Biden, Clinton Should Swap Jobs

In 2006, then-Senator Joe Biden, a presidential candidate at the time, came to San Jose’s Capitol Club for a fundraiser. As host of the event, it was difficult to get people to pay to see the senior senator from Delaware. Only a small number of hardcore Democrats turned out.  But times have changed.

There was no question that Biden was the best qualified candidate for the top office in 2008, as exhibited by his debate performances in Iowa.  But in the age of American Idol, when a President must entertain as well as govern, it was Barack Obama who took the big ticket. To Obama’s credit, he chose Biden as Vice President and the two have done a good job in terribly difficult circumstances

The Obama administration saved the country from depression, saved the auto industry from extinction, ended one war while winding down another and passed the first national healthcare bill ever.

Obama and Biden took office when 750,000 people a month were losing their jobs. Now there is positive job growth. The stock market was at 7,300 when they took office—it is now over 12,000. Unemployment is edging downward. They’ve done all this and more in the face of an entrenched Republican opposition that uses minority government to thwart the President’s policy solely in an attempt to regain power. It is an evil, un-American—yet ironically successful—political strategy.

In any other time in history, re-election for this President would be a cinch. But in the era of FAUX News, twisted truths, instant gratification and public ignorance, this administration will face a tough road to re-election.

This brings us back to Biden, who doesn’t have any trouble drawing a crowd as VP. But Biden is 69 and his age is a factor. The Democrats need someone to energize the base. Currently, the most popular administration official is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who is four years younger than Biden.

Biden knows more about foreign affairs than anybody in the administration and would be a natural for Secretary of State. A switch would be seamless and make sense from a political point of view. It would energize a new base of supporters and Obama would still have his top team around to guide policy.

But if the change is made, it is important that it not be seen as a demotion. In fact, it should be Joe’s idea. Biden is a pragmatic patriot who has always put country ahead of personal politics. It is one reason he was respected on both sides of the aisle as a U.S. Senator.

As a person who supported Biden for the top job in 1988 and 2008, it will not be a surprise if he asks the President to make the move, as he has always coveted the job of Secretary of State anyway. That said, whether it is Biden or Clinton, the re-election of President Obama is essential for the continued recovery of our nation.

Rich Robinson is an attorney and political consultant in Silicon Valley. Opinions are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of San Jose Inside.

53 Comments

  1. Both need to leave office and take Barack with them.  Maybe Chuckie can leave SJ and run for that office.  That way he can take down the whole country instead of just SJ.  Of course Barack has done a pretty good job.  And finally another one of your lousy columns deserves a crappy response.

  2. The Obama administration saved the country from depression, saved the auto industry from extinction, ended one war while winding down another and passed the first national healthcare bill ever.

    Obama and Biden took office when 750,000 people a month were losing their jobs. Now there is positive job growth.

    WHAT PLANET DO YOU LIVE ON.  TIME TO CLIMB BACK INTO THE HOLE YOU CAME FROM AND QUIT WRITING THIS TRASH.  GEZZ, AND I THOUGHT PO’S MONDAYS WERE BAD.

  3. Once again you’ve got it backwards Rich.
    The public ignorance, twisted truths and instant gratification will, as always, work in favor of the pandering Democrats.
    American Idol President Obama will not be voted off the island. Crony capitalism and government program dependency will thrive. Hillary will continue to be groomed for the top slot in ‘16. And how could she possibly lose? All the people who thought it’d be cool to vote for the first black President and all the people who thought it would be cool to vote for the Terminator will also think it would be cool to vote for the first woman President. All these brilliant political minds are squarely in your camp. Congratulations!

  4. Rich,

    Are you visiting Chucks Mary Wanna clubs again?  Maybe write about this….

    WE ARE COLLECTIVELY TRUSTING AND THEREFORE, STUPID!!!!!!      Whaaaaaaaaaaaat a coincidence!

          Hey, this is great! Imagine the odds of this happening.

          Do you know the park in NYC that the Wall Street protesters are occupying?

          It’s Zuccotti Park.

          Did you know this park is not owned by the city of New York?
          It is owned by Brookfield Properties.

          Who was just hired by Brookfield Properties as an attorney?
          Vice President Joe Biden’s son.

          Who sits on the board of Brookfield Properties?
          Mayor Bloomberg’s live in girlfriend.

          Now, guess what company just received some of the last of the Obama Stimulus $$$$$$$.

          Thaaaaaaaaaaaat’s right, Brookfield Properties.
        Isn’t life great in America!

    Now, guess what, on a completely unrelated note, Wisconsin is shaping up to be the swing state in the 2012 presidential elections. Not Florida. Not Ohio. But Wisconsin.

          Now, guess who owns the company that will be tabulating the electronic votes in Wisconsin?

          Thaaaaaaaaaaaat’s right, the biggest contributor to Obama, the puppeteer George Soros. Whaaaaaaaaaaaat a coincidence!

          Now remember what Stalin said. “He who votes does not have the power. He who counts the votes has the power”.

