Mitt Romney: Obama Will 'Do Anything' to Get Elected

I hope he keeps hammering O as he's been the last few days. I've been tweeting Team Romney with my concerns, so who knows, maybe I'm getting through. I know someone got through to Mitt over the last week or so. That Chillicothe speech was a knock out.

The Hottest Woman in the World

I don't know if Bar's the hottest in the entire world. She's up there, and extremely easy on the eyes, but I can think of a few others who top the list.

In any case, previously, "Bar Refaeli Rocks Maxim September 2012 Cover in Luscious Lingerie Shoot."

CNN Waited 2 Hours and 45 Minutes to Report Shooting at Family Research Council

Mary Katharine Ham noted CNN's long delay in her post yesterday, "Cops: Suspect in FRC shooting volunteered at Washington LGBT center." Also on Twitter.

No one was killed, but still. This incident really was political, whereas Aurora, Tucson were not. And it was big breaking news. Some were suggesting if it were "HRC" and not "FRC" the media clamor would have rivaled the Gabrielle Giffords shooting. An LGBT volunteer looking to massacre Tony Perkins and the staff at the conservative policy organization? Doesn't fit the left's accepted narrative.

SPLC Gives Cover to Hate

An outstanding essay from William Jacobson, at Legal Insurrection, "SPLC’s hatewatch gives cover to hate."

William notes that he was a big supporter of the SPLC when the organization's primary emphasis was exposing the KKK. But they've moved on to attack as "hate speech" any conservative speech with which the y disagree. Recently the organization moved to provide cover for the homosexual left on same-sex marriage. SPLC has provided creds to the "hate group" charge, and it's just taken off in recent weeks, with terrible consequences:

And so it came to pass, support for retaining the centuries old definition of marriage as one man, one woman, routinely now is labeled as “hate speech” on campuses and increasingly in the liberal-dominated media. Groups which support retaining the definition now are hate groups — with SPLC cited as the authority.

Chick-fil-A brought to the surface the hysteria. A company whose executives supported retaining the traditional definition of marriage was threatened by politicians with denial of business licenses, its products were called “hate chicken,” its employees were rudely confronted, and protesters outside its stores harassed and belittled those who disagreed. Now Chick-fil-A is being banned from campuses.

And in almost every instance, the justification is that support for retaining the traditional definition of marriage is hate speech, and often the SPLC is cited as the authority because it has designated groups like the Family Research Council as a hate group.

SPLC gave cover to those who use the “hate speech’ and “hate group” labels to shut down political and religious speech, and now it has spiralled out of control.

PREVIOUSLY: "Depraved Homosexuals Blame Family Research Council for 'Climate of Violence' After Leftist Attempts Massacre."

It's the Progressives Who Seeks to Put Us in Chains

Mike at Cold Fury's on fire with this post, "Is Romney learning"?

I had it at the sidebar Blog Item Finder but it deserves a full entry of its own. Read it at that link.

Depraved Homosexuals Blame Family Research Council for 'Climate of Violence' After Leftist Attempts Massacre

The Hill reports on the political reaction to today's attempted massacre at the Family Research Council, "Shooting spurs heated debate on gay rights, 'hate group' label" (via Memeorandum).

The left has been firing unhinged hatred all day, from some homosexual lowlife on Twitter, for example (via Twitchy):

Yo @ewerickson, a shooting at #FRC HQ was a long time coming. Though I'm surprised the #AFA wasn't 1st. Hate begets hate. #NOH8 #Bigotry
— Chase J. (@Way2Blue4You) August 15, 2012

Plus, here's Sally Kohn on Twitter:

Yes, Family Research Council is a hate group — and calling them such condemns climate of violence FRC has encouraged
— Sally Kohn (@sallykohn) August 15, 2012

And there is so much bottled hatred in this Jessica Naomi Twitter feed, it's shocking:

