ScaifeNet because we can't let Soros have all the fun...

Club President Chris Chocola has an op-ed in today's Orlando Sentinel. In it, he asks, "What is a 'Charlie Crist' Republican anyway?"

This story was on the front page of today's Politico. It's a solid piece that is actually pretty comprehensive.

KEY VOTE ALERT
"NO" to "Doc Fix" (H.R. 3961)

The Club for Growth urges all members of the U.S. House to vote "NO" on the so-called Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009, otherwise known as the "Doc Fix" bill (H.R. 3961). A vote on this proposal is expected later this week. This key vote will be part of our 2009 Congressional Scorecard.

This bill is not offset with any spending cuts so the overall tab will recklessly add over $200 billion over ten years to the national debt. This is also a deceptive attempt to hide the true cost of health care reform.

Reasonable people can argue about the merits of a "doc fix", but fiscal prudence demands that it not add one penny to the national debt. This bill needs to have a full offset of spending cuts to meet that requirement. Also, it's clear that Senate leaders are stripping this bill out of comprehensive health care reform legislation in order to avoid the task of selling an expensive proposal to the public that breaks the President's revenue neutral pledge. When it comes to overhauling one-sixth of the national economy, the American people are entitled to honesty and transparency from their elected leaders in Washington.

The New York Times cuts union jobs and replaces them with non-unionized labor.

A government agency says House health care bill will increase costs.

A neighborhood in Brooklyn with $600,000 apartments is declared 'blighted.'

WSJ Editorial: "How to return $200 billion to the Treasury."

Economist Greg Mankiw discusses supply, demand, and health care.

For the record, Deroy Murdock reminds us that Dede Scozzafava is no GOP moderate.

General Motors is going to accelerate the repayment of their bailout money.

Virginia's Department of Transportation has paid over $60,000 in court costs and appraiser fees to avoid paying $30,000 in an eminent domain case. It has been expensive for VDOT because their own lawyers have an overload of eminent domain cases.

"The results of a new survey suggest that one-fifth of UK-based entrepreneurs earning more than GBP150,000 are planning to flee Britain in search of countries with more favorable tax rates"

IBD Editorial: America's corporate tax to grind.

Crist: For the Stimulus Before He Was Against It… Now For it Again
A week after telling CNN he "didn't endorse" $787B bill, Fla. Gov. admits, "I support it"

WASHINGTON - Club for Growth PAC today responded to Florida Governor Charlie Crist's second (in as many weeks) re-clarification of his position on February's $787 billion federal stimulus bill.

"If Floridians aren't sure what Charlie Crist believes, it's okay - he's not either," said Club President Chris Chocola. "In February, Crist campaigned for the stimulus, signed letters of support, gave speeches at rallies, and gave President Obama a hug on national television to show the world how much he loved the $787 billion dollar debt bomb Congress dropped on our children."

For months now, Crist's opponent in next year's Republican Senate primary election, former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio, has criticized Crist's stimulus stumping, offering Floridians a real alternative to meddling, big government schemes like those that created the recession in the first place. Rubio's message of economic freedom and limited government is resonating in Florida, and polls show the race has been narrowing all year.

In response, Governor Crist last week told CNN he "didn't endorse" the stimulus, but the ploy backfired, as Crist's enthusiastic support for the bill was in the public record. So yesterday Crist re-clarified his position on the stimulus, again, telling the Palm Beach Post, "I support it … it's helping our economy."

In fact, since the $787 billion spending bill was passed, the national unemployment rate has risen to 10.2 percent, despite the president's promise that the bill would keep unemployment below 8 percent. Three million jobs have been lost, including almost 200,000 in Florida alone.

"Marco Rubio understands that big government doesn't solve economic problems, it creates them, and he will bring real change to the United States Senate. Charlie Crist in the Senate won't change anything, except his mind… apparently several times."

