Kyle is vice president of Education Action Group Foundation, a non-partisan non-profit organization with the goal of promoting sensible education reform and exposing those with a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. EAG was formed in June of 2007.
He has written columns that have appeared in the Detroit News (including several co-written by author and commentator Dick Morris), Detroit Free Press, Lansing State Journal, Oakland Press and Traverse City Record-Eagle, among several others.
He has also appeared on Fox News’ “Glenn Beck Program” regarding his investigation of teachers' union ally ACORN. Kyle is the editor of ACORNcracked.com and has appeared on WJR’s “Frank Beckmann Show,” WABC's “Bob Grant Show,” as well as Dom Giordano's radio show in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He has given dozens on interviews on talk radio programs coast to coast.
Kyle is also the editor of NEAexposed.com and AFTexposed.com.
Born and raised in West Michigan, Kyle graduated from Michigan State University in 2001.
While Kyle likes talking politics, he especially likes to talk about his family, as well as his favorite music. Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Johnny Cash are at the top of the list. He recently attended his 20th Bob Dylan show.
Kyle's personal website is kyleolson.org.
He and his wife have two young sons and live in western Michigan.
Kyle Olson
Frances Fox Piven: Thomas Jefferson Would Be ‘Stunned’ at America Today (But Not For the Reason You Think)
by Kyle OlsonFrances Fox Piven, honorary chair of the Democratic Socialists of America, can arguably be considered the mother of ACORN. At least, her ideas and theories set ACORN, and its parent, the National Welfare Rights Organization, onto a path of creating and manipulating crisis situations to further their agenda of a more equal “distribution of wealth” in America. In other words, socialism.
It’s a path, I believe, that runs contrary to our country’s original intent. But Piven doesn’t think so. In her book, “Challenging Authority,” she quoted both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams.
What I found most bizarre was the apparent disconnect in Piven’s mind between individual rights and property rights, particularly the idea of acquiring as much wealth as one wishes without fear of government encroachment. It’s impossible to believe that Jefferson, Adams and the other founders – most of them very successful entrepreneurs – could have envisioned or approved of a massive national government that siphons property and economic rights from private citizens.
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Frances Fox Piven: Glenn Beck Seeks ‘Foreign, Dark-Skinned, Intellectual’ Scapegoats
by Kyle OlsonThroughout much of 2009, Glenn Beck extensively covered the “Cloward-Piven Strategy” that was first brought into the public domain in a May 1966 article in The Nation magazine. In the article, Richard Cloward and Frances Fox Piven, two Columbia professors, developed a strategy by which the welfare system could be overwhelmed with demand, broken, and replaced with a “guaranteed annual income.”
Beck has successfully made the argument that the Cloward-Piven Strategy was a blueprint for success at overwhelming that system. Don’t think it worked? Ask the leaders of New York City. The strategy worked so well, the mass rush for welfare benefits bankrupted the city in the 1970s.
So as Beck has brought new light to this strategy, no one has asked Frances Fox Piven’s opinion. Until now.
Piven dismisses Beck’s opinion as “silly.” But she also went a step farther.
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Sorry, Wade: James O’Keefe’s Actions Don’t Excuse ACORN
by Kyle Olson
ACORN founder Wade Rathke has been gloating on his blog about the recent arrest of James O’Keefe in Rathke’s hometown of New Orleans.
Andrew Breitbrat and his www.biggovernment.com site stopped pretending that James O’Keefe, bungler-in-charge, was not his boy, and realized that he needed to stop shouting and start ‘splaining.
Breitbrat? Zing! How adult of you, Wade.
Similarly, current ACORN chief organizer Bertha Lewis issued a statement upon the news:
The recent arrest of James O’Keefe, is further evidence of his disregard for the law in pursuit of his extremist agenda. From the day that O’Keefe’s undercover “sting” videos came out, ACORN leadership pledged accountability for its own staff while pointing out that the videos had been shot illegally and edited deceptively in order to undermine the work of an organization that has empowered working families for four decades.
It’s as if O’Keefe’s problem somehow is vindication for the corrupt web of organizations she oversees.
Bad news, Bertha: it’s not.