@wiz1965 I DO NOT TOLERATE FUCKING GAY BASHING JESUS FREAKS LIKE YOU & @dloesch & I DO NOT NEED FUCKING JESUS FREAKS TO TOLERATE ME
— JessicaNaomi (@JessicaNaomi828) August 16, 2012

@joemygod who cares what gay basher tyrannical theocRAT @dloesch spews, let her shove her kill gays bible down her own throat & choke on it
— JessicaNaomi (@JessicaNaomi828) August 16, 2012

And Joe.My.God. unleashed a torrent of tweets condemning Tony Perkins, for example:

.@dloesch Do you also condemn the FRC's claim that gay people are inherently mentally ill pedophiles? bit.ly/wKMrjj
— JoeMyGod (@JoeMyGod) August 16, 2012

Epic hate-filled homosexual Dan Savage piles on:

Let's remember why FRC was labeled a hate group by Southern Poverty Law Center. It wasn't opposition to gay marriage: splcenter.org/get-informed/i…
— Dan Savage (@fakedansavage) August 15, 2012

And another epic hater, John Aravosis:

@causeofourjoy Hate is hate. And sadly, a lot of "traditional values" groups are simply collections of people who hate.
— John Aravosis (@aravosis) August 15, 2012

And Aravosis has a blog post justifying the violence, "Does the shooting at the Family Research Council exonerate the group's 20 years of hate?":

The information is still coming in, but someone apparently started shooting in the lobby of the religious right hate group Family Research council in Washington, DC today. A security guard was unfortunately wounded.

Conservatives, such as CNN's Erick Erickson, are already trying to tie Democrats to the attack. Why? Because people on the left had the audacity to challenge the Family Research Council's decades of hateful and bigoted attacks against gay and lesbian Americans. And other conservatives are calling for the Southern Poverty Law Center to no longer list the FRC as a hate group because of today's violence. That would be wrong.

Because of conservatives trying to take political advantage of the shooting I'm now forced to recap just how hateful and bigoted an organization the Family Research Council really is. I'd have preferred to have avoided that this so soon after the attack, but conservatives leave us no choice.

Continue reading.

I guess Aravosis doesn't get the satanic irony of defending the violence against FRC (because they "hate"), and then attempting to reject the shooting on the other hand (because violence is "never justified).

Unlike conservatives, the left has built up an industry attacking conservatives, and people with "traditional values," as "haters." After a while you reap what you sow.

Jonathan Tobin had a thoughtful piece earlier today, "Will the Left Pause After DC Shooting?":

...liberals who have often jumped to the conclusion that all Tea Partiers are violent racists because of stray comments from extremists need to remember that such tactics cut both ways. Those who have repeatedly cautioned conservatives to mind their tongues and be careful about using language that would delegitimize their opponents now must think about what they have been saying in recent weeks and months about the so-called “war on women” or supporters of Chick-fil-A. If they thought violent rhetoric emanating from the right was a problem that could be linked to violence, then they must understand that incitement against conservatives is just as noxious. That is all the more true because almost all of the accusations of right-wing involvement in violence have been proven false while the Washington gunman’s statements make it clear that he was motivated by left-wing politics.

Word.

And also from John Hinderaker, Power Line, "THOUGHTS ON THE FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL SHOOTING":

One of the most troubling aspects of contemporary public life is the frequency with which violent episodes take on a political coloration....

A wrong turn was taken in the Jared Loughner case. Loughner was a lunatic, so deranged that it remained doubtful for a long time whether he would even be competent to stand trial. There is no reason to think that his killing spree was politically motivated, and to the extent that he had a (crazy) political outlook, it was leftist; he listed The Communist Manifesto as one of his favorite books.

No matter. The Democratic Party and the media tried, incredibly, in retrospect, to blame Loughner’s shootings on Sarah Palin....

Then we had the absurdity of the Aurora, Colorado Batman shooter being identified breathlessly as a possible Tea Partier by ABC’s Brian Ross. No such luck. Another nut.