  5. Rich,

    Love to hear you comments on this…….

    HB 1388 PASSED

    You just spent $20,000,000 to move members/supporters of Hamas, a terrorist organization, to the United States ; housing, food,  transportation, the whole enchilada.

    HB 1388 PASSED

    Whether you are an Obama fan, or not, EVERYONE IN THE U.S. Needs to know….  H.B. 1388 was passed, behind our backs . You may want to read about it…

    It wasn’t mentioned on the news… Just went by on the ticker tape at the bottom of the CNN screen.

    Obama funds $20M in tax payer dollars to immigrate Hamas Refugees to the USA . This is the news that did not, and will not, make the headlines.

    By executive order, President Barack Obama has ordered the expenditure of $20.3 million in “migration assistance” to the Palestinian refugees and “conflict victims” in Gaza .

    The “presidential determination”  (ain’t that nice?) which allows hundreds of thousands of Palestinians with ties to Hamas to resettle in the United States , was signed and appears in     the Federal Register.

    Few on Capitol Hill, or in the media, took note that the order provides a free ticket replete with housing, transportation and food allowances to individuals who have displayed their     overwhelming support to the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the parliamentary election of January 2006.

    Now we learn that he is allowing thousands of Palestinian refugees to move to, and live in, the US at American taxpayer expense.

    These important, and insightful, issues are being “lost” in the blinding bail-outs and “stimulation”  packages.

    Doubtful? To verify this for yourself: http://www.thefederalregister.com/d.p/2009-02-04-E9-2488

    YOU MUST PASS THIS ON… AMERICA NEEDS TO KNOW…

    Friends,  WE are losing this country at a rapid pace.

  6. Rich I guess the Obama administration saved the airlines as well!

    This is from Mark Knoller of CBS.

    The pilots and crew of Air Force One are flying more hours than a rookie on a beer run.
    They are tired of it too, and are adding more crew to Air Force-1, – I know this for a fact because I’m one of the instructors that trains the crews. Our company (Atlas Air) has had the Air Force-1 and E-4 contract for over two years and I’ve been doing it for about 8 months now.

    Last year (2010) Obama flew in Air Force One 172 times, almost every other day. White House officials have been telling reporters in recent days that the Democrat doesn’t intend to hang around the White House quite so much in 2011.They explain he wants to get out more around the country because, as everyone knows, that midterm election shellacking on Nov. 2 had nothing to do with his health care bill, over-spending or other policies, and everything to do with Obama’s not adequately explaining himself to his countrymen and women.

    And with only 673 days remaining in Obama’s never ending presidential campaign, the incumbent’s travel pace will not likely slacken. At an Air Force-estimated cost of $181,757 per flight HOUR (not to mention the additional travel costs of Marine One, Secret Service, logistics and local police overtime), that’s a lot of frequent flier dollars going into Obama’s carbon footprint.
    $80 Million every time it lands & takes off.

    We are privy to some of these numbers thanks to CBS’ Mark Knoller, a bearded national treasure trove of presidential stats. According to Knoller’s copious notes, during the last year, Obama made 65 domestic trips over 104 days, and six trips to eight countries over 22 days. Not counting six vacation trips over 32 days. He took 196 helicopter trips, signed 203 pieces of legislation and squeezed in 29 rounds of left-handed golf.
    Obama last year gave 491 speeches, remarks or statements. That’s more talking than goes on in some entire families, at least from fatherly mouths. In fact, even including the 24 days of 2010 that we never saw Obama in public, his speaking works out to about one official utterance every 11 waking hours. Aides indicate the “Real Good Talker” believes we need more.

    Related: Obama spends nearly half his presidency outside Washington, plans to travel more.
    Related: Vacationer-in-Chief Spends $1.75 Million to Visit Hawaiian Chums.
    Obama has spent over $100 million taxpayer dollars flying around in Air Force One, and probably another $100 million on his entourage.
    Obama is just another tin-pot dictator living lavishly at the expense of his subjects.

    And we seniors have to “tighten our belts”

  7. Typical BS.

    The economic picture for this country changed when the dens took control of congress whil Bush was in office.

    Obama ‘saved’ our country by tripling the national debt? More like he refinanced the problem to future generations.

    Rich is nothing more than a political hack striving cos relevance.

    • Typical rw response—no facts to support any argument.  Reeps were in control for 6 years, two wars, tax cuts for the wealthy, no regulation of the financial industry, not a single veto of a spending bill, an unpaid big pharma giveaway.

      Now the same crew uses minority government to keep unemployment high in effort to take back political control.  The debt wasn’t a problem until Jr. Did all of the above—cutting spending in a time of near depression is a prescription for disaster.

      Dems save capitalism twice, and this is the dribble they get from neophytes?  Nextq time you comment, have a single fact that applies and don’t cite faux news as a source or confuse simplistic sound- bites or opinion with facts.

