Think Progress: GOP On Ron Wyden

Source:Think Progress- former Speaker of the U.S. House and 2012 Republican presidential candidate, Newt Gingrich.

"GOPOnRyanWyden.mov" 

From TP Clips

Today I'm a little disappointed in Senator Ron Wyden (member of the Finance Committee) who generally I agree with, for going along with Representative Paul Ryan. (Chairman of the Budget Committee as well as a Member of the Ways and Means Committee) I'm not disappointed in Senator Wyden in working with Representative Ryan on Chairman Ryan's Medicare voucher plan. 

I'm all for bipartisanship if it can produce a better final product, that can't be produced in any other way. I'm disappointed in what they've come up with in reforming Medicare, which is basically turning Medicare into a voucher system. Which is what the Ryan Plan that was produced back in April does.  

People who call themselves Conservatives (which is what I'm assuming Paul Ryan believes he is) talk about the need for freedom of choice (at least in the economy) all the time. And yet they're in favor of eliminating freedom of choice, or partially limiting seniors free choice and ability to choose Medicare, if they still want Medicare for their health insurance. They have a huge contradiction there. 

VOA News: Julie Taboh- 'Supreme Court Justice Continues Equality Fight'

Source:VOA News- a representative from the ACLU.

"Voice of America (VOA) is an American international broadcaster funded by the United States Congress. It is the largest[2][3][4] and oldest U.S. funded international broadcaster.[5][6] VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content in 47 languages which it distributes to affiliate stations around the globe. It is primarily viewed by foreign audiences, so VOA programming has an influence on public opinion abroad regarding the United States and its people.

VOA was established in 1942,[7] and the VOA charter (Public Laws 94-350 and 103-415)[8] was signed into law in 1976 by President Gerald Ford." 

From Wikipedia 

"Only the second woman in U.S. history to serve on the nation's highest court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been an articulate voice for the liberal wing of the bench. VOA's Julie Taboh reports." 

From VOA News 

"Only the second woman in U.S. history to serve on the nation?s highest court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg knew she wanted to be a lawyer by her third year in college... 

Source:VOA News- the U.S. Supreme Court.

From VOA News

When President Clinton came to office in 1993, he had the opportunity to appoint two Supreme Court Justices within eighteen months, similar to President Obama in 2009-10. Both President's having significant majorities in the Senate, which gave President Clinton a lot of leeway in who he could appoint as long as he appointed someone who was clearly qualified to not get into trouble with Senate Democrats or attempt Senate Republicans to block a Supreme Court nominee. 

Ruth Bader Ginsberg is historic for several reasons the fact that she's the first Jewish-American woman on the Supreme Court is just one of those reasons. She's a child of the American civil rights generation who has made equal rights and equality for all Americans her life and career and has taken that fight to the Supreme Court of the United States. And has a lot of respect from both the Left and Right for her commitment and honesty and deserves a lot of respect for it. 

C-SPAN: 'President Clinton 1993 Inaugural Address'

Source:CSPAN- President William J. Clinton (Democrat, Arkansas) delivering his first inaugural address.

"President Clinton delivered his first inaugural address on January 20, 1993."

From C-SPAN

Ronald Reagan had this test to decide if President's were successful, or that the Republican Party used up until 1992. And that test is laid out in a simple question: "Are you better off today than you were four years ago? Is your cost of living better, are you more secure in your job, do you have more economic security today than you had four years ago?" Etc, and he used that question in his closing moments of the third presidential debate with President Jimmy Carter in 1980. 

Americans by in-large clearly didn't feel better off  in 1980 than in 1976. Which is why they voted for Ron Reagan overwhelmingly with around 56% of the Popular Vote and giving him 44 states in that landslide election. And President Reagan used that question again in 1984 and in 1988, because the country was clearly better off as a whole in 1984 and in 1988 than it was in 1980. But in 1992 America started declining economically, especially.

The American economy was just starting to come out of the recession of 1990-91. High unemployment, interest and inflation rates, rising costs in health care, rising national debt and deficit. Similar economic conditions in 1992 than in 1980, which opened the door for a young Liberal Democrat from Arkansas the Governor of that state to give the Democratic Party the presidency and to transform the Democratic Party and get us away from the stereotypes that have kept us out of national office since 1981. 

