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<p>A former Philadelphia police officer once hailed as a hero who sat next to the first lady during the 2009 State of the Union address was indicted yesterday after being accused of forcing two women to take heroin at gunpoint before raping them.</p>

Turns out the New York Times is worried about the future of the Republican Party. So concerned, in fact, it has dedicated more than 6,000 words in this week’s magazine to explore, as the title puts it, “Can The Republicans Be Saved From Obsolescence?” Indeed, the folks at The Times seem extremely concerned that which they hate might not survive. And by “concerned” I mean they’re hoping. That The Times would seek to harm Republicans, and more specifically conservatives, is about as shocking as Piers Morgan doing a special episode on the need for gun control. But that so...

Noted investor, free market advocate, and author Jim Rogers during an interview with Glenn Beck on Wednesday said that Tuesday’s State of the Union address makes you wonder whether President Barack Obama is “delusional” or just a good liar. Our “debt is physically impossible to pay off,” Rogers said after Beck asked whether the country has passed the point of no return. “We are the largest debtor nation in the history of the world.” “If everybody paid 100 percent of their earnings as taxes, we still couldn’t pay it off,” he added. The famed investor then turned his attention to...

We think Sarah Palin hit the nail on the head in "her" State of the Union address: Here is how Tony Lee reported it at www.breitbart.com: Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin wrote Wednesday that America is a nation being bankrupt by a federal government led by "venal politicians" in her response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address. "What is the true state of our union? Though this may sound harsh, I'll speak the truth here," Palin wrote. "We are a country going bankrupt to fund a bloated, distant, and often corrupt federal government led by venal politicians...

Obama proposals face quick opposition in Congress WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama set up high-stakes clashes over guns, immigration, taxes and climate change in a State of the Union address that showcased a newly re-elected president determined to mark his legacy, facing off against a deeply divided Congress with Republicans eager to rein him in.At the center of it all was a fight over the very role of government, with Obama pushing a raft of new initiatives to improve preschool programs and voting, boost manufacturing and research and development, raise the minimum wage and lower energy use. “It is...

@JayLeno At the #SOTU tonight, when the President walked into the chamber, instead of ‘Hail to the Chief’ they played ‘Hey Big Spender.’ @JimGaffigan That was the most one-sided debate I’ve ever seen. #SOTU @Bez "I am SO getting laid tonight" -Obama's speechwriter @sixfoot6 Biden always looks like he's pridefully watching his son play quarterback. Boehner always looks embarrassed by his son at a ballet recital. @JillMorris I feel like I'm watching an ad for ADD medication when I look at Biden. #SOTU @JonasPolsky Saturday Night Live cold openings are pretty long, but this is ridiculous. #SOTU @m_swartz Also...

War On Terror: Victims of the Fort Hood shooting, including a prior SOTU guest, say they've been neglected by the military, "betrayed" by the president and denied full benefits in the name of political correctness. Kimberly Munley was one of two police officers who confronted Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan when he shouted "Allahu Akbar" and opened fire on U.S. soldiers. Thirteen people were killed, including a pregnant soldier, and 32 others shot in the Nov. 5, 2009, rampage at the Army base in Killeen, Texas. Munley was shot three times as she and her partner, Sgt. Mark Todd,...

Say thanks to Jeff Poor and the Daily Caller for enduring the Ludovico-ish process needed to tally these numbers. The "200 times" figure comes with an asterisk: Turns out Rachel Maddow alone accounted for more than half the replays by putting the clip of Rubio reaching for the water on a loop, tucked into a corner of the screen, for 13 minutes while she and Steve Kornacki were hashing out the particulars of his speech. (Seeing is believing.) Jon Stewart once chided her and MSNBC for beating the "teabagger" joke into the ground, but in hindsight he should be glad...

From his very first state-of-the-union utterance last night, associating himself with President Kennedy, President Obama got it wrong, and it was mostly downhill from there: “51 years ago,” he began, “John F. Kennedy declared to this chamber that ‘the Constitution makes us not rivals for power but partners for progress.’” Great alliteration; bad constitutionalism. Yes, in a very narrow sense the Constitution makes the political branches partners for progress. But it also, most definitely, makes the branches, and those with authority within them, rivals for power. Indeed, throughout the Federalist Papers we learn how the Constitution pits power against power...

There is good news and bad news: The good news is that President Obama is consistent; the bad news is that he is consistently wrong. Once again—as he has before—he filled his State of the Union address with rhetoric designed to gull the gullible by saying things that sound compassionate and wise and reasonable to those who don’t bother to pause and reflect on what he said. Clearly bent on breaking the 2011 sequester agreement that would cut federal spending, the president warned that “These sudden, harsh, arbitrary cuts … would slow our recovery, and … are a really bad...

