truesee's Blog

TANCREDO: The case for impeachment

Obama has violated his oath of office over immigration

Tom Tancredo

Washington Times

5:57 p.m., Thursday, July 22, 2010

Illustration: Obama's Constitution by Alexander Hunter for The Washington Times

Eleven years ago, like every citizen elected to serve in Congress or any person appointed to any federal position, I swore an oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic." 

I've always thought it significant that the Founders included domestic enemies in that oath of office. They thought liberty was as much at risk from threats within our borders as from outside, and French political thinker and historian Alexis de Tocqueville agreed with that warning. 

In the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the greatest threat to our nation was clear - and foreign. While Islamic terrorism still represents the greatest external threat to America and American lives, the avowed program of the Obama regime has changed the picture in a fundamental way. 

For the first time in American history, we have a man in the White House who consciously and brazenly disregards his oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution. That's why I say the greatest threat to our Constitution, our safety and our liberties, is internal. Our president is an enemy of our Constitution, and, as such, he is a danger to our safety, our security and our personal freedoms. 

Barack Obama is one of the most powerful presidents this nation has seen in generations. He is powerful because he is supported by large majorities in Congress, but, more importantly, because he does not feel constrained by the rule of law. Whether he is putting up the weakest possible defense of the Defense of Marriage Act despite the Justice Department's legal obligation to support existing law; disenfranchising Chrysler and GM bondholders in order to transfer billions of investor dollars to his supporters in the United Auto Workers; or implementing yet a third offshore oil-drilling moratorium even after two federal courts have thrown out two previous moratoriums, President Obama is determined to see things done his way regardless of obstacles. To Mr. Obama, the rule of law is a mere inconvenience to be ignored, overcome or "transcended" through international agreements or "norms." 

Mr. Obama's paramount goal, as he so memorably put it during his campaign in 2008, is to "fundamentally transform America." He has not proposed improving America - he is intent on changing its most essential character. The words he has chosen to describe his goals are neither the words nor the motivation of just any liberal Democratic politician. This is the utopian, or rather dystopian, reverie of a dedicated Marxist - a dedicated Marxist who lives in the White House. 

Because of the power he wields over budgets, the judiciary, national defense and even health care, his regime and his program are not just about changing public policy in the conventional sense. When one considers the combination of his stop-at-nothing attitude, his contempt for limited government, his appointment of judges who want to create law rather than interpret it - all of these make this president today's single greatest threat to the great experiment in freedom that is our republic. 

Yes, Mr. Obama is a more serious threat to America than al Qaeda. We know that Osama bin Laden and followers want to kill us, but at least they are an outside force against whom we can offer our best defense. But when a dedicated enemy of the Constitution is working from the inside, we face a far more dangerous threat. Mr. Obama can accomplish with the stroke of his pen what bin Laden cannot accomplish with bombs and insurgents. 

Mr. Obama's actions, not just his words, show the threat he poses. A level of government deficit spending unheard of since World War II and trillion-dollar deficits as far as the eye can see represent an unacceptable threat to our economic security and our children's future. Mr. Obama could be the first president to guarantee that the next generation of Americans has a lower standard of living than their parents. 

Mr. Obama's most egregious and brazen betrayal of our Constitution was his statement to Sen. Jon Kyl, Arizona Republican, that the administration will not enforce security on our southern border because that would remove Republicans' desire to negotiate a "comprehensive" immigration bill. That is, to put it plainly, a decision that by any reasonable standard constitutes an impeachable offense against the Constitution. For partisan political advantage, he is willfully disregarding his obligation under Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution to protect states from foreign invasion. 

There is no higher duty of the federal government and our elected representatives than to protect our nation from invasion. Multiple reports and testimony before Congress by U.S. law enforcement and intelligence officials have stated that a porous border with Mexico is "a path" terrorists will use if they can. Some would-be terrorists, including at least one associated with Hezbollah, already have. Recent reports of contacts between Hezbollah and Mexican drug cartels make it all but certain that terrorists intent on destroying us will come across our southwestern border. Therefore, it is of utmost importance for the administration to do everything in its power to keep Americans safe. Our safety is not a bargaining chip for another amnesty - or for any other political objective whatsoever. 

Mr. Obama's refusal to live up to his own oath of office - which includes the duty to defend the United States against foreign invasion - requires senators and representatives to live up to their oaths. Members of Congress must defend our nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Today, that means bringing impeachment charges against Mr. Obama. 

