Kerry Warns Iraq on Iranian Flights to Syria

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Photo Credit: Talk Radio News Service

Just days after the 10th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry confronted Baghdad for continuing to grant Iran access to its airspace and said Iraq’s behavior was raising questions about its reliability as a partner.

Speaking to reporters during a previously unannounced trip to Baghdad, Kerry said that he and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had engaged in “a very spirited discussion” on the Iranian flights, which U.S. officials believe are ferrying weapons and fighters intended for the embattled Syrian government.

Kerry said the plane shipments – along with material being trucked across Iraqi territory from Iran to Syria – were helping President Bashar Assad’s regime cling to power by increasing their ability to strike at Syrian rebels and opposition figures demanding Assad’s ouster.

“I made it very clear that for those of us who are engaged in an effort to see President Assad step down and to see a democratic process take hold … anything that supports President Assad is problematic,” Kerry said at a news conference at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad after meeting separately with Maliki at his office. “And I made it very clear to the Prime Minister that the overflights from Iran are, in fact, helping to sustain President Assad and his regime.”

The overflights in Iraq have long been a source of contention between the U.S. and Iraq. Iraq and Iran claim the flights are carrying humanitarian goods, but American officials say they are confident that the planes are being used to arm the support the Assad regime. The administration is warning Iraq that unless action is taken, Iraq will be excluded from the international discussion about Syria’s political future.

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So Much For Sequester: Obama Quietly Releases $500 Million to Palestinians (+video)

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Photo Credit: AFP

The United States has quietly unblocked almost $500 million in aid to the Palestinian Authority which had been frozen by Congress for months, a top US official said Friday.

The news that the funds had finally been freed up came after US President Barack Obama met top Israeli and Palestinian leaders in a landmark visit to Israel and the West Bank earlier this week.

“To date, we have moved $295.7 million in fiscal year 2012 money… and $200 million in fiscal year 2013 assistance,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.

The Obama administration also notified Congress in late February that it was seeking a further $200 million to fund US Agency for International Development (USAID) programs for the Palestinians, she said.

The first sum comprises some $195.7 million, allocated under the 2012 fiscal year budget for USAID economic, development and humanitarian assistance, as well as a further $100 million earmarked specifically for narcotics control

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Poverty Hits The Suburbs

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Photo Credit: WND

By Garth Kant. The stock market is roaring but that doesn’t mean the nation’s economy is healthy. Warning signs include a startling growth of poverty in the suburbs and among the elderly who, increasingly, can’t afford to retire. Many other dark clouds are also gathering on the economy’s horizon, not just the nation’s astronomical $17 trillion dollars of debt.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has made a remarkable comeback from its recession low of 6,594.44 on March 5, 2009, to close for the week at 14,512.03. The Dow surpassed its previous all-time high on March 11 when it closed at 14,254.38.

But the gains on Wall Street aren’t being realized on Main Street, according to a study by the Brookings Institute. It found the number of people in the suburbs living in poverty skyrocketed by almost 64 percent between 2000 and 2011. That’s double the rate of growth of poverty in urban areas, and 16.4 million more suburbanites in poverty.

“I think we have an outdated perception of where poverty is and who it is affecting,” said Elizabeth Kneebone, a co-author of the report, adding, “We tend to think of it as a very urban and a very rural phenomenon, but it is increasingly suburban.” Poverty is also growing rapidly among older Americans.

Writing in Forbes, Edward “Ted” Siedle says millions of elderly Americans are falling into poverty and the country is facing the greatest retirement crisis in the history of the world. More and more older Americans face the dilemma of being too poor to retire and too frail to work. Siedle lists a number of causes for the predicament.

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More kids get free lunch in D.C.’s wealthy suburb

By Rachel Baye. The Washington area’s wealthy suburbs have seen a sharp rise in the portion of children receiving free, government-funded lunches over the last several years, an indication of rising poverty levels.

In Fairfax County, the second-wealthiest county in the country, nearly 27 percent — 47,874 — of the public school system’s 179,253 students receive free or subsidized school lunches this year, up from 21 percent — 33,479 — of 162,986 just five years ago, data show. Across the Potomac, Montgomery County, the 10th-wealthiest county in the country, has a similar story, with one-third of its 149,051 students receiving free or reduced-price school lunches, up from 26 percent of 137,745 five years ago.