I mention the Reagan Test because that's one way President's are judged in whether they were successful or not. Was the country as a whole better off when you left office than when you came into office. And it's a test that President Clinton gave in 1996 and in 2000. American President's are judged by how the country did compared with how it was doing before they became President. But also how President's dealt with situations as they come up. 

And one more thing I would add, were they able to transform the country, lay down a vision for it that remained in place after they left office. In other words were they able to start a political revolution and under those three tests President Clinton passes overwhelmingly, which is why he is considered not only successful, but I would add a great President. At least on those three scores. 

President Clinton had to deal with a lot. A weak economy, huge national debt and deficit, America looking like it may be declining as a world power, Somalia, Haiti, the Balkans, two American embassy's being blown up in East Africa. And when he left President with a 4.5% unemployment rate, booming economy, record low poverty rate, democracies emerging in the Balkans. The Democratic Party when President Clinton came into office was seen nationally as a Far-Left Social Democratic Party.

With a lot of negative stereotypes that were holding national Democrats back like tax and spenders, fiscally irresponsible, soft on crime, defense and Welfare, anti-private enterprise, anti-wealth and anti-success, etc. And he moved the party back to the democratic liberalism of where it was with President Kennedy in the early 1960s. A place that President Obama wants the Democratic Party to be at. Despite pressures from the Far-Left to move the party farther left.

Anytime Social Democrats try to move the party even farther left, they should look at the lesson of President Clinton. How the party was seen before he was President and it was seen after he left as President. And then look at how the party did in 1972, 1980, 1984 and 1988. Where they lost four landslide presidential elections out of five presidential elections. Including in 1980 losing so badly that it cost them control of the Senate for the first time since 1952. 

The Democratic Party needs to be a liberal party that believes in liberal democracy, that's why I'm a Democrat. But we can't be a pro-big government party that wants the Federal Government to do a lot more at the expense of individual liberty. But we have to be a pro-limited, good government party that believes in good government, in order to be successful now and into the future.

Associated Press: Newt Gingrich: 'His Ideas on Work 'Distorted'

Source:Associated Press- former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (Republican, Georgia) and 2012 presidential candidate.

"Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich continued a campaign swing through New York Monday.  In an appearance at The Union League he said comments he made about getting young people to work have been distorted. (Dec. 5)" 

From the Associated Press

Here's a case where Newt Gingrich is right when he says that the mainstream media has a tendency to distort what he says. 

Newt doesn't believe low-income people are poor because they are lazy. But that they tend to come from households where they don't see their parents working. And in a lot of cases from from single-parent households where their parent isn't working. Where their parent or parents didn't even finish high school, their kids don't know their fathers. The father walked out on the family, perhaps isn't even aware he has kids and they see their parent or parents at home a lot living in Public Housing collecting public assistance, especially Welfare Insurance not working. And they grow up in a household where work isn't encourage. 

Associated Press: 'Unemployment Drops to 8.6%'

Source:Associated Press- President Barack H. Obama (Democrat, Illinois)

"The U.S. unemployment rate fell last month to its lowest level in more than 21/2 years. More people out of work either found jobs or gave up looking and were no longer counted as unemployed. (Dec. 2)" 

From the Associated Press

We are finally starting to see some real good economic news as we close out 2011 and hopefully get off to a good start in 2012. And hopefully the 4th quarter (not in the football game, but in the economic growth rate) will look good as well. Maybe with the holiday season and everything else we'll hit 4% economic growth. And maybe we'll start to see jobs reports north of 150K maybe even 200K per month. 

But as the cheesy news reporter always says: Only time will tell. Back to you Bob." But when that starts to happen, our unemployment rate will stop dropping like rocks from a bridge. And we can finally put the Great Recession now three years old to bed. Actually four years depending on how you look at it, because economic growth started dropping in late 2007.

David Rosman: U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy and Reverend Jerry Falwell- Liberty Baptist College (1983)

Source:David Rosman- U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy (Democrat, Massachusetts) being introduced at Liberty University.

