Compared to other proposals the administration has thrown at the American people this past year, the home buyer tax credit was not bad. Unfortunately, the government could not even effectively run this program.

New home buyers would receive up to $8,000 in tax credits under the plan. The money was supposed to be available for first-time buyers who bought a primary residence after April 9, 2008, and only individuals making less than $75,000 or couples making less than $150,000 would be eligible. However, during a Ways and Means oversight subcommittee hearing yesterday, House members were informed that thousands of fraudulent claims were made.

The Treasury Department said that at least 19,000 filers who had not bought homes claimed $139 million in tax credits and were in turn reimbursed. An additional 74,000 tax-credit claims, totaling $500 million, could become invalid because of previous home ownership. Even more surprising, 500 people under the age of 18, including a 4-year-old child, had their names on applications for the credit, which has no minimum-age requirement according to federal officials. Evidently some adults used a child’s name as the purchaser of the home because they were ineligible to receive the credit due to their incomes.

Many of these fraudulent claims occurred before the IRS had updated their computer programs. If they had done this correctly, the program would have automatically checked the claims to ensure that they were valid based on the information submitted.

When added up, the total potential waste of your tax money from fraudulent home-credits could be upwards of $639 million. This is the same government that wants to take over our entire healthcare system! We have seen the government’s ineptitude in recent months with cash-for-clunkers, a behind schedule H1N1 flu vaccination and now this. When will liberals in Washington learn that government isn’t the solution to every problem? As my former boss Ronald Reagan correctly said, “Government is the problem.”

In March, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) warned, “President Barack Obama’s budget would produce $9.3 trillion in deficits over the next decade, more than four times the deficits of Republican George W. Bush’s presidency.” That warning is already coming true. While Congress was debating ObamaCare, a new Big Government program expected to cost $1 trillion, the announcement came last week that the United States posted a record annual deficit of $1.4 trillion. To give you some perspective, the previous record deficit, recorded last year, was a “mere” $459 billion.

But, if things don’t change quickly in Washington, one budget analyst warns that it could get a lot worse than the CBO suggests. Brian M. Riedl of the Heritage Foundation says, “The White House figures are based on unrealistic estimates of discretionary spending, interest payments and interest rates.” According to Riedl, a more realistic analysis produces deficits “$4 trillion higher than recent estimates by the Obama administration and the Congressional Budget Office.” And if spending goes unchecked by future Congresses, the budget deficit could reach $2 trillion a year by 2019.

That kind of outrageous spending is unsustainable and will bankrupt America. But it helps to explain why liberal politicians are proposing a massive new energy tax, a value added tax, new surtaxes and excise taxes and more.

Obama True To His Word

One of the most significant events of last year’s presidential campaign occurred when Joe Wurzelbacher, AKA “Joe the Plumber,” confronted Barack Obama about Obama’s proposed tax policies and how they would impact small business owners like him. While the exchange was long, part of Obama’s response stood out to all Americans, “I think when you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody.”

Thus far in his presidency, Barack Obama has been true to his word. The past nine months have witnessed government spending bigger than anything the world has ever seen. In the process, we have racked up an astonishing $1.4 trillion dollar deficit this fiscal year, and the Washington rumor mill is buzzing that the Obama economic team is planning another stimulus package. The spending just never stops. Whether its cash-for-clunkers, the GM takeover or federal bailouts, Obama acts as government spending was the only solution.

It comes as no surprise then to hear the disturbing news yesterday in Detroit. Rumors began to spread throughout the city that the Obama Administration was giving away $3,000 checks to people who are or were going be to homeless. As the crowds grew, people became impatient and fighting erupted. Estimates of the crowd range as high as 15,000 people. These folks believe their salvation will come from government largesse. Here’s an excerpt from an interview with one of the people in line:

Reporter: “What are you here for?”
Woman: “Obama’s money”
Reporter: “Where’s it from?”
Woman: “Obama”
Reporter: “Where’d he get it?”
Woman: “I don’t know, from his stash.”