Tom Tancredo is a former member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and five-term member of Congress from Colorado. He serves as chairman of the Rocky Mountain Foundation.

http://www.nationalenquirer.com/exclusive_al_gore_sex_scandal_two_new_female_accusers_assault/celebrity/69024

Miller for News Rep. Charlie Rangel has been charged with multiple ethics violations by a House committee.

It looks like Rep. Charlie Rangel will finally get his day in court.

A House panel said Thursday that its investigative subcommittee charged the Harlem Democrat with multiple ethics violations, and it will form an "adjudicatory subcommittee" to weigh the matter. 

"I am pleased that, at long last, sunshine will pierce the cloud of serious allegations that have been raised against me in the media," Rangel said in a statement. 

"I will be glad to respond to the allegations at such time as the Ethics Committee makes them public." 

The charges - though not immediately specified - are a serious blow to the former Ways and Means chairman and an election-year headache for Democrats. 

Rangel's critics say this could be the blow that forces him out of office. "I think he’ll have to resign," said Melanie Sloan, head of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, whose group has already called for Rangel's resignation. 

"If he doesn’t, things could get ugly, Sloan said. "It’s like an indictment, and now he goes through a trial." The subcommittee, which includes no members from the investigative team, will meet next Thursday in an open "organizational meeting." 

The group ultimately will "determine whether any counts in the statement of alleged violation have been proved by clear and convincing evidence and to make findings of fact." 

Rangel has been under fire for nearly two years over his failure to report rental income, his fund-raising activities for a CUNY center named for him, and the use of four rent-controlled apartments. 

He was forced to step down as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee earlier this year after the ethics panel found he took a pair of Caribbean trips that he should have known were sponsored by corporations, and therefore not allowed. 

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/07/22/2010-07-22_house_panel_charges_new_york_rep_charles_rangel_with_ethics_misdeeds.html#ixzz0uT1lDbPy

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/doug-lansky/the-funniest-marketing-fa_b_652426.html

Xanthos for NewsMayor of  Newark, Cory Booker, has prohibited spending public funds on toilet paper.

For Newark city employees, there may be a new plan:  BYOTP—bring your own toilet paper.

That's because Newark Mayor Cory Booker, whose city is facing a $70 million shortfall, has prohibited spending public funds on toilet paper for city employees, according to the Star-Ledger. 

"We're going to stop buying everything from toilet paper to printer paper," the newspaper reported Booker saying on Wednesday. "Call me Mr. Scrooge, if you want, but they'll be no Christmas decorations around the city."

The New Jersey city is struggling to make ends meet. Additional belt-tightening measures include closing all city pools on Aug. 2, prohibiting city council members from having gasoline debit cards, and demanding that 1,450 non-uniformed city employees work 4-day weeks starting in September (about a 20% pay cut), according to NBC. 

The cuts are expected to save the city $10 to $15 million. Booker, 41, said he wouldn't cut property taxes. 

In Newark, which has a population of about 280,000, a quarter of the residents live in poverty. Booker said nearly 2,500 homeowners are behind on their mortgage payments. An increase in property taxes could make things worse, he said.

The tough measures after the city council deferred action on creating a municipal utilities authority, something Booker has been pushing for. The council has not passed the mayor's $600 million budget, which was proposed last month. 

Some councilmembers are not pleased with the new cuts, including Donald Payne Jr. 

"We continue to try to work with him to lessen the pain of the citizens, but at the end of the day, it's his obligation," he told the Star-Ledger.

Somodevilla/GettyPresident Obama's public approval rating has hit an all-time low.

Two-plus years before the 2012 election, a Republican candidate — any Republican candidate — has a better chance of being President than current White House occupant Barack Obama does. 

According to a new Quinnipiac University poll , Americans would rather vote for an unnamed Republican than Obama in 2012 by a 39% to 36% margin. 

Obama's approval rating is now at an all-time low. According to the poll, 44% of Americans approved of the president, while 48% disapproved. Just two months ago, 48% of voters approved while 43% did not. 

"It was a year ago, during the summer of 2009 that America's love affair with President Barack Obama began to wane," said Peter A. Brown., assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. 

And it is the confidence of those critical independent voters he is losing the most. 

"Today, his support among Democrats remains strong, but the disillusionment among independent voters, who dropped from 52% to 37% approval to 52% to 38% disapproval in the last 12 months, is what leads to his weakness overall when voters start thinking about 2012." 

