consideration of a similar individual mandate tax, the Senate Finance Committee worked on a bipartisan basis to include language in its bill that shielded Americans from civil and criminal penalties. The Pelosi bill, however, contains no similar language protecting American citizens from civil and criminal tax penalties that could include a $250,000 fine and five years in jail.

“The Senate Finance Committee had the good sense to eliminate the extreme penalty of incarceration. Speaker Pelosi’s decision to leave in the jail time provision is a threat to every family who cannot afford the $15,000 premium her plan creates. Fortunately, Republicans have an alternative that will lower health insurance costs without raising taxes or cutting Medicare,” said Camp.

According to the Congressional Budget Office the lowest cost family non-group plan under the Speaker’s bill would cost $15,000 in 2016.

Computers, records seized at ACORN offices in Louisiana

2009-11-06T20:16:00.001-05:00

State investigators, acting on reports that documents are being removed from ACORN offices amid the ongoing embezzlement investigation, seized computers and payroll records for analysis.

(Louisiana) Apparently reacting to reports of workers removing documents from the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) headquarters in New Orleans, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell has executed a search warrant on the premises today. According to local news sources, computer hard drives and payroll records are being seized for analysis.

The investigation pertains to a decade-old embezzlement case that came to light only last year. Dale Rathke, brother of the organization's founder, had stolen $1 million from an ACORN affiliate that he ran. (The Attorney General recently asserted in an affidavit that the embezzlement reached $5 million.) When the theft was discovered, a handful of ACORN officials covered it up, hiding the information even from the group's directors out of fear that publication could be embarrassing to the group's left-wing mission.

Rathke agreed to pay back the money he had stolen, and eventually a donor paid off his "debt" to ACORN. But the cover-up ended in 2008 when the scandal was leaked to the press.

Many of those involved in the cover-up continue to work within the ACORN family of organizations, and two directors who demanded a public accounting of the funds were summarily purged from the board.