In case you didn’t know, Obama’s “stash” is the hard-earned money that is in your pocket. At least we know Obama is fulfilling one of his campaign promises – he’s spreading your wealth around.

I’ve been told by several people that the Iranian’s don’t want us to “intervene”.  My simple answer: you’re stupid.  That’s right, I’m blatantly, publicly saying that.  You will forever be able to quote me on this.  The video below features an Iranian woman who, on the phone, describes vividly a massacre she witnessed and begs CNN (and the U.S.) to “stop this” and to “help the people of Iran”.

Albert Einstein once said, “The world is a dangerous place, not [only] because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.”  In my opinion, this includes those who look, notice, mention something, and move on.  The people of Iran don’t just need us to watch and spread the news.  They need us to help them.  Step in and help.  Give them more resources to take their country.

Here’s an excellent quote from the description of the same video:

Just to be clear to all those who say, this does not involve the US. It does!  After the final verdict on the elections by the supreme ruler, he had to say … death to America, death to Israel.  So you see, if they are allowed to kill their own people, they will not stop at anything to try to attack and kill the US!  This is beyond belief!

See, there’s a lot of people saying to Iran, “the world is watching.”  Here’s the problem though: Iranians are watching us.  They’re waiting for us.  They’re watching us bicker and debate about why we shouldn’t “intrude” or “meddle” in, what some people are calling, their revolution.  My guess is that they probably don’t see much ‘hope’ coming from us, especially not coming from the ‘leader of hope’ (I’m talking about Obama, just in case your brain’s running on 56k today).  Stop bickering; stop debating.  People are dieing.  People are being brutally massacred.  And for those who think this whole thing is a hoax… you’re stupid.  Yep, I said it again.  Why would the Iranian government start censoring foreign media, the web, and blocking text services?  To serve their people?  Come on, you’re smarter than that.

Prayers and Lord’s blessings to the Iranian people.

Slowly Finding His Voice

As you know, we and other conservatives have been urging President Obama to speak up in support of the Iranian people who are daring to oppose the brutal Islamofascist regime that runs their country. Slowly the president is finding his voice, but it’s been a very frustrating exercise — like trying to get a two year-old to eat his vegetables. Meanwhile heads were getting cracked, dissidents were being jailed and innocent bystanders were being shot. Here is an excerpt of the president’s comments today at the White House:

“The United States and the international community have been appalled and outraged by the threats, the beatings and imprisonments of the last few days. I strongly condemn these unjust actions… I’ve made it clear that the United States respects the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran and is not interfering with Iran’s affairs. …some in the Iranian government, in particular, are … accusing the United States and others in the West of instigating protests over the elections. These accusations are patently false. They’re an obvious attempt to distract people from what is truly taking place within Iran’s borders. …

“In 2009, no iron fist is strong enough to shut off the world from bearing witness to peaceful protests of justice. …Above all, we’ve seen courageous women stand up to the brutality and threats, and we’ve experienced the searing image of a woman bleeding to death on the streets. While this loss is raw and extraordinarily painful, we also know this: those who stand up for justice are always on the right side of history.”

Much better, Mr. President. Almost Reaganesque.

I was particularly surprised to see the president so forcefully shoot down the accusations of the Iranian regime that we were interfering and instigating the protests. After all, that had been the major excuse that he and so many in the media were offering for his silence – that any critical statements or messages of support would be seized upon by the regime as proof of our “meddling.” It was absurd to begin with (as Brit Hume notes), but the mullahs made the charge anyway. It seems Mr. Obama is no longer worried about “alienating the ayatollah.” Now that he has spoken up and removed his own fig leaf, maybe we can begin to have a real debate about a serious policy toward Iran. (More on that in the next item.)