Today a public school teacher named Floyd Corkins II walked into the Washington, D.C. office of the Family Research Council, armed with a recently-purchased 9 mm pistol. He was stopped by the guard; news reports don’t clearly explain why. Perhaps he had already drawn his gun, or perhaps he just looked suspicious. Some reports say he was carrying a Chick-Fil-A bag. He shot the guard, who wrestled him to the ground. Along the way, Corkins made observations about the political positions of the FRC, and, when the guard pointed a gun at him–it is not clear, to me anyway, whether the guard was armed or he took Corkins’s gun away from him–Corkins begged him not to shoot, saying something to the effect that it was nothing personal, he just had a problem with the FRC’s politics....

...denouncing proponents of traditional marriage as “haters” isn’t the only instance of over-the-top liberal rhetoric; on the contrary, hysteria is their stock in trade. Thus, we see Barack Obama claiming that Mitt Romney causes cancer, and Joe Biden asserting bizarrely that Republicans want to put someone–African-Americans, I guess, by a process of elimination–”back in chains.” Liberals should take a deep breath and re-think how they talk about public policy issues. If they are looking for haters, it would seem that the mirror is a good place to start.

I've followed the homosexual left on almost a day-by-day basis since Proposition 8 passed on November 5th. 2008. It's been almost four years of non-stop intimidation, thuggery, crime, and violence. Today's attempted massacre was only the logical outcome of the left's long campaign of hatred. I think Moonbattery nailed it here, "Armed Moonbat Attacks Family Research Council":

Imagine if it turns out that Obama’s disgraceful election was the high water mark of moonbattery, and that faith, family, and freedom are the future. Libs aren’t going to get any less angry.

No, they're not. And that reminds my of some thoughts I wrote in 2008, "Shattering Myths on Domestic Radicals: 'The Baader Meinhof Complex'." There will indeed come a day in America when the radical left, the homosexual extremists, the Occupy Wall Street criminals, and the assorted enablers in the fever swamps of the Democrat (Socialist) Party finally get fed up with mainstream politics and take to the banner of revolutionary murder and violence.

Today's attempted massacre was indeed the culmination of left-wing hate and agitation. The seething anger is so palpable, it's bleeding from your screen. Someone's going to get killed one of these times, and the perp will be a radical leftist. The MSM's Obama-enablers are going to be shocked to have to report that the same people they've been pumping up for decades are in fact simply fanatical murderers who reject debate and won't take no for an answer.

RELATED: At The Other McCain, "I Blame Rachel Maddow!"

Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) Attacked Family Research Council as 'Hate Group' in 2010 Report

I'm sure there's lots more recent attacks, but this SPLC hit piece garnered at lot of attention at the time. See: "18 Anti-Gay Groups and Their Propaganda." And SPLC's got an FRC information page as well.

The FRC responded with a campaign called "Stop Hating | Start Debating":

Tell the radical Left it is time to stop spreading hateful rhetoric attacking individuals and organizations merely for expressing ideas with which they disagree. Our debates can and must remain civil -- but they must never be suppressed through personal assaults that aim only to malign an opponent's character.

Yeah, personal gun assault. No doubt the progressive "tolerance" brigades missed the memo.

More from Kerry Picket, "Human Rights Campaign posted Ryan would speak at 'hate group's annual conference' day before shooting at FRC." And At Twitchy, "Dangerous: Left screeched about Ryan speaking at ‘hate group’ FRC; HuffPo labels FRC hate group again." And, "Shooting at Family Research Council, suspect in custody; Update: Bomb squad enters building; Update: Mitt Romney issues statement; Update: Shooter ID’d."

More at Legal Insurrection, "HuffPo attacks Family Research Council just hours after shooting."

And the damage control begins, at GLAAD "LGBT organizations release joint statement regarding the shooting at Family Research Council (FRC)." (Via Memeorandum.)

PREVIOUSLY: "Family Research Council Shooting at Washington, D.C., Headquarters."

'Back in Chains': The Race Clownery of Obama-Biden

From Michelle's syndicated column, "Black like us: The race clownery of Obama-Biden."