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Forget Gutting Tax Breaks; Obama Should Reverse Bailout of Government Motors
by Kyle Olson
Every time I hear a politician say he’s going to end tax breaks for companies that export jobs overseas, I just laugh. It’s transparent pandering to the UAW and other labor unions and a great talking point, but the Democrats have just never gotten around to enacting it. President Obama trotted out that old horse again in Wednesday’s State of the Union speech:
We should put more Americans to work building clean energy facilities and give rebates to Americans who make their homes more energy efficient, which supports clean energy jobs. And to encourage these and other businesses to stay within our borders, it’s time to finally slash the tax breaks for companies that ship our jobs overseas and give those tax breaks to companies that create jobs in the United States of America.
But as a Michigander, it’s even more humorous knowing that the federal government has bailed out a Michigan-based company, General Motors, that has increasingly been “shipping jobs overseas.” According to a May 2009 Washington Post article, GM has been doing that with a vengeance.
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Crime-Tolerating Left Pounces on Apparent New Orleans Stunt
by Kyle OlsonLet me first say, if what is being reported in the media is accurate, a dumb prank was attempted in the New Orleans office of Sen. Mary Landrieu by James O’Keefe and his comrades.
There should be zero tolerance for crime, regardless of who does it. If O’Keefe is guilty of what the FBI is alleging, he should be held accountable. The Left believes that now, but where were they six months ago?
It’s interesting to observe, and personally experience, the hypocritical way the Left is treating this situation. Consider two unsolicited e-mails I received Monday night from a few liberal wackos with too much time on their hands. Here’s the first, which was accompanied by the subject line, “Republicans are As—-es!”:
Hey as—-e, why don’t you talk about the son of a bitch who broke into Senator Landrieu’s office in LA? Yeah, scumbags like you don’t care about the law.
The other, titled, “James O’Keefe is going to jail! YOU FAILED!”:
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Obama Dithered as Economic War Raged
by Kyle OlsonNow President Obama tells us he’s going to take the economy seriously. God help us.
As the war on the economic recession grew bleak and the unemployed body count grew, Obama and the Democratic Congress were bogged down in the quagmires of health care reform and cap-and-trade – wars of choice but not of necessity.
Obama and Congressional leaders dithered on the economy to satisfy their liberal base and deliver on campaign promises of a government takeover of health care, a cap-and-trade system and a scheme to eliminate the secret ballot in union elections.
Fortunately for America, Obama and his Congressional allies have been unsuccessful so far.
In a recent interview with ABC News, the president said he lost touch with the American people because he was so focused on crafting policy. And the result was the special election in Massachusetts that ended in disaster for Democrats.
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Field Marshal Andy Stern: ‘Dammit, I Said March Off That Cliff’
by Kyle OlsonSuddenly, all the condescending ‘tea-bagger’ jokes must not be quite so funny in liberal circles. Serves them right.
Losing the seat formerly held by the champion of socialized medicine – in the bluest of states – apparently hasn’t phased the radical left. SEIU president Andy Stern put the blame on the fact that Democrats in Washington, DC, who the union spent tens of millions of dollars electing, haven’t done enough to pass the progressive agenda. From a SEIU statement:
“The reason Ted Kennedy’s seat is no longer controlled by a Democrat is clear: Washington’s inability to deliver the change voters demanded in November 2008. Make no mistake, political paralysis resulted in electoral failure,” Stern said.
“During the past year, Republicans refused to do anything but stand in the way of change and Democratic Senators took too long to do too little. And tonight, the Senate bears the consequences for its failure to act decisively but the American people are the ones left paying the price…
“The Senate may have squandered the trust the American people gave to Washington in 2008. But now, every member of Congress and the Administration must act with a renewed sense of purpose to show working families whose side they are on and deliver meaningful change to every American. This is not the time for timidity. It starts by passing health insurance reform and giving Pat [DeJong] and millions of people like her the security and peace of mind they deserve.”
Massachusetts voters stood at the borders of their state – and the polling places – with virtual pitch forks telling politicians, to paraphrase Johnny Paycheck, “take this agenda and shove it.”
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Dems Assemble Circular Firing Squad Over Coakley Loss; Freedom Left Intact – For Now
by Kyle Olson
Martha Coakley’s campaign team began leveling charges against DC Democrats as it became increasingly apparent the wheels had fallen off her campaign wagon well before Election Day. DC operatives, including those in the White House, of course, couldn’t withhold return fire. Politico reports:
And in private conversations, Hill sources say White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel has blamed Coakley, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Democratic pollster Celinda Lake for failing to see Brown’s surge in time to stop it.
