Free Republic

Balanced budget amendment headed to House floor next weekThe Daily Caller – 15 hrs ago A balanced budget amendment will be considered on the House floor next Wednesday, The Daily Caller has learned from a senior GOP source on Capitol Hill. House leadership gave the amendment its stamp of approval, when House Speaker John Boehner laid out three conditions for any deal on the debt limit to reporters Tuesday. Republican freshmen have been pushing the balanced budget issue for weeks. (Dems: We couldn’t attack Republicans if we agree to Medicare cuts) “The spending cuts have to be larger than the...

We must face reality. Politicians are just not able to balance the Federal Budget. It' just not in their natures. The vast majority of them live in a fantasy world as far as money management is concerned. Even freshman congressmen, who are the most likely among them to have dealt at some point with real life, soon learn that personal finance problems become a thing of the past. They have little to be concerned about when dealing with the costs of health care for themselves. Their personal retirement security concerns fade in importance as well. They no longer need be...

Fox news nearly doubled the total viewers of their competitors in both overall viewers and the 24-54 demographic largely due to their Tea Party coverage and the competitions lack of same. http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/ratings/the_scoreboard_wednesday_april_15_114271.asp

By Julia Wallace,The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Sunday, March 08, 2009 Two weeks ago, you heard from our publisher, Doug Franklin, about the economic challenges at this newspaper and newspapers across the country. Last week, you heard from our head of sales and marketing about his team’s efforts to effectively sell advertising in the Atlanta market. Today, it’s my turn. I want to give you more detailed information on the content changes ahead in the next two weeks. I also want to respond to your questions to our publisher about what we are doing to make sure our news and editorial pages...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday that he doesn't believe the state can solve its $8 billion budget hole in the next fiscal year through cuts alone and called on lawmakers to "get very creative" in finding new revenues that don't qualify as taxes. "By law I have to balance the books, and also I have promised people of California that we will do it by being fiscally responsible and by making sure that we live within our means," Schwarzenegger said at a town hall-style meeting in Modesto. "And we have to find revenues this year, because I don't think that...

Taking Offense for Fun and Profit   Have you seen the bumper sticker out there that says “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention? Living in Minneapolis, I see that one rather frequently along with “Hate is not a family value”, “Would Jesus Discriminate”, “Buck Fush” and myriad other erudite and intellectually stimulating bumper stickers from our friends on the Left that express just how outraged they are at… well…everything. To hear them talk, you might get the idea that the Left believes that life is one big series of unending injustices and that this profoundly bothers them....

The in-depth analysis of Governor Schwarzenegger's new state budget is out, and the Legislature's non-partisan analyst essentially says the numbers don't add up. Legislative Analyst Elizabeth Hill says that expenditures in 2007-08 would outpace revenues by $2.6 billion. And while there is reserve cash left from the current fiscal year to help soften the blow, Hill projects the governor's plan would still leave the state short by $726 million. That's a far cry from Schwarzenegger's bold statement in January that his budget had wiped out the state's red ink. Beyond that, the LAO report forecasts an even larger deficit in...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2006 – The level of U.S. forces in Iraq must be balanced so as not to create an occupying force, but to still be effective and able to maintain a secure environment, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld told a House of Representatives committee here yesterday. "No country wants foreign forces permanently in their country; we have no desire to have our forces permanently in that country," Rumsfeld said at a hearing of the defense subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee. "The goal is to have sufficient forces." Having too many U.S. forces in Iraq could create a...

The revelation that Fox News aired a one-sided global warming program featuring Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has alienated the channel's conservative base. In response to our column on the controversy, we received a number of emails, some of them threatening to leave the channel in disgust. We speculated in our column on the matter that Fox was trying to curry favor with Kennedy, who may be running for high office in New York, home of Fox News parent News Corporation. If Kennedy, for instance, becomes New York state Attorney General, he could be in a position to help or hurt...

Fair? Balanced? A Study Finds It Does Not Matter By ALAN B. KRUEGER THE share of Americans who believe that news organizations are "politically biased in their reporting" increased to 60 percent in 2005, up from 45 percent in 1985, according to polls by the Pew Research Center. Many people also believe that biased reporting influences who wins or loses elections. A new study by Stefano DellaVigna of the University of California, Berkeley, and Ethan Kaplan of the Institute for International Economic Studies at Stockholm University, however, casts doubt on this view. Specifically, the economists ask whether the advent of...

