Evil Andy Harris … Right Wing Andy Harris

That appears to be the theme of the last two issues of the Daily Times.  Today’s lead editorial simply shows what we have always know – the DT doesn’t think much of real conservatives and REALLY doesn’t like a strong conservative like Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD).  Yesterday’s front page, above the fold, “news” article is what I find most disturbing.  It belonged on the op-ed page as well.

Today’s well written, if wrong headed, editorial (we assume by Susan Parker) contains a couple of factual errors.  The op-ed states:

Harris' key votes in the House of Representatives have not deviated from the Republican Party line, nor has any significant vote cast by Harris gone against the majority vote.

Harris just voted against the John Boehner / Harry Reid / Barack Obama spending compromise.  ANY TIME that a Speaker has to look outside his own party to get a key piece of legislation passed (I think Susan would agree that keeping the government open is of import), that is a significant vote.  Frank Kratovil was given a pass on the ObamaCare vote; which was passed with only Democrat votes in the House.  Kratovil can NEVER claim the political courage that Harris has shown in that one vote.

We would also argue with the DT’s portrayal of either Wayne Gilchrest or Frank Kratovil as “moderates”.  However, we will agree to disagree on the DT’s all to typical, liberal definition of the w ord.

Probably our biggest complaint is the piece’s title – “Unremarkable First 100 Days”.  I would argue that Harris’ first 100 days have been quite remarkable.  First of all, he has been faithful to his campaign promises.  The DT admits this and ANY TIME that can be said about a politician it’s pretty remarkable.  In addition, Harris has held firm against an onslaught of opposition to putting this country on sound fiscal footing.  This opposition has come from the White House, the Senate, House Democrats, and from some of his own House GOP colleagues.  He should be applauded, not castigated or ridiculed.  Yet, this is precisely what the Daily Times has chosen to do under the guise of “news”.

Thursday’s front page article by Gannett’s Nicole Gaudiano is little more than a long op-ed wrapped up with a bow that says “NEWS”.  It isn’t.

Here’s the lead:

After 100 days in office, Republican Rep. Andy Harris shows no signs of moving to the center, as his predecessors did.

Really Ms. Gaudiano?  Was Frank Kratovil “moving to the center” when he voted for Obama’s massive PORKULUS bill?  Was he “moving to the center” when he voted for Obama’s budget?  Was he “moving to the center” every other time he voted to appropriate spending that has driven us down the path to a potential financial tsunami?

This a an old, tried and true trick used by the left leaning media.  If you are a liberal, but don’t carry a Communist Party membership card, then you are a “moderate”.  If you believe in outrageous concepts like a limited federal government and a sane fiscal policy you are a “right winger” and want to starve babies and kill old people.

A grand example of where some of this tax money is going is a quote by Adam Hoffman of Salisbury University’s Institute of Public Affairs and Civic Engagement (PACE):

"He's made no attempt to move toward the middle," Hoffman said. "His votes seem to reflect that sort of rightward tilt. It remains to be seen whether Harris' voting and positioning and connecting with the far right base (emphasis mine) is going to be a winning strategy in two years."

I guess we can all grasp Mr. Hoffman’s definition of “middle”:  Frank Kratovil came to the Eastern Shore and told his constituents that he was a “Blue Dog” and then turned around and voted for TRILLIONS in spending.  Harris told the voters of Maryland’s First District that he was going to vote to REDUCE government spending and has actually done it.  SHAME on Andy Harris!  That’s really “far right”.

Is Andy Harris perfect?  By no means.  When he has been wrong, we have pointed it out.  However, when we have done so, we haven’t claimed that it was “news”.  It’s opinion and portrayed as such.  While I don’t agree with today’s DT editorial, I respect their right to their opinion.  When opinion is disguised as “news”, as in the case of Gaudiano’s piece, then it is Gannett and the Daily Times who should be ashamed.