Many dissidents assumed “Mr. Hope and Change” would be one of their strongest allies. Instead, politicians from the European Union took the lead. When France is a more aggressive advocate for freedom than the United States, the world should be worried. Let’s hope that the president’s statement is not too little, too late. Having received little in the way of encouragement from Washington, while the tyrants in Tehran terrorized their own citizens for days, the protests appear to be waning. I pray that this historic opportunity to break the back of the “axis of evil” and transform a state sponsor of terrorism is not yet lost.

Mohammed to Obama: “We need your help”

This morning I received an email from our friends at National Review that contained an excerpt from a CNN interview with one of the thousands of demonstrators in Tehran. This demonstrator, Mohammed, gives his opinion on what he thinks the United States and the rest of the world should do regarding Iran. Consider this exchange and how it contrasts with President Obama’s desire for dialogue and diplomacy based on “mutual respect”:

MOHAMMED: “Americans, European Union, international community, this government is definitely not elected by the majority of Iranians. So it’s illegal. Do not recognize it. Stop trading with them. Impose much more sanctions against them. My message, to the international community, especially I’m addressing President Obama directly — how can a government that doesn’t recognize its people’s rights and represses them brutally and mercilessly have nuclear activities? This government is a huge threat to global peace. Will a wise man give a sharp dagger to an insane person? We need your help international community. Don’t leave us alone.”

Mohammed gets it. Why is it so hard for our “experts” at the State Department and the White House? Diplomacy and appeasement do not dissuade dictators. President Obama is an impressive orator, but no one — not even Barack Hussein Obama — is going to talk a Holocaust-denying madman out of his desire to “wipe Israel off the map.” Words will not stop his work to destroy the “Great Satan,” which is how the Islamic radicals in Iran refer to the United States. The West must confront the reality that Mohammed is warning against. We need a serious plan of action, not just words. And here too Mohammed has a suggestion:

REPORTER: “Mohammed, what do you think the international community should do besides sanctions?”

MOHAMMED: “This regime is really dependent on importing gasoline. More than 85% of Iran’s gasoline is imported from foreign countries. I think the international communities must sanction exporting gasoline to Iran and that might shut down the government.”
The president should also rescind his invitation for Iranian diplomats to attend July 4th parties at U.S. embassies around the world. Obama dodged a question today about his “hot dog diplomacy” when asked by Fox News reporter Major Garrett if the Iranian government representatives were still welcome. And President Obama should immediately restore the funding that he cut for pro-democracy efforts in Iran.

- Excerpt from Gary Bauer’s Daily Report (6-23-09)
Sign up for his End of Day Report here.

Obama’s Numbers Falling

Last week, we reported that President Obama’s approval rating was starting to fall after a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll recorded its lowest figure to date. Now there is more evidence that the novelty is wearing off. For some time now, the daily Rasmussen tracking poll has also detected declining support for the president, and it recorded a new low over the weekend.

In assessing President Obama’s support, pollster Scott Rasmussen has developed a unique measurement – the presidential approval index (PAI). Rasmussen calculates the PAI by subtracting the percentage of voters who strongly approve of the president from the percentage of those who strongly disapprove. It is a measure of core support or disapproval.

For the first six weeks of the Obama administration, the president enjoyed strong support with a presidential approval index consistently in the double digits, with significantly more voters strongly approving of President Obama’s performance than strongly disapproving. That’s to be expected during the so-called “honeymoon” period that all presidents generally receive from the public. But in March, Rasmussen’s polling detected a “shift in the winds.” In more than one hundred days of polling since the first week of March, Obama has earned a double-digit PAI rating just three times.

And yesterday, for the first time ever, Rasmussen’s daily tracking poll found President Obama’s approval index was in fact negative at -2, with 32% of likely voters strongly approving of his performance and 34% of likely voters strongly disapproving. Today, his PAI remains negative at -1.

And here’s more news that must concern the president: His days of blaming everything on George W. Bush are coming to an end. According to a newly released Rasmussen poll, while a majority of voters still cut the president some slack on the economy, the number of voters who blame the current economic conditions on Bush is down eight points, while the number blaming Obama is up 12 points, a 20-point swing in three weeks.

