TIME FOR THE HOUSE REPUBLICANS TO GROW A PAIR…

Here's yet another reason that I have zero confidence in any member of our 'stellar' leadership team in the House. I watched an interview that Eric Cantor gave on Hannity’s show last night where the primary topic of discussion was Barry "Almighty's" decision to delay for one year a key requirement of the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare. Cantor stated that it was "a continuation of what we have begun to call the imperial presidency." Cantor went on to criticize Barry for selectively enforcing the law. He also said the individual mandate should be delayed along with the mandate that applies to employers. Good points, but they don't go nearly far enough.

But then things started to become a little less defined and just a bit more fuzzy. Because when Hannity asked if House Republicans would consider defunding Obamacare, since efforts to repeal it have not worked, Cantor proceeded to provide what can only be described as a rather confusing response. Confusing because not only did he not answer the question, what he said was pretty much completely incoherent. Not exactly a response I would have expected from someone in a 'leadership' position. And the entire time he was babbling on and doing his best to dance around the issue, I was standing there in front of my TV yelling at him to have some guts.

In trying to answer, while not answer, Hannity, Cantor said, "Right, and we have continued, when we -- to do just that, we've continued to say under the sequester that we're operating on, that the president says, you know, he wants to do something about it, but never has come forward with any kind of other suggested reforms in the entitlement areas. But when they ask for more money for Obamacare's implementation, we said no. We said no, we don't feel that this law is the right direction to go in. Nor do we feel this administration should have the ability to take taxpayer dollars to go and sell and market this bill." What? Is this guy really the best that we can do?

Cantor continued on, "But I think one of the options going forward, Sean, is to take a look at what this White House has done and say, you know what, if it's fair for big business to be exempted from this mandate, we ought to say the same for individuals. We ought to go ahead and delay the individual mandate, and as you know, that individual mandate is the crux of Obamacare, without the individual mandate, the whole law collapses." But the entire law would collapse without funding as well. And under the Constitution, the Executive Branch cannot spend any money from the Treasury unless Congress first appropriates it. So let’s not appropriate any! It ain’t rocket science!

Supposedly, Boehner and House Republicans are now considering a vote to delay Obamacare's individual mandate, at least that's what The Hill reported on Tuesday. And as it has also been reported, House Speaker John Boehner said earlier this year that he would not include language to defund Obamacare in the most recent continuing resolution (the one that passed in March) because, knowing that the Senate would not go along with defunding, Boehner didn't want to force a government shutdown. Well, John, you're simply gonna have to grow a pair. Either you want to lead or you don’t, and if you don’t, then get the Hell out of the way and let somebody who wants to!

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) told Fox News's Greta Van Susteren Tuesday night, and I watched this interview as well, that Obamacare should be defunded, particularly since the law is being selectively enforced. Lee said, "The point is, no Republican in Congress, no member of Congress from either house or political party, has any business voting to fund the operations of government if that funding package includes Obamacare funding. The American people aren't getting Obamacare implementation. They shouldn't be required to pay for it." Mr. Lee was spot on and was considerably more articulate than Cantor regarding what it is that needs to be done.

I’m sure all are aware of how last week, in the middle of the long holiday weekend, the Treasury Department quietly blogged that companies with 50 or more full-time employees would have an extra year to comply with the requirement that they provide "minimum essential" health insurance coverage to workers or else pay a fine. And despite claims to the contrary, that was done more for political reasons that any sudden, new found sympathy for the effected companies. But while the "employer mandate" was delayed for a year, the individual mandate was not, since it is the heart of Obamacare, and requires all Americans to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty to the IRS.

So as they say, our friend Speaker Boehner is going to need to shit or get off the pot when it comes to defunding this mess called Obamacare. And the same goes for Mr. Cantor. And it was The Heritage Foundation, in a July 9 fact sheet, that urged Congress to do just that. The folks at Heritage said, "Full defunding of Obamacare would halt the law’s new entitlements before they start—and prevent HHS from raiding other parts of the departmental budget to promote Obamacare." Adding, "Defunding Obamacare would also prevent the application of the law’s new regulations and 18 separate tax increases, including the tax for not complying with the individual mandate.