      • Let’s see.  American trucks, tires, planes, uniforms,
        weapon systems,preadators,paint,ammo,boots, ALL MADE IN AMERICA.  100’s of thousands employed by the goverment.  When it all ends………Were does everything go.  Let’s see….FMC San Jose?  All gone. Back to the un employment line with no jobs.

      • Wow Rich- Typical Left Wing nut job response to anyone who doesn’t like liberals or democrats. You should probably quit your day job as a political consultant and try something different. Opposing points of view obviously raise your blood pressure to dangerous levels.
        Let me enlighten you in on a small issue called “free thinking”. It works both ways. If you are going to expect me to sit through and hear your point of view then you should be willing to open your ears to others.
        There is in my opinion a better way to deal with a difference in political ideology than what you just displayed above. Using big words and accusing people of being unintelligent just make you look…well…foolish and arrogant.

        • Willing to listen—not to be confused with agreement.  But give me something to respond to…  Dribble, sound bites and opinion without evidence hardly makes for constructive dialogue.

          In the words of Steve Martin, if you are going to speak, have a point.

        • I do have a point. The point is your view of Obama, Biden and Clinton are distorted and wrong. Your entire article is full of dribble, sound bites, and opinion. In fact I would not be surprised if it were plagiarized off MSNBC.
          See us RW guys are willing to listen too- just don’t mistake the fact you have anything to say at all will be taken as agreement.
          In the words of Clint Eastwood, “Don’t go away mad….Just go away.”

        • Cc:  the difference between msnbc and fox is the use of real facts.  Msnbc doesn’t just make things up or distort reality.  They have made mistakes, but they admit them.

          FOX is a cartoonish network that has decided their market are those people you can fool all of the time—

        • Rich- “the difference between msnbc and fox is the use of real facts.  Msnbc doesn’t just make things up or distort reality.  They have made mistakes, but they admit them.”

          Spoken like a true close minded liberal. You are really have out done yourself. No wonder most find your rantings on par with a second grader and your insight about as sound as a jelly doughnut.

          “Now go away or I will be forced to taunt you a second time.”

  8. “Over the past 20 years, MBNA has been Biden’s single largest contributor . And as the New York Times and Wall Street Journal note, Biden’s son Hunter was hired out of law school by MBNA and later worked as a lobbyist for the company [MBNA].

    The Times also details just how helpful Biden has been to MBNA and to the credit card industry. The senator was a key supporter of an industry-favorite bill—the “Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005”—that actually made it harder for consumers to get protection under bankruptcy.”

    “Biden and MBNA have indeed developed a pretty cozy relationship. John Cochran, the company’s vice-chairman and chief marketing officer, did pay top dollar for Biden’s house, and MBNA gave Cochran a lot of money–$330,000–to help with “expenses” related to the move.”

    Joe Biden.  The quintessence of crony capitalism.

    Biden, who was in charge of overseeing the 800 billion dollar spending bill:

    – “We Have To Spend Money To Keep From Going Bankrupt”
    – “Barack and I were on the phone calling Jon Corzine for advice” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xm3VMrKqJSA

    With the cabal of morons, criminals, and socialists in the Obama administration, little wonder the country has been in the ditch the last 4 years.

    • – “We Have To Spend Money To Keep From Going Bankrupt”
      – “Barack and I were on the phone calling Jon Corzine for advice”

      LMAO

      Maybe they should just give the money to us web consulting small businesses.. or better yet to the Occupy demonstrators in the US.

  9. I sometimes wonder where all the “the government is all screwed up” trolls were when the Bush/Cheney team was running things.  I might agree with some of the anti-Obama comments but I also know the Republican party controlled the congress from 1994 to 2006 and the presidency from 2000 to 2008.  I will agree the Democrats have been just awful if you will agree the Republicans have been even worse.

  10. Once again, the conservative voices come out screaming and yelling trying to shout down any reasonable discourse.  Once again, conservative fantasy falls down to the facts.  Once again, the conservative fringe has demonstrated why individuals with intelligent, cogent thoughts have abandoned this site.  Good job demonstrating a lack of intellect and thought.  No wonder the “Culture of Stupidity” has taken over the Republican Party.

    • reminds me of reed. They are ruining this country. Obama says left, they say right. He says blue, they say green. He tries to secure the Olympics for 2016, they cheer because he doesn’t get it. They will do ANYTHING to ensure that the president fails at whatever…even if it means making the country fail. I will never vote for another republican in my life! I now see that they are a bunch of bafoon idiots.

