WataugaWatch

Buncombe County Schools say they may have to lay off 55 teachers, and Asheville City Schools another seven, if the threatened cuts in state aid to education are carried through. Unclear, still, how the Obama stimulus might alleviate such educational gore.

Meanwhile, about $100 million of stimulus money targeted at housing problems (rehabilitations, new construction of affordable housing, etc.) is beginning to flow into N.C. Most of this money will be available to local governments as block grants.

Labels: Obama economic stimulus

One of the most powerful men in the N.C. General Assembly, Democrat David Hoyle, is sometimes more obnoxiously patrician than ... your average rich Republican. According to Rob Schofield, Hoyle was loudly signaling his disdain yesterday for anything in President Obama's stimulus package that doesn't enrich the Paving Lobby. Questioning a provision that will allow for the hiring of additional child-care workers (jobs, Senator?), Hoyle asked sarcastically, "What's that? Babysitting for people who lost their jobs?"

Jeez!

Labels: David Hoyle, Obama economic stimulus, Rob Schofield

Bobby Jindal, the Great Non-White Hope of the Republican Party, decided to remind us all of the ineptness of the Bush administration during the Katrina aftermath by way of making a few points:

1. The Republican Party has lost the trust of the American people, deservedly so

2. Therefore, you should trust us

Governor Jindal had previously pasted an inadequate fig-leaf over his own hypocrisy: he said he would not accept part of the Obama stimulus money for Louisiana -- about 1 percent of it -- while taking the rest of those "irresponsible, wasteful, ridiculous" billions. We want Bobby Jindal to have the courage of his convictions. We want him to reject ALL of that irresponsible, wasteful, and ridiculous stimulus money. Otherwise, we'll conclude that he's actually the Captain Renault of the Republican Party (shocked that there's gambling going on at Rick's) rather than the voice of a reborn political party imbued with virtue and truth.

Because, see, some $175 billion of federal money has been spent in Louisiana since Katrina, which somehow, by some right-wing voodoo, is supposed to prove that the federal government is just evil.

Someone on cable TV referred to Jindal as "Governor Buzz-Kill." Someone on the blogs last night hung this title on his rebuttal of President Obama: "You're On Your Own, America."

Maybe they should have picked Sarah Palin.

FOOTNOTE
Did you see Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito greet the president in the well of the House prior to the speech? Whoa! If body language were toxic, Alito killed every furry animal on Capitol Hill last night.

Labels: Bobby Jindal, Hurricane Katrina, Obama economic stimulus, Samuel Alito, Sarah Palin

Screwing her puss up into that perpetual scowl of the Right-Wing Republican Beset by a Democratic President, Virginia Foxx clicks her tongue in advance of President Obama's speech tonight:

...she hopes that Obama will avoid such words as "crisis" or "catastrophe" when talking about the state of the economy.

"We keep hearing it's a catastrophe, a crisis, it's all negative. I fear that his continual talking down of the economy down is really doing damage, because people won't spend. They're scared to," she said.

Because, ya see, the downness of the economy is all a function of Democrats talking about the reality of the economy. It's just that simple. There's no history to consider here, nothing to remember about the Republican administration of the last eight years. Just President Obama saying those dangerous, hateful, totally consequential words.

Madam Foxx was one with the Bush administration in denying that any problems even existed, as the Republicans deregulated us into this current house of cards. Then when she and her fellow foxes could no longer deny the obvious, her solution was to do nothing. Absolutely nothing. She'd offer to pray for us. She'd use her right knee for Catholic prayers and her left for Baptist ones. What she would NOT do was use her vote for anything remotely helpful to the struggling citizens of the Fifth District.

Labels: Barack Obama, Bush economy, Obama economic stimulus, Virginia Foxx

Hyper-conservative Carolina Politics advises S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford to just take the Obama stimulus money already. Because, better the money gets spent in South Carolina than in some less savory state.

By Gawd, they do believe in evolution in the Palmetto Bug State!

Labels: Carolina Politics Online, Mark Sanford, Obama economic stimulus

Republican Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina says he just hates the socialism and all, but he'll take the Obama stimulus money, because being against the plan "doesn't preclude taking the money."