Coakley advisors, meanwhile, say DC operatives stepped in too late, so the blame lies with them. A memo, obtained by Politico, said in part:
National Dems Failed to Aid Coakley Until Too Late
— Coakley campaign provided national Democrats with all poll results since early December
— Coakley campaign noted concerns about “apathy” and failure of national Democrats to contribute early in December. Coakley campaign noted fundraising concerns throughout December and requested national Democratic help.
— DNC and other Dem organizations did not engage until the week before the election, much too late to aid Coakley operation
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Dems’ Health Care Strategy: Seek Forgiveness Instead of Permission
by Kyle OlsonConsider this irony: Democrats and their special interest allies are in the fight of their lives to keep the seat formerly held by the champion of socialized medicine in the bluest of states. Democrats should be tap dancing on the foreheads of Republicans in Massachusetts. But instead, they’re racing against the clock for a deal on health care reform because they run the risk of losing their critical 60th vote in just a few days.
So the Democrats strategy is clear: seek forgiveness of American voters in November instead of permission now because the probable message from Tuesday’s election will not be in favor of ObamaCare. Democrats are “hoping” to have an overall deal on health care reform, the tax-dodging Ways and Means committee chairman Charlie Rangel told NationalJournal.com, just in time to avoid the Tuesday Massachusetts vote.
The Huffington Post quoted SEIU vice president Anna Burger as saying, “Let’s go on and actually pass this bill.” Anna’s wish is, of course, this White House’s command.
The special election this week in Massachusetts can easily be viewed as a referendum on Obama, his policies and specifically government-run health care. And in a state that is navy blue, it’s a dog fight, with SEIU stepping in to plop down over $600,000 for TV ads savaging Republican candidate Scott Brown. And RedState.com reported House Democrats are spending beaucoup bucks to elect a Democrat to the Senate. It’s pure panic time for Democrats in Washington.
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Senate Dems and al Qaeda Agree: World Trade Center Represents American Greed
by Kyle OlsonIt seems the Democrats have the art of poor taste down to a science. Who else would think to use an image of the World Trade Center, destroyed by terrorists in 2001 because the towers were a symbol of American greed, to attack a Republican candidate over Wall Street “greed?”
According to Politico, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee ran an ad against Republican Scott Brown, accusing him of opposing a “plan to crack down on greed and corruption.”
Just when I think the Democrats can’t stoop any lower to retain the seat of the former champion of socialized medicine, they sink to using the tragedy of the World Trade Center. But not in a way to say that Martha Coakley will stand up to terrorists - oh no, instead its used to exemplify what they see as the worst of America.
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Unions Make Obama An Offer He Can’t Refuse
by Kyle OlsonIt’s amusing to watch President Obama try to stick it to his friends in organized labor by proposing a tax on union-negotiated health care benefits.
If it weren’t for the fact that the tax proposal would have a devastating effect on the American economy, the situation would be downright hilarious.
Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO President
On Monday, a group of top leaders from the American labor movement gathered at the White House to share their concerns with the president.
The irony of the discussion was delicious. During the campaign, Obama and the Democratic Party (including the unions) attacked John McCain for suggesting that health care benefits should be taxed as income.
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Personal Responsibility a Virtue Lost on ACORN’s Wade Rathke
by Kyle OlsonLike a phoenix released to spread it wings, ACORN founder and former chief organizer Wade Rathke has been letting it all hang out on his lively, but troubling blog.
He recently attacked no-nonsense Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, lamented the continuing questions regarding ACORN/SEIU involvement in the 2010 census, and even went after me on one occasion.
Now he’s attacking the concept of personal responsibility, something our society is sorely lacking. He’s encouraging homeowners who are falling behind on their mortgage payments to simply walk away from their homes, as if the money still owed is neither their problem nor their concern.
At least his message is consistent, because Rathke has always been the Johnny Appleseed of bad advice when it comes to housing.
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Hey Republicans, Adopt the AFL-CIO’s 2004 Message: Show Us the Jobs
by Kyle OlsonI distinctly remember the placards in the windows of the union hall in my union-stronghold Michigan city: “Show Us the Jobs.” It was a thinly-veiled campaign against the Bush administration for what the AFL-CIO saw as a failure to create jobs.
The economy in 2009 and 2010 was and is far worse than it ever was in 2004. The unemployment rate in 2004 was 5.5%. Today, it’s 10%. If Obama could get the unemployment rate somewhere in the middle, the Nobel Committee would likely send him the prize for economics.
