Message From Eric Cantor and You Cut

The new House Republican majority was elected with orders to stop Washington from spending money it doesn't have, and we listened. The jobs and savings of too many Americans are at stake for Washington to continue ducking the toughest choices.

This spring, the House passed a budget that would cut spending by trillions of dollars and encourage private-sector job creation - without raising taxes. Among its key components are tax reforms that close unfair tax loopholes, while lowering the tax rates for everyone.

Unfortunately, the Democrats who still control the Senate and the White House rejected both our budget and a House-passed "Cut, Cap, and Balance" plan that would save trillions.

The Budget Control Act, which has now been signed into law, represents a step toward fiscal sanity in Washington, but only a step. It includes roughly a trillion dollars in up front deficit reduction including real caps to restrain future spending, and no new tax increases.

Bottom line, Washington can't keep spending money it does not have. By participating in the YouCut program over the past year and a half, you were among the first Americans to take action in this cause. Together, we have made a lot of progress, but much more remains to be done.

In the weeks and months ahead, be sure to stay tuned, as there will be several unique opportunities for you to participate in the legislative process. Working together, we will change Washington's culture of spending into a culture of savings.

Regards,

Rep. Eric Cantor
Majority Leader

Vote on You Cut


http://www.majorityleader.gov/YouCut/

Eliminate Grants to Worsted Wool Manufacturers
Potential savings: at least $20 million over 10 years
Manufacturers who weave worsted wool products in the United States that were doing business during the years 1999-2001 obtained eligibility to receive a portion of $5 million in annual grant funding under the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004. The program was initially intended to be a temporary measure to assist manufacturers in adjusting to changes in U.S. trade laws which subjected them to increased foreign competition, with funds terminating in 2007. However, like many “temporary” government programs, it has been repeatedly extended. It currently is slated to expire in 2014. The initial intent of helping companies “adjust” to changes in trade law that are now more than a decade old has been fulfilled, and even the Obama administration has recommended terminating this program. Eligible manufacturers have already received $25 million in subsidies over the past 5 years to invest in whatever productivity improvements were necessary to counter increased foreign competition.


Eliminate the Science To Achieve Results Program
Potential Savings: up to $650 million over 10 years
The Environmental Protection Agency’s Science to Achieve Results program [STAR] funds scientific and engineering research grants to researchers and academic nonprofit institutions. The $60 million annual program also provides graduate fellowships in environmental sciences in the form of $37,000 yearly for living expenses, research and tuition assistance to masters and doctoral students. Subject matters of the research focus on policy priorities of the EPA, including technologies whose commercial application would be of limited appeal without imposing federal regulations like “cap and trade” systems restricting carbon emissions from stationary sources such as electrical power plants. Development of potentially uneconomic technologies helps the agency implement a heavy-handed regulatory agenda. Moreover, prior assessments of the program by the Office of Management and Budget [OMB] have concluded that some of the funded research is duplicative of research carried out by other federal agencies.

End Federal Funding for Municipal Bike-sharing Programs
The Federal government distributed more than $53 billion in funding for highways and transit projects in FY 2011 from the federal highway and transit trust funds. Federal excise taxes on gasoline sales are supposed to support these programs, however spending has significantly exceeded gas tax revenues in recent years. One reason for the excess has been federal spending on projects that don’t involve highways or transit systems at all, including federally funded bike sharing programs. Bike sharing programs were part of the more than $1 billion the federal government spent on programs to promote biking and walking in 2010. Federal bike and walking programs received hundreds of millions of stimulus dollars in addition to an annually recurring funding base that now exceeds $600 million. Bike sharing programs involve installation of bike storage facilities throughout a metropolitan area, together with the purchase of publicly-owned bicycles that riders can use for free or a nominal fee as a method of transportation. Federally-funded bike sharing programs are currently operating in cities such as Washington DC, New York City, and Minneapolis.