The bottom line here is that if Congress chooses not to fund Obamacare activities for the upcoming fiscal year, the Barry "Almighty" cannot act to implement the law. Congress can, and Congress should, act to defund all of Obamacare now. So our House leadership is going to have to get itself together and make the defunding of Obamacare one of their top priorities. And they need to concern themselves a little less about what will, or will not, happen in the Senate and a little more of how this disastrous thing touches the life of nearly every single American. The Republicans can either be seen as being the sane ones in the room in at least trying to get rid of this, or they can continue to pretend they’re doing something. I would not recommend the latter.

WILL REPUBLICANS STICK TO THEIR GUNS?...OR NOT

They say that actions speak louder than words, so while keeping that old adage firmly in the back of our minds, let us consider the fact that the top Republican in Congress has now said that he wants Trillions of dollars in spending cuts as part of any must-pass legislation that allows the federal government to continue its frantic pace of crisis borrowing. Borrowing that has now become an integral part in enabling the government to continue operating and able to meet obligations to its investors. It's a new, and rather ambitious marker that has now been put down in the continuing battle over the budget that's expected to consume Congress for pretty much most of the summer. House Speaker John Boehner has also said that any legislation to raise the so-called debt limit beyond its current $14.3 Trillion cap will need to be accompanied by spending cuts larger than the amount of the permitted increase in the debt. So I guess the big question that remains is, will the Republicans once more do what they have done on so many previous occasions in the past and simply cave under the weight of their own demands? Mr. Boehner made his comments in a speech Monday night at the New York Economic Club. Boehner's comments come as investors and business groups alike have been seeking some level of assurance that the GOP-controlled House will join with Barry "Almighty" and the Democratic-controlled Senate and come together in an effort to enact the must-pass debt limit measure, which is needed to prevent a first-ever U.S. default on its obligations.

Ever the little boy who cried wolf, Treasury Secretary Timmy "The Tax Cheat" Geithner says that such a failure to increase the federal government's ability to borrow would have disastrous effects on the economy. Look, this clown Geithner, who was supposedly the only guy on the planet at the time who was capable of "fixing" our problem, continues to do nothing more than to ask for more money and to whine about what will happen if he doesn't get it. That's his solution to this fiscal nightmare? Just print more money! "It's true that allowing America to default would be irresponsible," Boehner has said. "But it would be more irresponsible to raise the debt limit without simultaneously taking dramatic steps to reduce spending and to reform the budget process." And that makes perfect sense, maybe too much. Because I'm more than a little nervous about the Republicans being able to pull this whole thing off. I'm just not sure if they have the requisite backbone. The government is now headed toward a staggering $1.6 trillion deficit for just this year which will require it to borrow more than $125 billion A MONTH. It's unclear at this point just how much of a debt limit increase is coming, but it would most likely take as much as a record increase in the $2 trillion range to avoid a second vote before next year's elections. The most recent increase in the debt limit of $1.9 trillion was passed by a Democratic-controlled Congress early last year. And the only reason this issue has become what it now has is because the Republicans now control the House. They need to remain resolute in this matter or risk appearing to the general public as being no different than the slimy Democrats.


Boehner's remarks are notable since it's virtually impossible to produce spending cuts of the size and magnitude now being called for without addressing major entitlement programs like Medicare, food stamps and Medicaid. Programs which together form the basis of my concern regarding the Republicans having the stomach and the political will to actually make a serious attempt at reducing our current level of insane spending . And what causes me no end of some rather intense heartburn is the fact that Boehner's comments come less than a week after Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., and other top Republicans seemed to acknowledge that political reality would probably rule out the making of such cuts before the 2012 presidential and congressional elections. So which is it? Are we going to set about making these cuts or not? Is this all nothing more that typical congressional double-speak? The GOP budget blueprint that passed the House last month calls for transforming Medicare from a program in which the government directly pays medical bills into a voucher-like system in which future beneficiaries, those presently 54 years old or younger, would receive subsidies for purchases of private insurance plans. "We should be talking about cuts of trillions, not just billions," Boehner said. "They should be actual cuts and program reforms, not broad deficit or debt targets that punt the tough questions to the future." This is the only rational way to deal with this growing problem, but just because it's the reason that makes the most sense, doesn't mean it's the course we will embark upon.