    • VERIFIED CRIMINAL COMPLAINT, ON INFORMATION

      Paul Andrew Mitchell, B.A., M.S.
      Private Attorney General, 18 U.S.C. 1964(a)

      UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
      THIRD CIRCUIT
      PHILIP J. BERG, ESQUIRE [sic], ) Appeal No. 08-4443

      Plaintiff ) USDC No. 2:08-CV-04083 (RBS)

      BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA et al., )

      Defendants. )
      —————————————————-)
      )
      United States ) VERIFIED CRIMINAL COMPLAINT,

      COMES NOW the United States (“Applicant”) ex relatione Paul Andrew Mitchell, B.A., M.S., Citizen of ONE OF the United States of America, Private Attorney General, Criminal Investigator and Federal Witness (hereinafter “Relator”)—having timely applied for leave to intervene pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1651(a)—to provide formal Notice to all interested Parties, and to demand mandatory judicial notice by this honorable U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, of this VERIFIED CRIMINAL COMPLAINT, ON INFORMATION formally charging the following named individual with the corresponding criminal violations enumerated infra.
      Relator hereby formally charges:
      Barack Hussein Obama with:
      (1) commission of a felony by falsely assuming or pretending to be an Officer of the United States (Federal Government), acting as such under authority of the United States without the requisite credentials and without the requisite qualifications as expressly stated at Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 in the Constitution for the United States of America, as lawfully amended, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 912 (one or more counts);
      (2) commission of a felony by falsely and willfully representing himself to be a citizen of the United States also known as a “federal citizen”, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 911 (one or more counts);
      (3) commission of a felony by conspiring with one or more other persons to commit offenses against the United States (Federal Government), and to defraud the United States and agencies thereof, and by doing acts specifically to effect the object of the conspiracy, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371 (one or more counts);
      (4) commission of a misdemeanor by willfully subjecting the People of the United States of America to the deprivation of their fundamental Right to a President of the United States of America who satisfies the Qualification Clause at Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 in the Constitution for the United States of America, as lawfully amended, under color of laws, statutes, ordinances, regulations or customs, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 242 (one or more counts);
      (5) commission of a felony by conspiring with one or more other persons not yet named herein, to injure, oppress, threaten or intimidate the People of the United States of America in the free exercise and full enjoyment of their fundamental Right to a President of the United States of America who satisfies the Qualification Clause at Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 in the Constitution for the United States of America, as lawfully amended, and because of their having so exercised and attempted so to exercise the same, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 241 (one or more counts);
      (6) commission of a felony by placing in a post office, or in an authorized depository for mail, matter to be sent and delivered by the Postal Service for the purposes of executing a scheme or artifice to defraud and of obtaining money by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, after having devised or intended to devise said scheme or artifice to defraud and to obtain money by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341 (one or more counts);
      (7) commission of a felony by having devised or intended to devise a scheme or artifice to defraud and to obtain money or property by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, by transmitting and causing to be transmitted by means of wire, radio or television communications in interstate or foreign commerce, writings, signs, signals, pictures or sounds for the purpose of executing such scheme or artifice, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343 (one or more counts); and,
      (8) commission of a felony by conspiring to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity as a direct result of committing two or more of the predicate acts itemized supra and in the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (“RICO”) Act, partially codified at 18 U.S.C. 1961 et seq., during the preceding ten (10) calendar years, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1962 (one or more counts).
      AFFIDAVIT OF PROBABLE CAUSE
      Accordingly, Relator hereby testifies that the two (2) documents previously incorporated in the instant case are true and correct, and both constitute material evidence establishing facts calling for the conclusion that Defendant Barack Hussein Obama was natural born in the Republic of Kenya, most probably on August 4, 1961 A.D., at Coast Provincial General Hospital in the city of Mombasa.
      From these uncontested facts Relator concludes that Defendant Barack Hussein Obama is not now and never was eligible to occupy the Office of President of the United States of America.
      See Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 in the Constitution for the United States of America, as lawfully amended.
      Further Relator sayeth naught.
      VERIFICATION
      I, Paul Andrew Mitchell, Sui Juris, hereby verify, under penalty of perjury, under the laws of the United States of America, without the “United States” (Federal Government), that the above statement of facts and laws is true and correct, according to the best of My current information, knowledge and belief, so help me God, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1746(1). See Supremacy Clause (Constitution, Laws and Treaties are all the supreme Law of the Land).
      Dated: April 13, 2010 A.D.
      Signed: /s/ Paul Andrew Mitchell

  11. > There was no question that Biden was the best qualified candidate for the top office in 2008, as exhibited by his debate performances in Iowa.

    Really!!!

    I had no idea!

    I was under the impression that Biden was merely a pompous gasbag and a complete waste of a carbon footprint.

    I presume that Obama selected him as VP after Biden praised him as “clean and articulate”.

    Obama is probably insecure about his hygiene. 

    He also appreciates suck-ups like Biden when they admire how well he can read a teleprompter without stumbling over the big words.

      • > “his hygiene and clothing are a lot cleaner than yours.”

        Probably not a bad 2012 campaign platform for Obungle and the Dims.

        Certainly better than: “Unemployment is lower because we made 20 million people drop out of the workforce.”

  12. I’m now convinced that Rich Robinson is being held in a North Korean prison camp and is being forced to write these absurd propaganda screeds because some ugly North Korean goon is poking a bayonet in his ribs and using his “manliness” parts for a grip excercisor.

    OH THE HUMANITY!!!

    • It’s too bad the majority of commenters for this post are part of some strange cult, where the members are part of the 99% but choose to support policies and candidates that only care about the 1 %. I’m not camping out in the streets because I have work and a social life, but I think I have more in common with the homeless and disenfranchised kids than you tea party lunatics.