It is ironic that I did a radio interview a few days ago where I mentioned that I had seen a vast improvement in the Daily Times over the last 18 – 24 months; particularly when it came to their mixing of opinion into news pieces.  I sincerely hope that they aren’t choosing to go back down that dark road.

Joe Albero Appearing on WRAU-FM Today

SbyNEWS’s own Joe Albero, along with bloggers John Hayden and G. A. Harrison, will be appearing on WRAU-FM’s Coastal Connection today at 12 Noon.  Coastal Connection, hosted by Bryan Russo, is a weekly public affairs program focusing on local news and events.
You can listen to show at 12 Noon and 8PM this evening on 88.3 FM.  You can also listen to the show live online or as a podcast after the show airs.
We hope that you will take time to listen and share your thoughts with us.

ISABELLA STREET & MILL STREET WORK SCHEDULED

Chesapeake Utilities will be relocating a gas main in association with a Maryland State Highway Storm Water Project at the intersection of West Isabella Street & Mill Street. The gas main is being relocated in advance of the larger storm water project. The storm water project will run from US 13/London Avenue proceeding southerly along US 13 down William Street to Park Avenue ultimately out falling at Isabella Street. The overall project is expected to be completed in June 2012. The gas main work started on Wednesday April 13, 2011 at 7:30 AM and was to conclude at 5:00PM Friday April 15, 2011. Due to a few unforeseen delays, the work will also take place Monday, April 18, 2011 at 7:30 AM and be completed before 5:00PM. The proposed duration of the work now is 4 day.

This portion of Isabella Street will be passable to vehicles with a flagging operation during this construction period; however, you are strongly encouraged to use an alternate route to avoid delays.

Your tolerance of the temporary inconveniences and disruptions that inevitably occur during construction will be greatly appreciated.

William Sterling Project Manager

Salisbury Public Works

The Path to Prosperity

Dear Joe,

This week’s votes are probably the most important in the short three months since I took the oath of office. As you know, our fiscal situation is dire. Since the House passed a 2011 budget over seven weeks ago, the Senate leadership decided they would rather play politics then help solve our spending problem.

Late Friday night, a deal was struck on the budget between President Obama and the leaders of the House and Senate. They agreed to about $38 billion in cuts to this year’s budget. Although this was a step in the right direction (just look at who Speaker Boehner had to deal with), it only amounts to a 1% cut of the entire budget. We need to send a signal to American taxpayers and businesses that we are serious about solving our spending problems. I believe this deal didn’t go far enough – and that’s why I voted NO on this budget plan.

The big item on the agenda in the coming months will be tackling next year’s budget. President Obama has already put forth a plan that would fast track us into an even deeper $20 trillion hole by the end of the decade. Budget Chairman Paul Ryan’s 2012 “Path to Prosperity” proposal would cut deficits by more than $4 trillion. He starts the conversation regarding:

Saving Medicare for our children and grandchildren.
Making government programs more accountable to the taxpayers.
Building an environment for positive job growth.
A simpler tax code that lowers the burden for individuals and businesses.

You know the liberals in Washington are going to pull out all of the stops. Last week Sens. Chuck Schumer, Harry Reid and even former liberal presidential candidate Howard Dean (remember him?) were publicly hoping for a repeat of the 1995 government shutdown so they could blame the Tea Party.  And the demagoguery has already started regarding Paul Ryan’s proposal.

However, we know better – and that’s why we need to make sure our friends, family and neighbors know our clear message: we must reduce government spending to create jobs and get the economy moving again. The job creators of this country – the private sector innovators – cannot be treated like ATM machines. That means we need to cut spending, do away with unnecessary regulations and create an environment where businesses can grow and hire new workers. Please continue to write letters to your local newspapers and call in to your local talk radio shows to spread the message.

Thanks for your support, and as always, the First Congressional District office belongs to the people. If you need to reach me for any reason, please contact me immediately.

Sincerely,

Andy Harris

Tea Party R.I.P.

Two Years Ago Today.

One Year Ago Today.

The Tea Party will NOT be protesting today at the GOB.