Mr. President, perhaps amidst the merriment surrounding the inaugural festivities you misremembered your oath. Sir, you solemnly swore “to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution.” But these few weeks hence, your State of the Union speech essentially disavowed America’s cherished founding charter. Many left-leaning pundits applaud your “bold” vision to radically redefine America. President Obama, you are understandably emboldened by re-election, but you were not made king. Regardless of whether you agree with constitutional precepts, you’re still legally bound; still compelled by the sacred oath you swore. Perhaps while lecturing college students on Constitutional Law you read it. What authorization...

Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin wrote Wednesday that America is a nation being bankrupt by a federal government led by "venal politicians" in her response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address.  "What is the true state of our union? Though this may sound harsh, I’ll speak the truth here," Palin wrote. "We are a country going bankrupt to fund a bloated, distant, and often corrupt federal government led by venal politicians more concerned with paying off their campaign cronies and consolidating their own power than in preserving the constitutional republic that so many have fought and died...

How do you rate the state of the union in the U.S.? Good Fair Poor

As mentioned in previous blog entries, several news outlets, including the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post, mentioned that the President, in his State of the Union address, would be addressing climate change. Indeed, in his speech the President called upon Congress to act and create a McCain-Liebermanesque solution while promoting his own executive actions. “I urge this Congress to get together, pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years ago,” said President Barack Obama. “I will direct my cabinet to come up with executive actions...

On Thursday, February 14th, President Obama will join the latest in a series of "Fireside Hangouts" – a 21st century take on FDR’s famous radio addresses – to talk about his State of the Union Address. During the +Google+ hangout, the President will answer questions from Americans across the country about the issues and policies laid out in the speech. How you can join: Right now, you can submit a question for the President and vote on your favorites on the White House +YouTube Channel: http://at.wh.gov/hC22N

If you missed President Obama’s State of the Union address last night, you didn’t miss much – especially if you watched any of his past four State of the Union addresses. We heard the same recycled rhetoric, and we heard his Orwellian declaration that the cornucopia of new federal programs he proposed, as well as his intention to eradicate world poverty, wouldn’t “increase our deficit by a single dime.” Of course, he glossed over the inconvenient facts. He boasted about job creation, but didn’t mention that real unemployment is higher today than when he took office. He touted all...

Says nation needs to figure out why Americans are different WASHINGTON – Rock showman, humanitarian and TV host Ted Nugent, who also is a columnist for WND, says he thinks America needs to start over because of the mess that Washington has made of the nation. He told reporters today in advance of Barack Obama’s State of the Union address that if he were giving the speech, he would say, “We need to start over and review the subjects that made us different than King George.” Nugent, who was invited to accompany Rep. Steve Stockman, R-Texas, to the Obama speech,...

Desiline Victor was one of the props used by Barack Obama in his State of the Union Address. She has been widely celebrated in the press largely because she waited three hours to vote for Obama. Daily Mail A 102-year-old woman has been chosen to sit next to Michelle Obama at the annual State of the Union address in Washington. Desaline Victor, a naturalized U.S citizen from Miami, Florida, waited for more than three hours to cast her ballot for the President on November 6. Ms Victor will sit in the First Lady’s box with military families, people who are...

Liberals have a difficult time staying on point in an argument. Never was this so obvious in the aftermath of Marco Rubio (R, FL) and his response to President Obama's State of the Union speech. Mr. Rubio made a point-by-point analysis of why President Obama has failed the American people, which offering a myriad of practical, conservative solutions to the problems that face the United States. In response, the Left has responded in unison: "What an Idiot, He Drank Water!" That's right, for a moment during Mr. Rubio's response, he paused to drink from a bottle of water. ...Within hours...

Sen. Marco Rubio got a turn on the national stage opposite President Barack Obama Tuesday night, but some of the facts the likely 2016 presidential contender marshaled to make his case played loose with the truth. Here’s POLITICO’s look at some of the Florida senator’s questionable claims during his prime-time debut. * Sequester blame game Rubio: “And tonight, he even criticized us for refusing to raise taxes to delay military cuts — cuts that were his idea in the first place.” Actually, Obama didn’t directly criticize Republicans for not agreeing to raise taxes to offset the across-the-board spending cuts. He...

