Most of the headlines are proclaiming Romney the winner and buried somewhere in the story we discover that Romney beat Ron Paul by only 1 vote in this early beauty contest for the 2012 Republican nomination.

Here's how they voted:

Mitt Romney: 439 votes
Ron Paul: 438 votes
Sarah Palin: 330 votes
Newt Gingrich: 321 votes

Many people, Sean Hannity  for example, keep saying that there is no need for a third party, but instead a revitalized Republican party. But, when given the chance to vote for that revitalized, truly conservative party, Republicans revert to form and vote for a progressive candidate. I realize that if one totals all of the votes for other candidates they far outnumber Romney, but that's not how elections work and that's not how primary contest winners are chosen. In fact, that's why we ended up with John McCain in the last Republican primary. If this is the way it's going to go between now and 2012, then I don't see a revitalized Republican party anywhere on the horizon.

One of the most controversial and perhaps destructive of all taxes imposed on Americans is the "death tax," whereby the government reaches one last time into the people's wallets. At death, a person's residual wealth, accumulated over a lifetime and already subjected to numerous tiers of taxation, becomes the attractive carrion of the redistributive looters. Since the majority of those effected by the death tax are labeled wealthy, most people, liberals, especially, have shown little sympathy for those being hit by the tax. In fact, President Obama's 2010 budget calls for the largest death tax increase in U.S. history, and with numerous fiascos in play, little attention is being given to the matter.

Zero Percent Death Tax Opportunity in 2010

In 2001, President George W. Bush set up a law that would phase the estate tax rate from 55% down to 45% in 2009. Then in 2010, and for that one year only, the death tax rate would go down to zero percent. Unless further legislative action was taken, that tax law would then expire in 2011, and the death tax rate would revert back to 55%. It was hoped that having a zero percent death tax rate for 2010 would help make the case for eliminating the death tax altogether or at the very least make it very difficult for the high rate to return. For that very reason, Obama doesn't want the tax rate to ever hit zero. Regarding taxes, the President's Chief Economic Adviser has stated, "Let's be very clear: There are no, no tax increases this year. There are no, no tax increases next year." But buried in footnote 1 on page 127 of the Presidential Budget is a pronouncement that reads, "The estate tax is maintained at its 2009 parameters."

The death tax currently exempts estates valued below $3.5 million ($7 million for a couple). Yes, that sizable an estate will exempt the majority of Americans and most of us are more worried about our money lasting throughout our lifetime than how much will be left when we are gone. So why should care about the death tax at all? Keep in mind that a large portion of the accumulated wealth being taxed is not readily-available cash, but is tied up in the land of the family farm or in the real estate and inventory of small businesses. Forcing families to sell their farm or business to pay the death tax has a direct effect on Americans relying on those farms and businesses for jobs, livelihoods, and even the amount of food produced in this nation.

Using what is called the Summers study, former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin found that eliminating the death tax would result in a $1.6 trillion increase in small business capital over the long-term. This additional increase in capital represents the creation of 1.5 million new jobs. If ever our economy could use that type of job growth, wouldn't now be a feasible time to test the merit of the Summers study while we have the opportunity and allow the 2010 zero percent death tax rate to occur. If it was found that more good than harm came out of eliminating the death tax, further legislation could be considered to repeal or extend the death tax. If the 2010 trial proved unsound for the economy, no further action would be necessary and the old death tax rate of 55% would automatically return in 2011.

Even Marxist economic theories agree that the key to long-term growth and higher standards of living is dependent on saving and investing. Tomorrow's financial growth is dependent on savings from today's income, the same way that a farmer must store a portion of each year's seed in preparation for future crops. America should follow the lead of other nations that have figured out that the death tax is damaging in a competitive global economy. Hong Kong has eliminated its death tax, and so have some European states, often considered welfare states, such as Austria and Sweden. Australia, Russia and New Zealand have also figured out that penalizing wealth creation is not a sensible economic strategy.

