Thursday, October 28, 2010

PROFLIGATE, RECKLESS SPENDING BY OBAMA

My last post described a large number of examples where the Obama administratioin is harming business -- the engine of our prosperity and jobs -- through incessant investigations, lawsuits, crushing regulations and pronouncements.  He is killing, not creating, jobs.  (Funny, you don't hear him spouting about the three million jobs he created or saved any longer.  It was a bald-faced LIE.)

Now I will present a continuous scoreboard of the man's insane, drunken-sailor spending of your money and mine.  All borrowed from China and others, to be repaid in the future by some magical means.  He has increased spending 21.4% during his two years in office.  That's $628,000,000,000.  The national spending were in each year records.  $3,520,000,000,000 ($3.5 trillion) and $3,450,000,000,000 (also $3.5 trillion, rounded.)  In each case the figures were $1,420,000,000,000 and $1,290,000,000,000 more than the government took in.  Cumulative deficits those two years -- $2,710,000,000,000 (That's $2.7 trillion)!!!

That man knows how to spend.  Too bad he doesn't know how to earn.

The total INCREASED spending on student aid around $70,000,000,000 (up nearly 50% since he took office, and as would be expected by any rational person with all that money flowing into education, bureaucrats are getting it and increasing prices -- tuition's up around 5% a year for at least the last ten.)

ANOTHER $2,500,000,000 ($2.5 billion) for passenger rail projects, mostly to California and Florida.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

EXAMPLES OF OBAMA'S ANTI-BUSINESS INITIATIVES

President Obama is flying all over the country trying to prop up with cash sinking Democrat politicians and, at the same time, spouting how many jobs he's singlehandedly created  3,000,000 alone by "saving" General Motors, he says.

Most rational citizens other than the far-left apologizers who wouldn't know free-enterprise if it hit them in the face, understand inherently that the Obama Administration hasn't created any jobs (other than those supported by taxpayer's future confiscations to repay the People's Republic of China's loans to us.  In other words: government jobs).  But what they might not consciously understand is that the Obama Administration is fervently against the private sector, free-enterprise and capitalism itself.  Obama is anti-business, anti-corporation and therefore anti-private-sector JOBS!

So instead of supporting the ONLY source of wealth- and lasting-job-creation -- companies -- Obama is busily investigating, suing, threatening, and micro-managing them.  He has taken over vast segments of the U. S. economy -- healthcare, automobile manufacturing and selling, financial services, education and its financing, consumer showerhead manufacturing and on and on and on.  All must bow down to his dictatorship.  He seems to believe that he and his anti-business, "social justice" henchmen and cronies, few of whom have even held mere jobs in the private sector, can build and manage corporations better than the hated "executives".  He completely ignores the trillion-dollar mismanaged fiascos of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, U. S. Post Office, Amtrak and virtually every other segment of government.  Mismanagement.  But excellent propagandizing!  In fact one would be challenged to name one success by the federal government in recent times.  I wonder if each of the initiatives mentioned below could not have awaited (and assisted in) an economic recovery that desperately needs jobs.  Obama is obviously idealogically anti-business.

So here's what he and his administration have been doing in his war against business:
[I am changing the numbering.  I originally started at 1. and went to 37. from top to bottom.  But I have decided to continue this with the latest posting, the largest number, on top.  It'll begin with today (Monday, August 23, 2010) and number 38.]

79.   Mark Lloyd, newly appointed Chief Diversity Officer of the Obama Federal Communications Commission, has called for making private broadcasting companies pay licensing fees equal to their total operating costs to allow public broadcasting outlets to spend the same on their operations as the private companies do.  Think about this one!!!!!!


78.  The Obama FDA frightened Abbott Laboratories into withdrawing the diet drug Meridia.  One study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes, but 46 other clinical trials and six million patient-years of use didn't find the same risk.  No matter, and no matter the First Lady's obsesion with obesity; attacking for-profit healthcare companies is a higher priority for Obama, the President. 

77.  Synthes, INc. a surgical implant company settled charges by the Obama Justice Department that it improperly marketed some spinal compression fracture products. 

76.  Because it wants to, the Obama federal investigators are looking at ways big pharma could, maybe, possilby be paying bribes overseas.  Merck, AstraZeneca, Brostol-Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline not to mention SciClone and Eli Lilly and Baxter all of which are being investigated by the Obama Justice Department and the Obama SEC.  The companies say it'll cost millions and millions of dollars and take place from Brazil, China,Germany, Poland, Itasly, Russia and Saudia Arabia.  More harrassment of business by the horribly oppressive Obama administration of for-profit companies.  Or could it be fishing for openings for trial lawyer suits providing millions of dollars to the Democratic Party?  And to further get them, Obama is threatening to file charges with business executives as well as the companies.  And people think the Peoples' Republic of China is repressive.

75.  The Obama Justice Department hit American Express Co. with a civil suit in its latest bullying initiative.  Bullying is not allowed on the playground why is it allowed by the Obama federal government?  AmEx did not sign  an agreement that Visa and MasterCard did one which loosens restrictions that credit card companies place on merchants.  Why is the Obama Justice Department putting its nose into the private agreement between private-sector companies?  Because it wants to.  AmEx dropped 6.5% October 4.

74.  The Rule of Law is being slowly replaced in the Obama Administration by the Rule of Personal Preference.  For example, the Obama Internal Revenue Service is arbitrarily allowing taxpayers a tax decuction for installing defective drywall in their houses which needs to be replaced to get the decuction along with myriad other complex requirements..  This new rule was promoted by the Democrats in Congress wanting to get reelected.

