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**FILE** House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa, California Republican (Associated Press) Enlarge Photo **FILE** House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa, California Republican (Associated Press) more > Recent Entries GOP video mocks White House for canceling tours Joe Biden: U.S. nearly got power of the papacy Rep. Steve Scalise slams President Obama for releasing hoops bracket before budget Sen. Orrin Hatch knocks treadmill desks, $10B for new health center Charlie Crist leads poll for Florida governor Rep. Darrell Issa, who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, is poking a little fun at President Obama’s decision to...

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Tuesday linked the accidental deaths of seven U.S. Marines to sequester spending cuts. All three networks have, thus far, skipped the story. After highlighting the details of the botched training event in Hawthorne, Nevada, the Democrat manipulated the tragedy: "But one of the things in sequester is we cut back in training and maintenance."

Finally, an answer to the question “Why does Congress have such low approval ratings?” Harry on Senate floor linking Big Guy’s idea for sequestration to the deaths of 7 brave Marines It’s because they are so despicable. I recommend that they work on that. Meanwhile, back at the Big White where the ill effects of Big Guy’s idea for sequestration are still being felt: (snip) Hard to believe, butt Big Guy headed out on Air Force Won right after the St. Patrick’s day celebration on his Mid-East Charm Offensive. Mazel Tov! So far, so good! “Say, Bibi, about that Iron...

Regarding the March 14 editorial “Reopen the White House doors”: **SNIP** Within an hour, however, the czar returned from the East Wing singing a much different song. Apparently, first lady Nancy Reagan had pointed out that closing the White House reflected badly on the presidency in general and on President Ronald Reagan in particular. More important, the Reagans signaled to their staff that if they had to personally hand out flashlights and give the tours themselves, the tours would continue despite the “crisis” of sequestration.

<p>HARRY REID: "As I indicated, it was quite a big explosion. We'll follow this news very closely. I will do whatever I can going forward to support the United States military and the families of the fallen Marines.</p> <p>Mr. President, it's very important we continue training our military, so important. But one of the things in sequester is we cut back in training and maintenance. ....</p>

The scare tactics that Democrats from President Obama on down have employed to wring political benefit out of the sequester have apparently hit a despicable new low. In comments made about the deaths overnight of seven U.S. Marines in a training incident in Nevada, Dem Senator Harry Reid reportedly suggested that we may see more such incidents because the sequester cuts put Marines at risk. NBC military correspondent Jim Miklaszewski, appearing on Andrea Mitchell's MSNBC show this afternoon, reported that the Marines have strongly rejected Reid's claim, and that one Marine official accused Reid of "pure political posturing on the...

A reporter from Colorado asked White House spokesman Jay Carney how President Obama justifies "lavish vacations" and golf trips, and whether he plans to cut back:(NB: video at link)Bringing up high unemployment in minority communities and government furloughs, the reporter started, as well as "millions of Americans unemployed, and family budgets that have been cut. How does the president justify lavish vacations and a golf trip to Florida at taxpayer expense? And does he plan to cut back on his travels?"Carney responded, "I can tell you that this president is focused every day on policies that create economic growth and...

The next casualty of sequestration could be the Easter Bunny – at least according to a White House e-mail that recently landed in Capitol Hill inboxes. The White House warned Congress that budget uncertainties could nix the annual Easter Egg Roll for kids, which is planned for April 1. “[B]y using these tickets, guests are acknowledging that this event is subject to cancellation due to funding uncertainty surrounding the Executive Office of the President and other federal agencies,” the White House cautioned, according to two Capitol Hill sources who provided the language. “If cancelled, the event will not be rescheduled.”...

Will you and your family be harmed by 10% cuts in government spending known as the “sequester?” Or have politicians been caught lying to us, going way too far this time? The U.S. Government spent $1.78 trillion dollars in Fiscal Year 2000. It will spend $3.42 trillion in Fiscal Year 2013 – even after the 10% sequester. That’s an increase of $1.63 trillion – repeating each year – more than the U.S. Government spent in 2000. That’s 91% more spending every year. In Fiscal Year 2000 – at half the spending -- airplanes were flying, meat and food were being...

Please help with this petition currently on the White House petitions page. Once it hits 150 signatures, it gets bumped to the main page: Mr. President, stop charging U.S. taxpayers for your personal and family vacations while the sequester is in effect. We object to the President charging taxpayers for his vacations, since he has now imposed sequester cuts on the military and his own personal fortune of $12 Million is more than enough to cover his costs. Since 2009, the President and his family have spent tens of millions of taxpayer dollars for “working” vacations to Hawaii, golf outings,...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized on Monday a levy imposed by the European Union on bank deposits in Cyprus as unfair and setting a dangerous precedent. "While assessing the proposed additional levy on bank accounts in Cyprus, Putin said that such a decision, should it be made, would be unfair, unprofessional and dangerous," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. Russian citizens account for the majority of the billions of euros held in Cypriot banks by foreign depositors, and Russian banks are heavily exposed to the island as a favored offshore centre for big business. The levy, imposed...