One of the options being considered by Republicans is to impose a hard cap on government spending that would be backed up with across-the-board spending cuts if the targets aren't met. Now it should go without saying that that idea is being firmly opposed by the Barry White House, which prefers a mechanism that would incorporate automatic revenue increases as well. "Tax hikes should be off the table," Boehner said. Boehner has called for "honest conversations" about the future of Medicare. But I think we all know that when referencing Democrats the term "honest conversation" becomes more of an oxymoron. Boehner added that a failure to act could provoke a debt crisis that could require tougher cuts than anything now being contemplated. Which you would think would be obvious to even the most casual of observers, regardless of their political persuasion. "If we don't act boldly now, the markets will act for us very soon," Boehner said. "We cannot let this moment pass," he added. Separately, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, DEMOCRAT, said it may require a short-term increase in the debt limit to buy additional time for lawmakers to grapple with what is likely to be a very complicated and politically divisive budget debate. In New York, Boehner was asked whether he might consider a short-term debt measure. He did not directly respond.


While Democrats do freely admit that the must-pass debt limit legislation is going to have to have to be accompanied with some serious level of cuts to spending, they're none too quick to make any realistic proposals that make any sense or accomplish any significant spending reductions. And we have that fiscal genius, Vice President "Slow Joe" Biden who has been called in to host a second meeting of a group of lawmakers with the topic of discussion being deficit reduction. This odd little assortment of supposed financial wizards has been assigned the responsibility of being able to come up with some sort of bipartisan recommendations on deficit curbs to add to the debt limit measure. Right, like that's going to happen, especially with Biden leading the charge. Biden is about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. And Timmy "Tax Cheat" Geithner has now told lawmakers that while the government will officially reach the official debt ceiling in mid-May he can take advantage of some rather creative bookkeeping maneuvers to delay or hold off a first-ever default until August 2. What a skillful and creative little guy we have in Mr. Geithner. But then I suppose that one is forced to acquire certain bookkeeping skills when one is constantly trying to avoid the paying of one's taxes.


And then we have the stellar Senator from New York, Chuckie Schumer, someone with strong ties to Wall Street, and who, as always, is compelled to throw his two cents in by telling reporters on Monday that it would be a mistake to wait that long to approve the legislation since the markets could easily be roiled when the legislative process takes inevitable twists and turns. Schumer says it would a mistake for Boehner to cut it too close to the August 2 deadline. "A default would be even more catastrophic than a shutdown. The consequences are much more far-reaching and disastrous for the economy," he said. Look, what makes anybody think that this moron Schumer has even the slightest clue regarding what is truly needed to prevent our looming budgetary Armageddon. The Democrats are all about perpetuating the possibility of their doomsday scenario, but they want to do very little in the way of anything that would seriously address us be able to prevent just such an event from taking place. All they can manage to do is to paint the solutions being presented by the Republicans as being nothing short of extreme. Another Democrat decrying the urgency of the situation is Roger Altman, a former top Treasury Department official under "BJ" Clinton. In his attempt to foment just a bit more panic he says that, "If America were to default, even for 24 hours, that would have an unprecedented and a catastrophic impact on global financial markets and on American markets. You either default or you don't. There's no saying, 'I'm sorry. I didn't mean it.' And that makes it totally different ... from a government shutdown." Blah, blah, blah.


Right now the future looks pretty scary. And the fact of the matter is that the harsh reality here is that politicians that we once thought we could trust and rely upon, have been on a decades long spending binge and have now spent us right into oblivion. If we are to have any hope of successful navigating our way passed this new accelerated level of Obama induced spending, and get it under some sort of control, then deep cuts are now called for, very deep cuts. And as hard as it is going to be for many Americans to accept, it is a fact that cuts, substantial cuts, are going to need to be made if we are to have any hope of being able to survive. Despite all of the flowery prose coming from Barry, and the grandiose programs he wants to spend even more money on, money we don't have, we simply cannot go on this way, it's just that simple. We simply cannot afford to continue the trend of printing more money, simply because we can. So, will the Republicans stick to their guns in their efforts to obtain the much needed spending cuts before agreeing to any increase in the debt limit? We can only hope. Republicans have a lot riding on this, and the American are watching, very closely.

A MADE TO ORDER LITMUS TEST FOR SPEAKER BOEHNER...