73.  The Obama Consumer Product Safety Commission said two Fisher-Price Trikes hurt ten kids of which two reauired medical attention.  So ELEVEN MILLION are being recalled.  (There's a protruding plastic key sticking out of Dora the Explorer and Barbie's trikes.)  And F-P's high chairs have pegs on their back to store the tray, but kids can fall on them.  (Fall on high chairs?)  And there are 14 reports of problems some of which OH DEAR! required stiches.  FORTEEN MILLLION RECALLED!  I submit that this is regulation gone wild.  That is .000096 PERCENT hurt. 

72.  See next post concerning discrimination.  With absolutely no empirical evidence that "diversity" of skin color provides any benefit to anyone, except 1) to elect Democrats and 2) to make liberals feel good about themselves, not the recipients of diversity.  It is well-researched and proven that diversity is costly to companies and government entities, through hiring of so-called "diversity officers" and accompanying time for siminars, etc. and literature, none of which manufactures anything for revenue.  So put another way, dicversity costs productive jobs.  Given that the Obama financial industry takeover bill named for its two major offenders, Sen. Dodd and Rep. Frank.  Both social-justice Democrats.  In their bill is Section 342, described in detail in the September 27, 2010 issue of Forbes Magazine (page 18, "On My Mind": "Good Intentions Gone Haywire").  A summary is that at least federal bureaus are required to open and staff Offices of Minority & Women Inclusion, including the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve and each of the 12 regional, so-called privately owned, Federal Reserve Banks.  This costing you and me $58 million a year to start.  But there's more.  These new offices will implictly mandate racial and sexual (well, gender) quotas on every bank, financial institution and providers thereto.  That's over 50,000 businesses in the country, including law and accounting firms.  Forbes calculates that if only one new "deiverse" employee is hired in each of the firms that increases costs to business around $4,000,000,000 every year.  To start.  Quotas.  Quoata.  Quotas.  Illegal according to the Supreme Court but not the Obama prejudice.  Another Job killer!

71.  The Obama anti-jobs machine strikes again: the Obama Labor Department files a complaint against Tyson Foods Inc. because ONE of its managers allegedly discriminated against women.   It was filed under an Obama Executive Order.  Women only hold 28% of the jobs at this one SLAUGHTERHOUSE in Illinois.  (Why would they want any?)  The place employs 2,400 people and comes from an audit or job application forms.  No one complained.  Obama wants Tyson to hire 100 women there and will banish Tyson from cogernment contracts until it gives in.  Dictatorship?  Private enterprise?  Cuba?  (I do not know if Tyson is union or not, that would certainly be a reason Obama sued.  Not enough campaign contributions.  But it probably is, being in Illinois.)  A bigger question: Is discrimination a statistical study or an specific action or actions by a person or persons? 

70.  Further FDA micromanaging of physican prescribing: Two years ago FDA approved Avastin now it's withdrawing it from the market.  It is NOT because Obama thinks it's too expensive for Medicare to pay, of course not!  It does cost $100,000 a year.  It has proven a wonder drug for women in stage IV breast cancer, slowing its progression (shrinking tumors in half the patients using it) and extending lives (patients live twice as long as those not taking it).    Just to preclude sexism, Obama is also considering withdrawing Provenge a drug for advance prostate cancer (most women don't get this) because it costs $93,000.  Both these moves are revolutionary for the FDA.  Obama is beginning rationing.

69.  One goal of Obama's has succeeded.  Citigroup Inc. can't compete with a government monopoly in student loans, so it's shedding that unit, thus increasing Obama's grip on propagandizing United States college students through giving or withholding from them money to go to college.  Think about it!  An addendum: The default rates on student loans is continuing to increase.  To 7%  in 2008 up from 6.7% in 2007 and 5.2% in 2006.  Let's guess, will they go up or down with the government completely in charge?

68.  Continuing his perfect record of stupidity, President Obama will put another $11.4 billion of taxpayers' holders money at more risk by changing its preferred stock to common, which will increase Obama's ownership in the former General Motors Acceptance Corp. (GMAC, now Ally Financial, Inc.) to 80%.  We -- U. S. Taxpayers -- have given GMAC nearly $20,000,000,000.  General Motors, Ally's former owner declined to re-buy Ally and bought AmeriCredit Corp. instead for another $3,500,000,000 of our money.  Obama bought Ally because its former owner didn't want to.  Hmmm. Smart move Mr. President.  (Well, who cares, it's not your maney anyway.)

67.  See 46 below.  The Obama Justice Department cowed the six leading high-tech companies into settling civil charges.  Google, Apple, Adobe, Intuit and Walt DIsneys' Pixar have agreed not to not poach each other's employees by cold-calling them.  Of course they didn't admit any wrongdoing or have to pay anything.  Just why did Obama do this? 

66.  President Obama runs General Motors, which was purchased with roughly $50,000,000,000 of taxpayer money and is 61% owned by U. S. taxpayers..  Now GM after Chapter 11 has once again begun making political donations now mostly to Democrats which are mostly elected with union funds, to which Obama gave a hunk of GM stock.  (And much more of Chrysler's.)  If this isn't blatently illegal, it certainly doesn't pass the stink test.  It stinks.  Taxpayers are indirectly financing Democrat reelections.

65.  As in 64 below, this is about legal (well, formerly legal) drugs.  The Obama Justice Department is trying to butt into the lead plaintiff position in a suit against Pfizer, Inc.'s Wyeth unit about Rapamune, which prevents a body from rejecting kidney transplants.  In the past doctors, were able to prescribe medicine as they thought best for their patients.  NO MORE!  The FDA bureaucrats are quickly second-guessing physicians and taking over that function.  Micromanagement by bureaucrat.  Jobs, revenue, growth, profits?  Health?  Obama could care less.  His mad power is what is important.