Chrysler - A Dirty Story, or, More Obama Dirty Laundry

Someone sent me this story, evidently from the Washington Examiner. The sooner this comes to light, the better,...... but figure the odds on the mainstream media running with this. This could be a scandal of epic proportions and one that makes Nixon's Watergate or Clinton 's Monica Lewinsky affair pale by comparison. Remember when all those car dealerships were closed, supposedly because they were poor performers? Was there an actual agenda to which dealerships of the Chrysler Corporation were to be closed?

Roll the clock back to the weeks just before Chrysler declared bankruptcy. Chrysler, like GM, was in dire financial straits and federal government "graciously" offered to "buy the company" and keep them out of bankruptcy and "save jobs." Chrysler was, in the words of Obama and his administration, "Too big to fail," same story with GM.

The feds organized their "Automotive Task Force" to fix Chrysler and GM. Obama, in an act that is 100% unconstitutional, appointed a guy named Steve Rattner to be the White House's official Car Czar - literally, that's what his title is.

Rattner is the liaison between Obama, Chrysler, and GM.

Initially, the national media reported that Chrysler 'had made this list of dealerships'. Not true! The Washington Examiner and a host of other news agencies discovered that the list of dealerships was put together by the "Automotive Task Force" headed by no one other than Mr. Steve Rattner.

Remember earlier we said that there was neither rhyme nor reason why certain dealerships were closed?

Actually there's a very interesting pattern as to who was closed down. Again, on May 27, 2009, The Washington Examiner exposed the connection.

Amazingly, of the 789 dealerships closed by the federal government, 788 had donated money, exclusively to Republican political causes, while contributing nothing to Democratic political causes. The only "Democratic" dealership on the list was found to have donated $7,700 to Hillary's campaign, and a bit over $2,000 to John Edwards. This same dealership, reportedly, also gave $20000 to Obama's campaign.

Steve Rattner is the guy who put the list together. Well, he happens to be married to a Maureen White. Maureen happens to be the former national finance chairman of the Democratic National Committee. As such, she has access to campaign donation records from everyone in the nation- Republican or Democrat. But of course, this is just a wacky "coincidence," we're certain.

Then comes another really wacky "coincidence."

On that list of dealerships being closed down, a weird thing happened in Arkansas , North Louisiana, and Southern Missouri . It seems that Bill Clinton's former White House Chief of Staff, Mack McClarty, owns a chain of dealership in that region, partnered with a fellow by the name of Robert Johnson.

Johnson happens to be founder of Black Entertainment Television and was a huge Obama supporter and financier.

These guys own a half dozen Chrysler stores under the company title of RLJ-McClarty-Landers. Interestingly, none of their dealerships were ordered closed - not one! While all of their competing Chrysler/Dodge and Jeep dealership were!

Eight dealerships located near the dealerships owned by McClarty and Johnson were ordered shut down. Thus by pure luck, these two major Obama supporters now have virtual monopoly on Chrysler sales in their zone.

Go look in The Washington Examiner, the story's there, and it's in a dozen or so other web-based news organizations; this isn't being made up.

Now if you thought Chrysler was owned by Fiat, you are mistaken. Under the federal court ruling, 65% of Chrysler is now owned by the federal government and the United Auto Workers union! Fiat owns 20%. The other 15% is still privately owned and presumably will be traded on the stock market.

Obama smiles and says he doesn't want to run the auto industry.

As horrifying as this is to comprehend, and being as how this used to be the United States of America , it would appear that the president has the power to destroy private businesses and eliminate upwards of 100,000 jobs just because they don't agree with his political agenda

There are voices in Washington demanding an explanation, but the "Automotive Task Force" has released no information to the public or to any of the senators demanding answers for what has been done.

Benjamin Franklin had it right when he said, "All that's necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."

Car Czar No More

An amazing thing happened as this story was going to press. Obama's Car Czar, Steve Rattner, resigned on July 13 and was promptly replaced by former steel workers union boss Ron Bloom.
According to CBS News, Rattner left "to return to private life and spend time with his family."