MEET JOE BARTON

With the assuming of majority status by the Republicans in the House, there will come any number of opportunities that will reveal, and rather quickly, in what direction it is that they intend to head. One of those opportunities that will provide us as early indication will be who it is that is selected for the various committee chairman positions. There are several committees that are seen as being key to the implementing of necessary road blocks to the policies what Barry is working so diligently to put into place, as he remains focused on his agenda of "radically transforming" America. While I am sure that we can all agree that Boehner has, in recent months and especially since the election, managed to say all the right things, the jury remains out and will remain so until we see exactly what actions he intends on taking up in the House. Actions that are designed to combat what have been outrageous Democrat expansions of spending, regulation, debt, and a virtual pandemic level of intrusion into the personal lives of every single American. Because as they say, actions speak much louder than words. And who it is that is appointed to head the various committees will go a long way and tell us a great deal, regarding just what kind of stamp it is that Mr. Boehner intends to put on the 112th Congress. And who it is that he backs as chairmen of these various and very important committees will provide a made to order litmus test that will indicate if anything has been learned from past Republican errors in judgment. So the question is, will the House Republicans stand with America and against the Barry/Pelosi Democrats, or will it once more betray the American people and cave, compromise, negotiate away, and outright surrender their principles, all in order to be on the receiving end of a few crumbs from the table? Well, we shall see what we shall see.

Being that it was we the people who were doing the voting, we know what this election was all about. The question yet to be answered is, do those in the Republican Party, especially those who were victorious in the many electoral contests, realize what this election was all about? Do they realize that it was in no way a vindication for them regarding errors made in the past, or that it was also not an endorsement of them politically? Do they understand that what has been granted to them is a reprieve, of sorts, provided to them as an opportunity to prove themselves, that this was much less a vote "for" them than it was a vote "against" Barry? They should consider themselves as being on a two year contract with no option for automatic renewal or extension. Now you would think that it would be painfully obvious since the last time such a monumental shift has taken place was back in 1938. What occurred last week was the electorate throwing things back into the face of those who perceive themselves as being less the servant of the people and more of an overseer of the people. Barry told America that the reason for this "shellacking" was all because he had not communicated his policies clearly enough, or because the economy was not recovering fast enough. But I think we all know that which brought this seismic shift about, was something quite different. That being that we the people were more than a little tired of simply being ignored. And if the trend continues from this new majority, then I'm afraid the tenure in the majority will end on a much more somber note than the one on which it began. What people will be expecting from the new Speaker is the developing of a serious strategy that will define the intended mission of this new Republican majority. They will also be expecting the transparency that was promised but so sorely lacking over the course of the last two years.


With the electoral tsunami that swept Republicans back into control of the U.S. House, the time for determining which people need to occupy which key positions, is now. In an effort to do that, over the course of the next few weeks the Steering Committee will be assigning chairmanships to the various committees. It should go without saying that whatever incoming Speaker Boehner wants in that regard, he’s very likely to get. As such, those who are selected for such positions will provide an excellent indicator regarding the seriousness with which the new Speaker will be approaching the legislative agenda in the new Congress. Which brings me to Energy and Commerce, one of the committees that is sure to be one of the more important, possibly even critical, over the course of the next two years. There are presently two individuals who are up for the chair of that committee: the current Ranking Member Joe Barton (TX-06); and the second-in-seniority Fred Upton (MI-06). Now I'll be honest in that I must confess that I wasn't all that sure what The Energy and Commerce Committee even deals with. But as you would guess, it deals with all matters related to energy and interstate commerce, particularly the regulation and management of same. In practical terms it means that in the near future the Committee is tasked with:


1. reining in EPA abuses of power and attempts to enact the carbon tax policies of the Waxman-Markey Bill, even though it has never passed the Senate or been signed into law.


2. repealing or significantly crippling Obamacare


3. repairing damage done to the oil industry and overall domestic energy industry and working toward sensible energy independence.


4. dismantling a system-wide regulatory cancer based on Global Warming…. Climate Change…. Global Climate Disruption…. whatever they’re calling the global warming hoax these days.


5. putting the brakes on the proposed ‘net neutrality’ scheme, which means government regulation of the internet by burying it legislatively and thwarting the FCC’s attempt to bypass Congress and implement it anyway.


The critical role to be played by this committee over the course of the next two years, will require that we have as its chairman, a leader who firmly believes in and fully supports small-government principles, and a person not afraid to fight against Barry's administration, the Republican establishment, or a massive and totally out of control federal bureaucracy.