It's possible that Obama could see a bump in his popularity by extending jobless benefits for 2.5 million Americans who have been unemployed for six weeks or more. The House is expected to vote on the legislation Thursday, after the Senate OK'd it Wednesday. He has said he will quickly sign the bill into law. 

The poll is good news for all Republicans — but especially good news for potential 2012 Republican candidates like Ron Paul, Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin — all of whom are rumored to be considering a run. 

Among the hot issues, 56% of voters said they disapproved his handling of the economy, 51% did not like his handling of the Gulf oil spill and 58% disliked his policy on illegal immigration — with 60% saying the federal government lawsuit against Arizona's new immigration law was a bad idea. 

American voters said 48% to 40% that Obama does not deserve reelection in 2012. 

From July 13-19, 2,181 voters were interviewed. The poll has an error margin of 2.1 percentage points.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/07/22/2010-07-22_gopers_leads_president_barack_obama_in_2012_presidential_race_poll_disapproval_a.html#ixzz0uQweRXwr

Officer quits over stripper incident

Arranged meeting while on duty

Jonathan Saltzman

Globe Staff

July 21, 2010

Paul J. Shastany, who on April 5 became chief of a force that has been battered for years by scandals and corruption charges, said Officer Richard P. Bennett submitted a one-paragraph resignation letter June 30 and left the department.

Shastany said he was proud of his officers, not embarrassed. Bennett’s colleagues reported the officer’s actions, prompting dual internal affairs investigations, said Shastany, who worked in the Framingham and Natick police departments for 34 years and has vowed to restore Stoughton’s reputation.

“This is a classic example of the organization policing itself,’’ he said. “This surgically quick removal was a very beneficial thing for the organization.’’

Bennett, 28, of Fall River, could not be reached for comment.

The officer, who has been on the force about two years and who received a commendation last month for helping to secure the scene of a homicide, committed two serious forms of misconduct, Shastany said.

He deserted his patrol area during a shift in mid-June and drove to Club Alex’s in Stoughton, Shastany said. He spoke to a manager at the club and arranged to have a 3-foot-9 porn actress and stripper, known as Bridget “The Midget’’ Powers, meet him in the parking lot so he could be photographed with her while in uniform.

“This brings discredit and shame on an organization,’’ said Shastany, 55. If people in the community saw Bennett posing with the stripper, he said, “what’s the takeaway? Is that something where people say, ‘Oh, that’s awesome, look at the community policing?’ I am frankly livid that that’s something an officer thinks he could get away with.’’

In a phone call to Club Alex’s yesterday, a man who identified himself as the manager declined to comment on the incident, saying, “We’re not involved with the politics of the Stoughton PD.’’

In a separate case last month, Bennett was spotted by other officers with a laser-sighting device on his .40-caliber Glock semiautomatic service pistol, Shastany said. The officers reported it to the department’s armorer, who told the internal affairs investigator. But when the investigator confronted Bennett, Shastany said, the officer initially denied doctoring his pistol before admitting he had lied.

Shastany said that the department’s 48 officers are forbidden to modify their weapons without permission and that he was unaware of any officer who has received approval to add a laser-sighting device. But just as egregious as the modification, said Shastany, was Bennett’s lie.

“We bring ourselves to court to testify and, potentially, take liberty and freedom from some people,’’ said Shastany. “An officer that’s not truthful is basically unable to perform his duties. He can’t testify. He’s of no use to me.’’

The Stoughton Police Department has been in upheaval for years.

Former chief Manuel J. Cachopa was found guilty by a Norfolk County jury in 2009 of being an accessory to attempted extortion. The charge stemmed from allegations that he tried to hinder an investigation into whether a subordinate, Sergeant David M. Cohen, abused his authority while attempting to collect a debt from a local businessman.

Cohen was fired in August 2007 after being convicted of four counts of public corruption for his role in the alleged extortion scheme. He spent two years in jail, but was freed last October as a result of an appellate court decision and is awaiting a new trial.

In addition, three Stoughton officers were accused by federal authorities of participating in a scheme to obtain four high-definition televisions and other merchandise that they believed was stolen from a convicted criminal, who was secretly wearing an FBI wire. One of the officers — retired detective Anthony Bickerton, a former School Committee member — was recently sentenced to a year and a day in prison.