PAID FOR BY CLUB FOR GROWTH PAC AND NOT AUTHORIZED BY ANY CANDIDATE OR CANDIDATE'S COMMITTEE. 202-955-5500.

The Heritage Foundation has a new briefing book out for candidates, which is wonderful. This will be an excellent resource for candidates looking for reliable background material on many important economic issues. It is also a good one-stop reference for non-candidates too. Here is a link: http://www.issues2010.com/ Cato has something similar that can serve as another excellent resource for candidates -- their Handbook for Policymakers, 2009. http://www.cato.org/pubs/handbook/hb111/index.html

Harry Reid is prepping a new "jobs bill" for next year. No details yet on what's in it.

National Review: Senate Republicans explain their plans to block Obamacare.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board writes about the upcoming 69% capital gains tax hike.

Here are 12 reasons why unemployment is going to (at least) 12 percent.

Trade expert Scott Lincicome writes about "Mercantilist Max" Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance committee.

A victim of the minimum wage speaks.

Forbes releases its list of the world's most powerful people.

Economist Steven Landsburg has a brain teaser to make the point that silence conveys information, silence in the face of silence conveys even more information, and silence in the face of silence in the face of silence conveys even more.

Cato's Gene Healy writes about Obama's arrogance of power.

Is it the Tea Party vs. GOP incumbent Bob Bennett in Utah?

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the Obama Administration wants to use unspent TARP funds to reduce the deficit. Don't be fooled, says my buddy Dan Clifton. In an email to me, he writes:

A Wall Street Journal article this morning says that leftover TARP funds could be used for deficit reduction. Is this really news? The US government has already issued the debt for the funds and any unused money would logically be used to retire that debt. There is about $300bn in unspent TARP funds now. But none of that can be used as deficit reduction. Why? Because the money has not been spent yet. And is it really $300bn? Absolutely not, the administration decided to change the accounting to a net present value basis. So any savings would be negligible. The punchline: This story makes a great headline against the concerns over deficits, but will have zero impact on debt issuance and the deficit.

Via Radley Balko, this is just the best collection of videos I've seen in a long time.

From the Boston Globe [emphasis mine]:

The Patrick administration is pushing through a plan to spend $9 million in federal stimulus money to build a walking bridge connecting parking lots on either side of Route 1 near Gillette Stadium. The lots belong to Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, who is tied for number 468 on Forbes Magazine’s list of the world’s billionaires.

Last minute supporters of the House health care bill are bragging about the pork they received.

WSJ Editorial: "Confessions of an ObamaCare Backer"

Senator Tom Coburn being Tom Coburn: "The country would be much better off if they kept us at home and not let us vote on anything."

Economists Brian Wesbury and Robert Stein examines the way the unemployment rate is calculated.

Economist Keith Hennessey provides an in-depth look at how the health care debate will move through Congress.

IBD Editorial: "the votes of two members in particular show why politicians these days warrant little trust."

What if the government created a "public option" for cable?

Amity Shlaes thinks the next few years belong to Hayek. I like that.

Here's a collection of "Sowellisms" by...Tom Sowell.

VIDEO: Czech Republic president Vaclav Klaus discusses the events of 1989, the year the Berlin Wall came down.

Intrade is reporting only a 5.9% chance of a public option passing Congress this year. That should make fiscal conservatives feel good. But the odds dramatically increase once you spill the debate into next year. The odds of a public option passing by March 2010 is 28.9%. By June 2010, it's 35%.

Michael Reagan is in Berlin to reflect on his father's role in helping bring down the Wall twenty years ago.

Two solid WSJ editorials: The Lords of Entitlement and Why the Berlin Wall Fell.

John Tamny asks, "If Obama is so bad, why are the markets up?"

Ludwig von Mises: The man who predicted the Great Depression.

President Obama has started an accidental war on America's exporters.

According to Aaron Blake of The Hill, here are the top ten conservative conundrums of 2010.

There are 237 millionaires in Congress.