35-Percent Tariff on Tires Imported from China

Everyone knows that labor unions were major supporters of President Obama’s campaign in the 2008 election and remain by his side on issues today. Many have implied gratuitous legislative paybacks would be inevitable once Obama was elected and settled into his Presidency. So on Friday, September, 11th, when an announcement was made to impose a 35-percent tariff on all automobile and light-truck tires imported into the U.S. from China, one has to wonder who will benefit most from this new tax: the United Steelworkers Union or the American people? 

Imposing a tariff on imported goods invokes a special safeguard provision made during a 2001 agreement supporting the entry of China into the World Trade Organization. That safeguard provision allows for government protection to be given American companies or workers harmed by a "market disruption" or "surge" from China imports. The International Trade Commission (ITC), voted 4-2 in favor of this new tire tax. Keep in mind that just because the ITC requests a trade tariff, the president has discretion of accepting or rejecting recommendations. President George W. Bush, for example, received four similar recommendations from the trade commission during his presidency, but rejected each of those recommendations. In this case, however, President Obama chose to side with the ITC.

Will the Tire Tax Benefit Americans?

American consumers can soon expect to pay a substantially higher amount the next time they need to buy tires. This increase is not a matter of if they will pay more for tires, but when. As pre-tariff inventory stock is depleted, U.S. tire wholesalers warn that retailers will begin increasing the cost of tires by about 15% on average and higher. At a time when Americans are trying to cut back on unnecessary spending, many consumers will not be able to afford to buy new tires at this higher rate and will ride on tires longer than is safely recommended before replacing them. Some will buy a cheaper brand of tires than they are used to in order to recoup the additional cost of tires brought about by the new tax. And the impact is not only on the American consumer. American jobs are also at stake. Thomas J. Prusa, a Rutgers economist calculates that 20,000 jobs in the tire distribution and retail sector will be lost for each 1,000 jobs saved at domestic manufacturing plants. For each 1,000 of these plant jobs, U.S. consumers will be paying $330,000 in higher tire prices.

China’s Reaction to New Tire Tax

Calling this move by the U.S. "rampant," it is possible that trade relations worldwide could be affected. The China Rubber Industry Association has called on their government to retaliate, and some fear possible punitive sanctions on soybean imports. China suggests the U.S. tire tariff Obama has imposed is a violation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and has threatened to file a formal complaint.

Since the tire tax announcement, China has launched investigations on anti-dumping and anti-subsidy of chicken products and anti-subsidy investigations into automobiles produced in the United States. Currently, the United States is the largest exporter of chicken products to China. The Ministry of Commerce Spokesman Yao Jian has stated that China opposes trade protectionism and discourages the use of trade remedies measures.

The Chairman of the China Rubber Industry Association, Fan Rende, said, "Obama’s decision may affect the employment of 100,000 tire workers in China and may bring an aggregated loss of up to $1 billion to China’s tire exporters."  Fan has also urged the Chinese government to take countermeasures against U.S. tariffs. He stated, "I believe we could find ample cases that is also in line with the WTO rules."

Despite the anger stirred up among the Chinese leadership, President Obama insists that the U.S. shouldn’t expect a cycle of retaliation, that "we’re not going to see a trade war." Professor Eswar Prasad, a Cornell University trade policy professor and former head of the IMF’s China desk, said, "The actions by the U.S. and China suggest that both sides are taking a tougher stance on trade issues, which could make their relationship more complicated and contentious." Prasad suggests that important multilateral initiaves, including climate change, handling nations such as North Korea, and promoting reform of international financial institutions may have slowed progress.

So it looks like China is not happy. Looks like the American consumer is certainly not going to be happy. Just who is going to be happy with this new Obama tire tax?

Humana Medicare CMO, Philip Painter, M.D., sent out a mailing earlier this month to some of its 1.5 million members enrolled in the Humana Medicare Advantage (MA) program informing them of the possible reduction of benefits should one of the Democrats’ health care reform bills pass. The mailing informed its members that, "Some in Washington want to cut billions of dollars out of the Medicare Advantage program…" causing certain benefits such as, "…low premiums, low deductibles and co-pays, wellness and enhanced preventative benefits, and coordinated care and disease assistance programs" might be affected. Painter also urged readers to stay informed, offering free enrollment to receive a Humana Partners! newsletter, and suggested they contact their congressmen with concerns about the ongoing health care debate.

