Who says Republicans don't care about the environment? Here's two GOP members of Congress from Pennsylvania who are pushing pro-conservation legislation in the House.
Newspaper: Berks Countians understand need for tax reform
From an editorial in The Pottstown Mercury:
A legislative forum was held Monday at Daniel Boone Middle School for discussion of tax proposals — a pretty dry topic for a pleasant summer night.
But the forum brought out a full house — nearly 400 people — to listen intently to proposals for tax reform that have been talked about in Harrisburg for 40 years.
Berks County residents demand Pennsylvania eliminate school property taxes. So what's wrong with the rest of the state?
Is John Rafferty Pennsylvania's next Attorney General?
PoliticsPA, a well-regarded political website, is reporting that Republican State Sen. John C. Rafferty Jr. is planning a run for Pennsylvania Attorney General in 2012.
From a story by PoliticsPA Managing Editor Keegan Gibson:
He won't face a question of experience: Rafferty served as Deputy Attorney General from 1988 to 1991. In the PA Senate, he has built a reputation as a good legislator respected on both sides of the aisle. He chairs the Transportation Committee and serves on Appropriations, Judiciary, Law & Justice, Banking and Insurance and Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure.
I've gotten to know Sen. Rafferty well over the years and he would make an outstanding Attorney General. He's a dedicated public servant who has moved up the ranks quickly in the state Senate. He's also big on constituent service, not an easy task in the expansive 44th State Senate District, which stretches across Montgomery, Chester and Berks counties.
Rafferty's likely opponent would be liberal Democrat Patrick Murphy, a one-term Congressman from Bucks County who lost his bid for re-election in 2010.
Read more about a possible Rafferty campaign at the link below:
How many times can one person get it wrong? Barack Obama still doesn't have a clue on how to turn around the U.S. economy.
From an op-ed by Sen. Ron Johnson:
Since taking office in admittedly tough economic conditions, the president has taken America 180 degrees in the wrong direction. His failed $825-billion stimulus, Obamacare, Dodd-Frank and the explosion of his administration’s other job-killing regulations have combined to put a stranglehold on our economy.
Warren Buffett wants more Americans to pay higher taxes at the same time his company has not paid any federal taxes in almost a decade.
From a New York Post editorial calling out the liberal hypocrite:
If Buffett really thinks he and his "mega-rich friends" should pay higher taxes, why doesn't his firm fork over what it already owes under current rates?
Likely answer: He cares more about shilling for President Obama -- who's practically made socking "millionaires and billionaires" his re-election theme song -- than about kicking in more himself.
Birthday wishes to Arizona Sen. John McCain, who turns 75 today.
Remember all those Obama-loving liberal pundits who said in 2008 that McCain was too old to serve as president and he'd probably die in office, thus making Sarah Palin president?
Typical scare tactics for the far left. I bet some people did not vote for McCain because of his age. Instead we get stuck with a 50-year-old community organizer whose screwed up the country royally.
An excellent op-ed by Congressman Joe Pitts, R-PA, that offers real solutions to reforming the tax code instead of Obama's idiotic "tax the rich" bumper sticker slogan.
A hurricane hits the Eastern Seaboard once every 100 years and the cause if global warming? Gimme a break! The global warming alarmists are full of hot air.
WHAT: State Rep. David Maloney (R-Berks) will host a town hall meeting to provide information on efforts to reduce and/or eliminate school property taxes. He has often referred to Berks County as "ground zero" in the property tax debate, and is holding this meeting to update constituents on the challenges facing the state Legislature in dealing with this issue.
WHO: Maloney will be joined by other members of the General Assembly, including the co-chairmen of the School Property Tax Relief Caucus, Reps. Jim Cox (R-Berks) and Seth Grove (R-York), as well as Reps. Mark Gillen (R-Berks), Tom Quigley (R-Montgomery), Marcie Toepel (R-Montgomery) and Doug Reichley (R-Berks/Lehigh).
WHEN: Monday, Aug. 29, 7 p.m.
WHERE: Daniel Boone Middle School auditorium, 1845 Weavertown Road, Douglassville.