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said, "I hope that he takes another opportunity to bring his unique skills to government service in the future." By the way, Rattner is under investigation for a multi-million dollar pay-to-play investment bank scandal in New York .......Uh-oh!

But, we're certain that had nothing to do with his resignation. And, according to several news sources out there, there are rumors he's being investigated for what could be pay-to-play scandal involving the closing of Chrysler and GM dealerships. Really?

Again, that couldn't have anything to with his resignation-that's ridiculous!
Like CBS said, this guy just wants to "spend more quality time with his family."

Obama has 32 personally appointed "czars" who answer to no one but him, all of whom are acting without any Constitutional authority. But hey, we're sure they all have "unique skills,"... as Tim Geithner likes to say!

Check out the Examiner's articles below:

Furor-grows-over-partisan-car-dealer-closings


Obamas-auto-policy-All-in-the-Democratic-family

Goshen College Throws Out the National Anthem

From an article on Yahoo! news,...I wonder if this college received Federal funds? More than likely since who doesn't?

Visiting fans who attend a basketball game, or any sporting event, at Goshen College this season may be surprised by the patriotic song they hear over the loudspeakers minutes before tipoff.

The Northern Indiana school has decided to play "America the Beautiful" prior to sporting events instead of the "Star-Spangled Banner" because the lyrics better fit the pacifist ideals of a Mennonite campus whose motto is "Healing the World, Peace by Peace."

Cowboys comment:I think Goshen College should change their sports mascot name to the Goshen College Shit Heads.

Adopting "America the Beautiful" is Goshen president James E. Brenneman's attempt to end a debate over the national anthem that has engulfed his school for almost two years.

Goshen College had never played the national anthem before a sporting event until March 2010 when the school began playing an instrumental version at the urging of Brenneman. In a lengthy statement explaining the change in policy, Brenneman said, "I am committed to retaining the best of what it means to be a Mennonite college, while opening the doors wider to all who share our core values."

Cowboy's comment: Just what are Goshen's core values? Better to live with conflict? Dying for freedom is unacceptable?

The practice of playing the national anthem before games was immediately controversial among the 1,000-person student body, 58 percent of which belong to the Mennonite faith built on pacifism and global citizenship. Complaints from students and alumni eventually caused school officials to put an end to the short-lived ritual of playing the anthem at sporting events in June.

What bothered many at Goshen College about the "Star-Spangled Banner" was imagery from the War of 1812 that Francis Scott Key included. Goshen spokesman Richard R. Aguirre told the Chicago Tribune that lyrics such as "the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air" were "inconsistent to the entire message we were trying to send."

Cowboy's comment: I wonder if the fact that hundreds of thousands of service members gave life and limb to provide an environment where these people can worship freely?

Seeking a compromise that would satisfy both factions at his school, Brenneman considered numerous patriotic songs before announcing last Friday that "America the Beautiful" would be the replacement for the national anthem at Goshen. In a statement released that day, Brenneman
explained his choice by pointing out that it's easily recognizable, it honors the country and it fits with Goshen's core values.

"Though some may or may not agree with the alternative recommended here, I call now on each one of us to move beyond this decision and turn our attention to other important matters before us,"

Brenneman said. "May God help Goshen College become one of the most welcoming places on earth for all who come to our campus."

Brenneman's attempt at compromise may have satisfied some students and alumni, but the decision has sparked protest and derision from many outsiders.

"Goshen College should be banned from NCAA competition until they start playing the National Anthem again," one man tweeted. Wrote another, "Goshen looks horrible. Its a tragedy that my brother is still forced to go to such a prison of a school."

Cowboy's comment: Sorry I had to post this and make some comments. But I have lost too many friends who dedicated their lives to the ideals of this country. It is unfathomable to me that people at a institute of higher learning cannot rationalize playing the National Anthem while being non-violent. I'm all for being non-violent, in fact I prefer to have a life conflict free,.....but I certainly recognize the fact that there is evil in this world and that violence against evil is righteous and most times necessary.

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." ~ Edmund Burke