1. South Carolina and the Campaign Trail

2. This is the current Texas wildfire situation.

3. The Benefit of Being In Charge

4. The Horserace

5. No, we did not “learn to like” Obamacare

6. Labor Day & The Union Tax: How Unions Kill Jobs

7. The Wadded Panties of Jonathan Capehart

8. Illegal Aliens Receive $4.2 Billion in Additional Child Tax Credits

1. South Carolina and the Campaign Trail

On Saturday, Sarah Palin went to Iowa to lament crony capitalism in both parties. Her aides said she was taking shots at Rick Perry and Mitt Romney. We don’t know for sure whether or not she was because Sarah Palin herself did not confirm it. History is full of times Palin aides said something only to find Palin herself contradicting the aides.Yesterday, Sarah Palin went to New Hampshire and said we shouldn’t be squabbling with each other on the same team.What do Jesus and Sarah Palin have in common? Only God knows the hour of their coming to save mankind. I give up and I’m tired of being teased.Yesterday, in South Carolina, Jim DeMint hosted a forum that should be the model for future Presidential debates. He allotted time for each candidate to appear on stage and answer questions from conservatives about things conservatives what to know about. My only quibble is that, while I have tremendous respect for Robert George, I think Professor George went too far into the weeds on topics he personally cares about and, while every other conservative cares about them, are not the focus of the year in politics. Otherwise, it was nice to have non-sound bite answers to non-sound bite questions.While all of this was happening, a shakeup happened at Michele Bachmann’s campaign. My friend Ed Rollins is stepping aside as the campaign manager and the deputy campaign manager is out too. Ed says he is too old for the day to day grind of a campaign and is worried about his health. This news comes as Bachmann tries to stop her slide in the polls.The guy everyone wanted to hear from in South Carolina, Rick Perry, was a no show. And we can now behold the disgusting rancor of a number of folks who cannot set their cheerleading for their own guy aside.Please click here for the rest of the post.

2. This is the current Texas wildfire situation.

Just to make it clear precisely what we’re talking about, here: it’s not good. 25,000 acres burned so far, and the state is apparently as dry as a bone right now, thanks to a drought. Let me show you the extent of the problem.Please click here for the rest of the post.

3. The Benefit of Being In Charge

There is a benefit to being in a position of elected leadership. We’ve seen it once in this GOP Presidential campaign.On a stage of former this’s and former that’s, the issue of Libya came up in one of the first debates. Michele Bachmann gave a more thorough and complete answer than any of the other candidates and it was premised with the authority of being a current member of the Intelligence Committee.In that moment, a lot of people who had dismissed her realized there was something there.Please click here for the rest of the post.

4. The Horserace

It’s time to step back a bit and expand the horserace out. Why? There are five debates coming up in rapid succession. A lot of people think if someone unexpected has a knockout performance the person could be revitalized and get back in the game.I actually think the more likely scenario is to take people out via debates, not put people back in. But Newt Gingrich did get a bump in some places after his last polling. It won’t help, but he got to call himself the come back kid. Michele Bachmann is trending down right now. Rick Perry looks to be the front runner, but I don’t think he is.Let’s go through all the candidates today. All of them. No man out or listed as “former.” Where do I see them all? Here we go.Please click here for the rest of the post.

5. No, we did not “learn to like” Obamacare

“As people learn what’s actually in the bill, that six months from now, by election time, this is going to be a plus because the parade of horribles, particularly the worry that the average middle class person has that this is going to affect them negatively, will have vanished and they’ll see that it’ll affect them positively in many ways…”— NY Sen. Chuck Schumer, on “Meet The Press”, March 28, 2010Most of us thought Chuck Schumer was full of it in March, 2010 (among other times/places/etc.), and…we were right.Today, Rasmussen Reports released their latest poll on Obamacare. For the second week in a row, Rasmussen showed that 57% of registered voters would like to see Obamacare repealed (36% oppose repeal). Please click here for the rest of the post.

6. Labor Day & The Union Tax: How Unions Kill Jobs

The Labor Day holiday is always a time for union bosses and the media to reflect on the role that unions play in society. Not surprisingly, with a mere 11.9% of America’s workers unionized today (6.9% in the private sector), between the unionized media and press releases issued by union communications departments, the majority of stories about Labor Day center on what used to be or the current ills ailing the moribund labor movement.Please click here for the rest of the post.

7. The Wadded Panties of Jonathan Capehart

The kerfuffle over the scheduling of Obama’s re-election kickoff event continues to be the gift that keeps on giving.In the space of just a few hours on Wednesday, Obama demonstrated his pettiness and his weakness in a way the GOP could never have. What is so hilarious is watching the left change from cheering Obama on to whimpering in a dark corner as their man-god, their light worker, their herder of unicorns is revealed to be an inept Jimmy Carter. Take Jonathan Capehart of the Washington Post as an example.Please click here for the rest of the post.

8. Illegal Aliens Receive $4.2 Billion in Additional Child Tax Credits

Throughout the entire debt ceiling imbroglio, Democrats incessantly regurgitated the talking point about the need for “a balanced approach.” They were so uniform and synchronized that they sounded like the sheep in Animal Farm. Ironically, their idea of a balanced approach was singularly focused upon Oil Company and corporate tax deductions, which are negligible compared to the crushing debt. The targeted oil tax deductions would have brought in $2 billion in annual revenue, while the cancellation of the corporate jet depreciation deduction would have saved only $3 billion over 10 years!Well, it turns out that illegal aliens, most of which pay zero in net taxes, enjoyed $4.2 billion from the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) last year. That’s more than the annual revenue from the selected oil tax deductions and corporate jet deductions combined!Please click here for the rest of the post.

9. In Praise of Jon Huntsman

For the first time since World War II, the American economy has created net ZERO jobs. I have seen a way to jump start recovery. And amazingly Jon Huntsman is leading the way.I realize that with Rick Perry announcing at the RedState Gathering I am supposed to be in Rick Perry’s camp or something. In truth, I would be glad to support any of the Republican candidates and absolutely will not endorse a single one of them.The only candidate in the GOP I do not care for is Jon Huntsman. I have made those reasons clear and there is no reason to hash them out there again because I want to sing his praises right now. Shocking, I know.Ambassador/Governor Huntsman has released his plan to jump start the economy. It is really good. It sets a much higher bar for the GOP than the other candidates. In fact, I dare say the other candidates are on notice that Huntsman’s plan should be their benchmark.Please click here for the rest of the post.