      I say this because the 1% doesn’t need poor and middle class people defending them.

  13. Obama and Biden’s America, 2011

    http://www.yolohub.com/economy/50-economic-numbers-from-2011-that-are-almost-too-crazy-to-believe

    #1 A staggering 48 percent of all Americans are either considered to be “low income” or are living in poverty.

    #2 Approximately 57 percent of all children in the United States are living in homes that are either considered to be “low income” or impoverished.

    #3 If the number of Americans that “wanted jobs” was the same today as it was back in 2007, the “official” unemployment rate put out by the U.S. government would be up to 11 percent.

    #4 The average amount of time that a worker stays unemployed in the United States is now over 40 weeks.

    #5 One recent survey found that 77 percent of all U.S. small businesses do not plan to hire any more workers.

    #6 There are fewer payroll jobs in the United States today than there were back in 2000 even though we have added 30 million extra people to the population since then.

    #7 Since December 2007, median household income in the United States has declined by a total of 6.8% once you account for inflation.

    #8 According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 16.6 million Americans were self-employed back in December 2006.  Today, that number has shrunk to 14.5 million.

    #9 A Gallup poll from earlier this year found that approximately one out of every five Americans that do have a job consider themselves to be underemployed.

    #10 According to author Paul Osterman, about 20 percent of all U.S. adults are currently working jobs that pay poverty-level wages.

    #11 Back in 1980, less than 30% of all jobs in the United States were low income jobs.  Today, more than 40% of all jobs in the United States are low income jobs.

    #12 Back in 1969, 95 percent of all men between the ages of 25 and 54 had a job.  In July, only 81.2 percent of men in that age group had a job.

    #13 One recent survey found that one out of every three Americans would not be able to make a mortgage or rent payment next month if they suddenly lost their current job.

    #14 The Federal Reserve recently announced that the total net worth of U.S. households declined by 4.1 percent in the 3rd quarter of 2011 alone.

    #15 According to a recent study conducted by the BlackRock Investment Institute, the ratio of household debt to personal income in the United States is now 154 percent.

    #16 As the economy has slowed down, so has the number of marriages.  According to a Pew Research Center analysis, only 51 percent of all Americans that are at least 18 years old are currently married.  Back in 1960, 72 percentof all U.S. adults were married.

    #17 The U.S. Postal Service has lost more than 5 billion dollars over the past year.

    #18 In Stockton, California home prices have declined 64 percent from where they were at when the housing market peaked.

    #19 Nevada has had the highest foreclosure rate in the nation for 59 monthsin a row.

    #20 If you can believe it, the median price of a home in Detroit is now just $6000.

    #21 According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 18 percent of all homes in the state of Florida are sitting vacant.  That figure is 63 percent larger than it was just ten years ago.

    #22 New home construction in the United States is on pace to set a brand new all-time record low in 2011.

    #23 As I have written about previously, 19 percent of all American men between the ages of 25 and 34 are now living with their parents.

    #24 Electricity bills in the United States have risen faster than the overall rate of inflation for five years in a row.

    #25 According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, health care costs accounted for just 9.5% of all personal consumption back in 1980.  Today they account for approximately 16.3%.

    #26 One study found that approximately 41 percent of all working age Americans either have medical bill problems or are currently paying off medical debt.

    #27 If you can believe it, one out of every seven Americans has at least 10 credit cards.

    etc. etc. etc.

    • The transfer of wealth in this nation has seen the top 2 % get richer and the middle class sink.  The stats tell of a economy that went off the rails because it is controlled by too small a percentage of people.  Going back to the Reagan Gingrich era. 

      Rich

      • > The transfer of wealth in this nation has seen the top 2 % get richer and the middle class sink.

        People who have gotten richer in the Obama era:

        1. Barack Hussein Obama
        2. Michele Obama
        3. Dianne (“inside trader”) Feinstein
        4. Nancy (“inside trader”) Pelosi
        5. Barbara (“House banking grifter”) Boxer
        6. Franklin (“Fannie Mae Clinton Crony”) Raines
        7. Jamie (“Fannie Mae Clinton Crony”) Gorelick
        8. Barney (“Fannie Mae Clinton Crony”) Frank
        9 through 999. Solyndra and other “alternative energy” stumulus sucking grifters.

        Maybe we should all these parasites “One Percenters”

        • Well we could list the Republicans and the list would be much longer.  Moreover, the ill-gotten gains would be much greater for Reeps.  That said, it doesn’t change the underlying reasoning, in fact it bollsters the fact.

          The system is rigged.  Nancy et al support consumer protection, increased taxes on the wealthy, more relief for the middle class—why would you support the Reeps agenda that exacerbates the current problem .

        • > Well we could list the Republicans and the list would be much longer.

          Well, “we” can’t list the Republians because all the Republicans I know where out of power back benchers and didn’t have much opportunity to steal because the Dems were hogging all the stealing opportunities.