64.  In his quest to get foreign countries to like him, Obama has proposed plans to increase airline passenger "rights" (as defined by Obama, of course).  The international airline industry is up in arms against him.  It'll bring higher fares,  fewer flights, confusion and will conflict with international rules.  It'll also ban peanuts.

64.  Further micromanaging the business world, the Obama Federal Drug Administration decided that the diabetes drug Avandia, by GlaxoSmithKline PLC, once a multi-billion dollar drug used by 600,000 patients has been regulated off the market.  FDA bitterly debated the data and evidence, thought by many to be inconclusive.  But whatever FDA will tell physicians how to prescribe drugs.  Afterall who knows more bureaucrats or doctors?

63.  The Obama Administration wants to manage their hated health insurance companies.  The health industry takeover specifies that health insurance companies must spend at least 80% (or 85% depending) of its premiums collected on actual medical care.  Problem?  There's no definition of medical care and the possibilities are endless.  Rules are coming from bureaucrats.   This clearly will damage small health plans who do not have the critical mass to instigate all the regulations, thus throwing their expense rations out of whack and them out of business.  It's only maybe a few thousand jobs, though.  That's pocket change to Obama.

62.  Please see No. 36 below, about potatoes.  I just spent a weekend in Prosser, WA, and saw a brand-spanking new huge Lamb Weston potato plant in the middle of Prosser closed, shut tight.  I'd guess a hurdred or two hundred josb lost.  Why?  Because the Teamsters union doesn't like the North American Free Trade Agreement and it is not letting the Obama Administration live up to a NAFTA agreement the U. S. signed with Mexico to allow Mexican trucks to travel a short distance inside the U. S.  But now, let's dis China.  The Democratic Congress and President Barack Obama had flipped a discretionary 35% tariff on Chinese tires at the demand of the Steelworkers union last year.  In addition Obama and the Dems want China to raise the price of its currency to the dollar to make our imports less costly.  Gee, what would you do if you were China?  Call Barack and say what a nice guy he is and let's be friends?  Or slap a 50% to 105% tariff on U. S. Poultry products.  Just to remind readers the full-on trade wars of the 1930's -- also courtesy of the Democrats and unions -- kept the Depression depressing a decade longer.  Smoot-Hawley here we come!

61.  Please see Number 56, below, about Obama's vendetta against for-profit  (God- or god-forbid!) schools.  Their profits should be taken from them he believes.  But today I read (September 28, 2010, Wall Street Journal, page A-something, the second to the last, "Black Colleges Need a New Mission".  It states in this article about HBCUs -- historically black colleges and universities -- you can't call them black anymore apparently, that "for the past two years, the University of Phoenix, a FOR-PROFIT COLLEGE has conferred more bachelor's degrees on black students than any other school."  Go after them, Obama, throw another generation of  African Americans in the garbage bin.

60.  The Obama Federal Trade Commission sues POM to get them to tell the truth, as they see it, about health benefits of POM.  (Pomegranate-based fruit drink.)  The FTC wants POM to change its advertising.  FTC go after the president, Congressional members and condidates that lie, lie, lie.  Leave productive employers alone.  Every job is needed today.

59.  On to Obama's particular target: U. S. health insurance companies.  Obama's ObamaCare mandates for insurance companies to eliminate co-pays on preventative care; extends the definition of "children" to stay on parents' policies to age 26 (children?); and forces automatic coverage of kids regardless of pre-existing conditions and, finally, the dictates the elimination of lifetime caps.  Obama obviously believes all this should be free and carved out of insurance companies' ginormous profits.  But, no, the companies are raising premium costs.  Well, his administration will hunt these companies down to see if the increases are "unjustified" (a strictly-defined legal term which means anything Obama arbitrarily doesn't like).  If this fierce confrontation isn't enough, Democrats in Congress want to fix the prices of insurance companies, with legislation that was stalled but might be awakening.  If that all isn't deadly enough, Obama has threatened to keep the companies that "unfairly" raise prices -- once again a term of arbitrariness from Obama -- out of competing in the state-run insurance exchanges scheduled under Obama's health industry takeover bill to begin in 2014.

59.  Obama's Environmental Protection (sic) Agency wants the facts, Ma'am, nothing but the facts from nine huge natural gas (fossil fuel) companies who use a relatively new techinque "hydraulic fracturing" to access ginormous underground gas fields.  Some chemicals are used in the process have been disclosed to local regulators but are deemed competitive secrets by companies.  Environmentalists are scared and rumbling, so the EPA acts.

58.  Obama's United States Department of Justice (sic) and his Securities and Exchange Commission have ganged up on Hewlett-Packard probing possible bribes (as defined in our government's U. S. competitive-hampering Foreign Corrupt Practices Act) in Russia.

57.  Obama's Federal Trade Commission has unleashed on Apple Inc. to force it to change its products to allow competition from mobile devices from Google by letting Adobe Systems's programming language to be used on its devices.  Google's AdMob ad network likely will be serving up ads to Apple's applications (called "apps").  Apple caved.  Probably a coincidence that Google executives and founders were major supporters of Obama's election.