President Barack Obama on Monday went before Congress to deliver his State of the Union address, the first of his second term. Shortly after the president’s speech, Florida senator and rising GOP star Marco Rubio delivered the official Republican response. And shortly after Sen. Rubio’s response, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul delivered the official Tea Party response. In their own words, here’s a look at how President Obama, Sen. Rubio, and Sen. Paul view the following topics: The Economy National Debt Immigration The Sequester Energy

As I wrote earlier, I'm no fan of State of the Union speeches. I'm usually no fan of the opposition-party responses, either, for a variety of reasons. First, they suffer in comparison to the pomp offered the President and can't avoid seeming anti-climactic. The only person who ever really got that was Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, who arranged to give his response in 2010 in the Virginia legislature, with his fellow Republicans offering applause in a venue that at least approximated that enjoyed by Barack Obama.However, at least rhetorically, Marco Rubio took the correct path in responding to the usual...

Like many of you, Clinton Romesha checked his calendar and discovered he had more pressing things to tend to so the Medal of Honor winner reluctantly declined Lady M’s gracious offer to join her for Big Guy’s campaign speech SOTU. Perhaps he felt his unspeakable bravery and valor had already been more than adequately exploited noted for one week. Or perhaps he declined in deference to the memory of his 8 fallen comrades who could not be there. Staff Sgt. Romesha, true American hero, embraces the son of one of his fallen comrades as Lady M grins approvingly. Or maybe...

As I didn't watch the State of the Union speech live, I also missed the two responses to it from Barack Obama's opposition. The networks carried Marco Rubio's speech live, but most viewers had to go to the Tea Party Express website to watch Rand Paul rebut Obma's SOTU address. While some may complain about that decision, it is arguably fair. If Mitt Romney had won the election, would we have cheered while the networks not only provided live coverage of Harry Reid's rebuttal, but also one from Senator Bernie Sanders representing the Center for American Progress? Somehow, I doubt...

"I'm going to get in trouble for saying this," said a prescient Joe Scarborough. Less than an hour after delivering a devastating take-down of the Obama economic record that surely pleased many conservatives, Scarborough made remarks about Marco Rubio that are bound to outrage many of the same folks. Commenting on Marco Rubio's response to the State of the Union, Scarborough declared that Rubio "is not ready to be President of the United States" and that "Republicans pushing him out there are making a big mistake." View the video here.

I couldn't help but think of the "tragedy and comedy" Janus masks as I watched Joe Biden and John Boehner dutifully sit behind President Obama as he delivered his painfully long State of the Union speech. Biden's comedic goofy grins were a knee jerk response to Obama's overtures to help the little guy, whereas Boehner's tragic pouts reflected the harsh fact-driven reality that such policies actually hurt Mr. and Mrs. Main Street. Here are just a few examples of Obama's glaringly inane propositions. Obama stressed the need for job creation, but the fact is that artificially raising the minimum wage...

I'm sure it's happened before, but I can't recall any previous State of the Union speech where justices refused to attend based on disagreements with the president. From Politico: "The conservative wing of the U.S. Supreme Court was absent from President Obama's Tuesday State of the Union address. Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia declined to join their six other colleagues at the prime time address to Congress. During Obama's 2010 address, Alito was seen whispering the words "not true" during Obama's speech. Obama used his address to blast the court for their 2010 Citizens United case which...

It is terribly appropriate that President Obama gave his halting and graceless State of the Union address on Mardi Gras: He spent the evening shouting “Laissez les bons temps rouler!” at every liberal constituency in sight, promising new spending for public-sector unions (“Fix-It-First”), demanding (yet again) that banks renegotiate mortgages on politically driven terms, offering handouts to Al Gore–style enviropreneurs (reviving cap-and-trade, offering yet more subsidies to politically connected energy firms), and promising a $9-an-hour minimum wage. In the real world, Fat Tuesday is followed by Ash Wednesday and a season of fasting and penance. For the free-spending Barack Obama,...

In just 58 seconds, Joe Scarborough has rendered an imagined response to last night's SOTU demolishing President Obama's failed economic record. Delivered on today's Morning Joe, Scarborough scalded PBO's pitiful performance on the economy. Highlights from the Hall of Shame: four million more Americans out of work today than when Barack Obama became President; average income down 5% since the end of the recession. View the video here.

'What America needs is not Robin Hood, but Adam Smith' Ever since Sen Paul clearly distanced himself from his dad's wackadoodle foreign policy, I've been starting to think this guy's closer to my own views than what I've been seeing and hearing from Ryan or Rubio -or anybody else- lately: ______________________________________________________________________ After enduring the latest Five Year Plan from Dear Leader, we were last night offered enlightened responses from Sen Marco Rubio (for the Republicans) and fellow GOP Senator Dr Rand Paul, who brought a comprehensive indictment of the Obama fiscal-death-spiral (along with a bright, Reaganite alternative vision) delivered specifically on behalf of the TEA...