          If YOU think you can “list all the Republicans” who are crooks, have at it.  Let’s see your list and see if we can agree that Repubs are every bit as slimy, smelly, greedy, and corrupt as—oh say—Joe Biden the national gaffe-meister, and Hillary Rodham Rose Law Firm Billing Records Impeached President Enabler Clinton.

  14. Robinson seems to believe that the real truth can be found in the ‘facts’ and he won’t listen to his opponents unless and until they cite the right ‘facts’. In my opinion he’s wrong about just about everything else so it’s no surprise to me that he’s wrong about this as well.
    Rich likes to cite ‘facts’. The problem is we’re all privy to the same set of facts. In his article he cites the improved Dow Jones Industrial average and the uptick in employment as evidence in favor of Obama. I don’t buy his conclusion. I could just as easily cite the exact same facts as evidence that the Republican opposition of this runaway administration has been temporarily successful in keeping him from driving us completely into the dirt. Of course, Rich Robinson won’t buy that. It’s not the facts that are in dispute here. It’s how we interpret them.

    Of course it’s important to get our facts straight but generally these are differences of political philosophy, personal values, and of opinion, not disagreements about the facts. Until we begin to become curious about and interested in what makes the other guy draw a different conclusion in the face of the same set of facts, then these discussions are destined to go nowhere.

  15. Agreed.  But I find if you begin with facts it makes the philosophical conversation easie.  I find most conservatives and liberals, which I am one, want the same results. 

    But we get lost in the labels and myths of each side.  Not all liberal ideas have worked and some conservative ideas have worked.  On balance though, liberal approaches have historically worked better—that’s an opinion based on fact.  Your opinion may differ.

    But we generally agree on goals.  All conservatives and all liberals want a government that works, a good economy, good education, a healthy environment, peace among nations etc.  Our divided politics is about the strategy and tactics that can achieve those ends,

    But we have become so polarized in demonizing each other we fail to implement even those solutions on which we agree.  Certainly we can all have strong opinions and there are those who are motivated by bad intentions—mostly the leadership of the replicant party, but also some on thei left.

    But the rest of us need to reject those voices, engage in solutions and find a way to solve problems.  This does not call for agreement on every strategy or tactic, but the dialogue can produce solutions fthat most of us agree—and beginning with substantive facts is a good start—for if we can agree that we have a problem, the dialogue on how it occurred and how we fix it becomes easier.

    • “Republican opposition that uses minority government to thwart the President’s policy solely in an attempt to regain power. It is an evil, un-American—yet ironically successful—political strategy.

      On this, Rich and the leaders of North Korea, China, and Iran all agree.  The tyranny of the minority must not stand.

  16. Obama is getting us out of the ditch, but it is a large hole that Bush and co. left.  Also a lot harder to get out when the guys who drove it in are kicking you and yelling to get the keys back.

  17. <…for if we can agree that we have a problem…>

    I think this is a fundamental assumption that lies at the heart of many disagreements between liberals and conservatives.
    Much of the time, despite what one side or the other assumes, there is no mutual agreement that there even IS a problem, let alone the precise nature of that problem. The battles occur not in how to solve problems upon which we all agree are problems that need to be solved, but in disagreements over what is a problem and what isn’t.
    As a conservative I get the feeling that liberals are often soliciting solutions to problems that don’t even exist- or to ones that would resolve themselves of their own accord if only natural forces were given time and opportunity to operate. Reciprocal feelings no doubt exist. I know that to most liberals what I consider to be our country’s #1 problem- illegal immigration- is a non problem that doesn’t warrant attention.

    The polarization and demonization is the result of one party being frustrated by the other side’s failure to see what seems so patently obvious, to the point of believing that their obstinance could only be the result of nefarious or selfish motives. Accusations fly and the rancour escalates. Is this wrong? Maybe. Maybe not.
    I do believe thast there was a time not so long ago when almost all lawmakers had the public good at heart. Disagreements were genuine differences of political philosophy and were not grounds for vilification. The individuals’ good intentions were not questioned. But over the last several decades the lobbyists and special interests have taken over our politics and perhaps it’s no surprise that motives are called into question. Perhaps that’s partly why the political arena has become so angry and polarized.

  18. You are correct, immigration is not a problem for me.  We are a nation of illegal immigrants,  I don’t recall Columbus having a green card.  Moreover we have had this xenophobia appear many times in our history.  There were the Chinese exclusionary laws and Irish not wanted, Italians, Germans ect. were all discriminated against.

    Now we focus on those south of the border—I note their are no minute men patrolling the Canadian border.  The fact California was stolen doesn’t seem to matter much either.  But those who complain of the foreign influence and cost to the government are mistaken on both counts. First generation immigrants always have spoken their native language first.  Note the complaints at the turn of the century regarding the italians, Russians, etc.  Nobody complains today because second generation Italians and Germans speak English.  As for the cost, illegal immigrants are a critical part of our economy and way of life. Note the business consequences of draconian laws in Georgia and Arizona.  Businesses are going under because of the lack of foreign labor.