Looks like Vice President Joe Biden has been taking extracurricular Democratic jive-talking lessons. The results of condescending liberals’ cynical racial pandering attempts are, as always, seismically cringe-inducing.

At a campaign event in Danville, Va., the gaffetastic veep dropped his g’s and picked up a bizarre twang in front of an audience of black voters. Middle-Class Joe swapped his Home Depot apron for an A.M.E. preacher’s robe and sermonized about the big, bad GOP.

Romney’s “gonna let the big banks once again write their own rules,” Biden shouted. “Unnnn-chain Wall Street,” he exclaimed with pulpit bravado. “They’re gonna put y’all back in chains,” the pasty Delaware wheeler-dealer faux-drawled. Extra-emphasis on the “y’all.”

Yes, Biden is rattling chains like an extra in “Roots.” This is the same politician of pallor who cracked jokes about Indians who work in 7-Elevens and who referred to his now-boss as “clean” and “articulate.” Yet, Biden’s demagoguery was met with approving hoots and hollers. Or rather, hollas.

Continue reading.

IMAGE CREDIT: The Looking Spoon.

Family Research Council Shooting at Washington, D.C., Headquarters

Thank God no one was killed.

The Wall Street Journal reports, "Guard Shot at Family Research Council Headquarters."

And at the Washington Examiner, "FRC was attacked as a ‘hate group’."

And at Instapundit, "I BLAME THE HATE-FILLED ELIMINATIONIST RHETORIC OF THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION AND ITS SUPPORTERS..."

No doubt.

More at Memeorandum. And Hot Air has updates. Turns out a second person was shot as well.

UPDATE: At Twitchy, "Crosshairs: Left calls Family Research Council ‘hate group,’ reacts to shooting; Shooter yelled about FRC’s ‘values’; Update: Left offers fake sympathy for FRC shooting; qualifies with ‘totally had it coming, haters’." And, "Unconfirmed reports: Family Research Council shooter carried Chick-fil-A bag, posed as intern; Update: NBC confirming."

Apparently the suspect, reportedly seen at this picture, was carrying Chick-fil-A promotional materials, attempting to look sympathetic to FRC's policy agenda. In contrast to recent shootings like Aurora and Tuscon, the FRC suspects's a vicious, hate-addled left-wing criminal perp. More at JWF, "Suspect Identified in FRC Shooting." Plus video reports at Associated Press and The Right Scoop.

The big story coming up will be the Obama-media's reporting. That Chick-fil-A angle is especially devastating to the radical left's bullshit "tolerance" agenda.

More, from ExJon on Twitter:

“If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun.” RT @jaketapper i'm told the WH will have a statement on the FRC shooting...
— Jon G. (@ExJon) August 15, 2012

JWF updates, "Suspect Identified in FRC Shooting; Update: Was Volunteer at LGBT Clinic."

ZOMG! The Return of the 'Lightworker'

In 2008, the MSM's Obama-enablers constantly built up the Democrat candidate with ethereal, other-worldly iconography. The worst messiah-worship was from Mark Morford at the San Francisco Chronicle, which was deconstructed by Michelle Malkin quite mercilessly, "Obama the Lightworker." And media photography repeatedly portrayed Obama with the celestial imagery of a halo, for example, "The Halos of Barack Obama."

So you can imagine my chagrin at this AP photo at left, published at Buzzfeed, "Barack Obama Is A Wizard," with the disclaimer, "This photo from the AP has not been doctored in any way." And the caption below the picture reads, "A light shines behind President Barack Obama as he speaks during a campaign event at Bayliss Park, Monday, Aug. 13, 2012, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, during a three day campaign bus tour through Iowa."

So there you go, "The Lightbringer."

Isn't that wonderful? Indeed, hard-line leftist Libby Spencer felt the thrill up her legs, "The Magic Moment":

Took me all day to decide if I liked this photo or not. Decided that I like it a lot. BuzzFeed billed it as The Wizard. I think I would have called it The Visionary. Either way it's a brilliant catch by the photograher. Confirmed to be authentic, as in not photoshopped.

