After three years of criticizing President Barack Obama’s anti-Israel policies, and a special election in New York last September during which he supported the Republican candidate, former Mayor Ed Koch has once again decided to be an advocate for Obama in the Jewish community–without any clear changes in Obama’s positions.

This is not Koch’s first such reversal. During the 2008 Democratic Party primary season, Koch had worried that a Barack Obama would not be a friend to Israel:

Hillary recently attempted to warn Iran that were it to launch nuclear weapons against Israel, the U.S. “would be able to totally obliterate them.” Hillary’s comments were totally in keeping with the doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction which kept the Soviet Union at bay during the Cold War when it threatened its European neighbors and members of NATO.

Instead of joining Hillary in a similar warning to Iran, Senator Obama on “Meet The Press” criticized Hillary stating, “It’s language reflective of George Bush…This kind of language is not helpful.”

Koch concluded:

We now know just how far Senator Obama is prepared to go to defend our friends and allies. It is not far enough.

Just four months later, without any change in Obama’s positions, Koch endorsed Barack Obama.

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The Internet hacker collective known as Anonymous may be on a political collision course with the #Occupy movement that it helped launch.

The anarchist, anti-authoritarian nature of Anonymous could soon place it at odds with the #OccupyWallStreet protestors, many of whom pine for a “pure” democracy in which a consensus (not a majority) defines the rules.

That clash becomes more likely as #OccupyWallStreet begins taking marching orders (literally) from Big Labor, the Democratic Party, and the institutional left.

Recently, for example, a faction of Anonymous recently told MoveOn.org to “f#@ off” (language warning):

To understand the dynamic between Anonymous and #Occupy, it is necessary to examine the history of both. (more…)

If you want to take a pulse on the political vibe in this country, one need only look at Wisconsin.  The state has become the barometer for judging not just the public’s appetite for political battle, but the competitive landscape as well.  The spotlight on anything that has six degrees of separation from a Koch brother has been great drama for Wisconsin’s ongoing soap opera, but audiences in the state and nationwide might get a better show by turning their attention leftward.  Few have examined the strange pattern of money and favor trading that’s been pervading Wisconsin’s beloved circle of progressive politics.

The activity in Wisconsin over the last few months becomes crucially pertinent as the state gears up for the 2012 Wisconsin Senate race.  It’s worth looking at the financial innards  of the Supreme Court race and the protests against Governor Scott Walker in order to assess what the fight for the Wisconsin Senate seat, soon to be vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Herb Kohl, will look like.  What many don’t realize is that this race could have broader implications – not just in national politics, but in specific policy areas, like health care and your personal medical records, for example.  Lots of money, fueled by liberal business interests and an ever-growing progressive movement in Wisconsin, has already been freely flowing.

But is anyone watching? Who are some of these donors?

Let’s start by looking back at the recent Wisconsin protests and the Supreme Court election, and then dissecting some of the money trail.

The hostility stemmed from the union reform bill signed by Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker on March 11^th as a stand-alone portion of the overall budget repair bill.

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I’ve been following the institutional left for years.  While I’m often disgusted, yet always entertained, by most of the radical left’s behavior on camera, I’m never surprised by much.  Until this.

I have to say, when I first got wind of this video yesterday, I laughed.  A LOT.  I thought it was a joke.

The RoaringLiberal and the Gaa Gaa Guy in the video made their bizarre appearance at a Tea Party rally in Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday, where Andrew Breitbart and Sarah Palin were featured speakers.  A number of counter-protesters showed up at the rally to heckle and scream at the speakers from the periphery of the crowd.  Some adorned t-shirts, others held Kochsucker signs, rang bells and blew whistles; in an effort to drown out Palin’s speech, most booed repeatedly and chanted “Go Home”.  (By now, you may have already seen Andrew Breitbart’s response to those counter-protesters).

These two protesters, however…they stood out.  I think you can see why.

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After years of being harassed by the purple people beaters, one company has finally said ENOUGH.