Shastany said that in recent years the department has paid dearly for failing to scrutinize job applicants to make sure they “possess the core character attributes’’ of honesty, integrity, and a desire to serve the community. He said he plans to rigorously screen job candidates, train supervisors to nurture younger officers, and seek accreditation of the department from the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission.

LINK TO  PHOTO OF PORN STAR

http://bostonherald.com/news/regional/view/20100720stoughton_cop_quits_after_strip_club_visit_with_smallest_porn_star/srvc=home&position=2

Posted: Jul 21, 2010 3:22 PM EDT Updated: Jul 21, 2010 11:19 PM EDT

Thief Uses Underwear to Cover Face

Police are looking for a woman who used underwear to cover her face

Police said the suspect opened the drive-thru window at a Midwest City McDonald's and stole money from a cash register

Couple 'fell out of window during steamy sex'!

21.07.2010 - 12:40 UHR Vergrößern

Rescue workers had to treat the stricken lovers for head wounds and broken bones.

A loved-up couple apparently fell out of a building from a first floor window while they were having steamy sex!

Mirja P. (30) and 28-year-old Robert K. (names changed) fell about five metres from their precarious perch to the garden below.

According to Stern.de, neighbours in Lübeck observed their sex games before their tumble.

Spicy: Mirja and Robert are not actually a couple – she is married! Mirja P. protested to BILD: “We weren’t having sex. We were just fooling around. I can’t remember the fall anymore.”

What is clear is that rescue workers took both of the supposed lovers to hospital with broken bones and head wounds.

They met Mirja's husband there – who in a bizarre coincidence had fallen from a roof a few days before! There was sex involved that time, however…

Prisoners escape after guards put dummy in watch tower

Two prisoners have escaped from a prison in Argentina after guards placed a dummy with a football for a head in the watch tower because of a shortage of manpower.

3:48PM BST 21 Jul 2010

Prison workers said that a shortage of staff meant they were only able to man two of the 15 guard towers Photo: AP

Prison workers said that a shortage of staff meant they were only able to man two of the 15 guard towers so they had to resort to using a stand in.

A prison source said: "We've made a dummy out of a football and a prison officer's cap, so that the prisoner see its shadow and think they're being watched."

"We named him Wilson, like in the film Cast Away, and put him in one of the towers," the man told the Diario Rio Negro newspaper, referring to the Tom Hanks film in which his character invents a volleyball character for company.

The source said that the video cameras monitoring the perimeter wall had stopped working some months ago. He said that he hoped the incident would alert the authorities to the problems with lack of resources and that politicians would act to improve the conditions.

Both had been serving out sentences for armed robbery at the jail in Argentina's Neuquén province. The escaped convicts, who were nearing the end of their sentences so were being held in a part of the prison with fewer security measures, have not yet been recaptured.

Nestor D'Abramo, a prison official, confirmed the two men had escaped and said they had jumped the fence before clambering over the wall.

Shot His Wife In The Back              

Mark Childrey

Reidsville News 

Tuesday, 20 July 2010 19:00

A Reidsville, NC, area man was arrested after shooting his wife with a black powder gun and burbing her.

Early this morning, 38-year-old Lonnie Irvin Pinnix of 951 Garrison Road in Reidsville was charged with Assault With A Deadly Weapon. His bond was set at $1,000, and his court date is August 11.

It all began this morning at 1:49 – that’s when deputies responses to 951 Garrison Road near Reidsville – the home of Darlene and Lonnie Pinnix. When deputies spoke to Darlene Pinnix – she was lying in bed – crying and in severe pain.

She said she had come home about 12:15 to find her husband, Lonnie, agitated – so she went to bed. Darlene Pinnix said that Lonnie insisted she get out of bed – but before she could get up, he fired the weapon, striking her in the back.

The report from the Sheriff’s Office says that Pinnix suffered a powder burn from the close contact gunshot – so she was taken to the hospital for treatment. The Sheriff’s Office report goes on to say that Lonnie Pinnix claims to have loaded the pistol with toilet paper rather than a bullet – and shot his wife because she would not leave.

Deseret News

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 9:18 p.m. MDT

SALT LAKE CITY — Prosecutors say a jailed South Salt Lake man found a unique way to send his wife letters begging her not to testify against him in a domestic violence case: He mailed them to her cat.

Ronald Charles Dallas was arrested in March for investigation of assaulting his wife. According to charges filed Tuesday in 3rd District Court, Dallas mailed 11 letters intended for his wife to her neighbor and to her cat, named Molly Judge.