56.  Please see Number 3 below about for-profit colleges which are being attacked by the Obama U. S. Government Accountability (sic) Office.  Owner of one of the largest, Washington Post Co. (owner of Kaplan Inc.)  has danced into Washington with money and lobbyists and its Chairman Donald Graham.  No doubt after grabbing campaign contributions for the upcoming intense election in November, this issue will fade away.  Is this attack on business simply about extorting money for reelection?  We'll see.

55.  It's your turn once again, Toyota.  That'll teach you to be successful when Obama's GM is struggling.  The Obama National Highway Traffic Safety (sic) Commission is "scrutinizing" Corollas and Matrix vehicles for possibly stalling.\ and of course publicizing the investigation everywhere.

54.  Obama's financial services industry takeover is costing consumers more.  No matter, saysa prominent Democrat; "Better to know up-front what the interest rate is, even if it's higher..." said Rep. Maloney (D., N.Y.) principal author of Obama's Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD) as consumers' credit card  rates near 15%.  So Obama is attacking every big company in the land for possibly increasing consumer costs, yet when he's in control, it's OK.  Not only is CARD increasing prices, at the same time it's reducing the availability of credit.  This is critically dangerous to new and early-stage small companies who use credit cards to finance their businesses.  They used to be the source of most new employment.  Not so much anymore, in part thanks to President Ovbama.

53.  The Obama Federal Aviation Agency is requiring a record $24,000,000 penalty for American Airlines apparently for not putting certain clips an exact number of inches apart. 

52.  Speaking of restricting competition, see below Number 50 about Obama requiring registration and certification of some badly-hurting building contractors which limits competition, here's another.  Obama's Internal Revenue Service is requiring all paid tax-return preparers to register and get a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN).  This could encompass over a million citizens who will have IRS watching over their shoulders, after they have to pay for their own mandated training.  Will the government require them all to register and vote Democrat?  Stay tuned!  In the meantime it'll disrupt the industry.  Couldn't Obama push for a simpler tax return that doesn't require any "expert"?

51.  The Obama Commodity Trading Futures Commission is after CME Group Inc.'s conduct in its Treasury-futures business.  Obama was alerted by a CME competitor.

50.  Speaking of Google.  Obama's regulators are closely investigating Google's entry into the airline flight information business through an acquisition.  While there are plenty of alternatives to Google's target, ITA Software Inc., that doesn't matter apparently.  Government lawyers are asking potential future Google competitors, Expedia and Orbitz, for example, as well as present intense competitors such as Microsoft, if they could be unfairly disadvantaged.  Wonder what they'll say; I am certainly they will be honest and forthright.   Rules don't matter, if Obama doesn't like something WATCH OUT!

50.  A new Obama Environmental Protection (sic) Agency rule requires certification by government-approved trainers of badly-hurting building contractors who work on older homes to make sure they follow step-by-step processes for working on these houses that might have lead somewhere in them.  Cost be damned, but EPA says $150 or more will be added to costs each time. 

49.  Your Obama Congress at work: airline passengers must be offered water and snacks if they're on the ground awaiting takeoff for two hours.

48.  Obama's Federal Trade Commission, ever active, has sued Dun & Bradstreet for buying a unit of Scholastic Corp. last year.  This is a $29 million transaction -- peanuts -- which somehow might hurt consumers by reducing competition in the market for kindergarten to highschool data.  Data?

47.  Obama-hated health insurance company (he actually hates them all!) Aetna Inc. was suspended from signing up new members for its (soon-to-be-gutted by Obama's health industry takeover-) Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans because it didn't comply with rules about changing its plan designs.  There are approximately 150,000 pages of Medicare rules and regulations and at any particular time any entity engaging in anything to do with Medicare will be in some violation.

46.  Obama's Justice (sic) Department is going after a dozen major high-technology companies, including Google, Intel, IBM, Apple and IAC/Interactive for their hiring practices, specifically agreements not to raid the others' companies for employees by cold-calling. 

45.  The Obama Environmental Protection Agency for the first time imposed limits on emissions of mercury from existing Portland cement plants.  Some plants will be forced to shut down which will kill jobs n them and probably force up prices of stucco and concrete.  The EPA itself estimates cost to the industry of $950,000,000.

44.  The Obama Food and Drug Administration panel rejected a drug to alleviate pain from fibromyalgia, a medical disorder characterized by chronic widespread pain and painful response to pressure.  Other symptoms include debilitating fatigue, sleep disturbance, and joint stiffness, it affects an estimated 2% to 4% of the population and 9 - 1 women over men.  The reason?  It could be misused and abused, even though it works well.  To my limited knowledge, this is a first.  Overregulating for soft, subjective,

43.  The Obama Securities and Exchange Commission has started a formal investigation of officers of General Growth Properties, Inc., owner of 200 shopping malls in the U. S., for insider trading.  Back in October 2008 the company's stock price plunged from doubts about the company's ability to repay or refinance its massive debt.  That triggered margin calls necessitating sales of the company's stock by some insiders.  Some ended up with no stock as a result.  In its continuing anti-business and anti-executive wars,   Obama is going after these people whose stock sales were involuntary.

42.  The Obama administraion has targeted the politically-unpopular, but consumer-popular same-day check cashing companies for elimination.  Some 38,000,000 American citizens use them to cash 200,000,000 checks annually.  To put them out of business the Obama Treasury Department is seeking $50,000,000 from Congress to create the "Bank on USA" by subsidizing commercial banks to open unprofitable checking accounts. Nearly 25,000 outlets and an estimated 125,000 jobs are scheduled for elimination!   From Obama to these some 38,000,000 voters: you are stupid for deciding on your own where to cash checks, the government can better decide for  you.

