Monday, June 10, 2013

Solved!


* Rep. Elijah Cummings has solved the IRS "scandal" that Darrell Issa is promoting.

TPM:

A self-described Republican who serves as a U.S. Internal Revenue Service manager told congressional investigators that he and a colleague initiated the additional scrutiny of conservative groups, Reuters reported.
Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), the ranking member on the House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee, released on Sunday an interview transcript in which the manager said that he and a subordinate scrutinized "Tea Party" and "patriot" groups that had applied for tax-exempt status.
"He is a conservative Republican working for the IRS. I think this interview and these statements go a long way toward showing that the White House was not involved in this," Cummings said during an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union."


When will Boehner, Cantor, Ryan, and the rest of the Republicans start working on creating jobs instead of headlines?

Eric Cantor further displays the lack of ideas and initiative that the GOP has in his latest venture.
RedAlertPolitics:

...Today, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, (R-Va.), unveiled a new website called the “Citizen Co-sponsor Project,” a project of the Office of the House Majority Leader.

The site allows citizens to co-sponsor their preferred bills as they move through the House of Representatives by endorsing them on its homepage through their Facebook accounts.

...Cantor, who controls the bills that come to the House floor, told National Review Online that he and other members will consider the endorsements bills receive on the site when they make decisions in the House, regardless of their number....

Cantor and the Republicans are too busy avoiding work and now they want the public to suggest legislation. Republicans can't come up with bills to create jobs, lower student loan interest, repair our bridges/roads/schools, help returning vets, provide equal pay, etc. The Republican Party is out of touch and out of ideas.

*  We've just returned from a few days on the east coast. While we were there, we saw a questionable ad from the state of New Jersey that features Gov. Chris Christie. Music, and smiling faces proclaim that the state is "Stronger Than The Storm" to anyone that will listen. Christie is currently running for re-election and is shown awkwardly walking up from the beach in the ad. Christie's self-promotion in this ad, as well as the timing for the election for U.S. Senator, proves that Chris Christie is for himself.  Why is Christie in a promotional ad during an election year?  Why did Christie schedule the election for the Senate at a different time than the general election? Why is Christie willing to waste $20 million+ to hold a special election when the general election in November could have saved the state millions?

*   More questions are being raised about Gov. John Kasich's super secret JobsOhio.
Governing:

An Ohio law signed by Gov. John Kasich last week would block public oversight of state liquor store revenues that are now being funneled to a private economic development entity. But a bipartisan effort is already underway to prevent the measure from taking effect.

The new law forbids Ohio Auditor Dave Yost from auditing $100 million in wholesale liquor profits, which used to go into the state’s general fund but are now being funneled to JobsOhio, a non-profit economic development firm created by the state legislature and approved by Kasich in 2011. The legislation creating JobsOhio, which is led by a governor-appointed board and charged with attracting business to the state, allowed the entity to effectively take over the state’s liquor operations and use the $100 million in resulting profits as a major source of funding. The law does allow for an annual audit, but by a private auditor, to track the use of what was previously public money....

....The case is currently before the Ohio Supreme Court, which is considering whether the plaintiffs have standing to sue over the issue at all. The Kasich administration argues that they do not. The state is expected to file its brief in late June, after which the plaintiffs will have an opportunity to respond. If the Ohio Supreme Court decides the plaintiffs do have standing, then the lawsuit will go to trial and the plaintiffs say they are confident that the legislation passed in the last month would be overturned....

While Kasich and his cronies give away your tax money, they hide which companies get money, the amount of jobs created, and any relationship (friend, contributor, etc.) they might have with those that benefit.