George Mason economist Bryan Caplan is the curator of the online Museum of Communism.

Here's a cool interactive chart on what the unemployment rate is for different people.

David Henderson explains the fall of the Berlin Wall to his 4-year old daughter.

Via Peter Boettke:

Club for Growth PAC Endorses Marco Rubio for U.S. Senate
Former Florida House Speaker 'the Real Deal,' Crist the 'Wrong Direction'

WASHINGTON - Club for Growth PAC today endorsed Marco Rubio in the 2010 U.S. Senate race in Florida.

"Marco Rubio is the real deal, one of the brightest young stars in American politics today, and a proven champion of economic liberty," said Club President Chris Chocola. "He is a dynamic spokesman for the principles of limited government and economic freedom, and he will make a fantastic Senator."

Rubio served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000-2008, and was elected to the Republican leadership as Majority Whip, Majority Leader, and finally, Speaker of the House. Rubio is an advocate of lower federal spending, tax relief and tax reform, union members' right to a secret ballot, and market-driven energy and environmental solutions.

Rubio's Republican primary opponent is Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who supported President Obama's $787 billion stimulus, proposed a state "cap-and-trade" energy program, and this summer broke his pledge not to sign any state tax increases.

"Charlie Crist has repeatedly joined with big government liberals on major economic issues facing America today, from taxes to spending to cap-and-trade," Chocola said. "He represents the wrong direction for our economy and our nation."

"The Club for Growth PAC has spent months studying this race, and we have concluded that either Charlie Crist or Marco Rubio would be heavily favored to win next November against likely Democratic nominee Kendrick Meek," Chocola said. "The only question now is what kind of Republican will Florida send to Washington next year: a pro-growth Republican with a record of fiscal conservatism or a big-government Republican with a record of tax increases?"

PAID FOR BY CLUB FOR GROWTH PAC AND NOT AUTHORIZED BY ANY CANDIDATE OR CANDIDATE'S COMMITTEE. 202-955-5500.

Club for Growth Denounces House ‘Pelosi-Care’ Vote
Plan Would Raise Taxes, Force Families Into Government Programs, Stifle Growth

WASHINGTON – The Club for Growth today denounced the 2,000-page health care takeover plan passed by the House of Representatives, 220-215.

“PelosiCare is a disaster,” Club President Chris Chocola said of the $1.3 trillion plan, which includes more than $750 billion in tax increases. “The policies and price tag are shocking, but not surprising to anyone familiar with the liberal extremism of the House Democrats. America’s health care system needs reform, but this bill does not provide it. PelosiCare would only raise taxes, explode the deficit, force millions of families out of their health plans and into a government-controlled system, and strangle an economic recovery in its crib.”

Chocola praised the House Republican Conference, which voted almost unanimously against the bill, and the 39 courageous Democrats who stood up to their leadership’s pressure. “The 215 who voted no deserve credit for standing with the American people, for the principles of individual choice and economic freedom, and against yet another trillion-dollar expansion of federal power and debt.”

If at first you succeed, do it again! House Republicans are having a second House Call on the steps of the U.S. Capitol tomorrow, ahead of the vote on ObamaCare. It starts at 1pm EST.

Rep. Bill Owens has broken four campaign promises all within the first hour of being a congressman.

There are two new state polls out today by OnMessage, Inc. (Virginia voters) and McLaughlin & Associates (New Jersey voters). Simple question (800 voter sample in each state): Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: One of the reasons I voted for (Christie/McDonnell) is to send a message to the Obama administration that I am unhappy with the direction they are taking Washington and the country. Answer: NJ -- 68% said they agreed with the statement, and 46% strongly agreed. VA -- 74% said they agreed with the statement, and 54% strongly agreed. 63% of NJ Independents and 76% of VA Independents agreed, as did even 63% of NJ Democrats and 46% of VA Democrats. More details here. The next question is this: Are President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid listening?