“[The trend] puts strain on these districts and on these schools that may not have the infrastructure or services in place to meet the needs of a growing low-income population,” said Elizabeth Kneebone, a fellow in the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program.

Students who receive Free and Reduced Price Meals — or FARMS — are more likely to be behind academically, according to a recent study by Montgomery County’s Office of Legislative Oversight, requiring districts to provide more remediation in math and reading.

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Alaska Legislative Hearing Today: Demand the Right to Vote on School Vouchers

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The Democrats are claiming that, “Alaska’s children are facing attacks on their education this year – from eroding foundation funding to vouchers to early education cuts.”

This attack is coming because of the effort of liberty-minded Alaskans to allow the people to vote on a constitutional amendment to allow publicly-funded school vouchers. This would create competition for public schools, something lobbyists and unions are trying to prevent.

In other words, they don’t want YOU to have a say in the matter. They’d prefer to have the ruling class make that call for you.

Take a look at the liberals’ flier below. And then make time today to call in and demand that Alaskans be permitted to vote on this important issue.

Photo Credit: ak democrats

RINO Fundraisers See Big Cash Opportunity In Gay Marriage Shift

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Republican fundraisers say the changing views of gay marriage in their party could unlock big money from GOP donors in places like New York, California and Florida — where some Republicans have kept their checkbooks closed over what they saw as misplaced priorities, at best, or intolerance, at worst, at the highest ranks of the party.

Several Republicans pointed to Sen. Rob Portman’s switch in support of gay marriage as a watershed moment for the party. And more than two dozen high-profile GOP-ers asked the Supreme Court to back gay rights. And even Foster Friess, Rick Santorum’s top benefactor, has softened his stance on domestic partnership.

“Republicans’ intolerance to marriage equality has been detrimental to winning,” said Aaron McLear, a California Republican strategist. “Big donors understand that they don’t want to invest in campaigns focused on a losing issue, and I think certainly the fiscal issues for Republicans are much more marketable.”

Republican fundraiser Jim McCray agreed. “I think it will open up donors across the board, because it demonstrates Republicans are trying to recreate the big tent they were known for,” McCray said.

It’s not clear how much money could come from donors supportive of the party’s move toward new thoughts on gay marriage. Pro gay-rights donors have long been an important source of campaign cash for Democrats, including after President Barack Obama pushed through a repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which barred openly gay people from serving in the military.

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Surprise: Obama’s Science Advisers Press For Carbon Standards

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Photo Credit: Allison Harger

President Obama’s outside team of scientific advisers is recommending the creation of carbon emissions standards for existing pollution sources and continued expansion of shale gas production in order to confront global warming.

Those are two of the wide-ranging climate policy suggestions that the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) unveiled Friday that address ways to curb emissions and adapt to inevitable climatic changes.

Others include creation of a “National Commission on Climate Preparedness,” infrastructure planning that integrates climate risks, and various steps to “decarbonize” the economy.

“Mitigation is needed to avoid a degree of climate change that would be unmanageable despite efforts to adapt. Adaptation is needed because the climate is already changing and some further change is inevitable regardless of what is done to reduce its pace and magnitude,” PCAST said in a letter to Obama released Friday.
The advisers note that broad policies to impose a cost on carbon emissions, such as a carbon tax or cap-and-trade, don’t have political traction. But other options to address emissions are available.

Their letter to Obama urges “new performance standards for CO2 emissions from existing stationary sources.” The endorsement arrives as environmentalists are pressing the administration to begin setting standards for the current fleet of coal-fired power plants.

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Justifying Another War: Head of Intel Committee Says Syrian “Red Line” Crossed (+video)

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There’s mounting evidence that over the last two years the Assad regime has used “at least a small quantity” of chemical weapons against rebel forces in Syria’s raging civil war, House Intelligence Committee chair Mike Rogers, R-Mich., said today on “Face the Nation,” adding that the time is now for U.S. intervention.

Amid debate over an alleged chemical weapons attack out of Syria last week, President Obama during a visit to Israel doubled down on his claim that such an attack would be considered a “game changer” for his administration, but qualified that it’s important to find out “precisely whether or not this red line was crossed” before making a decision that could lead to an act of war.

“I think that it is abundantly clear that that red line has been crossed,” Rogers said. “There is mounting evidence that it is probable that the Assad regime has used at least a small quantity of chemical weapons during the course of this conflict.”