Senator Baucus, "Gang of Six" leader and author of the most recent health-care bill, and chair of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over Medicare, complained to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) about the Humana mailing. The CMS then issued a cease and desist letter to Humana advising them that no further "misleading" and "confusing" mailings could be sent out or similar material posted to their website, and that an investigation as to the potential breach of certain federal regulations and guidelines would commence. The letter concluded, "Please be advised that we take this matter very seriously and, based upon the findings of our investigation, will pursue compliance and enforcement actions."

Seniors, in fact, are quite concerned about the ongoing health-care debate and how changes proposed by the Obama administration might affect their future Medicare costs and coverage. It is undisputed that there will be hefty funding cuts to Medicare Advantage should this new Baucus bill pass. Projected cuts from Medicare Advantage are estimated from $123 billion and up, and seniors fear those cuts will be realized at their expense.

Republicans Outraged Over Humana "Gag Order"

In the nine months since Obama has been in office, there has been enough time to appoint some 30-plus Czars, but there still has not been an administrator of the CMS appointed. Without an administrator over the CMS, some Republicans question the origination of the Humana "gag order." According to FOXNews.com,

A Republican aide told FOXNews.com that the investigation is a clear breach of First Amendment rights and said the Republican leader is asking the CMS to provide legal justification for its investigation. The aide said CMS’s investigation follows a pattern of intimidation put forth by the administration for any kind of dissent in the health care debate.

Republican House Minority leader Mitch McConnell expressed outrage as well at the CMS action and responded from the Senate floor, "For explaining to seniors how legislation might affect them, the federal government has now issued a gag order on that company, and any other company that communicates with clients on the issue, telling them to shut up — or else." McConnell went on to say, "This is precisely the kind of thing Americans are worried about with the administration’s health care plan. They’re worried that government agencies which were created to enforce violations even-handedly will instead be used against those who voice a different point of view."

Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI), Ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee, has asked for additional information, including the persons or persons who authorized the CMS agency to issue the cease and desist order to Humana. In a press release, Camp stated, "I have never seen anything like this and I question if politics was the deciding factor. Given that the administration has failed for more than eight months to nominate a director for CMS, I wonder if undue political pressure may have been applied on the CMS staff."

On Sept. 25, tens of thousands of Muslims will gather on the west lawn of Capitol Hill for a prayer service. The chosen location for this outdoor mosque is the very site where presidents have been inaugurated since 1981, including last year’s Obama inauguration. Hassen Abdellah, one of the main organizers of the event and president of Dar-ul-Islam, said it was President Obama’s own words at the January inauguration, along with a June speech made by the president in Egypt, that precipitated his discussion with imam, Abdul Malik, about the idea.

Abdellah said he is expecting around 50,000 people from mosques throughout the country to attend this first-time event. According to the Islam on Capitol Hill website, there are 500 buses reserved from 50 states for transportation to the event.

A permit was granted on July 28 by the Capitol Hill police for access to the west front of the Capitol from 4am-7pm, and the main Friday prayer service is expected to take place at 1pm. According to the website, "The Athan will be chanted on Capitol Hill, echoing off of the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument and other great edifices that surround Capitol Hill."

On the home page of the website is an image depitcing a hand painted red, white, and blue shaking a light brown hand covered with Arabic writing. The U.S. constitution is in the background on one half of the image and a document, possibly a page from the Quran, on the other half. At the bottom of each website page are the words, "Our Time Has Come." On the transportation page of the website, there is a picture of a colorless American flag under a blue hue lighting with the symbolic Muslim star and crescent moon superimposed over the flag stripes and a Muslim boy in prayer in the foreground.