Insert your own joke here.

Labels: Mark Sanford, Obama economic stimulus

Late yesterday afternoon Dan Besse posted this wholly reasonable suggestion on BlueNC:

Every elected representative who rails against the stimulus as fundamentally a bad idea should be expected to file an opt-out bill on behalf of his or her district. Under the opt-out, no infrastructure funds, no education funds, no broadband money, etc., from the stimulus-funded programs would be used in his/her district.

With Rep. Virginia Foxx taking every opportunity to fog-horn her utter disgust with President Obama and his economic stimulus, it's time for her to have the courage of her convictions and actually do what Dan suggests ... DEMAND that the 5th Dist. is waaay too American, too patriotic, too Godly to accept any of the president's ill-gotten funds.

To sit silently by ... why, Foxx might as well have voted for the stimulus.

All she has to do is follow the lead of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, who yesterday said he intends to sniff every single dollar of the $4 billion that his state was due to receive, to make sure the wrong people hadn't handled it. That is the right thing to do, if you're a conservative extremist who believes in casting out demons and federal dollars with equal fervor.

We expect Gov. Mark Sanford of South Em-Effing Carolina to do likewise, to gather the hem of his cloak up tightly 'gainst his thighs, to wave off the Obama stimulus, and to pray to God to save his state from all such intrusions of Northern Aggression.

Madam Foxx should be so brave, or at least as intellectually consistent as her incessant carping.

Labels: Bobby Jindal, Dan Besse, Mark Sanford, Obama economic stimulus, Virginia Foxx

So there's Madam Virginia Foxx handing out quotes to Scott Nicholson in the Watauga Democrat about President Obama's economic stimulus plan, repeating the Rush Limbaugh talking points as though she had thought them up herself. What she actually reveals, however, is a truly morbid hope for American failure. We assume all her disdain for the president's attempt to get our economy moving again will prevent her from taking credit for any federal spending projects that get started in her 5th District. We'll be watching for those grand nuggets of hypocrisy.

Meanwhile, Republican governors, who perhaps understand a tad more about reality, not to mention economic policy, are supporting the president. Not just Charlie Crist of Florida and Arnold Schwarzenegger in California but also the Republican governors of Connecticut and Vermont. According to the NYTimes, "Other Republican [governors] would have signed on ... but for party pressure in their states."

Last week, Madam Foxx told an interviewer that she couldn't think of one thing about the president's stimulus plan that she approved of. It's extremism like that which got our nation into this mess (this Republican economy), and it's extremism like that which sensible, pragmatic Republican governors want no part of.

Labels: Obama economic stimulus, Rush Limbaugh, Virginia Foxx

Just before our Earthlink connection went totally kaput yesterday, I had found this item about the new Republican congressman from Louisiana, Joseph Cao, containing the news that Cao was probably going to break Republican ranks and vote for the stimulus bill.

Remember the GOP's moment of ecstasy last December when Anh "Joseph" Cao beat William Jefferson to become the Republican Party's only gin-you-wine non-white Congressman?

"The Time Is Cao!" gushed Republican Minority Leader John Boehner.

But by the time we got our Earthlink service back late last night, we learned that Cao voted with the rest of his "do nothing and hope for the best" caucus. We can only imagine the thuggish "persuasion" Cao was treated to by way of making him toe the party line.

Or he could always say he had a "conversion" experience. We hear those are popular.

Labels: John Boehner, Joseph Cao, Obama economic stimulus

We don't know if Noam Scheiber is correct in his analysis, but we can always hope:

For weeks now, Obama has soared above the fray -- inviting dour-looking Republicans to the White House for cookies and patiently hearing them out on Capitol Hill. Once again, the Republicans have exploited this stance, notching a series of tactical victories, like their unanimous no-vote in the House last week. And, once again, liberals have panicked .... But complaints ... miss what's been accomplished these last few weeks: Obama has completely defined the stimulus narrative on his own terms. To the average voter, Obama has been earnest and conciliatory while the Republicans have been cynical, self-serving, and puerile. Which, if the past is any guide, is precisely the moment he'll start playing hardball.