    But what I am really interested in is why you believe illegal immigration is a problem?  Do you perceive that illegal immigration causes problems that we agree.  Education for instance, health care costs, welfare and unemployment etc.

    If you are concerned about those problems or ascribe their cause to new immigrants, let’s have that discussion.  Let’s use real facts, we may find we agree on many things and we may disagree on others—both of us may lack understanding or be misinformed.  But only through the dialogue can we progress together as a nation.

  19. I hadn’t intended to get into a discussion about illegal immigration. I was only using it as an example of what some of us consider a problem (a very concrete and fixable problem) while others contend that it is not a problem at all. But as long as you’re asking…
    I think that the biggest problem that is caused is the perpetuation of the divide between the haves and the have nots. Liberals and conservatives alike believe in the goal of a broad middle class and we might actually agree that some government action is in order to attain that goal. But it seems to me that this goal is thwarted by the ceaseless introduction of a dirt poor underclass. We lament the gulf between rich and poor and we recognize the many negative social and economic consequences that result, yet we continue to allow unlimited numbers of people who will work for what we have decided as a society is a substandard wage, in order that those who employ them may become richer and richer. This, by definition leads to the exact conditions that liberals claim to deplore.
    Another harmful effect of illegal immigration (in my opinion) is the simple fact of rapidly increasing population growth and the pressure that this places on open spaces, natural resources, and wildlife habitats. It’s arguable that there is some level of population in our state and in our country at which the quality of life is compromised and I don’t think that liberals or corporations are within their right to deny Americans the chance to weigh in on this matter before it’s too late.
    I don’t subscribe to the belief that we have no right as a nation to decide who comes in and who doesn’t, who is entitled to public benefits and who isn’t, and who is entitled to vote and who isn’t. Anyone who claims we don’t have the right, let alone the responsibility, to exercise these powers simply doesn’t understand the concepts of nationhood, of sovereignty, and is a person with whom I would have no foundation upon which to build a dialogue.

    • The haves and the have nots are not caused by illegal immigration.  We live is an competitive economic system that, by its very nature, produces winners and losers.

      The concept of nationhood or sovereignty, like religion, is an artificial human construct derived for the benefit of a group of people who wish to collectively exclude others from their society.  This exclusivity may be desired by many different nations, but the result is the same.

      That said, there is no denying its existance and I do not subscribe to the one world/one nation crowd.

      But as we are a land of immigrants, it is amazing to me the intolerance shown by people whose only goal is to become American and share in the dream we have exported to the world. 

      The answer to immigration is simple, allow third world nations to become first world nations.  Expand the concepts of education, economy, justice, and freedom to the lands that heretofore have not seen their benefits.

      The key, of course, is education.  In many new countries—especially those who have just seen a “spring uprising” the concept of democracy is that the majority rule as a dictatorship over the minority.

      The rule of law and human rights are subject to the whims of either religion or ruling oligarchies.  But I digress, the simple answer to you immigration problem is to allow nations and their people to prosper.  That has not been our foreign policy in the past, but we are doing better since President Obama took over.

      • Well this is odd. I notice that we’re not working together to find solutions to this problem.
        So this kind of brings us back to my main point. Our differences arise not in finding solutions to our problems as you suggest, but in finding agreement on what those problems are.

        • Still trying to understand why illegal immigration is a problem.  Hunger is a problem, violent crime is a problem, lack of education is a problem.  Illegal immigration is a status.

          That said, I thought my solutions bore merit in that they would alleviate the desire on some to come to your sovereign nation.

        • Hunger is a problem? Then when an illegal immigrant winds up hungry here we’ve imported a problem. “No problem”, you say. “We’ll just add him to the food stamp program.”
          Lack of education is a problem? Then as each uneducated illegal alien arrives in our country we’ve mad that problem worse. “No problem”, you object. “We’ll just stick her into that overcrowded classroom.”
          Violent crime is a problem? Yes indeed. Releasing criminals to reduce overcrowding in prisons that wouldn’t be overcrowded if not for large numbers of illegals IS a problem.
          I’m offering a constructive way to help solve many of these problems that you’re concerned about Rich. You reject my suggestion out of hand even though it requires no new programs and no extra taxation as do all of the liberal ‘solutions’ to these problems.

          I don’t disagree that there would be reduced pressure and motivation to sneak into this country if all the other countries of the world were of an equal economic standard. But that’s going to be a long while and there’s only so much we can do to help other countries rise. In the meanwhile we should decide on immigration quotas- generous ones as we’re a generous nation- but pick a number low enough that we can realistically expect assimilation into our culture and economic system rather than cultural apartness and participation in an underground economy. I don’t think it’s unreasonable for us to direct our own destiny.

          Let’s say you and I shared a house and each contributed to the rent. Suddenly without consulting me you invite someone else to live in the house with us. Would I not be within my rights to object since we’d had a prior agreement that we both had to approve new housemates? You’re breaking our contract Rich. It’s as simple as that.