I speak to you tonight from Washington, D.C. The state of our economy is tenuous but our people remain the greatest example of freedom and prosperity the world has ever known. People say America is exceptional. I agree, but it’s not the complexion of our skin or the twists in our DNA that make us unique. America is exceptional because we were founded upon the notion that everyone should be free to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. For the first time in history, men and women were guaranteed a chance to succeed based NOT on who your parents were but...

Sen. Marco Rubio may be giving the Republican response to the president’s State of the Union address this evening and Sen. Rand Paul is giving the Tea Party response, but why wait until the president is done speaking? Sarah Palin is live tweeting her response and well she doesn’t like it. Of course that’s no surprise, but she also created her own hashtag #sotUGottaBKiddingMe She began by countering the president’s claim at the beginning of his speech that “there is much progress to report.” Sarah Palin✔ @SarahPalinUSA Obama: “There is much progress to report.” Oh really? Let's see what the...

Above: Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), who has said “I have only one loyalty, and that’s to the immigrant community.”- by John HillStand With ArizonaWell it looks like crime does pay after all. At least 5 Democrats, including First Lady Michelle Obama, are bringing illegal aliens as guests to the State of the Union on Tuesday night - this despite a U.S. House rule requiring guests to provide their Social Security numbersBut a spokeswoman with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency declined to comment about whether the agency approves of this occurring at the Capitol, where Obama is set to give his annual...

Just a day after receiving the Medal of Honor by the president of the United States, former Army staff sergeant Clinton Romesha has declined an invite by the first lady to be her guest at the State of the Union address Tuesday night. He said that after some soul searching he decided he’d rather spend the evening with friends from his former unit, his wife Tammy — with whom he celebrates a wedding anniversary Tuesday — and their families, CNN reports.

Mr. Nugent, who said last year that Mr. Obama’s re-election would “destroy America,” was invited to the annual address to Congress by Rep. Steve Stockman (R., Texas), who said Mr. Nugent would have a lot to say after the speech. Mr. Nugent will be sharing the gallery with hundreds of other guests, including some two dozen people who have been shot or lost relatives to gun violence and are rooting for Mr. Obama to follow through on a gun-control agenda. “I will remain respectful in the decorum department, but I know what self-evident truths are and I know what the...

Barack Obama speaks at 9 p.m. EST. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) gives the GOP response after Obama speaks. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) gives the Tea Party Express response around 10 p.m.Sen. Paul's speech can be seen live on the Tea Party Express website.

Judge Napolitano on Fox: Watch for Obama in his SOTU message tonight to indicate he "can't wait" for Congress to act and thus will use EOs to circumvent the law. He will likely order the EPA to tax ammunition to pay for "the environmental damage and clean-up." In general, he believes Obama will bury Congress in a siege of EOs, knowing that Congress will not stop him. Only Congress can levy taxes, so this sets-up a fight between Obama and the so far eunich House, a fight he wants.

UPDATED: See Important Poll Below Our political partisanship has become so predictable that the response to the official  response to the speech that Big Guy won’t deliver until tonight is already on the wires: In preparation for President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address on Tuesday night, the Democratic National Committee on Monday gathered lawmakers for a conference call with reporters to offer a “prebuttal” to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s not-yet-delivered Republican rebuttal to Obama’s not-yet-delivered national address. Just as Obama's speech and Rubio's response will likely be full of focus-grouped buzzwords, the Democratic prebuttal contained typical partisan rhetoric...

Sen. Rand Paul will be delivering the 'tea party' response to Obama's state of the union address. He could overshadow the official Republican response, given by Sen. Marco Rubio. On ABC's "This Week," GOP strategist Nicolle Wallace revealed Sunday that Sen. Marco Rubio (R) of Florida – who will deliver the official Republican response to President Obama's State of the Union address – has scrapped his original draft in favor of a more aggressive approach. According to Ms. Wallace, Senator Rubio's decision to rewrite his remarks was spurred by the tone of Mr. Obama's inaugural address, which many Republicans saw...

It looks like the gays may have the best seat in the house at President Obama's State Of The Union address. Tracey Hepner, co-founder of the Military Partners and Families Coalition, which works as a support group for LGBT military famlies has scored a plum seat with First Lady Michelle Obama! More after the jump. The Washington Post reports: "Tracey Hepner of Arlington, who co-founded the Military Partners and Families Coalition, a support group for LGBT military partners and their families, has been chosen to sit with first lady Michelle Obama during the State of the Union address Tuesday night,...

