Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Last chance to do something this session

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The House Education Committee meets today at noon in Frankfort to take up improvements to the way Kentucky assesses its public schools' ...
Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Violence over government waste in Jersey?

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As Kentuckians breath a sigh of relief from the quick death of a proposed secretive bureaucracy designed to "protect" us from gov...

A $646 billion (expletive deleted)

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Sen. Jim Bunning got a lot of attention Tuesday morning for his choice of words , so some of his other comments escaped media notice. Bunnin...
Monday, March 09, 2009

Building a better Wiki

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In case you haven't had enough revisionist history, you could try posting something critical about Pres. Barack Obama on Wikipedia and ...

Bailing out bad Kentucky diets

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One indication of what is wrong with Kentucky government comes from a Department for Public Health press release out today. Excerpted below,...
Sunday, March 08, 2009

Squeezing the wrong people

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Gov. Steve Beshear and his friends at The Lexington Herald Leader have made a lot of noise the last few months about everything being "...
Saturday, March 07, 2009

David Williams gets fliered up

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The 5th district GOP Lincoln dinner was fairly uneventful until after the program ended. One attendee came to the press table with a flier w...

Sen. Mitch McConnell speaks

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Sen. Mitch McConnell spread the praise around lavishly tonight at the 5th District Lincoln Day Dinner. He lauded Rep. Hal Rogers as the long...

Rand Paul questions budget "shortfall"

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(The following is a guest column from Dr. Rand Paul. I added some links.) What Budget Shortfall? When Republicans act like Democrats, who is...

Bunning speaks to 5th district

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Sen. Jim Bunning warned a friendly crowd at the 5th district Republican Lincoln dinner that President Obama is trying to pay back the people...
Friday, March 06, 2009

Kentucky tax protests almost ready

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Dealing with the city of Lexington to set up tax protests has proven to be pretty cumbersome. Big shock, right? Now it looks like we will ha...

Who is Stumbo using now?

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House Speaker Greg Stumbo was still selling the idea that the tax increases enacted last month are simply "user fees" at a news c...

The kiss of death for GOP candidates

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The New York Times jumped on the bandwagon to criticize Sen. Jim Bunning today. But National Public Radio got to the heart of the matter reg...
Thursday, March 05, 2009

Will David Williams apologize?

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Listeners to Leland Conway's radio show on WLAP 630 AM in Lexington know Senate President David Williams wants to make an appearance and...

Kentucky tea partiers, unite!

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Michelle Malkin reports the U.S. Senate stopped the progress of President Obama's $410 billion pork-laden spending bill tonight. Majorit...

Trouble in bailout paradise?

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Just as the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on the $75 billion mortgage bailout today -- and no, you can't have any --...

Vanity alert

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If you understand how Google rules the world, then you may think this is pretty cool: Busy day today with several meetings but, thanks to V...
Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Kentucky's beer-goggled tax hikers

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The Kentucky General Assembly is soaking taxpayers so fast some legislators are making a mess of their voting records. Andy Hightower at th...

More useless and misleading government info

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The Lexington Herald Leader and the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) have teamed up to provide more useless and misleading government ...

Following orders at Lexington jail

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Fayette County jail Director Ron Bishop sent Assistant Director of Operations James Kammer to dig through federal whistleblower John Vest...
Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Doesn't KY media care about solutions at all?

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Kentucky's mainstream media has been mostly silent about the state's endless trail of wasteful economic development tax scams, pensi...

Bubba Bailout advances

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After making us endure their endless whining about needing more of our money, raising our taxes, and raiding the employee health fund, you m...

Are we all Orwellian economists now?

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I love that the Obama Administration has started this morning labeling high questionable press releases "FACT SHEET." (Click the i...
Monday, March 02, 2009

Possible Senate candidate coming to Lexington

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Dr. Rand Paul, a Bowling Green physician and the son of Congressman Ron Paul, will speak about his possible campaign for U.S. Senate on Thur...

What will Mitch do, this time?