In a press release issued Thursday, Sodexo USA announced that the company has filed a civil lawsuit against the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) under the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act., accusing the union of engaging in an “illegal campaign of extortion.”  The lawsuit representing Sodexo is Hunton & Williams – the same firm SEIU and its allies have accused of launching a “dirty tricks” campaign against them in retaliation for their anti-Chamber of Commerce campaigns. (more on that after the jump)

One of the largest food services and facilities management companies in the world, Sodexo is the provider of choice for most schools, universities, companies, hotels, prisons and other facilities that outsource their cafeteria and food catering operations, and for those that outsource industrial cleaning services.  SEIU has been incessantly battering Sodexo since 2007, in its desire to unionize some of its nearly 400,000 employees, many of them hotel and food service workers.  Exacerbating the tensions was a longstanding turf war between SEIU and UNITE HERE over hotel and casino workers, which often spilled over into SEIU’s antics prior to the settlement the warring unions reached this past summer.

Sodexo USA has filed the lawsuit in an attempt to halt the over-the-top harassment from SEIU, alleging that many of the acts are very serious and outside of the normal realm of union tactics, including acts of ” SEIU blackmail, vandalism, trespass, harassment, and lobbying law violations designed to steer business away from Sodexo USA and harm the company.” [emphasis added]

Aside from some of its usual corporate smear campaign tactics, certain organizers in the SEIU subscribed to some especially nasty, and frankly repulsive, tactics:

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On Saturday Feb. 26, a protest rally was thrown together by MoveOn.org and the SEIU at Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C.

It just so happened that Code Pink’s Medea Benjamin and Barack Obama’s former green jobs czar and self-admitted communist Van Jones stopped by to show their support for the 14 Wisconsin State Senators who fled as well as the unions and teachers taking fake sick notes from doctors to stay out and protest.

At one point, Van Jones claims that the Tea Party turned off the television after the word ‘liberty’ and missed the ‘and justice for all’ part. These people can never get a sentence out without mentioning the Tea Party. Perhaps maybe, just maybe, they’re actually frightened of the Tea Party and the power they posses. Not only that, Tea Party rallies are actually attended by people. Jealousy may also play a factor.

Also, here’s a fantastic sample of that new tone Democrats have been calling for. I personally have no idea why abortion was an issue at a union rally. Then again, out of about the 500 people there it seemed as if they were protesting 128 different things.

Yes, that sign actually reads “Keep your laws off my body, and I’ll keep my hands off your throat.” How nice. Civility at it’s finest.

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This is what Democracy Democratic Socialism looks like!

Pt. 1 – Hitler Hitler Hitler (Note to Progressives – Hitler was a Socialist)

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Common Cause would have us believe they aren’t responsible for hateful rhetoric spewed at the Right from protesters at a recent Koch brothers protest they organized. A statement was issued only after it came to light that a protester had called for the lynching of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. But a review of the official event video proves that Common Cause actually worked to inspire such hate through the selection of official speakers. They cannot simply disown it now.

Common Cause condemns bigotry, hateful statements caught on film at rally

Common Cause’s 40 year history of holding power accountable has been marked by a commitment to decency and civility – in public and private. So we are of course outraged to find that a few of those attending the events around a gathering Common Cause helped to organize Sunday near Palm Springs voiced hateful, narrow-minded sentiments to an interviewer in the crowd.

In their own clips of chosen and highlighted speakers for the formal panel they organized at the protest, you will repeatedly hear the Right, their honest political opposition, cast as hateful, evil, cruel, and worse. Writing at Hot Air, John Sexton pointed out just some of the official unhinged rhetoric from Van Jones at the Common Cause event.

We will not live on an economic plantation run by the Koch brothers.

In this video, another official panelist, DeAnn McEwan, claims the Koch’s “have their fingers on the pillows that are suffocating all of us,” while citing the plight of various individuals needing intensive medical treatment. In effect, official Common Cause panelist McEwan is accusing the Kochs of being murderers. She even details a patient’s failed struggle to cling to life, in essence, blaming her death squarely on the Kochs. (more…)

Modern leftists have long used the power of government to excerpt control and silence dissent. The erosion of free speech in America has come in a number of ways, not all of which are the result of new laws. Such is the case today.

I recently learned that the White House has launched an attack against a privately owned American company, Koch Industries. This attack may include the unlawful use of Internal Revenue Service documents.

As a Member of the House Committee on Ways and Means, which has jurisdiction over the IRS, I am highly concerned that the White House may be prying into the tax returns of its political enemies. For this reason, I have called on my Chairman, Rep. Sanders Levin, to immediately conduct oversight inquires into the actions of the Obama White House. Should Chairman Levin fail to do so, I am hopeful that November will bring into power a majority willing to uncover the truth.

The White House attack against Koch is politically motivated. The White House wants to end the company’s lawful financial support for conservative and libertarian causes – effectively silencing its opponents.

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