Saul Alinsky’s Fourth Rule for Radicals is, “Make the enemy live up to their own book of rules.” So, in true Alinsky fashion, why not turn the left’s campaign against them? Republicans: adopt the “Show Us the Jobs” campaign. After all, the AFL-CIO’s bus tour to swing states didn’t begin until March of that year.
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Minnesota University Wants K-12 Teachers to Hate America
by Kyle OlsonWe’re accustomed to strange political phenomena rising out of Minnesota.
We can accept the occasional Jesse Ventura or Al Franken winning statewide office, because the state’s voters obviously like to be different.
But we doubt even the most offbeat citizens of that state would approve of the new K-12 teacher education program that’s been proposed for the University of Minnesota’s Twin Cities campus.
While the rest of the nation is trying to force teachers to help our children reach their potential, the university’s College of Education and Human Development wants to make sure future teachers are more anti-American, so they can share that philosophy with their future students.
We couldn’t even begin to make something like this up.
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America Exports Socialist Ideas to Venezuela
by Kyle OlsonHere’s a concept I never thought we’d be exporting: governments taking over markets to act as the “competition.”
News is Venezuelan brute Hugo Chavez has created a “new chain of government-run, cut-rate retail stores that will sell everything from food to cars to clothing from places such as China, Argentina and Bolivia,” according to Breitbart.com:
Chavez said the Comerso chain of stores will include “a network of subsidiaries” that will sell new vehicles directly imported from China and Argentina, “without capitalist intermediaries.”
“We’re going to defeat speculation. Private individuals in sales can still sell, but they’ll have to compete with us and with a people who is now fully aware,” Chavez said.
Gee, where have I heard that before? Oh yeah! That kind of sounds like the talking points from the Democrats government-option proposal.
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Congress back to finding ways to fund ACORN
by Kyle Olson
ACORN’s friends, with a fresh court ruling backing the organization, are finding new ways to send taxpayer dollars to it. The Weekly Standard exposed an amendment offered by Sen. Rolland Burris (D-IL), President Obama’s replacement in the Senate, to the main piece of legislation enacting ObamaCare.
Specifically, Burris’ amendment would require an “Office of Minority Health” be established in several different agencies.
On page 241 of the amendment (yes, the amendment is over 241 pages):
In carrying out this subsection, the Secretary … shall award grants, contracts … with public and nonprofit private entities, agencies, as well as Departmental and Cabinet agencies and organizations, and with organizations that are indigenous human resource providers in communities of color. … Such measures shall evaluate community outreach activities, language services, workforce cultural competence, and other areas as determined by the Secretary.
Can you say ‘ACORN?’
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Transparency Is First Rationing Victim of Reid’s ObamaCare
by Kyle Olson
The Obama-Pelosi-Reid regime marched into office pledging to provide the most transparent federal government in American history. I was looking forward to that.
On Inauguration Day, President Obama told his senior staff:
The way to make government responsible is to hold it accountable. And the way to make government accountable is make it transparent so that the American people can know exactly what decisions are being made, how they’re being made, and whether their interests are being well served.
Mr. President, live up to your statement and ask Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to simply show us the bill.
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Teachers’ Unions Are Washington’s Fat Cats
by Kyle OlsonWe know how liberals, particularly those in the education establishment, like to say that Corporate America dictates public policy through campaign contributions.
A new report, prepared by the Center for Responsive Politics and the National Institute on Money in State Politics, does a good job of dispelling that myth.
As it turns out, the National Education Association was by far the nation’s biggest political contributor during the 2008 election cycle. The NEA dropped a cool $56.3 million on its list of favored liberal candidates at various levels of government, which was about $12 million more than the runner-up contributor spent.
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Health Reform Radicals Are Driving Congressional Democrats Off a Cliff
by Kyle OlsonThe socialist wing of the Democratic Party must have thought the brass ring was within its grasp when Barack Obama was elected president, a larger Democratic majority was returned to the House and a filibuster-proof majority was secured in the Senate.
But with the exception of massive new spending, little, if anything, has been delivered to satisfy the liberal base of the party. Health care reform is a perfect example. When the political stars began to align, leftists began moving swiftly to enact their agenda. After all, a government takeover of health care has long been the ultimate goal for the socialist base of the party.
Despite polls that show solid majorities of Americans opposed to ObamaCare, Congressional Democrats trudge ahead. Common sense would say they should pull the plug, in order to appease voters.
