Charlotte Front and Center

Let's Sign Congress Up for Social Security

How could putting the House and Senate on Social Security save us money?  Isn't our bankrupt government having enough issues without giving this cauldron of crooks more of our tax dollars?

Palin Media Accountability Task Force (Kathy Ross) has plenty to say about our Congress and spending. Here is the message she would like you to spread far and wide:

First: Those who gain from the law won't vote to change it. 

Second: The voters have control. 

Third: Call your Representatives; tell them if they haven't sponsored a Bill to include congress on S.S. they will lose your vote and thousands more. 

Fourth; When in doubt "Don't RE-ELECT Anyone. 

By the way the internet has many web sites to follow how every legislator votes.

Social Security 2009 LET US SHOW OUR LEADERS IN WASHINGTON "PEOPLE POWER" AND THE POWER OF THE INTERNET. PLEASE FORWARD TO ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS.. IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU ARE REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT! KEEP IT GOING!!!! Propose this in 2009: START A BILL TO PLACE ALL POLITICIANS ON SOCIAL SECURITY. 

Perhaps we are asking the wrong questions during election years.

Our Senators and Congresswomen do not pay into Social Security and, of course, they do not collect from it.

You see, Social Security benefits were not suitable for persons of their rare elevation in society. They felt they should have a special plan for themselves.. So, many years ago they voted in their own benefit plan. 

In more recent years, no congressperson has felt the need to change it. After all, it is a great plan. For all practical purposes their plan works like this: When they retire, they continue to draw the same pay until they die.  Except it will increase from time to time for cost of living adjustments. For example, Senator Byrd and Congressman White and their wives may expect to draw $7, 800,000.00 (that's Seven Million, Eight-Hundred Thousand Dollars), with their wives drawing $275, 000..00 during the last years of their lives. This is calculated on an average life span for each of those two Dignitaries.

Younger Dignitaries who retire at an early age, will receive much more during the rest of their lives. *Their cost for this excellent plan is $0.00. NADA!!! ZILCH!!! * This little perk they voted* *fo*r *themselves* is *free to them*. You and I pick up the tab for this plan. The funds for this fine retirement plan come directly from the General Funds; "OUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK!

From our own Social Security Plan, which you and I pay (or have paid) into, every payday until we retire (which amount is matched by our employer), We can expect to get an average of $1,000 per month after retirement. Or, in other words, we would have to collect our average of $1,000 monthly benefits for 68 years and one (1) month to equal Senator Bill Bradley's benefits!

Social Security could be very good if only one small change were made. That change would be to Jerk the Golden Fleece Retirement Plan from under the *Senators and Congressmen*.... *Put them into the Social Security plan with the rest of us **Then sit back...... And see how fast they would fix it! 

by Kathy Ross

Time for a Constitutional Convention for Term Limits and Citizen Referendum

Can you imagine a Constitutional Convention that votes on term limits and a citizen's referendum? Yet it is exactly what our Founding Fathers provided for us in the Constitution to implement whenever necessary. It almost sounds preposterous, and that is because we have allowed our government to grow so big and cumbersome we no longer recognize our own Constitution in comparison to the way our House of Representatives behave.  

Our Founding Fathers did not intend for our elected citizens to make a life-long, self-serving career in the House and Senate. Representatives were to work on the interests of those who elected them, but they cater to special interests and these lobbyists keep them in power term after term.

Perhaps the above is not breaking news,but these two amendments provide the way for the power of the Government of the U.S. to be returned to the people. This of course would not be a popular focus with those in the House and Senate today, because these representatives face loss of power and wealth. 

William A. Holscher at "Rightside News" writes on this extensively. As Holscher reminds us, it was said best by our Founding Fathers the first time:

 "...That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness....." Excerpt - Declaration of Independence - 1776 

"The Pig Book" on Earmarks Ready to Review

The watch dog group "Citizens Against Government Waste" have their list of the worst "porkers" out for review. The findings will help fuel the Tea Party protests from coast to coast.  Fittingly, CNN reports one for Iowa that is for swine odor control coming in at 1.8 mil. The official Pig Book reports "In fiscal year 2009, Congress stuffed 10,160 projects into the 12 appropriations bills worth $19.6 billion," The amount marks a 14 percent increase over 2008.

Here are some of the winners from "The Pig Book":

1) Thad Cocrahn,(R) Mississippi: He is the top porker in earmarks,$653 million.

2) Harry Reid, (D) Nevada: He wins the "Porkasaurus Award",for earmarking $143,000 for the Las Vegas Natural History Museum alone.