LIVE WEBSTREAMING: The meeting may be viewed through Maloney's website, www.RepMaloney.com
If you needed another metric by which to measure the failure of Obamanomics, new numbers released Friday show that two years after the recession ended the economy still hasn't fully recovered.
Why do liberals have so much hatred toward Israel or anyone willing to stand with Israel?
Here's the latest example of liberal fascism directed toward singer Katy Perry, who had the nerve to show her support for Israel on her Twitter account.
From Michelle Malkin:
Katy Perry is a pop singer/songwriter who churns out annoying Billboard hits ("Firework," "Teenage Dream," "Hot N Cold") that your tween-age kids love and you love to hate (yes, I speak from experience). She made news this week after tying Michael Jackson’s record of scoring 5 #1 Billboard hits off a single album.
She also made some little-noticed waves on Twitter that should be newsworthy.
In a response to a fan of hers on Monday, she tweeted:
I am! My prayers are for you guys tonight, SHALOM! RT @ luvmikapenniman: @katyperry #prayforisrael please pray with us
Over the past 24 hours, all hell has broken loose — with Palestinian, Muslim, and progressive Twitter followers lashing out at Perry for her innocuous tweet asking others to pray for Israel.
State Rep. David M. Maloney (R-130th Dist.) will host a school property tax forum on Monday, Aug. 29, at the Daniel Boone Middle School Auditorium in Amity Township.
The event runs from 7 to 9 p.m. and is open to the public.
"I have long said that Berks County is "Ground Zero" for the debate over school property taxes. It is the issue I hear about most frequently from constituents," Maloney said in a press release announcing the forum.
From the release:
"Our agenda for Aug. 29th is to lay out to the public where we are at this point in time in the fight to reduce and eliminate school property taxes in Pennsylvania. Several of my State House colleagues and I will present the most current data we have and discuss the challenges we face in our 130th District and statewide."
State Reps. Seth Grove, R-York, and Jim Cox, R-Berks, who are both co-team leaders for the House Majority Policy Committee will be on hand as well as Reps. Doug Reichley R- Berks/Lehigh, Marcy Toepel, R-Montgomery, and Mark Gillen, R-Berks, who will all participate in the forum.
"We have a lot of information to put forward and we will talk about previous tax relief efforts like legalized gaming and Act 1," Maloney said. "We will talk about school district growth versus state funding over the last 10 years. At the end of the presentation we will take questions."
State lawmakers from Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties have been pushing for the elimination of school property taxes for years, Maloney noted.
"No two counties in Pennsylvania are alike as we all struggle with higher school property taxes," Maloney said. "In some parts of Pennsylvania, school property taxes are not an issue, but they are a problem here. We have information and numbers that most people have not seen and it looks at school property taxes on a statewide view. I felt it was necessary to share this data. There are hot spots in Pennsylvania where this is a serious concern. We in the southeast live in a hot spot."
"Part of my purpose for this event is to also tell people that we will continue to work to correct the problems with the school property tax system," Maloney said.
Under Barack Obama, 1 in 7 Americans relies on food stamps. And Obama thinks that's a good thing. He'd like to see more people dependent on the government for their food. Not exactly the hope and change you were promised.
Forget the excuses by the state-run liberal media. Barack Obama is simply over matched for the job of president of the United States.
An excellent assessment of the Obama Administration so far by columnist Peter Wehner:
The uncomfortable truth for liberals is this: Obama is failing because his (liberal) policies are failing. It is that simple. Pouring old wine into new wineskin won't do the trick. Neither will a bus tour. Neither will finger the Arab Spring and the Japanese tsunami for our economic troubles. Neither will employing what John Harwood calls "the hottest rhetoric of [Obama's] tenure, blistering opponents for refusing 'to put the country ahead of party' because they would 'rather see their opponents lose than see America win.'"
What we are witnessing are the desperate, angry and increasingly unappealing words of a desperate, angry, and increasingly unappealing politician. Those who are waiting for Superman will be waiting in vain.