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The last time Sen. Mitch McConnell had a choice of who to help in a Republican primary for a U.S. Senate seat representing Pennsylvania in 2...

Not enough pig in AIG's poke

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Amazing that we are giving another $30 billion to AIG when they can't repay the first $150 billion. My favorite is the "as needed&q...
Sunday, March 01, 2009

Debunking more Big Ed spin

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Last fall, Kentucky's education bureaucrats beat their chests about Kentucky ACT scores while Bluegrass Institute education analyst Rich...
Saturday, February 28, 2009

A new campaign, an old dirty trick

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The most popular post on Kentucky Progress in the last week was the breaking news about Rand Paul weighing a run for the U.S. Senate. The m...

Jessamine Co. Lincoln Day 2009

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The evening started with a little nervous laughter when a letter was read from Sen. Mitch McConnell expressing his appreciation of the Kentu...

AP: What overspending problem?

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The Associated Press read Warren Buffett's famous annual letter to his shareholders today and managed to miss the part in which he predi...

Saturday reading assignment

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Christina Romer, Chairwoman of President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers, makes the case for Spendulus 2009 and beyond. You ...
Friday, February 27, 2009

What you already knew about Jim Bunning

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National Journal's Congressional Conservative/Liberal ratings are out for the 2008 session . Sen. Jim Bunning leads the way for the Kent...

Beshear's "Weekend at Bernie's" policy

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Looks like Gov. Beshear sat around all week trying to think of something to make a YouTube video about and could only manage to re-float a f...

Now you see them, now you don't

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Tuesday night, President Barack Obama said this: "But let me perfectly clear, because I know you’ll hear the same old claims that rolli...
Thursday, February 26, 2009

Ron Paul's son may run for Senate from KY

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Congressman Ron Paul's son Rand is going to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Jim Bunning if Bunning ultimately decide...

Stop feeding them...

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... and the Left turns to eating each other. New York Times columnist Paul Krugman isn't happy with the bank bailouts that the rest of ...

Eliminate these middle men

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Why in the world are we trusting a bunch of bureaucrats who can't balance their own books with picking our winners and losers in the cor...

How's your new hope and change going?

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It's funny how every time a bunch of politicians get together and claim a grand victory for bipartisanship, what really happens is that ...
Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Drinking our way to prosperity

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The Hartford Courant reports Republicans in Connecticut want to solve their state's overspending problems by expanding drinking hours in...

Obama, the flesh-eating zombie?

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When President Barack Obama talked about curing cancer last night, I couldn't help thinking of the movie "I am Legend" in whic...

Beshear spins for Big Ed and Big Health

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Gov. Steve Beshear went on the Leland Conway radio show in Lexington to explain why he raised taxes and raided the state employee health fu...
Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Bad news, Bishop

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Fayette County Detention Center Director Ron Bishop has been trying for two and a half years to get rid of federal whistleblower Cpl. John ...

Mr. Obama, tear down your campaign web site!

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As President Barack Obama addresses the nation tonight, it might be worthwhile to look at some of the promises he made before the election t...

Bunning: Williams owes me $30,000

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Senator Jim Bunning said KY Senate President David Williams came to him last year and asked for financial help for the campaigns of Sen. Jac...

Who are you and what did you do with KY Senate President David Williams?

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A month ago, we had a Kentucky state Senate determined to hold the line on taxes and a House minority that usually showed evidence of a spin...
Monday, February 23, 2009

Where's the rest of the cavalry?

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Secretary of State Trey Grayson has just issued the following statement in support of Senator Jim Bunning: "Recent news reports change ...

Mr. Tax Raiser, where are you?

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Casey County Republicans report Taxpayer Protection Pledge breaker Sen. Vernie McGaha failed to show up for last Friday's Lincoln Day D...

Thank you, Uncle Albert

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This looks like a great idea. The Organizer-In-Chief wants us to "thank" our representatives for voting for the latest bailout sch...