Not only is The New York Times editorial page known for often being thin on facts, it is known for its cheerleading of the Obama administration—especially the administration’s shortsightedness regarding the Middle East. To prove that point, they recently published their March 4 editorial: Egypt Needs to Act. In the course of attempting to make their argument, the Times not only butchered the facts, they praised the terrible decision by the Obama administration to hand Egypt wads of US money. Go figure. They hailed Obama’s decision to send $250 million of hard-earned, taxpayer money to the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt...

The decision made by the Obama administration to cancel all White House tours clearly demonstrates an agenda of choosing to punish the American people through politically self-serving maneuvers. It is not only disappointing, it is discouraging that the Obama administration would willingly choose to shut the doors to the White House, and essentially to this nation’s schoolchildren and families, under the guise of sequestration. By filing my amendment to the continuing resolution that called on Congress to defund transportation for the president’s golf outings until White House tours resumed, I was not trying to “take away the president’s golf balls.”...

Revelation that the Department of Homeland Security authorized an expenditure of $50 million for new uniforms at the same time as it was releasing illegal immigrant criminals because of the budget sequester’s “cuts” has raised a few eyebrows. “Those who are saying we should have postponed the spending on new uniforms so we could afford to keep more prisoners locked up aren’t seeing the bigger picture,” Secretary Janet Napolitano contended. “Our TSA officers are seen by millions of air travelers everyday. The few thousand prisoners we released will impact a much smaller segment of the population.” The contrasting trade-offs were...

Will 10 percent cuts in government spending known as “sequester” really harm American citizens in our everyday lives? Or have politicians gone way too far this time with their lies? The truth – sharply contradicting President Obama’s assertions – can be found buried within data published by the Office of Management and Budget under “Historical Tables” posted at www.WhiteHouse.Gov. Some calculation is needed to subtract 2013 projected spending from 2008 spending and to adjust for the 10 percent sequester from “Table 4.1—Outlays by Agency: 1962–2017.” Our nation is struggling with an extraordinary rash of government lies even while government spending...

The federal Indian Health Service, which serves 2.1 million tribal members, says it would be forced to slash its number of patient visits by more than 800,000 per year. Tribal programs under the U.S. Department of Interior and the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs that fund human services, law enforcement, schools, economic development and natural resources stand to lose almost $130 million under the cuts, according to the National Congress of American Indians.

Buried in Rajiv Chandrasekaran’s long and depressing article on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is an interesting statistic. The F-35 program office employs 2,000 people. Two. Thousand. For some perspective, here’s a list of offices, staffs, agencies, and commands and their estimated staff size (not including contractors): Pacom 3,200 Joint Staff 2,800 OSD 2,700 Centcom 2,000 Defense Logistics Agency 27,000 I know that the Joint Strike Fighter is an inordinately complex acquisition program that, after years of neglect and mismanagement, requires diligent oversight, but it’s still just a single acquisition program. And yet it employs the same number of people...

WAVERLY (KWWL) - The message from Saint Paul's Lutheran School in Waverly has gotten through to the White House. This week, President Barack Obama said he is working with the Secret Service to restore some tours for students visiting Washington, D.C. The Saint Paul students spoke out about the suspension of the tours after automatic budget cuts canceled their tour. Obama says he is working with the Secret Service to try and restore some tours for students traveling to the nation's capital during their upcoming spring break.

Stop the madness! Big Guy’s Royal Food Taster has been sequestered! The entire charm offensive fell apart yesterday when BO was unable to break bread with the loyal opposition because he suspected them of trying to poison him. Mark my words; when the entire government shuts down because the R-words won’t roll over and give Big Guy the tax increase he wants accept Big Guy’s magnanimous compromise and agree to a balanced approach to the budget, it will be due to this foolish – and probably racist - sequester cut. Let me explain: yesterday Big Guy reached way across the...

Snip: Is Obama declaring war on U.S. military? Obama has made no secret of his plans for deep military cuts that would downsize the Pentagon. In 2010, he cut $487 billion from the defense budget. In 2011, he signed into law a budget process intended to cut an additional $492 billion over 10 years. The New York Times recently reported: “On the list are not only base closings but also an additional reduction in deployed nuclear weapons and stockpiles and a restructuring of the military medical insurance program that costs more than America spends on all of its diplomacy and...