Finding His Voice

President Obama struggled this weekend to catch up with Congress and the American people in voicing his support for freedom in Iran and expressing moral outrage for the oppressive tactics of the tyrants in Tehran. Friday, the House voted 405-to-1 to condemn the regime and support the Iranian people seeking liberty. Hours later, the Senate unanimously approved a similar resolution. Senators McCain (R-AZ) and Lieberman (ID-CT) issued a joint statement Friday, which read, “By acting now, Congress sent an unmistakable message of support to the courageous Iranian people at a critical moment in their history.” By staying silent, the Obama White House had been sending a message of support to the mullahs.

Saturday, the White House released a statement from the president. Here is an excerpt:

“The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching. We mourn each and every innocent life that is lost. We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people. The universal rights to assembly and free speech must be respected, and the United States stands with all who seek to exercise those rights. …If the Iranian government seeks the respect of the international community, it must respect the dignity of its own people and govern through consent, not coercion.”

While Obama’s rhetoric is getting better, his policy toward outlaw states like Iran is way behind reality. He still thinks he can negotiate with Ahmadinejad to end his nuclear weapons program. By the way, that would be a form of “meddling” that would only serve to offer legitimacy to the Holocaust-denying dictator. Meanwhile, a North Korean ship continues on its way, while suspected of carrying contraband materials in violation of U.N. sanctions. What will Obama do?

There’s another area where Obama is hopelessly behind and Big Media won’t tell you about this. For years, the Bush Administration spent money to promote pro-democracy movements in Iran. And now, just as those efforts are beginning to bear fruit, what does the Obama Administration do? The president cut the funding for those programs in his first budget to Congress.

And if you don’t think that it matters one iota if Iran becomes a free nation or if the Islamic fanatics currently running Iran are allowed to develop nuclear weapons, consider the latest statement from Al Qaeda: “God willing, the nuclear weapons [in Pakistan] will not fall into the hands of the Americans, and the Mujahideen would take them and use them against the Americans.” If we ignore reality and pretend the rest of the world doesn’t matter, our next 9/11 won’t be 3,000 dead, but hundreds of thousands.

- Excerpt from Gary Bauer’s Daily Report (6-22-09)
Sign up for his End of Day Report here.

Despite Obama’s silence, the House passed a bi-partisan resolution today supporting the Iranian dissidents who share our values. My good friend Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) and Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA) introduced the following legislation on the House floor:

“Expressing support for all Iranian citizens who embrace the values of freedom, human rights, civil liberties, and rule of law, and for other purposes. Resolved, That the House of Representatives-

(1) expresses its support for all Iranian citizens who embrace the values of freedom, human rights, civil liberties, and rule of law;
(2) condemns the ongoing violence against demonstrators by the Government of Iran and pro-government militias, as well as the ongoing government suppression of independent electronic communication through interference with the Internet and cell phones; and
(3) affirms the university of individual rights and the importance of democratic and fair elections.”

The resolution passed by an overwhelming margin of 405-to-1. Who was the single representative who voted against the resolution? Nancy Pelosi? Barney Frank? No, it was none other than Republican isolationist Ron Paul of Texas. At least one of our branches of government has offered its support for the courageous Iranian citizens risking their lives in the name of freedom and democracy.

- Excerpt from Gary Bauer’s Daily Report
Sign up for his End of Day Report here.

Every year, the federal government disperses hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars – your tax dollars – to various projects and programs. In order to ensure that your money is not wasted, each department has an office of independent auditors known as inspectors general or IGs. Last year, Congress passed a law designed to strengthen their independence from political pressure. Then Senator Obama was one of the co-sponsors of that legislation. But now it appears as though President Obama has run afoul of that very law and a scandal is brewing that has yet to be noticed by the “mainstream media.”