Just wondering

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When Rep. Ben Chandler ran for governor in 2003, he refused to sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, calling it a stunt. When he ran for Cong...
Sunday, February 22, 2009

David Williams running for U.S. Senate

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(2/23 10:30 am update: Williams denies making calls to members of the House and says he will make a statement about his plans soon.) State S...

Same as the last corruption

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Please help spread the word about this .
Friday, February 20, 2009

Apology to Rep. Joe Fischer

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In one of my other day jobs, I write for the Bluegrass Policy Blog. It was just brought to my attention that I left Rep. Joe Fischer off a l...

Having it both ways in Frankfort

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Don't let President Barack Obama see this. Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear offers some sensible advice to Kentuckians about managing their p...

Can't get criminals away from Lex. jail

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Disgraced , audited , and mail order educated former Lexington jail administrator Don Leach has been calling the Fayette County Detention C...
Thursday, February 19, 2009

Why do we let this stupidity persist?

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Kentucky's practice of providing health insurance benefits for retired state and local government workers under 65 has to go. Kentucky&#...

SC Governor calls a spade a spade

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Here's yet another reason to wish Kentucky had another state's governor. South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford is the reason Pres. Barack...

Uh, no

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It's not hard to blame Republicans in power since 2000 for giving us Democrats who make insane stuff like this our new reality.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009

What a dying political career looks like

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Someone in Lexington Mayor Jim Newberry's office wanted to see if his recent Fox News appearance garnered any good press. Google says no...

Where is Ben Chandler today?

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Rep. Ben Chandler doesn't want you to know he is quietly urging Speaker Nancy Pelosi not to call up a bill that would force unionizatio...

Someone has to say it

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"Kentucky isn't like California." How many times has a Bluegrass state native heard that? It used to be a putdown of Kentucky ...

Kiss that money goodbye!

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The Louisville Courier Journal reports the Kentucky Department of Education will receive a $305 million federal bailout. The schools' MU...
Tuesday, February 17, 2009

"More bail, please"

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Automotive News reports that Chrysler wants another $2 billion of your money. I sense a recurring theme here. And, of course, our politician...

Watching California, thinking Kentucky

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The budget fireworks in California took a positive turn Tuesday as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has started the major downsizing of government...
Monday, February 16, 2009

Let them eat stock certificates

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General Motors is expected to announce Tuesday that their survival plan includes taking more taxpayer money, making fewer cars, and paying o...

I have a question, Mr. President!

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Just got my invitation in the mail for the Jessamine County Republican Party Lincoln Day dinner at 6 pm February 28 at Equestrian Woods in N...

Up with hemp, down with Mountain Dew?

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The most popular post on Bluegrass Policy Blog is about a bill to make hemp production legal in Kentucky. Check out the action in the post&#...
Sunday, February 15, 2009

Lexington's own "Trial of the Century"

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This summer, Lexington will endure an unusually long federal criminal trial city officials don't want you to know anything about. The Le...
Saturday, February 14, 2009

Presidential irony

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I wish it were funnier that America has a president whose name and image inspires spam email scam artists. This isn't even the first tim...

Beshear gives Kentucky an Obama

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Gov. Steve Beshear borrowed the rhetoric of Pres. Barack Obama yesterday in congratulating himself for his smoke-and-mirrors fix of Kentuck...
Friday, February 13, 2009

If you liked Tax Jam 2009, just wait

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The Kentucky Senate voted this morning to raise taxes and to raid the public employees' health fund of $50 million . Can't imagine ...

Text messaging is best

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Tax raisers in the state Senate are currently one vote short on HB 144 . Will your Senator fall into the big government trap? 9:37 AM Update...

Senate, don't be as cynical as the House

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The theme for this week in Frankfort has been politicians saying one thing and meaning another. A bipartisan Gang of 11 House members betra...
Thursday, February 12, 2009

Barack Obama wants us to trust him

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Kentuckian in exile Caleb Brown of the Cato Institute wonders why Pres. Barack Obama is playing "hide the details" with his big ba...

Will Kentucky rob Peter and Paul both?