Labels: Barack Obama, National Republican Party, Noam Scheiber, Obama economic stimulus

"Off with their heads!" is being screamed all over Right Blogtopia about senators Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe, and Arlen Specter, the three Republicans who gave President Obama his filibuster-busting majority on the stimulus bill.

Here is just one example among a legion, this one by that great hypocrite Dickie Morris.

As we've offered before, we'll gladly hold the parkas of any devout Republicans who want to organize a public stoning.

Labels: Arlen Specter, Dick Morris, Obama economic stimulus, Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins

Many people have been buzzing about the five questions put to Congresswoman Virginia Foxx, and her five highly interesting answers. (Her best non sequitur: "I love butter.") Chris Fitzsimon drops his jaw over the third question and Foxx's answer:

Q: You also joined every Republican in voting against the $819 billion economic recovery package that just passed the House, arguing that most of the spending programs would not immediately create jobs. Were any of the spending programs worthwhile?

A: Not that I can recall. There is a possibility that some of the infrastructure spending on roads and bridges could create jobs, but a lot of the money will not be spent for years.

Nothing is good about Obama's priorities ... that she can recall. That's no mystery. The Number One goal for U.S. House Republicans, and particularly the extreme conservatives, is hoping for Obama's failure. Praying to Almighty God that Obama's ship sinks. And if you're cheering for all hands to be lost in the deep blue sea, of course you don't confuse your druthers by finding even one passenger on that boat worthy of a life jacket.

Foxx's total, 100% opposition to Obama, and to government itself, is NOT the mystery today. Our open questions go back a bit in history. We're still puzzled by:

1. A year ago, Congresswoman Foxx led House Republicans in defending Roger Clemens from accusations that he had benefitted from performance enhancing steroids, etc. Why? Why would she hang herself out on such a slim possibility? (This question gains salience in the last 24 hours from the admission of A-Rod, another steroid denier, confessing his sin.)

2. Why were Republican conservatives so opposed to delaying the transition from analog to digital TV signals? A few days ago, there was Madam Foxx leading the floor debate against extending the transition from this month to June, which was done to accommodate mainly poor and rural TV watchers who have either not gotten the message that their TV reception may be disrupted or don't understand what's about to happen. Why would Republicans oppose that? We're NOT asking why Virginia Foxx would relish leading the floor debate against it, because this woman loves something even more than butter ... getting her mug on TV.

Labels: Obama economic stimulus, Roger Clemens, Virginia Foxx

From Ohio, after watching the two-minute morning House speeches on C-SPAN:

Virginia Foxx (NC-5th-R): She talked about the out of control national debt and how the stimulus plan would only make it worse. If my memory serves me correctly, Foxx was a boot-licker for the Bush administration. She helped the Bush administration build that national debt. When Bush came into office, there was a surplus. Now, after the Bush wars and deregulation of the banking industry, our national debt is tremendous and our country is teetering on the brink of a depression, but Foxx would rather do nothing to help. Foxx is a twerp. (I thought of other words but I did not want to put them here.) Unemployment Rate in North Carolina: 8.7% (Ohio 15th)

Yes, our Madam Foxx was George W. Bush's snuggle-bunny, and, no, she doesn't intend for government to lift a finger.

And thanks for noticing, Ohio.

Labels: Obama economic stimulus, Virginia Foxx

By way of Public Policy Polling, who got the analysis from The King of the Polling Nerds, Nate Silver, NC Sen. Dick Burr, who voted FOR George W. Bush's Big Bank Giveaway but who can't countenance President Obama's economic stimulus, is waaay out there in his opposition to the new president, especially given that Obama carried NC: "Burr has been the least cooperative of any Senator whose state did give its electoral votes to the President."

Gunny Freedom, a poster on the thread linked above, sez "Burr is a failure because he is a partisan hack."

Labels: Obama economic stimulus, Public Policy Polling, Richard Burr

Congresswoman Virginia Foxx has issued a new pronouncement. We read it, so you don't have to (but if you must, there's the link).

WHAT SHE SAID
"It's stimulus time again."

WHAT SHE MEANT
It's not safe to sit down just any old where!

