RedState Morning Briefing

for April 27, 2012

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Yes, yes, we have a new look today.  It’s because I want your undivided attention and figured shaking things up would give it to me after you finished mumbling, “There he goes again.”  

We’ll return to normalcy conservatives, I promise.  Why shake things up today?  To highlight our sister publication.

As I mentioned last week, this month marks an exciting new chapter for our sister publication, Human Events. The nation’s first conservative weekly and Ronald Reagan’s favorite newspaper has a dynamic new look and additional firepower to provide more news and analysis than ever before.

Human Events has expanded its team of reporters and will now feature deeper coverage of the issues most important to you, ranging from the economy to energy and healthcare to national security.

We’re proud to be part of the Human Events family. Be on the lookout this weekend for more exciting details in an email, including powerful video coverage of the new Human Events being commemorated on the floor of the House of Representatives.

And now, the Morning Briefing.

1.  Death of the Moderate . . . Democrat

It is worth noting that on Tuesday several moderate Democrats went down in flames in Pennsylvania, continuing a trend that has escalated since 2008. Liberals do not want moderate Democrats in their caucus.

What is most interesting about it from a conservative perspective, however, is how there has not been a ton of coverage about the death of the blue dogs — more dogs dead in Barack Obama and the left’s war on dogs. Had moderate Republicans been defeated, we would have major stories on pretty much every news network and on the front page of every paper in America.

Routinely we hear that Republicans cannot win in New England, despite Republican successes in New England in 2010. Routinely we hear about the GOP driving moderates out of the party. Big tent cliches surround the stories. Rarely does the ongoing purging of the Democratic Party make such news.  Read the rest of the story . . .

2.  Yet Another Reason Why Today’s Unions Suck: Dues Devour Wage Increases

On the eve of Obama’s NLRB unleashing its new rules giving unions the ability to hold ambush elections—that is, the evisceration of employers’ ability to question or challenge unions in their quest to cherry-pick voting units—more data was just released by the Bureau of National Affairs that calls into question why anyone in their right mind would pay dues to a union today.

In addition to the $369 billion in underfunded union (private-sector) pension plans, the abundant evidence that unions kill companies and destroy jobs, today’s unions are doing such a miserable job at the one thing they’re supposed to do—negotiate contracts—that union members should demand refunds from their union bosses.

According to the April 9th issue of the Bureau of National Affairs Daily Labor Report (subscription required), unions negotiated contracts in 2011 that, in 41% of the contracts, employees received no increase in the contract’s first year.  Read the rest of the story . . . 

3.  The Way Things Are Going, They’re Gonna Crucify Me.

Apologies to John Lennon. Concept by Al Armendariz, Administrator of EPA Region VI. Repair Man Jack posted the video with analysis here.

No apology is necessary, Mr. Armendariz. In a perverse way, your comments reveal the tactics of your agency, and more importantly, the philosophy which motivates Mr. Obama’s entire Administration.

It also speaks of the arrogance of a government that thinks its citizens are its subjects, and whose middle managers find amusement in crushing people’s lives and livelihoods.

One more thing about the Roman analogy — mmm, as I recall, that strategy didn’t work out too well for the Romans. Does Mr. Obama play the fiddle?  Read the rest of the story . . .

4.  Sign Letter for Open Appropriations Process in the House

Every elected Republican came to Washington promising to slash spending and balance the budget.  Yet, when it comes time for the most direct way to enact those spending cuts; namely, the annual appropriations bills, most of them are missing in action.

In an ideal world, Republicans should hold the upper hand in negotiations over spending bills. They enjoy complete control over the House, while Harry Reid only has a tenuous hold on the Senate at just 53 seats.  Unfortunately, as we chronicled extensively here at Red State, House and Senate GOP leaders agreed to jettison the Ryan budget halfway through the process in favor of Harry Reid’s minibus and omnibus bills, which vitiated every worthy goal of that budget.  Read the rest of the story . . .