Interestingly, this past May President Obama chose not to celebrate National Prayer Day, a day of observance set aside for people of all faiths. National Prayer Day was first established in 1952 by President Truman and was signed as a resolution in 1988 to be observed on the first Thursday in May. Each president has observed National Prayer Day since that time; that is, until the Obama presidency.  While President Obama refused to hold a public ceremony recognizing this national tradition, he did agree to host a formal Ramadan holiday dinner at the White House.  Speaking to his guests before the Ramadan dinner, President Obama stated, "For well over a billion Muslims, Ramadan is a time of intense devotion and reflection… Tonight’s iftar is a ritual that is also being carried out this Ramadan at kitchen tables and mosques in all 50 states. Islam, as we know, is part of America. " 

Joe Wilson Castigated by Democrats for Pointing Out the Obvious

Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC) is being brow beaten by outraged Democrats (ok, so when aren’t the Democrats outraged) because he yelled, "You lie!" after the  President  stated that the Health Care Bill would not cover illegal aliens.  While perhaps a breach of etiquette, the statement was, nevertheless, accurate. As we recently reported in this article Medicaid for Illegals – Dems Say Yes an amendment to H. R. 3200 (ECR001) would have specifically denied medicaid coverage to Illegal Aliens, but was defeated by the Democrat majority. The result would be identical if such an amendment were submitted to any of the Senate bills.  Obviously, Obama was either being very economical with the truth or  he was referring to a bill that doesn’t exist.  To believe that Obama was  telling the truth it is necessary to believe the latter: that illegal aliens are not covered in a Health Care Bill that does not exist.

The non-existent bill that does not include illegal aliens, is by the way, the same non-existent bill that does not cover abortions or ration health care.  It is the bill that does not have end of life councilling with people who have a vested economic interest in paitients choosing to die.  It may also be the bill where insurance companies are not allowed to deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions and prevents them from practicing rescission, in effect, pulling the rug from beneath a person’s feet once they get seriously ill.   That bill, the one that doesn’t exist is definately better than any other Health Care Bill that does exist. It is a bill that many Americans would and probably should get behind. 

First,  unlike H. R. 3200, the original monstrosity created by the House and containing over 1,000 pages, the non-existent bill contains 0 pages which would allow even Rep. Conyers (D. MI) to understand it. Remember Rep. Conyers? He’s the reading challenged nonogenarian Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee who slurred:

 “I love these members, they get up and say, ‘Read the bill,’” said Conyers. What good is reading the bill if it’s a thousand pages and you don’t have two days and two lawyers to find out what it means after you read the bill?”

We’re with you buddy. Let’s work on passing the bill that does not exist, with votes that do not exist,  to cure the Insurance crises which does not exist, then everyone can claim victory and move on.  In the meantime, let’s help make sure that Joe Wilson gets re-elected.

They Haven’t Bought the White House — Yet.

The flag of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) will be raised on the South Lawn of the White House on September 20, 2009. According to reports, several Chinese associations had applied to hold a ceremony in front of the White House honoring the 60th anniversary of the Peoples Republic founded by Mao Tse Tung.

One wonders if that is the entire story, or if they are planting their flag because they have already put a sizable down payment on it and are staking their claim before the Cubans have a chance to plant their own.

As of last November much of America’s youth were caught up in the personality cult of Barack Obama, but with another election coming up in just four years it’s never too early for the constant campaigner to start on the next generation.The following announcement is published at: servicewire.org There are already many eager members of the National Education Association teachers union and entire school districts that can’t wait to broadcast the words of the fearless leader to all of the children in the United States. If you want to inculcate socialism or cult indoctrination, it is best to start teaching children as early as possible. While the American education system has done its best on its own, Uncle Barack is always willing to lend a helping hand.  Does he want to "improve" the education system in the same way he wants to "improve" the health care system?