Of the two individuals who are presently up for the position of Committee Chairman for this specific committee, the differences between them could not be more stark. Candidate number one for consideration by the Steering Committee for chairman, is Fred Upton (MI-06), who, as previously mentioned, is the second-ranking Republican presently on this committee. What I've been able to discover leads me to believe that Mr. Upton would not be the wisest choice for the position of committee chairman, as he is not the conservative he portends himself to be. And just because he may now he posing as such, like every other Republican in search of a powerful position, doesn't make it so. He is not the man for this position, nor any other leadership position for that matter. He loves to claim that he’s ready willing and able to take on the Democrats, and to demand explanations from EPA head Lisa Jackson and “Energy Czar” Carol Browner. And so on. However, the facts tell a different, and rather telling, story regarding just where Mr. Upton's sentiment may truly lie. He is not what he would like us to believe that he is. You see, apparently he doesn't find all much wrong with the Democrat agenda of Nancy Pelosi and Barry, and very little that could be considered as hazardous to America. For example he was:


1. one of 29 House Republicans to support creation of the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area along the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona. This empowered federal bureaucrats to impose strict zoning and land-use rules and made it more difficult for the U.S. Border Patrol to do its job in blocking illegal immigration through federal wilderness areas.


2. one of 20 Republicans to vote against an amendment offered by Rep. Jim Jordan that would have reduced the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2010 funding to 2008 levels.


3. one of 9 House Republicans who voted against Rep. Dave Camp’s substitute amendment to the $787 billion Obama-Pelosi economic stimulus bill in March 2009. The Camp amendment would have substituted a GOP stimulus alternative made up primarily of new tax cuts for individuals and business.


4. one of 16 Republicans to support House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s 2009 omnibus spending bill that included an 8.4 percent spending increase over and above the stimulus package, as well as $7.7 billion in earmarks. The measure also canceled the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program for 1,900 students in the nation’s capital.


There's more..


5. He co-wrote, along with Jane Harman (D-CA), the bill in 2007 that outlaws incandescent light bulbs in 2014.


6. He is a founding member of the Republican Main Street Partnership. If that sounds familiar to you, it should. It is a group of liberal Republicans dedicated to thwarting and marginalizing any and all conservative influences on the Republican Party. John McCain is a member.


7. In 2005 he voted against the extension of the Bush tax cuts on capital gains and dividends.


8. He voted for oil and gas drilling bans off the coast of Florida and in the Great Lakes, as well as for blocking millions of acres from new oil and gas leasing, logging, mining, and other business activity.


So is it me, or does this guy need to be as far removed as possible from any position of leadership? Does anybody seriously think that when the American people spoke on November 2, they were saying, yeah, what we need is guys like Fred Upton in charge of things? I guess more importantly, does Speaker Boehner think that is what the American people were asking for? Only time will tell.


Now for candidate number two, who is Mr. Joe Barton. It was earlier in the week on Greta that I first saw Congressman Joe Barton. I must admit that I know very little about him, but I heard enough from him on Greta to cause me to go in search of more information about him. What I did know about him is the fact that he was the guy who in a recent committee hearing accused the Barry administration of a “shakedown” and actually apologized to the CEO of British Petroleum for the despicable treatment from Democrats and the Barry's administration while BP was going to extraordinary lengths to stop the spill and do right by the people in the Gulf. I also remember it somehow being portrayed as some major “gaffe” committed by an ignorant and bumbling back-bencher who was quickly and publicly put in his place by GOP "leadership." But I wanted to find out more about this guy.


And find out more I did! Congressman Barton was first elected in 1984, and served as Chairman of this committee in the 2005-2006 session, and as the Ranking Member (leader of the minority party) ever since. Now while 26 years is certainly a long time and may, for some, conjure up an image of his being one of the “good old boys” of the Republican establishment that drove the Republican Party to ruin, nothing could be further from the truth. Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey is a great admirer Joe Barton with stories that include :


1. As a freshman in 1985, he was the sole vote in favor of President Reagan’s proposed balanced budget, at 350-1, with 5 minutes left in the vote, before Republicans joined him in droves. GOP leadership threatened him that DCCC would target his seat if he did not cave.