Dallas, 32, has been ordered to have no contact with his wife, the alleged victim in a domestic violence case against him, the charges state.

In one letter, Dallas wrote: "I'm taking this assault charge to trial on the 30th. I'm scared, but I know deep in my heart that you will not testify against me no matter what, because you told me you wouldn't, but I'm scared that you will because you're mad at me still."

In another letter, Dallas pleads with his wife not to testify against him, according to court documents.

The defendant is charged with 11 counts of violation of a protective order and two counts of tampering with a witness, all third-degree felonies.

— Lana Groves

Tunica Investigator Under Investigation

Charged in theft case

Dennis Turner

4:52 PM CDT, July 20, 2010

 
(Tunica, MS 7/20/2010)

A high-ranking law officer gets nabbed on a burglary charge.

But his defense attorney says it's all a misunderstanding.

It happened in Tunica County, where an investigator for the local District Attorney is in plenty of hot water.

Sources around Tunica say District Attorney's investigator Rich Cannon had as close to hero status as you can get in town.

A former football star, he went into law enforcement and was someone to look up to until talk surfaced that some items had come up missing from the home of a friend.

We're told the possible burglary happened in an apartment in the southern end of the Town of Tunica, in the past week or so.

We're told no criminal complaint was filed, but that a police report was made, which resulted in the case against District Attorney's investigator Rich Cannon.

"Rich Cannon has been charged. I certainly anticipate that this matter will be resolved and we're not going to see this go to trial I don't believe." said Defense Attorney Stan Little.

That's because Little says it's quite possible the victim will not press charges on her life-long friend.

So far there's no record of an arrest, or that Cannon had been booked into the Tunica County Jail.

We're told Rich Cannon investigated hundreds of cases for District Attorney Laurence Mellen, and never had any problems.

But Tuesday, all an Assistant District Attorney would tell us is that the man technically worked for the Tunica Sheriff's Department.

A Sheriff's spokesman says Cannon was a County employee and only commissioned through the Sheriff's Department.

We're told none of the items reported stolen were ever sold or pawned and that Cannon resigned from his job Monday, and over the weekend apologized to the friend who found the items missing from her apartment.

"They've known each other literally all their lives and some items turned up missing. There were allegations that Mr. Cannon may have been responsible for that." said Little.

During a probable cause hearing in Coahoma County Tuesday, a judge did find probable cause to prosecute Mr. Cannon. But his defense attorney says without a criminal complaint from the victim, such a case is unlikely.

An assistant District Attorney confirms what defense lawyer Stan Little told us, that this case would have no bearing on any of Cannon's current or previous investigations.

"These are two totally unrelated things from his personal life to his professaional life and there is not one shred of evidenced or even insinuation of any kind of malfeasance in the office so the people don't need to be worried that this is even something to worry about." said Little. 


LINK TO VIDEO

 http://www.wreg.com/videobeta/77d46a36-50a9-438a-ba68-2b17db4a8ec0/News/Mississippi-News-Investigator-Under-Investigation

Poll: Obama approval hits low Andy Barr July 21, 2010 10:54 AM EDT

President Barack Obama’s approval rating has dropped to its lowest point yet in a new Quinnipiac University poll out Wednesday.

Only 44 percent of the 2,181 registered voters surveyed said they approve of the way Obama is handling his job. Forty-eight percent disapprove of the president’s performance.

The president’s numbers are upside-down on many of the key issues on voters’ minds.

On the economy, which consistently rates as voters’ top concern, 56 percent of those surveyed disapprove of Obama’s performance, compared with 39 percent who approve.

Fifty-one percent disapprove of his handling of the Gulf Coast oil spill, and 58 percent said the same of the president’s job on immigration.

Support for the war in Afghanistan too has hit a new low, with 48 percent saying it is the “right thing to do.” In April, 56 percent thought the war was the “right thing to do.”

All of the bad polling data for the president is reflected in the fact that a plurality say they would vote for an unnamed Republican challenger over the president in 2012.

Thirty-seven percent of those surveyed said they intend to vote for a Republican in the next presidential election, compared with 27 percent who said they plan to vote for Obama. The rest either didn’t know or said their decision would depend on who the Republican candidate was.

The poll was conducted July 13-19 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.1 percentage points.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100721/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_usda_racism_resignation