If ever there was a time in our Country these people needed to be heard, now is the time.

R.I.P.

Call Sheriff Lewis

If you would like to continue seeing Press Releases from the Wicomico County Sheriff's Office here on Salisbury News, call Sheriff Mike Lewis at 410-548-4891.

SALISBURY – LET’S HOPE WE GET A HARRIS TEETER STORE SOON

We regret the closing of the Superfresh store on College Avenue, but it would be a great location for a Harris Teeter supermarket, which would give the Giant a real battle to remain Salisbury’s food emporium of choice for the local elite. Hey, I can dream, can’t I?

PS – if you don’t know about Harris Teeter, visit one of their 3 stores in Sussex County, Delaware – Millsboro, Selbyville and Bethany.

BIGGEST GAME (SO FAR) FOR SU MEN’S LAX TOMORROW

Another undefeated (to date) season for the Gulls is winding down, and Saturday’s home game against Stevenson will determine each team’s seeding in the NCAA tournament. This contest, beginning at 1 PM, weather permitting, will be the toughest regular season game for SU if not for Stevenson, which has lost once, to Tufts (last year’s champion), by 1 goal.

In recent years Stevenson has replaced Washington College as Maryland’s other Division III powerhouse besides SU. Not surprisingly, there’s no love lost between the two squads, or their coaches. Last year they met three times, with SU winning twice, including in the NCAA semi-final round by one goal in overtime at Sea Gull Stadium. That victory preceded the Gulls loss to Tufts in the championship game.

If you have never seen the Gulls in action, this is the chance to see them at their best against the best team on their schedule. Currently SU is ranked 2^nd and Stevenson 3^rd, with Tufts at the top in Division III. This game is rated a toss-up on Lax Power.

Our prediction: Stevenson by two goals, and a Jimbo Berkman melt down in the 4^th quarter!

Va. Better Than Md. For Earning Money

Virginia is near the top of the heap when it comes to the best places to earn a buck.

The commonwealth was ranked the fourth-best state in which to make a living, way ahead of Maryland, which was ranked 29th by Money-Rates.com, a financial information website.

States were ranked by their average income, state taxes, unemployment rates and cost of living.

More here

Report: Taxes, Government Limit Md.'s Economic Growth

Maryland has all the machinery for robust economic growth, but its complicated corporate tax structure and reliance on the government are holding back its progress, according to a new report outlining a five-year economic plan for the state.

"Maryland is a conundrum," according to the 42-page report compiled by the state-appointed Maryland Economic Development Commission. "On the one hand, it ranks only in the middle of leading innovation states in economic activity, but on the other, it is among the leaders in fast-growing companies."

The state ranks fourth in fast-growing firms, but ranks 27th in employment growth from young companies and 33rd in the percentage of citizens starting companies, according to the report.

The commission urges Maryland lawmakers to review the state's incorporation and licensing policies and consider employing faculty and business school students to help companies wade through strategic and operational issues.

The commission also recommends that the state invest more in immigrant entrepreneurs and "work with federal partners to ensure that [they] can become U.S. citizens."

"Federal and state regulations aimed at giving small, minority, and women-owned businesses entry into public sector contracts may be unintentionally having the effect of locking them into subcontractor status and limiting growth," the report reads.

The commission further outlines hindrances in the state's business licensing, regulatory and permitting procedures, saying the processes take too long and lack clarity.

"At its worst, perceived or real government intransigence is a competitive disadvantage to Maryland, and has been debated within the state for decades," commissioners wrote.

Despite the criticisms, Maryland's unemployment rate ranks below the national average and economists say the state has weathered the recession far better than most states.

[Because so many Marylanders work for the government.   --Editor]

The federal government has helped buoy the state by generating high incomes and attracting workers with multiple college degrees, but its presence also has led to more modest commercialization and lower rates of industry-funded research and development, the report says.