  20. [reposting to correct topic]

    It didn’t begin with Bush.

    It all began in the late 70’s with Jimmy Carter and the Community Reinvestment Act.

    “Activist groups were encouraged to agitate by the Carter-era Community Reinvestment Act, which enshrined in law a kind of lending protection racket. Banking regulators were given the power to make trouble for banks that failed to lend enough money to so-called underserved communities. Banks that paid enough—whatever that means—got left alone, but banks that didn’t, got their legs broken.

    After CRA came into effect, Saul Alinsky-inspired “community organizer” groups such as Greenlining, ACORN, and National Council of La Raza got into the shakedown business.”

    http://www.theamericanprowler.com/dsp_article.asp?art_id=13948

    “The Clinton administration has turned the Community Reinvestment Act, a once-obscure and lightly enforced banking regulation law, into one of the most powerful mandates shaping American cities—and, as Senate Banking Committee chairman Phil Gramm memorably put it, a vast extortion scheme against the nation’s banks. Under its provisions, U.S. banks have committed nearly $1 trillion for inner-city and low-income mortgages and real estate development projects, most of it funneled through a nationwide network of left-wing community groups”

    http://www.city-journal.org/html/10_1_the_trillion_dollar.html

    And guess who was one of Clinton’s enforcers in the 90’s?  Why none other than Eric Holder!

    “Eric Holder and the head of his Civil Rights Division, Tom Perez were both protégés of Janet Reno who launched a similar attack on banks in the early years of the Clinton Administration. That led to an expansion of the Community Reinvestment Act, CRA, and an explosion of forced lending to low-income, poor credit risk borrowers and the sub-prime mortgage industry that collapsed in 2008.”

    http://bit.ly/nc0HT8

    A few years go by and the subprime warning bells start to go off.

    Remember Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?  The 2 GSE’s at the heart of the sub-prime mortgage debacle that led to the meltdown?

    Here’s Barney Frank and the congressional black caucaus shutting down any attempts to rein in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2004.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MGT_cSi7Rs

    BTW, Barney Frank was literally in bed with an executive at Fannie Mae.  [Write your own jokes here]

    “One chapter in this story took place in July 2005, when the Senate Banking Committee, then controlled by the Republicans, adopted tough regulatory legislation for the GSEs on a party-line vote—all Republicans in favor, all Democrats opposed. The bill would have established a new regulator for Fannie and Freddie and given it authority to ensure that they maintained adequate capital, properly managed their interest rate risk, had adequate liquidity and reserves, and controlled their asset and investment portfolio growth. “

    “Why was there no action in the full Senate? As most Americans know today, it takes 60 votes to cut off debate in the Senate, and the Republicans had only 55. … But in a 45 member Democratic caucus that included Barack Obama and the current Senate Banking Chairman Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.), these votes could not be found. “

    “As a senator, he [Obama] was the third largest recipient of campaign contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, behind only Sens. Chris Dodd and John Kerry.”

    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704671904575193910683111250.html

    “James A. Johnson was CEO of Fannie Mae from 1991 to 1998. After Johnson left the company, regulators later discovered that Fannie Mae had engaged in fraudulent accounting practices in 1998 which manipulated its earnings so that executives could earn performance bonuses (up to $1.9 million in Johnson’s case) they would not otherwise have been entitled to.

    In May 2008, Senator Obama tapped James Johnson to be one member of a three-person panel tasked with vetting potential vice-presidential running mates. Johnson resigned from that position shortly afterwards when news accounts reported that he had received more than $2 million in home loans at below average market rates from Countrywide Financial (a partner of Fannie Mae).”

    And there you have it.  Ah, not so fast.

    Warning – you may need to sit down for this one.

    “The 1990s may have brought us supercharged politicized lending, but Eric Holder’s Department of Justice is taking the game to an entirely new level, and then some. The weapon is a “fair lending” unit created in early 2010, led by special counsel Eric Halperin and overseen by Civil Rights Division head Thomas Perez. “

    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904199404576538283776006582.html

    Graft and shakedowns of this magnitude would make another Chicagoan, Al Capone, proud indeed.

  21. > There was no question that Biden was the best qualified candidate for the top office in 2008, as exhibited by his debate performances in Iowa.

    Tragically, Rich, I was unable to witness Biden’s debate performances in 2008.  I have only your testimony to substantiate his magnificance as “the best qualified candidate” in 2008.

    However, I have to report that I have heard some carping and snide remarks about Joey’s performance in his most recent debate with Paul Ryan.

    People are using terms like: “unhinged”, “arrogant”, “condescencing”, “lying”, “clownish”, “rude”, “a bigger jerk than my ex-husband” and similar to characterize his behavior.

    I have to ask: Are you still comfortable with Biden swapping jobs with Hillary?  Or, would you now prefer to see him in a job with slightly less demanding requirements for intelligence, diplomacy, integrity, sophistication, and common sense?

    Perhaps he might be more suited to be a tout at a gambling casino, a host on a TV shopping channel, or a rodeo clown.  What do you think?

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