41.  The Obama administration is investigating pay practices throughout the entire gigantic healthcare industry after finding that, for example, nurses choose to take care of patients instead of running off to a mandatory break.  They put the patient first and choose to give up lunch to see that patients are taken care of properly.  ILLEGAL!  The Obama Labor Department dictates that no one can choose to help out patients instead of taking a break.  It says: "It is the duty of the management to exercise its control and see that work is not performed..."  Now let's see...this has led to trial lawyers suing and hospitals settling.  $1.7 million from the Sad Sisters of Mary (SSM); $2.7 million from Partners Healthcare; $7.25 million from Kaiser Permanente.  Obama has increased the wage-and-hour investigators in the Labor Department by 33.3%  - 250 more government workers here to dig up actions for trial lawyers to sue on.  One trial lawyer said that these Not-for-profit hospitals were "taking advantage of the good instincts of employees, knowing they will put the patient first.  That is, of course against the law.  Those three settlements alone brought around $11,000,000 to the trial lawyers who typically tithe 2% to the Democratic Party.  That figure would be $225,000.  Your healthcare cost just increased and the hospitals had to find that money somewhere, perhaps by not hiring a number of nurses for better patient care.

40.  Both Obama's SEC and his Justice Department are investigating at least a dozen major pharmaceutical and medical device companies, such as Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Eli Lilly, Medtronic, for (see many sections below) falling afoul of the FCPA (that's the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act passed in 1977 by the then Democratic majority in Congress under President Jimmy Carter)).  With a slowdown of sales in the U.S. because of fierce regulation and the recession, major emerging markets such as China, Russia, India and Brazil are looked upon to be sources of growth in the future.  To put it mild, the business practices in those countries are looser than those mandated by law in the U. S.  Rather than understand the differences and work with companies to facilitate sales, the Obama administration investigates and sues.  And kills jobs.

39.  The first unintended (or intended) consequence of the Obama financial services industry takeover bill (AKA Dodd-Frank):  an immediate and unforeseen-by-regulators SHUTDOWN of the $1,400,000,000,000 asset-backed securities markets.  These are bonds secured by assets such as automobile purchase loans (such as those issued by AmeriCredit soon to be purchased by Obama's GM for multi-billion dollars) and credit-card receivables.  More liquidity in these markets, of course, enable consumers to buy cars and other goods which will drive a recovery.  Stopped!  Buy an administration so hell-bend to regulate it has no clue of the consequences.  The SEC is rushing to figure out how to stop this huge block to future growth in America jobs which it caused.

38.  The Obama Justice Department sues Oracle Corp. for fraud.  This alleged fraud was started on a False Claims Act, by which traitorous employees rat out their employers for money.  The suite began in 2007, but Obama piled on in April 2010.  Doesn't much matter that it was about some Government Services Administration sale that the government said wasn't priced as low as some private sales.

1.  Having Treasury Department officials sitting in at bank board meetings, as board "observers", second- guessing decisions after they've been made.

2.  Investigating  high-technology wunderkind Hewlett-Packard Co. for foreign bribery, demanding millions of pages of company information.  Ummm, yes, the trial lawyer lawsuits have been filed!

3.  Penalizing for-profit career colleges for graduating students with high debt-to-income ratios.  (NOTE: only "corporate", for-profit schools, not Harvard, where tuition, room and board runs $50,000 a year.)  Ummm, yes, the trial lawyer lawsuits have been filed!

4.  Raising taxes on the so-called "wealthiest" Americans, which is incorrect, if not a bold-faced lie, because since the income taxes to be raised on them are based on income.   Not "wealth" but income, initially over $250,000 a year (a high proportion of which are small businesses).  This was expressed by Obama's Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.  Periodictablet to Secretary Geithner: wealth is money in the bank, property, things owned.  Income is money provided by a job, or sales of securities.  Sir, if you don't know the difference you should not be the Treasury secretary!

5.  Attacking Toyota, intense and highly-successful competitor to Obama's General Motors and Chrysler.  It has come under a blisteringly-fierce negative public relations propaganda barrage stage managed by, in my opinion, trial lawyers and the left-wing media, all orchestrated by the Obama Administration.  Toyota was blamed for killing people, shoddy manufacturing and hiding information from the "public".  All from "sudden acceleration".  However all that was bogus.  Investigations by the Obama's U. S. Department of Transportation couldn't hide the facts: the so-called "sudden acceleration" is completely the fault of drivers, most of whom didn't even push their brakes down in the face of such "sudden acceleration" which they themselves caused.  Read about it in the Seattle or New York Times?  Not so much.  Ummm, yes, the trial lawyer lawsuits have been filed!


6.  The Obama Administration will be selecting what services will  be provided free in its community clincs.  Let's see, cancer screeings, and, of course the trendy obesity prevention, shots, blood pressure.  Obama may say they're free, but that's a lie because, someone's going to pay.  Probably "the rich" and companies  will pay instead of creating jobs.  Tobacco cessation will be free.  Birth control?  No.  Abortions?  Who knows?  But in the future it'll be that which is provided  by the largest campaign contributors and what's popular and trendy to the far left.  (And like all government services it is free.)

7.  Obama's General Motors announced that it'll be buying AmeriCredit for $3,500,000,000. (Just from where is all that cash coming?)  Obama is spending taxpayer money for GM to give out loans to so-called "sub prime" GM customers, that is, those with sketchy credit and a challenged ability to repay.  Hmmmm. Shades of Fannie and Freddie, the government-sponsored entities who went broke backing sub-prime mortgages to those couldn't pay.  Who'll pay when the inevitable GM defaults come?  U. S. Taxpayers (financed by China).  But it'll allow GM to "go public", artificially of course, but Obama and his media will praise his uncanny business ability and acumen widely.  (Wonder if a bunch of Demcorats own AmeriCredit?)