Alaska led the nation in pork per ca-pita, at $322 a person. At the bottom of the list was Arizona, with less than $12 per resident. Sen. John McCain does not request earmarks for his home state.

Good for John McCain!

Fox reports that CAGW representatives attacked Congress and President Obama for not doing more to reduce wasteful spending, noting that the president had a chance to draw a line when it came to earmarks when he received the $410 billion spending bill last month that included all the pork money.

You can get your own copy of "The Pig Book" at CAGW. 

Nancy Pelosi and Her "Promised Transparency"

Remember a few years ago when Nancy Pelosi promised to "drain the swamp" in Washington and bring a halt to the evils and lack of transparency in Washington?

It was also Nancy Pelosi when taking the reins as Speaker of the House who asked for the formation of "Office of Congressional Ethics." Now, two years later it is finally here after having been approved over a year ago. Worse yet, who heads this committee? Rep.Michael Capuano (D) Ma. who is being investigated by the FBI for his questionable campaign donations from PMP.

What about the turtle-paced investigations of Charlie Rangel,Roland Burris,and Christopher Dodd all democrats in this case?  Pelosi originally called for the formations of this ethics body to clean up all the republican corruption in congress.

Today,we have Fox News reporting that a Watch Dog group,Judicial Watch published a report in March, based on e-mails and other documents obtained through a Freedom of Information request, showing Pelosi repeatedly requested military aircraft to shuttle her and her colleagues and family around the country.

It seems the group was now being charged $750. to get reports from an Air Force unit that should be protected under the Freedom of Information Act. The first time the group tried to get information there was no charge, but when they attempted to follow up on their report on Pelosi, they were then charged.

The secrecy that Nancy Pelosi operates under is in opposition to everything that she promised. No surprise, but Pelosi doesn't seem compelled to offer any information on the status of these investigations, and is well deserving of the description of being "vindictive" and keeping an enemies list as reported here earlier.

Earmarks Revealed: Business as Usual in Washington

It seems (supposedly) that Congress has extended their deadline to reveal earmarks for their individual projects until 5:30 pm this afternoon. The House Appropriations' website was running a bit slow. No doubt!

What was suppose to have been revealed yesterday, will be 8,570 earmarks.  So we will have to wait to see what everyone has packed into Obama's $410 billion budget to get us through the rest of the fiscal year. Glad we are always on their mind.

CNN reported: "We're not making decisions on basis of priorities or project merits," said Steve Ellis, the group's vice president for Common Sense". "We are spending taxpayer dollars on the basis of raw political muscle and that by definition means we're going to waste money."

For the first time lawmakers will have their constituents looking over their shoulders. Interesting they do this late on a Saturday afternoon. But these earmarks will be outrageous enough to still cause a public clamor on Monday.  As the week goes by and details are examined and explained by papers and pundits, there may be a real outcry from Americans.

In the past, earmarks were largely secret until the Appropriations Committee decided which ones to include in spending bills it would write over the summer. In that way, individual House members could announce the local projects that were funded, but it was rarely disclosed which projects were turned away.

Sphere: Related Content

Congress Hands Out 9.1 million in Bonuses in 2008

Bonuses totaling 9.1 million dollars of taxpayer money went to congressional employees in 2008. The number of employees totaled a little over 2000. That is money from taxpayers that both democrats and republicans spent on bonuses that otherwise would have expired in their budgets if not spent.

As Congress attempts to punish AIG and other companies with new tax measures, these congressional foxes need to refrain from pillaging the hen houses of the taxpayers.

It is extremely aggravating for the hard working American to know that his money was spent as broken down on a  Fox News report:  Payments ranged from a few hundred dollars to $14,000. Lawmakers, at their own discretion, gave the money to chiefs of staff, assistants, computer technicians, and more than 100 aides who earned salaries of more than $100,000 a year.

Nancy Pelosi's spokesperson,Brendan Daly had this to say: to the Wall Street Journal:"Most aides could make more money elsewhere, but choose to work on Capitol Hill because they believe in public service," said Brendan Daly, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat who along with other top House leaders awarded bonuses. (Senators also give bonuses, but documents showing those payments aren't yet available.) Mr. Daly said bonuses are a small perk for underpaid government employees."

Give a Big Hand to these congressional leaders who gave the money back!

1) Rep. Todd Akin, a Missouri Republican

2) Rep. Tim Walz, a Minnesota Democrat

American citizens understand that federal employees deserve a decent wage, but for lawmakers to forget that this is also public service and paid for by American citizens who are over-burdened is maddening. You know,it is We the People, who for some reason are the last on the congressional priority list.

