ObamaOdrama

As a  psych major (don’t judge me!) I found this amusing…

NANNY STATE: GOVERNMENT WEBSITE TO WARN OF SADNESS/CRYING OVER ECONOMY
Mon Mar 30 2009 18:43:56 ET

The U.S. government is set to offer an online emotional rescue kit!

Getting Through Tough Economic Times” will launch Tuesday with a media push across all platforms.

The site is meant to help people identify health concerns related to financial worries.

The feds will warn of depression, suicidal thinking and other serious mental illnesses. It will raise warning flags for: Persistent sadness/crying; Excessive anxiety; Lack of sleep/constant fatigue; Excessive irritability/anger.

The guide will be available starting at midnight at http://www.samhsa.gov/economy.

Developing…

Thanks for the laugh, Drudge.

During the presidential campaign, stories linking Obama and the radical Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) sporadically popped up but  went largely uncovered by the mainstream media. 

Most sources seemed to agree that Obama represented ACORN in 1995 lawsuit against the state of Illinois.  However stories that tied Obama to ACORN before 1995 or training ACORN never received any serious media coverage.   Nor did stories that Obama giving ACORN $800,000 for get-out-the-vote efforts after ACORN endorsed him for the presidency merit much scrutiny.  It appeared that Obama’s own words were sufficient enough to discredit any further investigation of the allegations.

Now we have another story by the Bulletin to add to the Obama and ACORN chronicles.

Heather Heidelbaugh, who represented the Pennsylvania Republican State Committee in the lawsuit against the group, recounted for the ommittee what she had been told by a former ACORN worker who had worked in the group’s Washington, D.C. office. The former worker, Anita Moncrief, told Ms. Heidelbaugh last October, during the state committee’s litigation against ACORN, she had been a “confidential informant for several months to The New York Times reporter, Stephanie Strom.”

Ms. Moncrief had been providing Ms. Strom with information about ACORN’s election activities. Ms. Strom had written several stories based on information Ms. Moncrief had given her.

During her testimony, Ms. Heidelbaugh said Ms. Moncrief had told her The New York Times articles stopped when she revealed that the Obama presidential campaign had sent its maxed-out donor list to ACORN’s Washington, D.C. office.

Ms. Moncrief told Ms. Heidelbaugh the campaign had asked her and her boss to “reach out to the maxed-out donors and solicit donations from them for Get Out the Vote efforts to be run by ACORN.”

Ms. Heidelbaugh then told the congressional panel:

“Upon learning this information and receiving the list of donors from the Obama campaign, Ms. Strom reported to Ms. Moncrief that her editors at The New York Times wanted her to kill the story because, and I quote, “it was a game changer.”‘

Ms. Moncrief made her first overture to Ms. Heidelbaugh after The New York Times allegedly spiked the story - on Oct. 21, 2008. Last fall, she testified under oath about what she had learned about ACORN from her years in its Washington, D.C. office. Although she was present at the congressional hearing, she did not testify.

U.S. Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wisc., the ranking Republican on the committee, said the interactions between the Obama campaign and ACORN, as described by Ms. Moncrief, and attested to before the committee by Ms. Heidelbaugh, could possibly violate federal election law, and “ACORN has a pattern of getting in trouble for violating federal election laws.”  

Even with ACORN’s history of voter fraud, they still managed to secure a place in the 2010 Census.  Game on!

Today Obama addressed the restructuring efforts of General Motors and Chrysler. 

…after careful analysis, we have determined that neither goes far enough to warrant the substantial new investments that these companies are requesting. And so today, I am announcing that my administration will offer GM and Chrysler a limited period of time to work with creditors, unions, and other stakeholders to fundamentally restructure in a way that would justify an investment of additional tax dollars; a period during which they must produce plans that would give the American people confidence in their long-term prospects for success.

While neither auto maker provided restructuring plans that meet Task Force Obama’s standards, it was clear that GM had better positioned itself in recent days with the firing of its CEO Rick Wagoner. 