8.  The Obama-hated oil ompanies were stopped from developing oil and gas wells on billions of dollars of leases in Alaska because environmental laws were not followed BY THE GOVERNMENT!

9.  Obama's financial takeover bill  gave vast new strangulation powers over the U. S. financial services industry to Obama's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) even as it gets smacked down by the courts for overreaching.  The Obama SEC of three Democrats to two Republicans -- political eh? --  issued a rule dictating that annuities be registered with...THE SEC...and sold by registered (with the SEC) broker-dealers rather than insurance agents as was the practice historically. What was the reason, other than a blind grab for power?  The D.C.Circuit Court ruled its (non-)reason was arbitrary and capricious and stopped it in its tracks.  The new benchmark for Obama's administration: arbitrary and capricious.

10. Obama's aforementioned SEC moves to limit mutual fund marketing fees, taking any choice away from customres and the companies.  Obama's SEC Chairman, Mary Schapiro said those customers don't realize those salesmen get paid.  Separately, it also told investment advisors how to give their clients information demanding "plain English descriptions".  My guess is that the former unplain English descriptions came about as a result of trial lawyers suing.

11.The Obama Department of Energy under his secretary, Steven Chu, has decided to essentially ban expensive showerheads -- showerheads -- ones with multiple nozzles which cost thousands of dollars.  They use too much water.  What I read did not say if Mr. Chu watches people take showers.  But...  Chu on that America!  Regulating your showerheads!  Freedom?

12.  The historic baby crib with the dropping sides which make it easier to put in and take out baby?  Banned by the Obama Consumer Products Safety Commission.  There have been 10 - 12 deaths a year recently from the millions and millions of these products sold.  (Could it be from dumb, stoned or neglectful parents?  Nah, the government can't get power over them.   Yet.)  After forcing them off the market and enriching the trial lawyers who finance the Democrats into power, Obama's CPS Commission will dictate what kinds of cribs companies will sell.  Prices should shoot up and sales will suffer, naturally.  But jobs?  jobs?  jobs? who cares?  Not Obama.  Ummm, yes, the trial lawyer lawsuits have been filed!


13.  The aforementioned Toyota Motor Corp. has been subpoenaed yet again by an Obama federal grand jury apparently about a probe from five yearrs ago about whether Toyota notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administraton in a timely manner about some possible steering rod defect.  It took them five years?  Or now that Obama is in charge of GM does he simply want to hobble Toyota's ability to compete with his GM?  Ummm, yes, the trial lawyer lawsuits have been filed!


14.  The Democrats in Congress are taking aim at continuing-care retirement communities (CCRCs), which give seniors lifetime care, just after he Obama Federal Government Accountability Office released a report damaging to the industry.  Some communities have defaulted on their high-yield municipal bonds issued to build them.  In only one have the residents lost their entrance deposits.  One of over 600,000 units nationwide.  They are regulated individually by state.  But it's clearly time to throw away state' rights of regulation and crippling federal regulations over them.   Yet another Obama industry takeover.  Ummm, yes, the trial lawyer lawsuits have been filed!

15.  Obama bashed again, this time by his own government watchdog.  (Bow wow.)  His arbitrary closing of automobile dealerships hurried in order to push GM and Chrysler through his bankruptcy takeover of them, unnecessarily increased significant job losses, said Obama's own Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, Neil Barofsky in an audit of the program.  He said "thousands of small businesses and tens of thousands of jobs" were irretrievable lost.  But, Mr. President you said you saved three million jobs.  Huh???????? Sir, you couldn't be lying to us, could you?

16.  Obama's Food and Drug Administration will regulate diagnostic tests, including direct-to-consumer DNA ones.   They are concerned about cutting doctors out of the process, thus obviously costing them money that could be used to make campaign contributions.  FDA wants to grab regulation of these laboratory-developed tests from the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services.  Turf war.  And exactly does this help consumers?

17.  The also aforementioned Obama SEC is investigating large homebuilder's joint ventures.  Because apparently the goverment's gross mismanagement in micromanaging Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Federal Housing Administration hasn't crippled them sufficiently.   But no doubt the trial lawyerws need some more obscene wealth.  Their lawsuits \obviously are forthcoming, only the timing is in doubt.  Large U. S. homebuilders, such as KB Home have taken over $30 billions in writedowns since the government-caused housing bubble collapsed in 2007.  Apparently Obama thinks hat's not enough

18.  As if Obama hasn't done enough manipulation to the U. S. automobile indusrty by taking much of it over and brutally attacking Toyota, he will spend another $6,000,000,000 no doubt borrowed from The People's Republic of China.  Neo-venture capitalist Obama knows how to invest, he's had so much experinece at it since he's been elected prexy.  Three-quarters of a trillion alone from his so-called "stimulus".  (We don't have to count any returns, they'll be counted in the next election he was trying to win.)  But this time our cash will attempt to develop batteries, (The Everyready bunny will be happy!) and pay for electric plugs and tax credits to bribe people who don't want to buy electric cars.  (Zero to 60 miles and out of power.)  While Obama is blowing yet another borrowed-$6 billion on his pet projects,  real venture capital can't compete with him.  Only $1.9 billion was invested into free market venture capital investors the second quarter of 2010.  One major culprit: the U. S. government whose Sarbanes-Oxley Act killed Initial Public Offerings with vast regulation and cost increases.  IPOs used to be the generator of returns for venture capital investors.  In the good old days of free-market innovation!  Gone now!  Something like one-third of the most successfully-innovtive high-technology companies like Apple, Microsoft, Cisco, Google, Yahoo, Intel and on and on were created by venture capital.  Gone!