2. Early in his career he dogged Hewlett-Packard and eventually nailed them for using illegally gained phone records to spy on employees, and using spyware to spy on journalists. He eventually went on a crusade to stop the online gathering of private consumer information, and has ever since made personal privacy a matter of great importance. [You can imagine that Google is no fan of Joe ]


3. Over time Barton has become known on the Hill as one who is unabashedly relentless in his conservative and pro-growth goals, and yet a notable team builder who has won the respect and admiration of political opponents like John Dingell for being open, decent, and fair. His first act as Chairman was to gain passage of the 2005 Energy Policy Act.


4. In 2006, NBC Chairman Bob Wright unleashed nitwit shock jock Don Imus on Barton, because Barton insisted that the NIH be allowed to decide, free of lobbying, whose research it would fund (Wright’s pet project being autism). Barton withstood daily nationally broadcast smearing from Imus, and was called every disgusting name imaginable. Needless to say, the NIH was granted its autonomy. Guys like Barton are not moved by the likes of Donald Imus, or the likes of Bob Wright for that matter.


5. Barton gained a name for himself by moving the debate rightward and getting legislation passed, while being evenhanded and respectful to the other side, always behind the scenes and rarely in front of a microphone. Nevertheless, since the Democrat takeover in 2007, he has been a veritable thorn in the flesh to the Democrats. He has incessantly called for Obama EPA head Lisa Jackson to testify before the committee. The Democrats have not heeded, but he hasn’t shut up about it. He has written letters and filed motions, keeping her name in constant view.


In July 2009, Democrats desperately wanted to blow through committee hearings and get quick passage of Obamacare before the August recess, so as to not have to face angry constituents before the vote. Those hopes were pretty much dashed by none other than Joe Barton. In spite of being outnumbered 35-23, Barton’s forces subjected the bill to 17 days of markups, and forced the Democrats to a 10-day retreat. Republicans offered 350 amendments and debated 54 of them. It was this committee’s protracted and brutal hearings that exposed the details of the disastrous bill to the World. The bill passed out of Energy and Commerce 31-28 on Friday, July 31, as members rushed home for the August recess. I'm sure we all remember what fun the August 2009 recess was with all of those rather exuberant folks attending, as well as all of those deer in the headlights expressions we saw coming from any number of Democrats, during all of those townhalls. And all of the outpouring of emotion that came from the people and was directed at those who were viewed as invading their privacy and robbing them of an ever increasing amount of their liberties. I think it very safe to say that it was during that August recess was when the Tea Party found its voice, and became a movement unto itself fully aware its own power. It was in the townhalls, that the seeds were first sown for November 2, 2010. I think it also safe to say that Joe Barton may have played an unheralded role in it. Congressman Barton has plans for this session too. Not content just to be the “party of no”, he’s published numerous statements and propounded to-do lists. Among them is Ten ways to start cleaning up the mess. To borrow a phrase from a supporter of Mr. Barton, "He’s shovel ready, you might say."


If there is any lesson to be learned from Republican congressional rule from most of 1994-2006, it is how quickly and easily the Republican establishment can become Democrat-Lite once it has power. We can only hope that those who comprise this new Republican majority in the House know that the best they can say about this most recent election, is that they have now been provided with a golden opportunity to redeem themselves, an audition of sorts, and a chance to do better. As of this point in time there is no guarantee that they will be asked to come back for a return engagement come 2012. They must now back up all of the election-season talk with clear and concise action and begin leading this Republic back from the brink. They must be focused on a return to Constitutional rule, to sanity, to accountability, and to freedom. Failing that, they will suffer the same fate as was suffered just four short years ago. Joe Barton is a truly effective leader, an unswervingly conservative, as well as a savvy and smart veteran who knows no fear. Hopefully we will have many more of his caliber who will be able rise to the occasion for the sake of their country. He knows exactly what to do, and exactly how to get it done. Upton, on the other hand, is not even worth a second look. So we will see on whose side it is that Speaker Boehner comes down on, and this one key position will be very telling in its providing us with an indication of where the Speaker is headed and what his priorities may be.


The November election was one of the most important in our lifetimes. The 112th Congress needs every one of our ace pitchers, our closers, and our clutch hitters to step up to the plate. For Commerce and Energy, that is Joe Barton. But there are also many other committees that will need their own versions of Mr. Barton. Let's hope we have a sufficient level of commitment from a sufficient number of individuals willing to properly take care of the necessary business at hand. The course embarked upon will determine what the future may hold not only for the Republican Party but our nation as well, with 2012 is hanging in the balance.