…after broad consultations with a range of industry experts and financial advisors, I’m confident that GM can rise again, provided that it undergoes a fundamental restructuring. As an initial step, GM is announcing today that Rick Wagoner is stepping aside as Chairman and CEO. This is not meant as a condemnation of Mr. Wagoner, who has devoted his life to this company; rather, it’s a recognition that it will take a new vision and new direction to create the GM of the future.

In this context, my administration will offer General Motors adequate working capital over the next 60 days. During this time, my team will be working closely with GM to produce a better business plan.

Chrysler, on the other hand, apparently hasn’t demonstrated sufficient sacrifice and has been given a different fiat:

The situation at Chrysler is more challenging. It is with deep reluctance but also a clear-eyed recognition of the facts that we have determined, after a careful review, that Chrysler needs a partner to remain viable. Recently, Chrysler reached out and found what could be a potential partner — the international car company Fiat, where the current management team has executed an impressive turnaround. Fiat is prepared to transfer its cutting-edge technology to Chrysler and, after working closely with my team, has committed to building new fuel-efficient cars and engines here in America.

At the end of the day, what may be the ultimate fix for GM and Chrysler?  Bankruptcy, of course.

While Chrysler and GM are very different companies with very different paths forward, both need a fresh start to implement the restructuring plans they develop. That may mean using our bankruptcy code as a mechanism to help them restructure quickly and emerge stronger.

No need to question the government’s commitment to rebuilding America’s automotive industry, Obama announced government warranties for GM and Chrysler.

It is my hope that the steps I am announcing today will go a long way towards answering many of the questions people may have about the future of GM and Chrysler. But just in case there are still nagging doubts, let me say it as plainly as I can — if you buy a car from Chrysler or General Motors, you will be able to get your car serviced and repaired, just like always. Your warrantee will be safe.

In fact, it will be safer than it’s ever been. Because starting today, the United States government will stand behind your warrantee.

Government Motors - “Backed by the industry’s best warranty, the U.S. taxpayer.”

Spencer Hsu reports that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has postponed a series of planned immigration raids and other enforcement actions in recent weeks.

A senior department official said the delays signal a pending change in whom agents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement choose to prosecute — increasing the focus on businesses and executives instead of ordinary workers.

“ICE is now scrutinizing these cases more thoroughly to ensure that [targets] are being taken down when they should be taken down, and that the employer is being targeted and the surveillance and the investigation is being done how it should be done,” said the official, discussing Napolitano’s views about sensitive law enforcement matters on the condition of anonymity.

“There will be a change in policy, but in the interim, you’ve got to scrutinize the cases coming up,” the senior DHS official said, noting Napolitano’s expectations as a former federal prosecutor and state attorney general.

Another DHS official said Napolitano plans to release protocols this week to ensure more consistent work-site investigations and less “haphazard” decision-making.

I don’t think anyone has issue with prosecuting businesses for hiring “illegal” immigrants but the illegal immigrants are still illegal!  This new focus is about as logical as just going after the gun manufacturer and ignoring the shooter in a homicide case.  Hmm that logic sounds familiar… 

In case you were curious why the new focus on businesses rather than illegal immigrants… Latino outrage.

Napolitano’s moves foreshadow the difficult political decisions the Obama administration faces as it decides whether to continue mass arrests of illegal immigrant workers in sweeps of meatpackers, construction firms, defense contractors and other employers.

Critics say workplace and neighborhood sweeps are harsh and indiscriminate, and they accuse the government of racial profiling, violating due process rights and committing other humanitarian abuses.

The raids have enraged Latino community and religious leaders, immigrant advocates and civil liberties groups important to the Democratic base, who have stepped up pressure on Obama to stop them.

Let’s be honest, this new focus on prosecuting businesses and owners is the administration’s way of pretending to do something about illegal immigration while doing absolutely nothing.  Worse yet the government seems to be encouraging illegal immigration by taking a clear stance opposing law enforcement in this matter.   House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Cali.) has recently called the enforcement of current U.S. immigration laws “un-American” and arranged a formal meeting between Obama and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to convey this same message.  Even now Sheriff Joe Arpaio is being investigated by our own Department of Jokes for enforcing U.S. immigration laws. 

Apparently Obama’s pledge to the National Council of La Raza includes more than just amnesty.