19.  An Obama federal regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has subpoenaed sixty-four issuers of mortgage backed securities to see if they misled Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.  Let's see, Congress demanded that Fan and Fred buy sub-prime and Alt-A mortgages given out to sketchy borrowers.  Congress mandated it.  And buy they did, like furiously, ending up holding over a quarter-trillion dollars ($255,000,000,000) from a standing start around 2006.  THIS CAUSED THE FINAL HOUSING BUBBLE.  Now that that strategy has come unglued, putting the U. S. Government (and the People's Republic of China) at risk for something like $5,000,000,000,000 in toto that same U. S. government is second-guessing.  NOT FANNIE OR FREDDIE, but only the U. S. free-market participants.  Has any part of the U. S. government, the administration or Congress EVER admitted that what they did was wrong, or turned out badly?  NO!  And now even after putting $145,000,000,000 cash into "saving" Fan and Fred, plus issuing them an absolute blank check,  the government is trying to blame the free-market.  Without government intervention (which includes the Fed's free and easy money) there would have been no subprime meltdown or recession (and in all likelihood no Obama presidency, although that is subject to disagreement.) 

20.  Obama wants banks to lend more.  Bank of America Corp. warned that the financial industry takeover bill could cost it $4,300,000,000 every year plus a one-time charge of $7,000,000,000 to $10,000,000,000.  And on July 16 the stock tanked 9%.  Unintended or intended consequences?  You decide!

21.  And speaking of banks again.  The Obama Treasury Department is working on a system to appoint members of banks boards of directors when they fall behind on their payments.  Troubled Asset Relief [sic] Program said that while only one Califonria bank "qualifies" so far, literally hunderds of community banks of the 700 TARP recipients could easily get there.  Is this a government takeover or simply micromanaging?  Unintended or intended consequences?  You decide.

22.  Obama's wholly-owned Congress is considering taxing airlines' increasing fees for such things as checked baggage, seat selection, meals, blankets, headphones, everages and other services because they are, according to Democrat House Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar of Minnesota, "backdoor price increases" because these things were formerly free and private sector companies are apparently not going to be allowed to raise prices without Congressional approval.  And the government desperately needs the money.  Jobs?  Huh, what are they?

23.  The Obama Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on Nestle SA's advertising that its Boost Kid Essentials drink builds immunity.  It doesn't stand up to scrutiny.  Whatrever that means.  And is "standing up to scrutiny" in some Congressional regulation?   Ditto Kellogg's Rice Krispies.  (Boost is a nutritional drink often given to people who can't eat solid foods becasue of some medical condition.)  Parents are not and never can be capable of making decisions for their own kids.  Obama is, however.

24.  So Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and Obama's own Federal Housing Finance Agency and Obama's Office of the Comptroller of the Currency oppose a home-energy-improvement program of the Obama admiinistration, that is being implemented in California.  The program is convoluted at best: municipalities can loan money through special property-tax assessments called Property Assessed Clean Energy ("PACE") for homeowners to install solar panels, energy-efficient heating systems and other stuff.  There's no safeguard that homeowners can repay the debt, but the government does not cares about  that.  But the state of California likes it.   Therefore, running-for-governor California Attorney General -- a Democrat like his leader, Barack Obama -- Jerry Brown is suing.  Suing Freddie, Fannie, FHFA and not to be left out, Obama's Comproller of the Currency to stop them from opposing that program.  Well none of it makes sense, but it isn't supposed to.  The more complicated government is, the more the citizens will give up and let the Democrats have their way with them.

Now, this whole play is so stupid it should be a crime!  No matter this is costing all of us rational human beings trillions of dollars tossed out like confetti by irresponsible, stupid, greedy, ignorant, Machiavellian Democrats thirstily doing anything to keep their pathetic government jobs.  The loans.  The "energy (in-)efficiency".The entities, the programs, the administration.  Micromanaging our world.

25.  (White House raises deficit forecast to $1,400,000,000,000 for 2011 and $8,500,000,000,000 over the next ten years.  Shhhh, don't tell anyone.)  and no the trial lawyers are not suing.

26.  The Obama administraton is doing what all along I thought it wanted to do.  Go into business.  Because certainly his "social justice" approach to business, where profits are so not needed, is preferable to the old, discarded idea of making profits.  In this little toe step, Obama's National Institutes of Health is developing drugs, an endeavor which is expensive, time-consuming and prone to failure.  In this case $24,000,000 of money doubtlessly borrowed from the People's Republic of China will target sickle-cell disease (for black voters), Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL, which affects a couple hundred thousand voting adults);, Niemann-Pick Type C and hereditary inclusion body myopathy and finally schistosomiasis (this parasitic disease is most commonly found in Asia, Africa, and South America) and hookworm which damages 600 million people all over the wrold, but not much in the U. S.  No voters there but kudos to Obama for caring, that should bring votes.

27.  The first anniversary of Obama's teenage and black anti-job bill, raising the minimum wage 40% to $7.25 came and went.  Some analysts estimate this labor-union desired job-killer probably cost the U. S. 200,000 jobs!  Mostly teenagers and black kids.  Whose side are you really on, Barry?  Ideology over jobs.