In a move denounced by both Republicans and Democrats as a violation of the new protections for IGs, President Obama recently fired Americorps IG Gerald Walpin. Walpin’s work was getting very close to some very big Obama supporters and he recently received a call from the White House telling him he had one hour to resign or be fired. Walpin refused to go and was sacked. The White House responded to the controversy with wild accusations suggesting Mr. Walpin suffered from dementia. Today there is breaking news that Walpin isn’t the only IG to be fired. But there’s another story here too.

When Bush fired eight political appointees it was front page news, and, believe it or not, Congress is still investigating that. But when Obama fires not one, but now three inspectors general, just as the administration is getting ready to spend billions of stimulus dollars even faster, liberal politicians and the media are silent. As one commentator observed, “WHERE ARE THE WATCHDOGS of the establishment media? Oh, that’s right: They are no longer watchdogs but lapdogs, and particularly slobbering ones at that….”

- Excerpt from Gary Bauer’s Daily Report
Sign up for his End of Day Report here.

In a primetime special on June 24th, ABC News will be broadcasting out of the Obama White House in an effort to promote President Obama’s government-run health care plan. When the Republican National Committee learned of this planned primetime promo, it asked for the opportunity to include a spokesman for its views. (It’s worth noting that nearly 70% of doctors serving in Congress are Republicans, such as Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.) However, ABC News denied the request. Instead, a pre-selected audience will ask the president questions in a town-hall-style format. (I suspect the questions will be pre-selected too!)

The reports of ABC’s “infomercial” for Obama’s socialized healthcare scheme have sparked a tremendous outcry against this blatant example of media bias. A major media news outlet teaming up with the White House to sell its healthcare plan sounds like something that would take place in Russia or China, not the United States. Many conservative commentators are now referring to ABC as the “All Barack Channel.”

The reaction from ABC was an arrogant statement from Senior Vice President Kerry Smith, who said, “Like any programs we broadcast, ABC News will have complete editorial control. To suggest otherwise is quite unfair to both our journalists and our audience.” Really? I wonder how many people know that the Director of Communications at the White House Office of Health Reform is Linda Douglass, a former ABC news reporter who worked at the network for nearly ten years. I’m sure that’s just a remarkable coincidence and that Douglass had absolutely nothing to do with arranging this broadcast.

TAKE ACTION: Click here to share your thoughts with ABC News about its biased coverage.

- Excerpt from Gary Bauer’s Daily Report
Sign up for his End of Day Report here.

There is a large photo on the front page of [the] Washington Post [published June 15th] of an Iranian dissenter on the ground covering his head while government thugs beat him with their clubs. For years, analysts have told us that there are millions of Iranians like this man who want freedom and better relations with the United States. This weekend we saw evidence they exist as hundreds of thousands demonstrated in Tehran and other major cities against the Ahmadinejad regime, chanting “death to the dictator.” Any chance for good relations between Iran and the U.S. and between Iran and Israel depends on the people who are being oppressed in Iran right now eventually regaining power in their own country. But at this critical moment for liberty, Obama, Biden and Clinton are shamefully AWOL.

The explanation for their silence is simple – and disgusting. The Obama Administration has spent the last 5 months reaching out to Ahmadinejad. The president publicly stated that he is not interested in regime change in Tehran and promised a policy toward Iran based on “mutual respect.” The thirst for freedom in Iran is a complication for an administration that has already committed itself to appeasing the tyrants in the current Iranian regime. As a result the United States’ moral authority has been absent during the Iranian election and the protests that have followed. Surely even this administration will eventually become embarrassed as they fail to find any words to defend the only people in Iran with whom we may have “shared values.” At a bare minimum we should immediately increase radio and satellite broadcasts into Iran and use whatever internet tools we have to reach its people.

- Excerpt from Gary Bauer’s Daily Report
Sign up for his End of Day Report here.

PS: I’ve posted this quickly to get it out in the open. I’d be ever so grateful if you would help me add the appropriate source links to the article, if you know of any, by including them in the comments. Thanks!