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Federal governments all over the world are printing "stimulus" money faster than grass runs through a Kentucky Derby champion. In ...
Wednesday, February 11, 2009

House fails to hold the line on taxes

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House Minority Leader Jeff Hoover delighted Frankfort's big spenders this afternoon by not only voting for higher taxes, but also making...

Bellying up to the wrong table

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House Budget Chairman Rick Rand, speaking in favor of a tax increase bill , just repeated the fiction about everything being "on the ta...

Smart if true

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Gov. Steve Beshear's reputation for meaning what he says isn't the best . Nevertheless, this sounds good: "I am looking forward...

Time for a Kentucky stimulus task force?

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Now that Virginia is a blue state, they must feel obligated to set up web sites asking for citizen input on spending their Barack Obama bail...
Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Get ready to wave bye-bye to Senate majority

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Tonight's blow out loss in the state Senate special election combined with the compromise (read: cave in) on tax increases tells me Kent...

Jim Bunning speaks

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Sen. Jim Bunning said today the eligibility for full Social Security benefits should quickly be pushed from age 67 to 70. He said just doing...
Monday, February 09, 2009

Assume a woodshed...

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... and watch the Cato Institute take President Barack Obama there!

Another $1.5 million down the drain

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A Lexington Herald Leader news reporter went to a political press conference and came back a believer in very questionable, big government s...

Latest bailout recipient: Dan Mongiardo

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Media types can't help noticing Lt. Governor Dan Mongiardo has been twittering out status updates via government press release very rapi...
Sunday, February 08, 2009

KY Club for Growth opposes tax hike

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Brian Richmond, president of Kentucky Club for Growth , says he is adamantly against raising cigarette and alcohol taxes to fund bloated gov...
Saturday, February 07, 2009

If this is pragmatism, we're in big trouble

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President Barack Obama made a silly statement Saturday while complaining that nearly two-thirds of the electorate wants off his bailout trai...

Gouging saves lives in Kentucky

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National media folks watching Kentucky dig out of the latest ice storm noticed the heroic -- and well-compensated -- efforts of a man Gov. ...
Friday, February 06, 2009

Bunning economics plan makes more sense

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Bailout opponent Sen. Jim Bunning today suggested via a floor amendment improvements to the increasingly unpopular spending bill Pres. Obama...

A hundred million here, a hundred million there

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Two witnesses to the Senate Education Committee meeting Thursday came away with different numbers but the same story about the state's m...
Thursday, February 05, 2009

Will 69 million voters fall for this, too?

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Just got a junk email from a bank invoking the Obama bailout scam and offering, fittingly, a scam VISA card with the false hope that "i...

Jim Newberry needs your call

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The miss ing videotape that's part of the latest episode in the Lexington jail scandals has been located, according to a source inside ...
Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Take it like a man

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Congress expands SCHIP, Kentucky loses

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Gov. Steve Beshear has made a big deal out of signing up children for government health insurance and the U.S. House of Representatives jus...

Obama bailout needs a bailout

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As American support for President Barack Obama's $900 billion bailout plan drops precipitously , a group of Republicans are fighting bac...
Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Will KY legislators approve voter initiatives?

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Kentucky House Minority Whip David Floyd has filed a bill sure to catch the imagination of active citizens across the state. House Bill 217 ...

Bunning was against bailouts; still is

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While many in Congress are figuring out their fiscal principles on government bailouts by sticking their fingers in the air, stalwart Sen. J...
Monday, February 02, 2009

Did Don Leach lose another consulting gig?

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The graphic below shows a California-based visitor to this blog who seems to know something about the ongoing federal investigation into cri...

Bipartisan opposition to corporate welfare

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Very interesting article in The Wall Street Journal today about how some states are expanding taxpayer-funded incentive deals for companies ...

How about a colorblind natural disaster?

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A North Carolina think tank stuck its tongue in its cheek over the weekend and asked why President Barack Obama hates the white people in Ke...
Sunday, February 01, 2009

More Left Coast activism headed our way?

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An effort in California to make health insurance premiums more "fair" for women looks like just the kind of bad idea that would at...