If you thought CBS' talking heads would at least make an effort at a little political balance, you'd be wrong. And if you thought CBS would lighten up on the Bush administration -- and the GOP in general -- you'd be wrong. Dead wrong. Here are a few sounds bites from CBS anchor Bob Schieffer's appearance on the Don Imus show this morning: WMD. Iraq. Things getting worse, not better. Vietnam. Bodybags. That's the gist. Put simply, phrases pitched straight from the Kerry talking points memo distributed in, what, October? Can't someone change Schieffer's teleprompter? Of course, Schieffer neglected any...

The Washington elite are at it again. The partisan jockeying for political positions has begun and no matter which political party wins the debate on Capital Hill, the American people will lose…again! Where I come from, a “budget” is a tool of fiscal discipline. If it isn’t balanced, somebody is losing something somewhere, or everyone is filing bankruptcy. Bankruptcy is defined as “A debtor that is judged legally insolvent.” Insolvent is defined as “unable to meet debts or discharge liabilities, resources insufficient to meet all debts.” America has qualified under these definitions for many years, except to date no one...

A Broadcasting & Cable magazine source which reported that CBS has promised to be "fair and balanced" was met with snickers, hilarity and amusement by discussion groups on conservative websites.Broadcasting & Cable staff reported that "CBS is desperately trying to repair relations with the Bush White House."It says CBS has taken a page from the Fox News Channel with a promise to become "fair and balanced." According to the magazine staff, the promise was delivered during a recent White House meeting that included CBS News President Andrew Heyward, Washington bureau chief Janet Leissner and Bush communications director Dan Bartlett. The...

Inquiring Minds Want to Know: Equal Rules for the Press? Posted October 11, 2004 By Paul M. Rodriguez Catching up on the weekend news post the second presidential debate was a bit disturbing - and just reaffirms what so many readers of Insight have complained about concerning bias in the press. Specifically: Where are the stories analyzing the campaign issues raised by John F. Kerry compared to his political stump rhetoric compared to the senator's 20 years worth of votes, speeches and legislative history? Sure, sure - I know, that would mean that news organizations actually are looking for fair...

October 09, 2004, 9:51 a.m. Fair and Balanced! Why can’t all debates have such good questions? By Tim Graham What does a critic of liberal media bias do when liberal media bias pretty much fails to occur? Cheer, or say, "Man, now I don't have anything to write about?" On Friday morning, ABC's Charles Gibson explained that he would have the power to select which "uncommitted" voters collected by Gallup would ask questions of Bush and Kerry. "We will eliminate some that seem, you know, superfluous or seem redundant, or whatever. And then I simply pick some at random, trying...

The coverage this weekend of the President's Nascar trip has been the worst coverage I've seen on Fox in a long long time. Greg Jarrett keeps asking each correspondent if they "know anything" about Nascar. James Rosen responded by comparing Nascar to Water Polo. Jarrett then turned to Catherine Herridge and asked her if she knew anything about Nascar. "Its not my speciality." She snidely remarked back to him. "Well the President isn't there to watch a bunch of cars run around in a circle." Jarrett remarked. "He's obviously trying to get the Nascar Dads vote." Jarrett continually made references...

After a year, a column written by Paul Crespo, a former Marine officer, Cuban American – and the Miami Herald's only conservative columnist – has been canceled, allegedly for "budget reasons." We learned that recently Crespo was told by the Herald that his twice-monthly column will no longer appear in the paper despite what he called "an amazing show of support from so many in the South Florida community." "During my year at The Herald (including three months as a member of the Editorial Board), I have endeavored to use my varied international experiences and education to provide insightful opinions...

Blackout - Bret Stephens Admits Paper is not Real By Sara Leibovich-Dar "Conrad Black, the owner of the Jerusalem Post who had fired and laid off hundreds of reporters while embezzling millions of dollars, was more concerned with his grand lifestyle rather than seeing the Post expand and prosper," wrote a biographer. "I give priority to commentary and analysis," - Jerusalem Post Editor Bret Stephens. At a Hollinger International shareholders meeting in New York in May, Conrad Black was very upbeat. Black, the CEO, chairman and major shareholder, arrived with his wife, journalist Barbara Amiel, blew kisses to Donald Trump...

Brian Kilmeade was talking to Lauren Green and Steve Doocy about Saddam and said something funny. Doocy: They are making those missiles over in Iraq like on the I love Lucy Show, where the conveyer belt couldn't turn off, and it was belting those chocolates out. Lauren: I mean what kind of things do you say if your Saddam's daughter in law? What would you say to him? Brian: I don't believe they are allowed to speak.

Brian Kilmeade is in Kuwait. This is very touching, because he is had a soldier say hi to his wife and kids, and because the guy was so choked up, he could barely get through the sports afterwards. Looks like they are going to have another Joe Military segment again today. Brian interviewed a Dentist, and they showed a sock puppet.