The liberal Los Angeles Times, an Obama supporter from Day 1, admits on its editorial pages what Barack Obama and his economic advisers refuse to see: They got it all wrong on the economy. The newspaper says it's time for a fresh start.
Today, Aug. 15, is the last day in 2011 you have been working to pay for the cost of government (taxes and regulations) if you live in Pennsylvania.
The money you bring home the rest of the year is all yours.
Still think we don't need to shrink the size of government at every level?
From The Commonwealth Foundation:
By the calculation of Americans for Tax Reform, Pennsylvania just reached its Cost of Government Day. That is, it took the average Keystone worker until Aug. 15, or 227 days, to earn enough to pay his share of federal, state and local government spending and meet the costs of regulation. That puts Pennsylvania in a dismal 40th place among U.S. states, and three days later than the national average.
The Pennsylvania Coalition of Taxpayer Associations is planning a big push this fall to help eliminate school property taxes in Pennsylvania. Find out how you can help at the link below:
This week on Lincoln Radio Journal: Host Lowman Henry talks with David Baldinger of the Pennsylvania Coalition of Taxpayer Associations about the group's plan for eliminating school property taxes; Frank Gamrat and Eric Montarti of the Allegheny Institute discuss the economic impact of drilling in the Marcellus Shale region on The Allegheny Institute Report; and, Scott Paterno has an Uncomfortable Truth commentary on President Barack Obama's failure to lead. Visit www.lincolnradiojournal.com to find out were you can listen to the program in your area.
Columnist: 500 Billion New Reasons To Invalidate ObamaCare
Howard Rich, writing in Investor's Business Daily:
A few hundred billion dollars here, a few hundred billion dollars there — sooner or later we're talking about the real cost of Barack Obama's new socialized medicine monstrosity.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi once said that "we have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it." Apparently, passing the legislation was also a prerequisite to determining its actual price tag — which as it turns out is much higher than anyone fathomed.
The latest cost overrun associated with ObamaCare? A $500 billion "error" associated with insuring the spouses and children of new entitlement recipients. That's $500 billion in additional deficit spending — although it didn't stem from an "error" so much as it was the result of a deliberate miscalculation.
Sorry for the lack of posting over the past 24 hours. I've been incapacitated by a kidney stone. Spent 7 hours in the emergency room of my local hospital waiting for urine test, X-ray and CT to confirm diagnosis. Finally feeling better now that the pain medication has kicked in. I'm sending out this dedication to me: "All Things Must Pass" by George Harrison.
How are you celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Democrats' "Recovery Summer" as the U.S. economy plunges into another recession thanks to misguided liberal policies.
You know you're in trouble when The New York Times, the official propaganda arm of the Democratic Party, starts dissing Barack Obama.
So much for the myth of hope and change.
The New York Times: "The president can no longer make the argument that he has changed the way Washington works - Mr. Obama's Washington, in fact, has looked even worse than previous eras …"
ObamaCare's Most Frightening Consequence: Not Enough Doctors
Fuzzy math, according to Barack Obama. Add 30 million people to the health care system, but push doctors out of the system. That's ObamaCare in a nutshell.
More evidence has surfaced that much of the climate change science used by global warming alarmists was made up.
You would think that environmentalists would be overjoyed at the news that the world is not in danger. But that's not the case. I wonder why. Could it be that there's money to be made in frightening people? Just ask millionaire Al Gore.
Check out this well-written opinion piece by Chester County resident Anthony J. Oleck:
Audit Finds Waste, Mismanagement on PA Liquor Board
What happens when government owns and operates all the liquor stores in Pennsylvania? An audit by Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wagner, a Democrat, found all sorts of problems with the state store system.
Tony Phyrillas is the editor and content manager of The Mercury, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning daily newspaper in Pottstown, Pa. Phyrillas has won national and state awards for political commentary, including first place for column writing in 2010 by the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors. Phyrillas has been featured on National Public Radio and The New York Times and is a frequent commentator on radio and television programs. He co-hosted 'Talking Politics with Tony Phyrillas & Mike Pincus' on WPAZ 1370 AM from 2008 to 2009.