More

Romney On Compulsory Health Insurance: ‘I Like Mandates’

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney’s biggest challenge in the GOP primary might be explaining the differences between Romneycare and Obamacare--how the health care plan he signed as governor of Massachusetts in 2006 differs from the federal health care reform enacted last year.

Beyond differences the two plans may have, the linchpin of both is considered the individual mandate: the requirement that individuals buy health insurance or pay a penalty.

Romney, as recently as 13 months ago, has staunchly defended the mandate in the law that he signed in 2006, arguing that it forces people to take responsibility for their own health care.

“Let me tell you, there’s a big difference between what we did and what President Obama is doing,” Romney said in a Mar. 7, 2010 Fox News Sunday interview.

“What we did, I think, is the ultimate conservative plan. We said people have to take responsibility for getting insurance, if they can afford it, or paying their own way. No more free- riders. And we solved this at the state level – not a federal plan, but a state plan.”

Romney went on to describe the mandate as the “biggest pro” of his health care plan.

“It’s a plan that has pros and cons,” he said. “The biggest pro, in my view, is that we don’t have free riders now expecting other people to pay for their health care costs. And we’re also able to have individuals, who otherwise would not have the kind of specialty care they need, receiving treatment.”

Two weeks later Romney said during an interview on CNN’s Larry King Live, “right now in this country, people that don’t have health insurance go to the hospital if they get a serious illness, and they get treated for free by government. My plan says no, they can’t do that. No more free riders. People have to take personal responsibility. I consider it a conservative plan.”


More

Pentagon To Senators: ‘All Your Constituencies Are Confronted By This Threat’ From Mexican Drug Cartels

A top Pentagon official told a Senate subcommittee on Tuesday that the tentacles of Mexico’s criminal organizations have reached well-beyond the southwest border into the interior of the U.S. homeland.

Those remarks buttress the 2010 Drug Threat Assessment by the U.S. Justice Department, which stated that street gangs, which “acquire drugs directly from [drug-traffickers] in Mexico or along the Southwest Border,” are distributing narcotics in “more than 2,500 cities.”

Nevertheless, Department of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano has said on separate occasions that people who say the border is not secure or out of control are wrong and simply trying to score political points.

On April 1, Napolitano said that the U.S.-Mexico border is not “overrun or out of control,” and last April she said the border “is as secure now as it has ever been.”

“It’s important to recognize, just to conclude, that when we discuss the trans-national nature of this [illegal narcotics] threat that does also include criminal activities that take place inside the United States as well,” William Wechsler, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Counter-narcotics and Global Threats, told senators.

“For instance, the influence of Mexican transnational, criminal organizations extends well beyond the southwest border to cities across the country, including Atlanta, Chicago, and Detroit,” he said. “All your constituencies are confronted by this threat.”

The Pentagon official went on to criticize the executive branch for a lack of inter-agency coordination in dealing with the narcotics threat, adding that the Defense Department can help alleviate that problem. 

More

YARD SALES

CLICK HERE for upcoming yard sales in the area. Keep in mind, I don't write these. 1 is dated for last month, but was just sent a few days ago, so it may just be a typo. Enjoy your weekend!

GOP Facing Tea Party Revolt

A stunning Congressional Budget Office report revealing that the so-called $38 billion in budget cuts made last week will only result in $352 million in savings this year has touched off a backlash from the conservative grass-roots base of the GOP that could make future bargains that much more difficult.

Several top tea party leaders are trying to ease the frustration, reminding the tea party faithful that Republicans only control the House of Representatives. But the antipathy on the right with how Washington does business is now palpable.

Even though congressional leaders were able to squeeze the continuing resolution through Congress on Thursday, the questionable insider dealing, combined with President Barack Obama’s partisan speech on entitlement reform on Wednesday, could make future compromises on the debt ceiling and the 2012 budget much harder to achieve, sources say.

Obama intimated the reforms proposed by Wisconsin GOP Rep. Paul Ryan were un-American.  Ryan replied that Obama has become a “campaigner in chief.”