.........................................

WHAT SHE SAID
"Congress just passed an $825 billion so-called 'stimulus plan.' "

WHAT SHE MEANT
Dear Lord, pleasepleasepleaseplease don't let me utter the name "O-ba-ma."

........................................

WHAT SHE SAID
"This is appalling."

WHAT SHE MEANT
Must. Make. Whatisname. Fail

...........................................

WHAT SHE SAID
"Haven't we heard this before?"

WHAT SHE MEANT
A-one, a-two, all together now:
"Who cares about the clouds when we're together?
Just sing a song and think 'bout sunny weather ...
Happy trails, toooo you! ..."

............................................

WHAT SHE SAID
"The megabank bailout plan that shoveled $700 billion in taxpayer money into banks with zero oversight and accountability was rushed through Congress in a panic."

WHAT SHE MEANT
George W. Bush should go to his room without supper. Forever.

............................................

WHAT SHE SAID
"Folks, this is the definition of a pork fest."

WHAT SHE MEANT
But, ya know, I still get Christmas cards from Tom DeLay, bless his heart.

.............................................

WHAT SHE SAID
"There is a time and a place to discuss the merits of additional funding for federal programs."

WHAT SHE MEANT
Like, maybe, never, bee-yotches?

Labels: Obama economic stimulus, Virginia Foxx

Duh. Even Sarah "I Read Everything" Palin has her hand out in D.C.

The funnest to watch, however, are the doctrinaire conservatives who lust after the money but who don't want to be caught lusting after the money ... like Haley Barbour of Missis-slappi: "Yes, we need some help and we appreciate the help. But I don't know about the details and the strings attached to tell you if I'll take all of it or not."

Or, better, Bobby Jindal of Lousy-anna, who says he would have voted against the bill in the House but will (yep) TAKE THE FREAKIN' money. Didn't Madam Foxx say something almost identical?

We call this h.y.p.o.c.r.i.s.y. Of the political sort.

Labels: Bobby Jindal, Haley Barbour, Obama economic stimulus, Sarah Palin, Virginia Foxx

We were on the road to Raleigh (and beyond) when the House voted on the stimulus package and didn't get any state papers into our hands until this a.m. We were not at all surprised that NOT ONE SINGLE Republican voted with the president nor that 11 Blue Dogs jumped off the porch and went hunting with a strange pack of flea-eaten hound dogs.

Eventually, we figger, President Obama's gonna learn who he's dealing with.

Le'ssee here ... the American people rejected Republican economic policies in both 2006 and 2008, wrapped up that whole philosophy in surgical bandages and buried the whole shebang in a deep crypt, yet the Republican remnant in the U.S. House (along with those bright Blue Dogs) are stubborn in demanding that the president and the rest of us just lie back and accept more Bushian economics ... more tax cuts for the rich, more enabling of corporate robber barons, more deregulation, and unless we accept a continuation of what they've been doing since 2001, and accelerate it, they're not going to cooperate. Big freakin' surprise!

This a.m., Madam Virginia Foxx is quoted in the Raleigh N&O. Foxx is busily rewriting history and twisting logic out of all recognizable shape. She says that "President George Bush's signature tax cuts in 2001 had spawned years of growth, but the nation's problems started when Democrats regained majorities in Congress in the 2006 elections." With this abysmal representative, it's always the Democrats' fault, and the year is ALWAYS 1929.

We guessed (before we could confirm it) that Heath Shuler (NC 11) was one of those 11 Blue Dog Democrats, and he was. Even Mike McIntyre (NC 7), one of the most dependably Republican of "Democratic" representatives, voted with President Obama. Shuler, evidently, likes hanging with the Foxx.

Labels: Barack Obama, Heath Shuler, Mike McIntyre, Obama economic stimulus, Virginia Foxx

Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., said she plans to vote against it [the economic stimulus package] because she is "philosophically opposed to the federal government operating this way." But, she said, "if money is going to be doled out, certainly I hope some of it will go to North Carolina." (W-SJournal)

Philosophically opposed but functionally obliged.

Madam, your slip is showing.

Labels: Obama economic stimulus, Virginia Foxx