"On October 4, 1983, Rev. Jerry Falwell introduced Sen. Edward Kennedy, who gave one of his most famous and praised speeches on Faith, Truth and Tolerance in america."

From Davis Rosman 

"Sen. Ted Kennedy speaks at Liberty Baptist College on Oct. 4, 1983 as Chancellor Jerry Falwell, Sr. watches on the right. (Photos by Les Schofer)  

Liberty University Chancellor Jerry Falwell, Jr. said the Liberty University community will be remembering the Kennedy family in prayer.

Sen. Ted Kennedy, a friend of Liberty University’s founder, the late Dr. Jerry Falwell, and his family, died late Tuesday at his home in Hyannis Port, Mass., after a long battle with brain cancer.

Kennedy, 77, had spoken at Liberty and conversed with Falwell, Sr. on many occasions.

Jerry Falwell, Jr. wrote about Kennedy’s relationship with his father in the July/August “Liberty Journal.” An excerpt is below." 

Source:Liberty University- U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy (Democrat, Massachusetts) and Reverend Jerry Falwell, in 1983.

From Liberty University

Senator Ted Kennedy, would be one of the few Northeastern Progressive Democrats that could give a speech at a Southern Evangelical university like Liberty University. Because Senator Kennedy was someone who could work outside of his element. Especially when he didn’t have enough power to get everything he wanted on an issue. 

Ted Kennedy was a legislature before he was a politician. Which is why you see Senator Kennedy on the same stage not debating with Reverend Jerry Falwell (one of the fathers of the Religious-Right in America) and they make about as odd of a couple as Reverend Jesse Jackson giving a speech at a KKK rally. Something just seems odd about it.

But you have to remember that two of Senator Kennedy’s best friends in Congress were Senator Orrin Hatch and John Boehner. (Now Speaker of the House) Two of the most Conservative Republicans in Congress. But Senator Kennedy was one of the best speakers when it came to truth and tolerance and civil rights in America. 

You don’t have the legislative record in Congress as a Senator, without the ability to not only work with your colleagues in the Senate and people in your party, but you also have to not only be able to work with Senator’s from the other party, but people in the House of Representatives as well. At least in your own party if your party is in the majority there. Ted Kennedy, understood all of that.

Perhaps not as articulate as Lyndon Johnson, Martin King or Bill Clinton, but you knew when Ted Kennedy spoke about those issues, that he was speaking from his heart that these were issues that really believed in. Which is why Senator Kennedy always had one of the best civil rights records in Congress. 

And Senator Kennedy’s contribution to the immigration reform debate in 2006-07, is a perfect example of that. Truth and tolerance and civil rights, are just as important as they were in 1983 84 when this speech was given, as it is today. To speak what’s on your mind and tell the truth and what you really believe.

Tolerance and cooperation, is something we didn’t have enough in politics and the rest of the country back then. But at least in the 1980s both parties believed in government and governing. And we're smart enough to know they had to work with the other party in order to govern. 

Now it’s about how do you make the other side look bad so you can score politically. And that has just gotten worst today. Tolerance, treat people as you would want to be treated. Until they’ve proven they’re not worthy of your respect. And judge people by the content of the character, not by the color of their skin. Or the shape of their face or style of their hair or any other thing that has to do with their race or ethnicity.

Don’t judge people by their name, or what religion they practice (if any) what gender they are attracted to physically and so on. That we treat people as people not groups. We don’t treat people special because they are a member of a group, good or bad. That we judge all people as people not members of groups. 

Which is something that Senator Kennedy understood very well for the most part. And is something that as we become even more diverse as a country is a message that needs to be understood and communicated even more today. Seeing Ted Kennedy with Jerry Falwell on the same stage not debating each other and actually being nice to each other.

Ted Kennedy and Jerry Falwell, were the definition of Odd Couple. Perhaps they could’ve had their own sitcom. Like the Irish Baptist, or Out of Place or something like that, Strange Bedfellows. Except they would both be straight. Jerry Falwell getting on Ted Kennedy for falling off bar stools and Ted Kennedy getting on the Reverend for preaching to the choir in their living room, literally as he’s trying to sleep. An Odd Couple that could get along.