U.S. Department of Education Office of Communications & Outreach, Press Office400 Maryland Ave., S.W.Washington, D.C. 20202MEDIA ADVISORYEVENT DATE:1 p.m. EDT, Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2009Contact: Sandra Abrevaya(202) 401-1576 or sandra.abrevaya@ed.govPRESIDENT OBAMA TO DELIVER NATIONALLY BROADCAST ADDRESS TO STUDENTS ON SEPT. 8The President will deliver a speech about the importance of persisting and succeeding in school on Sept. 8, the first day of school for many children across America. The Department of Education is encouraging educators, students and parents to use this opportunity to help students get focused and begin the school year strong. The speech will be broadcast live on www.whitehouse.gov at 1 p.m. EDT. The Department of Education has also asked a group of U.S. Department of Education Teaching Ambassador Fellows to develop some suggested classroom activities around the speech to help engage students and stimulate discussion on the importance of education in their lives. The suggested classroom activities will be available on www.ed.gov.Here’s how the President described the speech in a recent interview with 11 year-old reporter Damon Weaver yesterday: "On Sept. 8, when young people across the country will have just started or are about to go back to school, I’m going to be making a big speech to young people all across the country about the importance of education, the importance of staying in school, how we want to improve our education system, and why it’s so important for the country. And so I hope everybody tunes in."WHO:President Obama WHAT: Presidential Address To Students WHEN: 1 p.m. EDT, Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2009WHERE:Broadcast live at www.whitehouse.gov

The increased estimate is being blamed on "new data" that shows that the economic downturn was more severe than the White House had previously estimated. A White House spokesman now says, "Our budget projections are now in line with the spring and summer projections that the Congressional Budget Office put out."

Republicans have taken this opportunity to point out that Obama’s spending spree is driving budgets past the breaking point, even without the additional spending attached to his plans to take over America’s healthcare system, the energy sector, and promised education reforms. Many Americans are now asking themselves, "If I have to control my own budget, why doesn’t the government?" So far, the response from the White House has been a consistent, "Who us? We inherited this from George Bush." That response seems to be wearing thin even among the most devout Obama believers.

Many economists are worried that China and Japan may begin to doubt our ability to repay the huge debt that we are creating and either raise interest rates or stop lending to us altogether. Further, if the Fed continues increasing the money supply, then hidden tax of inflation is sure to follow with a vengeance. In the past, the government has been able make it seem as though rising costs were caused by the greedy corporations, but as Americans are forced by circumstances to become more savvy about economics, that ruse may no longer work. If the government then enacts the massive tax increases necessary to fund the interest on the debt, it will lead to an even more severe economic slowdown.

There is only one sure way to stop what appears to be certain financial disaster, and that is to curtail spending.  Most economists do not see that as a likely scenario under the leadership of the current White House and Congress.

Looking at the video of the supposedly open town hall meeting in Montana, the first thing that any experienced Obama watcher will notice is the ever present teleprompters flanking him on the left and right. Like Secret Service agents they try to remain inconspicuous, but they are always very nearby. He never leaves home without them — the teleprompters I mean. One might well wonder exactly how one can have a town hall meeting where the questions and questioners aren’t arranged ahead of time and still be able to make use of a teleprompter. Well that would be a very good question, but there are several possibilities.

The first, most obvious and by far the most likely is that the attendees are invited ahead of time, the questioners hand picked and called on in a specific order, and the questions themselves are simply jump off points for a list of well rehearsed talking points. To imagine a situation where this isn’t true, one would have to imagine a Montana where someone declares, in a public forum, that he’s an NRA member and only two people out of one hundred applaud. To imagine that scenario, it would be necessary to have never been within 750 miles of Montana in their life.

Another possibility, while much less likely is that the questions are authentic; thought up by the spontaneously chosen attendees who are not well known to the president beforehand. In that case one would have to imagine Rahm Emanuel or some other aide hiding behind the backdrop like the Wizard of Oz, typing furiously on a laptop connected to the teleprompters. Simultaneously, the President would read the scrolling text with his now famous teleprompter to teleprompter head turning.

The last possibility is that this was an authentic cross section of Montana and every one of the questions actually composed by each randomly selected and previously unknown questioner. One would have to be simple minded enough to believe that Sheila Jackson Lee cares what her constituents think to buy that story, but it is presented here in a spirit of fairness to all of the possibilities, no matter how far fetched. While there were two questions that seemed relevant to the issues that the majority of Americans are concerned about, apparently the teleprompter was unable to come to his aid for either of those and he never was able to formulate a coherent answer to either.