28.  Edward E. Whitacre Jr. Chairman of GM announced August 5th that GM might NOT "go public" before the November elections.  Days later he is replaced as GM CEO.  Huh?  Obama is not micromanaging GM?  Huh??  No, it's all a coincidence, like the Toyota attacks.  (Whitacre was replaced by a GM board member who is beloved , if that is possible, by Wall Street.)

29.  This is great: Obama Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner apparently promised out loud that the Obama administration would try -- gee, do our best -- to avoid killing the anemic economic growth while strangling the financial services industry with hundreds of new restrictions on every possible peripheral and mainstream participant in the industry.  He promised that the half-dozen federal agencies would work together to "safeguard the freedom, competition and innovation that are essential  to our growth" while micromanaging each participant, fixing products, prices and services in order to stop "too much freedom for predatioin, abuse and excess risk."  All to be defined in the future by a bunch of competing left-wing, anti-business bureaucrats.  That, of course, is both impossible and a simple bold-faced lie.  Democrats can't even decide on who should run the main octopus, a brand-spanking-new bureau, the Consumer Financial Protection (sic, well maybe not consumer protection.  It is specifically designed to protect Democrats' elections.) Bureau (which will have -- get this -- a $500,000,000 budget per year).  The CFPB (sounds like a banned chemical) is governed by a brand-spanking-new council,  the Financial Stability (sic for real) Oversight Council of ten members.  (FSOC doubtlessly pronounced foosock).  The secretary, I assume still straight-faced, then puked out another promise: to dramatically reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, all taken over by Obama and granted a blank check on the U. S. Treasury.   No doubt it'll dramatically attempt to reelect Democrats and do nothing else.

30.   Let's get back to reality because all that wanton spreading of cash isn't real.  Can't be.  But what is: Intel settles an onslaught by the Obama's U. S. government anti-trust regulators, the Obama Federal Trade Commission.  With 80% market share of the world's microprocessor market (one invented by Intel) Obama's anti-business leftists need to rein in its success.  As Clinton did to Microsoft, Intel will operate under a leash held by the FTC.  Microsoft is struggling today.  Why does Obama and the far-left want to punish succes?

31.  Unions win rights to meddle in companies' businesses via the Obama SEC (3-2 vote) rule of "proxy access" making it easier for unions and other stockholders to nominate their henchmen as directors.

32.  Obama lackey isn't immune from his anti-business attacks.  General Electric Co. owner of Obama's main propaganda arm, The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) settles with Obama's SEC for $23,500,000 for paying alleged kickbacks to win Iraqi healthcare and water contracts.  This also settles a review by Obama's Justice Department.

33.  Just some anti-business information.  Plaintiffs' (sic) or trial or tort lawyers (choose a title) earned almost a billion dollars the first half of this year 2010 -- one-half year -- suing companies in securities class actions.  Actually $902,000,000.  That represents another in the continuing bonanzas for Obama and the Democrats to whom trial lawyers donate around 95% of their campaign contributions made.

34.  The GE settlement mentioned above had to do with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (or something like that).  Now here's an article from the Wall Street Journal wherein GM agrees to pay its Opel/Vauxhall unions in Europe about $1,400,000,000 if GM doesn't spend $14,000,000,000 over five years to overhaul Opel's vehicle lineup.   Is that a bribe to keep the workers' working?  If so, I guess it's OK because 1) Obama says it is and 2) Obama's attorney general Eric Holder won't investigate liberals.  And just where is broke GM goint to get all this cash?  Yes, ladies and gentlemen, from the People's Republic of China via the U. S. Government, to be repaid by the U. S. Taxpayer.

35.  Another indication of the Democratic government's anti-business stnace is in another WSJ article wherein it writes that lawmakers (Congress) and others are growing impatient at the relatively small number of senior executives that have been charged in connection with the allegedly neear-collapse of Wall Street.  This during a session where a federal judge refused to approve a settlement the Obama SEC made with Citigroup Inc. about subprime mortgage stuff.  The judge, she said she was "baffled" by it and wondered why two little guys within Citi were the only ones charged.  And to their credit, the SEC responded to it all saying it can only bring charges where it has enough evidence.  No doubt Obama will make them find it.  It ain't over til it's over!  Keep investigating businesses, Obama, you'll get a settlement from fear from time to time.

36.  Obama chooses the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union, its votes and power instead of American business and the creation of jobs.  Specifically a variety of producers and manufacturers of around a hundred products which will be impacted by Obama changing an agreement with Mexico from the North American Free Trade Agreement.  By refusing to allow  cross border trucking previously negotiated, Obama has forced an angry Mexico to greatly expand the tariffs on American products.  This support for the Teamsters union (like all unions a significant backer of Democrats) will cost profits and jobs of farmers and manufacturers of: ketchup, chewing gum, graperfruit, chocolate, dried fruit, to name a few, and extending not removing tariffs on pears, apricots, cherries, peas, almonds, potatoes and wines.  Consider  these Washington State jobs and profits lost when thinking of voting for Murray or Rossi in November.

37.  And finally (for now).  Obama's typically-knee-jerk (and I mean that word kindly) reaction in abruptly stopping drilling in deep water will cost 23,000 jobs as disclosed by Obama's own henchmen discussing.  And he talkes about "shipping jobs overseas"?  What about simply killing them as he has done?  23,000 here and an estimated 13,000 more if the moratorium continues another 6 months.  If Obama makes it permanent it might be more than 400,000 jobs lost.  But also the government wants to increase taxes on oil companies -- which will restrict their ability to expand and create jobs by finding domestic oil sources -- by upwards of $25,000,000,000.   No doubt competitors such as China and Venezuela will jump right in.  There are 9,000,000 American energy industry jobs at stake.