Bing partners with Fox News on interactive experience around State of the Union address Bing is partnering with Fox News to bring what it calls a new interactive experience that will gather social media sentiment, and get live viewer feedback, on the president's State of the Union address Tuesday.The experience, which will be at bing.com/politics, will stream the address, and show news and live data, as well as track live social media sentiment and allow users to enter in how they're feeling about the president's address..."We'll be able to sense the mood of the nation" moment by moment......This latest effort...

<p>While other members of Congress are hosting gun-control advocates for Tuesday's State of the Union address, Rep. Steve Stockman has given one of his visitor's gallery tickets to Ted Nugent, the conservative gun-rights supporter.</p> <p>"I am excited to have a patriot like Ted Nugent joining me in the House Chamber to hear from President Obama," Mr. Stockman said in a statement announcing the choice. "After the address I'm sure Ted will have plenty to say."</p>

The language used in President Barack Obama’s upcoming State of the Union speech may be vague regarding specific climate change regulations, but two media outlets have now confirmed that new coal regulations by the Administration are likely. “In trying to slow climate change, Obama is considering acting through the Environmental Protection Agency to issue new rules governing carbon emissions by existing power plants, according to three people familiar with White House discussions,” states the Washington Post today (emphasis added). According to the Wall Street Journal’s Peter Nicholas and Keith Johnson, “In the run-up to the speech, Mr. Obama has been...

President Barack Obama’s upcoming State of the Union address is supposed to be about jobs and the economy. However, it will also likely carry a “green” message, if Politico’s Andrew Restuccia is correct: “‘You’re going to like what you hear,’ White House aides have told green groups, according to an official at one environmental organization who expects the president to publicly commit to moving forward with EPA climate regulations,” writes Restuccia, who asks in his article, “which Obama will show up on Tuesday night?” The Administration feels that a 2007 Supreme Court decision giving the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) authority...

Tea party leaders are turning to Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, to deliver their message following President Barack Obama's State of the Union address, a speech that will compete with the official Republican response. Paul will make his remarks soon after Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, wraps up the GOP response Tuesday night, a Paul spokeswoman confirms to CNN. "We are giving a voice to the tea party movement when the mainstream media and the Republican establishment wants to write us off as dead," said Amy Kremer, chairman of the Tea Party Express. This is the third year in a row that...

Who else could it have been? Jindal and Paul Ryan have already done it, Rand Paul’s probably still too close to the rEVOLution for Republican leaders to be comfortable with him in a spot like this, and Chris Christie would just end up talking about how terrific Obama’s speech was. Half the reason party leaders are pushing amnesty, I’m convinced, is because Rubio’s that good in front of a mic and this issue gives him access to lots and lots of microphones. If, as McCain bluntly concedes, immigration reform is all about earning goodwill from Latino voters, then of course...

President Barack Obama will deliver this year's State of the Union Address on February 12, which is the same day as Abraham Lincoln's birthday. "Our nation continues to face immense challenges, and the American people expect us to work together in the new year to find meaningful solutions," House speaker John Boehner writes in a letter to Obama, inviting him to deliver the address. "This will require a willingness to seek common ground as well as presidential leadership. For that reason, the Congress and the Nation would welcome an opportunity to hear your plan and specific solutions for addressing America’s...

We've only heard talk and do not know if this is true but it certainly must be, given Obama's shabby and insulting treatment of the Speaker in fiscal cliff negotiations. The latest reports from the Wall Street Journal and other sources indicate Obama has threatened Boehner and republicans with a throw-down public humiliation during Inaugural and SOTU addresses, unless Obama gets his way. Why would the Speaker invite the President (which is only done by recent tradition since the age of TV, iirc) into his house to allow him to soil his hosts ? To do so is tantamount to...

U.S. President Barack Obama on January 24 made his third State of the Union Address in Congress. In his speech he touched upon the issues of economic recovery and key issues of foreign policy. Obama tried to assure that there was no point in speaking about the loss of the U.S. leadership in the international arena, because his country maintains a leading position in the world. According to the American president, the revival of the American leadership is felt throughout the world. Broadcast footage of his speech resembled a scene from zombie film where at every mentioning of "the greatness...

For all of his talk about jobs and the economy, President Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech was not an economic policy blueprint. This was a speech about power — about increasing the scale and scope of government and the power of those who govern over the American people. If this claim seems over the top, consider the following: The President begins his speech by lauding the “courage, selflessness, and teamwork of America’s armed forces…They’re not consumed with personal ambition. They don’t obsess over their differences. They focus on the mission at hand. They work together. “Imagine what we...