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Creamer Audio Drop, Part 2: Obama Key to “Fundamentally Transforming” America
by Kyle OlsonTo me, one of the most disturbing – and starkly honest – one-liners that came out of the 2008 campaign was this: “We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.” It was delivered by Sen. Barack Obama while rallying a crowd at the University of Missouri on October 30, 2008.
That definitely was not the standard message that Obama conveyed to the masses. “Change” is a much different concept than “transforming America.” We wonder how many voters would have thought twice if they knew they were voting for a revolutionary transformation of our nation’s economy and the government’s involvement in private affairs.
Like his off-the-cuff remark to Joe the Plumber about “spreading the wealth around,” Obama opened a little window into his soul with that statement.
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Activist Brooklyn Judge Delivers for ACORN, Re-funds Group
by Kyle OlsonFile this one under the category of Predicable News of the Year: A Brooklyn federal judge, appointed by former President Bill Clinton, adopted the argument of hometown Congressman and ACORN apologist Jerrold Nadler that Congress’s efforts to “defund” ACORN amounted to a bill of attainder, and thus were unconstitutional.
Judge Nina Gershon imposed an injunction on the Congress to prevent it from cutting off funds, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Center for Constitutional Rights filed suit in Brooklyn federal court on behalf of ACORN. That’s curious, given that ACORN is now headquartered in Washington, DC. Not to mention the Congressional action, of course, occured in Washington, DC.
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‘Independent’ ACORN Apologist Applauds ‘Independent’ Investigation Conclusion
by Kyle Olson
Professor Peter Dreier, an ACORN apologist who portrays himself as an independent analyst, is really anything but.
As Andrew Breitbart articulated on BigGovernment November 25th, regarding a “study” Dreier produced critical of media coverage of ACORN:
At the end of the piece Professor Dreier offers the following biography: Peter Dreier, E.P Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics and director of the Urban & Environmental Policy Program at Occidental College.
Why did Professor Dreier choose to leave out the critical information regarding his advisory relationship to ACORN? Isn’t sitting on an advisory committee of ACORN the definition of a conflict of interest in writing a fair and balanced piece on the organization? In fact, Dreier has been shilling for ACORN at least since 2003.
So when Dreier proclaimed ACORN “Not Guilty” in one of his recent columns on TalkingPointsMemo, I must admit I threw up a bit in my mouth. Some of Dreier’s most pathetic conclusions:
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AFT’s Randi Weingarten: Schools, Unions Best Agents for ‘Social Justice’
by Kyle OlsonAFT President Randi Weingarten may have inadvertantly put her finger on one of the major problems with public education today.
During an Oct. 28 forum at the Center for American Progress, Weingarten told the assembled panel that teachers unions, along with the general labor movement and the nation’s public schools, should be agents for social justice. She said “we have to do more than simply instruct children seven hours a day” and that “community schools should be the hub of the community.”
We suppose she means that our public schools, and the people who teach in them, should be actively engaged in political issues that have little or nothing to do with education – like abortion, gay marriage and the sort. That’s all fine and good, to a point. We live in a free society, where labor unions and their members can spout off about anything, just like the rest of us.
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‘Independent’ Report Reveals: ACORN’s Problems Are Sooo 2008
by Kyle OlsonThe “independent” investigation of ACORN has been completed, and the final report is in.
The verdict? ACORN has done nothing illegal, and most of its problems stem from the subpar leadership of its founder and former “chief organizer,” Wade Rathke. As long as Rathke and his allies are out of the picture, everything should be good to go at ACORN headquarters, according to Scott Harshbarger, former attorney general of Massachusetts.
I get the feeling Mr. Harshbarger produced exactly the type of report (which can be viewed at ACORNcracked.com) that the ACORN board of directors paid him to produce: a rationalization of the group’s behavior, designed to deflect the growing chorus of criticism and breathe new life into the organization.
I doubt that anybody will be fooled by the silly conclusions in Harshbarger’s report. But I fear that ACORN’s friends in the White House and Congress may use it as an excuse to allow the organization back into the federal government’s good graces.