“I’m hearing a lot of anger and frustration frankly,” Memphis Tea Party founder and chairman Mark Skoda, who is also a conservative talk-radio host, tells Newsmax. “Yesterday on the radio I had a number of folks call in, primarily [saying] that [House Speaker John] Boehner needs to fire his staff, that the deal that was cut is a terrible deal. I don’t think people are throwing in the towel for Republicans … but they got rolled.”

Sal Russo, the founder of Tea Party Express, says movement conservatives are “profoundly disappointed” by the 2011 budget deal. He tells Newsmax the arrangement marks “another failure to address excessive federal government spending and our skyrocketing national debt.”

Tea Party Express Chairman Amy Kremer, similarly, tells Newsmax that the deal struck by House Republicans was an “embarrassment.”

“I am very disappointed and fed up with Washington's politics as usual,” she adds, “The American people are smarter than Washington thinks, and we have lost patience with their shenanigans.

But Russo adds that it is time for the grass-roots to move past the 2011 budget that Democrats failed to pass, and to begin to focus on the much larger battles that lie ahead.

“The 2011 budget deal has become meaningless in the fight to curtail the increasing intrusiveness and cost of the federal government,” says Russo. “We hope this is a lesson to the Republican leaders to stand fast in opposing raising the debt ceiling, if the only plan from Democrats is to raise taxes and keep us on the spending merry-go-round.”

Read more

Court To Atheists: Gee, Sorry About Your 'Hurt Feelings'

A federal appeals court has tossed a challenge to the legality of the National Day of Prayer, saying that the plaintiffs apparently were complaining because they were observing "conduct with which they disagree," and that does not make a federal case.

The decision Thursday from the U.S. Court 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, written by Chief Judge Frank Easterbrook, rejected arguments from the Freedom From Religion Foundation that the case was legitimate because members felt excluded by the day.

"Hurt feelings differ from legal injury," the court concluded.

"We're extremely pleased that the appeals court rejected a flawed decision and determined that while some may disagree with a presidential proclamation, they do not have the right to silence the speech they don't agree with," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice.

Read more

Today's Survey Question

Do you support the plan to make the immigrant tuition discount bill a referendum ballot issue for voters to decide?

Inside The Deal To Sell GM To China’s SAIC

By now, you’ve no doubt heard the news: General Motors’ Chinese partner, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) will take a controlling stake in GM by purchasing the equity sold to the U.S. and Canadian governments during the bailout. But what does it mean for the future of GM?

The announcement was brief, cryptic and buried in the excitement over the multitude of concepts and new vehicles GM has just announced it will debut at the Shanghai auto show in a few weeks. The press release reads simply:

“Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) and General Motors (NYSE: GM) are announcing today that an agreement has been reached with the governments of the United States and Canada that will allow SAIC to purchase the shares of GM owned by the respective governments. The sale is expected to be completed by this time next year pending approval from U.S., Canadian and Chinese government regulators.”

The implications of this announcement are enormous. The U.S. Treasury currently holds a 26-percent stake in General Motors after selling roughly half of its interest during the company’s Initial Public Offering in November 2010. The Canadian Government, meanwhile, holds nine percent of GM stock after selling of 17.4-percent of its stake during the IPO. Together, that’s 35-percent of the company.

More

Good Graph Friday: Who's Footing The US Tax Bill?

The Investigative Reporting Workshop recently tallied the growing gap between what percentage of the nation's total income tax bill individuals cover, versus how much corporations cover.

In the 1950s, corporations covered 39 percent of the nation's income tax bills, while individuals paid 61 percent.

These days, corporations are only footing 19 percent of the income tax bill, and we're paying 81 percent.

More

Thank God Its Friday

What Will You Be Doing This Weekend?

Trillions In Cuts Up For House Vote

House ready to vote on Rep. Paul Ryan's plan that promises more than $6 trillion in cuts from the budget the president offered in February, as well as significant changes to Medicare — a plan blasted by Dems.

More