Congressional Hogs Need A Raise

With unemployment reaching an all-time high,and Americans tightening their own financial belts, Congress is trying to sneak through an 11% pay raise. Even when times are good, most American workers receive 3-5% increases on their annual raises. If that isn't enough, there is also cost-of-living pay raises for congressional staffers and expense accounts up to $40,000 for some lawmakers. 

How about 9.5 million going towards re-furbishing committee rooms for these pork-barrel spenders?

Let's give them directions to the food banks, and donate boxes of clothing to these poor rascals.

Congress Enjoyed the Luxurious "Retreat and Spa"

As the average Joe went to work this week(provided he wasn't one of the Joe's that was laid off) the democrats were hard at work using our tax dollars at "Kingsmill Resort and Spa" in Williamsburg,Va. 

Most of the money spent was their money, but still we (taxpayers) footed a good portion of it to the tune of $210,000. It's not just the democrats who did this, because the republicans were relaxing last week in Homestead. Last year, $70k was spent for the train trip, and internet access and phone bills added up to more than 40k. Add to that Obama making a trip to Va. to address the nation and democrats. That adds up to a lot more being spent on security.

Now, wasn't everyone just ranting on and on about Wall Street and their exorbitant retreats?

It was bad form for Congress to do this at this time. 

Taxpayers are watching the spendthrifts who are in charge of getting us out of this economic mess.

For More read Below

      Congress members lap up a little luxury themselves

        ...from Winston-Salem Journal

Journal Staff and Wire Report
Published: February 6, 2009
WASHINGTON -- Members of Congress have been quick to shame corporate executives for over-the-top extravagance, but some legislators are at fancy resorts, spending tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars, and mingling with lobbyists....continued

Commentary: Congress clueless about retreats

from Campbell Brown 

(CNN) -- Leave it to members of Congress to be completely daft, entirely clueless, and unbelievably out of touch.

Seriously, only a member of Congress can make a Wall Street executive seem like a sympathetic figure these days. And boy, do they make my job easy. continued

Pelosi To Obama: No Triangulation or Back Doors

In talks with Emanuel and others, sources say, Pelosi has “set parameters” for what she wants from Barack Obama and his White House staff — no surprises, and no backdoor efforts to go around her and other Democratic leaders by cutting deals with moderate New Democrats or conservative Blue Dogs.

sources

Politico

Betsy's Page

Captain Nancy Pelosi

Nancy Pelosi is Never Neutral

We have heard Nancy Pelosi tell us she has remained neutral before when contests were going on, and then to have it be just the opposite behind the scene. We saw such a thing as this with the super-delegates this past summer.  All the talk from the press  is how Obama will govern from the middle.  We don't know that yet in spite of the fact we see many Clintonians appointed to the Cabinet.

Consider what went on behind the scenes with the House Energy and Commerce Committee this week and Waxman challenging Dingell for the Chairmanship. This action reveals more in what we will see in the near future as far as governing from the "left".

 An excerpt from CNSNews explains behind the scenes action: quote:

"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., claimed she was neutral in the Dingell-Waxman contest. Reliable sources said she twisted arms in favor of Mr. Waxman. She hated Mr. Dingell's independence. In the end, Mr. Waxman won; the vote was 137 to 122.

This is a signal. There has been all of this speculation that President-elect Barack Obama has to govern as a moderate. Don't you believe it. With an activist leftist like Mr. Waxman winning in the Democrat caucus, it is clear this is Mr. Obama's preference.

Had the president-elect, with his strong mandate, indicated he needed Mr. Dingell to help govern as a moderate, he would have prevailed. Right now the president-elect has that kind of credibility. John Dingell became the first sacrificial lamb of the move to the left."

read more

Note: Voter Info on Congress

Fran submitted a site that records every vote of the House and Senate. This is information needed when making an educated decision at voting time.
House and Senate Database

Save for future reference.

This site, washingtonpost.com's U.S. Congress Votes Database, is a deep database of every vote in the United States Congress since the 102nd Congress (1991). It lets you browse votes in a variety of ways -- both in aggregate and for individual members of Congress.

Browse the database by drilling down to a particular Congress (e.g. 109th Congress) or particular member (e.g. 109th Congress senators).

This site publishes an RSS feed of recent votes by each member of Congress, and a feed of the most recent votes in both chambers. See the RSS page for full details.

This site is updated several times a day. However, there is a short delay between a vote in Congress and its appearance on the official Congress Web sites, and that delay is reflected on this site.