But even people who are clearly opponents when it comes to politics and have to defeat other side to accomplish their goals, can get along with each other. If they understand that they are opponents and not enemies that are always in combat seeking to destroy the other side. 

You can also see this post on WordPress. 

You can also see this post at The Daily Press, on Blogger. 

You can also see this post at The Daily Press, on WordPress.

ESPN: SportsCentury- Greatest Head Coaches: Vince Lombardi

Source:ESPN- Chicago Bears head coach Mike Ditka (1982-92)

Source:The Daily Press 

"Some of the best ever on what it takes to be a great coach. All rights belong to ESPN and Sportscentury."  

From ESPN

On this Thanksgiving and by the way Happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there, I thought it would be a great time to blog about Vince Lombardi, the greatest head coach of all-time, not just in football, but perhaps in team sports period. 

I think you'll have a hard time finding a better head coach because football is not just a huge part of our Thanksgiving holiday and Vince Lombardi is a big part of football. And the Green Bay Packers are a big part of our Thanksgiving football tradition. The Packers have played a lot on Thanksgiving and Coach Lombardi coached a lot of those games.

When I think of Vince Lombardi, I think of what a head coach should be when they are at their best and when they are the best at they are. Someone who constantly strives at making his team the best that they can, at getting the best effort and performance out of his team all of his players at the same time in the same game.

I mean if you look at it thats what the job of a head coach is. Of course they want to win and the head coaches that do win are the successful head coaches, that is win more than they lose and a lot more than they lose. But really the job is to get the best performance out of your players that they can deliver. There have been teams that were 7-9, 8-8, 9-7 and of course missed the playoffs, but their head coach had a good year or a great year. They even had a great record that year because of the team that they had and the players that had to play.

The level of talent that they had to work with and there been teams that were 10-6, 11-5 but they didn't have very good seasons and didn't win championships even though they had the talent to, because their players didn't play very well as a team. They didn't work very well together, their head coach didn't get them to play as well as they could've. And they ended up basically having a mediocre or even a bad season because their head coach didn't get them to play as well as they could've. 

The job of the head coach is to get his team and all of his players to play as well as they can at the same time as one team and if he has a good team or a great team, like Chuck Knoll had with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s (to use as an example) then that will lead to a lot of wins and championships. 

The Green Bay Packers of the 1960s didn't have a dynasty in that decade and were the team of the 60s because they were loaded with talent and great players. They had some of those and some Hall of Famers, they won five NFL Championships in seven years from 1961-67, because they had the best teams and the best head coach. Best team and best talent are two different things. Best talent has to do with athletic ability and skills. Best team has to do with the team that plays the best together and plays the best as a team.

I'll give you an example: Super Bowl 36 between the New England Patriots and St. Louis Rams one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history. The Rams I believe were a 10-12 point favorite they still had that great Vertical Spread offense (as I call it) with Kurt Warner, Marshal Faulk and all of those WRs. The Patriots were 5-11 the year before, snuck into the playoffs in 2001, winning their division. Beat the Raiders in a blizzard in the famous tuck game and then upset a very good Steelers team in the AFC Final. They had to beat two better teams just to make to the Super Bowl.

The Rams clearly had batter talent in that Super Bowl, but the Patriots had a better team and played better together and of course they had head coach Bill Belichick, perhaps still the best head coach in the NFL. Thats what Vince Lombardi had in Green Bay in the 1960s, he had the best teams, not exactly the best talent when he won those championships. 

So to use my definition of the job of a head coach, then no one is better than Vince Lombardi at getting his teams and players to play the best that they can at the same time. And he is the best head coach of all-time, because he was the best motivator and perhaps the best motivator ever as well.

And he would put it simple: "You want to play for the Packers, you're going to give me everything you have, or find another job or team to play for". He knew when to ride someone and when to pride someone and do both of those things in a way that showed the player that he's just trying to get the best out of him, kinda like a great father would be. Thats what made Vince Lombardi the best ever at what he did.