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Exclusive: Ex-Convict Bob Creamer Laid Out Health Care Reform Plan In 2008 Speech
by Kyle Olson
ACORNcracked.com recently obtained an audio recording a speech by Robert Creamer, given at the Take Back America 2008 conference in Washington, DC, that was hosted by Campaign for America’s Future, an ultra-liberal organization.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
In a March 19 session entitled, “Health Care: The Politics of Winning,” ex-convict Creamer and husband of Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), laid out his vision for health care reform. Of Creamer’s 10-point plan, number 5 is:
To have a movement that both deals with that fact [that health care reform should be personal] and creates a movement we have to have two elements. In a lot of campaigns we run are either about a populist kind of message and feel because it’s about people’s pocketbooks and needs directly. Or it has a moral dimension that is inspirational and empowering – the civil rights movement, for instance.
This movement needs to have both. To have a movement, to mobilize people, to inspire people, you have to appeal to their sense of meaning and purpose and something important. So we have to create a sense that this is a historic battle. This is about you’re being part of something that will make you meaningful. (emphasis added)
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NY Times’ Paul Krugman Calls for ‘Government Jobs’ Jobs Plan; Cites Union-Funded Study
by Kyle OlsonUndeterred by stubbornly high unemployment rates, and a stimulus plan that has fallen flat, talk of a second stimulus package is growing louder. But to shed the unsuccessful “stimulus” moniker, Democrats and government labor unions have adopted a “jobs plan.”
Paul Krugman, the New York Times columnist who’s never seen a government expenditure he didn’t like, Sunday pointed to a “study” by the Economic Policy Institute, which alleges spending $40 billion over 3 years could create about a million “public-service” jobs.
In other words, Krugman and EPI would see fit to simply create government jobs, instead of trying to help the private sector. That makes sense, given who supports EPI.
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ACORN’s Fingerprints on Mortgage Crisis Appeared 20 Years Ago
by Kyle OlsonACORN has been fairly criticized for its actions that led up to the mortgage crisis, which culminated in a huge rash of foreclosures last year. While the tide appears to be waning, it’s a problem that is still occuring.
Specifically, ACORN strong-armed banks and worked with members of Congress, such as Barney Frank, to weaken credit standards in order for banks, as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to fund risky mortgages. Mortgages, of course, that stood little chance of ever being paid, as we witnessed last year.
But ACORN’s penchant for shaking down banks didn’t begin 2 years ago, or even 10 years ago. Check out this article from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution from 1988. Grant Williams was an organizer for ACORN at the time ( I wrote here about his new gig at SEIU), and he managed to weasle ACORN into a bank’s proposed interstate merger. From the article:
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SEIU’s Pay-to-Play Politics Key to Understanding its Salivation Over ObamaCare
by Kyle OlsonThe Service Employees International Union has demonstrated a history of blatant “pay-to-play” political tactics. And “pay-to-play” is probably why the SEIU has been at the forefront of promoting ObamaCare, with a “robust” public option.
In 2002, the union spent well over $1 million and worked tirelessly getting Rod Blagojevich elected governor of Illinois. Shortly after he was sworn in, he signed an executive order, allowing SEIU to unionize 20,000 state health care employees. It was the first such move by any governor on SEIU’s behalf. Dozens of campaign contributions from the SEIU to Blogojevich are compiled in a list posted on shopfloor.org, a blog maintained by the National Association of Manufacturers.
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Is ‘Global Warming’ the Greenie Weenies’ WMDs?
by Kyle OlsonRemember in 2003 when Secretary of State Colin Powell dramatically held up the vial of anthrax before the United Nations Security Council and exclaimed, “there can be no doubt that Saddam Hussein has biological weapons and the capability to rapidly produce more, many more?”
It was that argument – that Saddam Hussein was attempting to increase his capability for Weapons of Mass Destruction – on which the Bush Administration hung its credibility and sought to build the public support for an invasion of Iraq in 2003.
As American forces swept across Iraq in an impressive fashion, the cold hard evidence of Powell’s assertions was difficult to find. And in the following years, the Bush administration’s credibility for its reason to go to war suffered.
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New Jersey Teachers’ Union’s ‘Electile Dysfunction’ for Corzine Explained
by Kyle OlsonAn interesting document found its way to my inbox last weekend. It was a PowerPoint presentation of an analysis done by the New Jersey Education Association, regarding its efforts to re-elect Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine.
The document can be found at NEAexposed.com.
Citing “Electile Dysfunction,” meaning the polls were telling them that voters, including teachers, weren’t as enthusiastic about Corzine as they would like, the union’s Director of Government Relations, Ginger Gold Schnitzer, proposed a double-dose remedy: “A robust member-to-member campaign,” followed by “an independent communications campaign to inoculate the public.”
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