Though a senior administration official has said intelligence this week suggests weaponized chemicals were not used in the recent strike, Rogers said the fact that President Bashar al-Assad has ordered scud missile attacks on civilians “in and of itself should prompt action.” The “wholesale slaughter” of Syrian rebels and civilians, he said, “is now spilling up to the doorstep of Israel.”

“This is a growing, destabilizing event in the Middle East,” Rogers continued. “Our Arab League allies talk to us frequently, and they are as frustrated as I have seen them because of the lack of U.S. leadership at the time table.” Senior Arab diplomats this morning announced the Arab League has decided to transfer Syria’s seat away from Assad and to opposition forces.

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Rand Paul: Obama Could Have Been Jailed Under Today’s Drug Laws (+video)

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On this weekend’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday,” Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul said punishments for marijuana-related crimes should be reduced, citing President Barack Obama’s reported drug use as a reason to look past certain minor indiscretions…

“The main thing I’ve said is not to legalize them, but not to incarcerate people for extended periods of times,” Paul said. “I’m working with Sen. [Patrick] Leahy — we have a bill on mandatory minimums. There are people in jail for 37, 50, 45 years for nonviolent crimes. That is a huge mistake. Our prisons are full of nonviolent criminals.”

Paul admitted legalization would encourage marijuana use, which he said has negative effects.

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What’s Wrong With Alaska’s Congressional Delegation?

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Most Alaskans know that their congressional delegation is pretty liberal, with the some-times exception of the ethically-challenged Don Young. Anyone watching this past week’s Senate votes by Senators Lisa Murkowski and Mark Begich would have a hard time disagreeing with that conclusion.

Here’s a recap:

Photo ID for Elections. Sen. David Vitter proposed an amendment requiring photo ID for voters. Only two Republicans voted against it. Yep, you guessed it: Lisa Murkowski was one of them, joining her Democrat colleague Mark Begich in sending the measure to defeat.

Abortion Mandate for Religious Groups. Pro-abortion Democrat Jeanne Shaheen offered an amendment reaffirming the requirement that religious groups, notwithstanding their sincerely-held moral objections, must provide abortion drugs and birth control to their insureds. The measure passed with both Murkowski and Begich’s supporting votes.

Banning Former Illegal Aliens from Healthcare Benefits. Sen. Jeff Sessions offered an amendment that would have banned former illegal aliens from receiving government medical benefits. His effort failed. Both Murkowski and Begich voted against the proposal.

United Nations Funding/China’s Abortion Policy. See this article on Murkowski and Begich’s votes opposing Senator Cruz’s point of order against funding the United Nations as long as any of its member nations have a policy of involuntary abortions.

Finally, both Murkowski and Begich supported President Obama’s controversial anti-gun judicial nominee, Caitlin Halligan. That support went down in defeat this week with Obama’s withdrawal of the nominee after a lengthy GOP filibuster.

Landrieu Angrily Confronts Cruz Over Abortion Amendment

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Photo Credit: John Orrell

Ted Cruz’s effort to tie United Nations funding to China’s abortion policy provoked a sharp, private rebuke from Mary L. Landrieu on the Senate floor Saturday morning.

Shortly before 4 a.m., the Louisiana Democrat strode from her desk on the Democratic side of the chamber all the way to the Texas Republican’s desk on the far side to give him a piece of her mind after Cruz insisted on a roll call vote on his amendment to the Senate budget resolution. Cruz wanted to create a new point of order against funding the United Nations as long as any of its member nations have a policy of involuntary abortions.

“I suggested to him that a more direct and a more effective route might be for Texas to stop all exports to China or to stop any financial exchanges between Texas and China,” Landrieu told CQ Roll Call after she voted on the budget shortly before 5 a.m.

“That would have had a much more direct effect on what he was trying to do than take money from the U.N. … I thought he might like the idea. He should try it next time,” Landrieu said. After a cross-looking Landrieu left to return to her desk, a bemused Cruz smirked and chatted with Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who voted for the amendment.

The amendment had zero chance of passing — it was defeated 38-61 — but like many of the other amendments considered well after midnight, it appeared to be aimed at putting senators in a politically difficult position: either they go on record whacking the United Nations or they face the potential for attack ads saying they voted to protect forced abortions in China.

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News Editor’s Note: Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski sided with the Democrats (including, of course, Sen. Mark Begich) in voting against Cruz’s anti-abortion amendment.