Oh brother. "The Visionary."

Yeah, Obama can envision trillion dollar deficits as far as the eye can see, and then some. Even after four years Ms. Spencer still elevates Obama atop some mystical pedestal of "visionary" enlightenment. Who knows, perhaps O can employ his light-working skills to a circus job next January, that is, if he has time out for a vocation after his hectic golfing schedule.

And by the way, recall that Libby Spencer is the neo-communist blogger who, along with the antiwar Newshoggers hacks, cheered the insurgency's use of mentally-challenged women suicide bombers in Iraq as a "brilliant" tactical innovation. You can't make this stuff up. See: "Surge 'success' fades with resurgence of violence."

For the record, assuming it's true, I think it's just horrible that whoever was behind this latest disaster used Down's women to perpetrate the bombings but I don't see it as a sign of desperation. I see it as a sign of adaptation and a brilliant one at that.

Right.

A "brilliant" adaptation.

Despicable, but it makes sense. Ms. Spencer reflects perfectly the kind of demonic antiwar radicalism that candidate Obama presented in 2007, when he was the single most anti-American member of the U.S. Senate. Obama launched his presidential bid by declaring the war in Iraq a "complete failure." Basically, with our men and women dying in the field, progressives like this were rooting for their defeat. The enormous depravity involved in this is staggering, almost unfathomable. But you see it all the time if you keep your eyes on the neo-communist left. God have mercy on these people. Seriously.

RELATED: See, "The Great Betrayal: Obama's Wars and the War in Iraq."

BONUS: Last October, Libby Spencer's co-blogger Captain Fogg contacted my college with libelous complaints in one more of the many despicable attempts to get me fired from my teaching position. At the time there were two complaints, both anonymous. I knew Fogg complained because he cribbed his email to my college off the comments he left at the hate-blog American Nihilist. This was in response to comments I left at The Impolitic, Ms. Spencer's blog. So logic would suggest it was these two tag-teaming the workplace intimidation at my college. See: "W. James Casper's Demonic Band of Progressive Totalitarians."

This is the kind of evil you have to deal with when you stand up for decency and right out here. It's a lot of work, but vital for the preservation of freedom.

More later...

Mitt Romney Campaigns in Chillicothe, Ohio

I don't see the full video anywhere, but below's a highlight clip from the haters at Daily Kos.

And see The Hill, "Romney slams Obama in tough new speech" (via Memeorandum):

Mitt Romney used a tough new campaign speech to personally blast the Obama campaign on Tuesday, saying comments earlier in the day from Vice President Biden are "what an angry and desperate Presidency looks like."

"Mr. President, take your campaign of division and anger and hate back to Chicago," Romney said while campaigning in Ohio.

Romney was responding to Biden's suggestion that the GOP ticket's economic policies would “put y’all back in chains."

The vice president made the remark while campaigning in Virginia, during a discussion of Wall Street regulation.

"They’ve said it. Every Republican’s voted for it. Look at what they value and look at their budget and what they’re proposing. Romney wants to let the — he said in the first 100 days, he’s going to let the big banks once again write their own rules — unchain Wall Street," Biden said. "They’re going to put y’all back in chains. He’s said he’s going to do nothing about stopping the practice of outsourcing."

Romney repeatedly and harshly criticized Team Obama for the remarks.

The New York Times is also calling it a tough speech, "Romney Delivers a Harsh Rebuke of Obama at Final Stop on Bus Tour":

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — Hours after the vice president said that the Republican presidential ticket wanted to put Americans “back in chains,” Mitt Romney concluded a four-day bus tour with his harshest rebuke of the Obama administration to date, saying that its negative campaign tactics have “disgraced the presidency.”

In a speech that was striking in its stinging sweep, which aides said was animated by personal frustration with the recent tone of the race, Mr. Romney lashed out at attacks that he called “wild and reckless.”

“His campaign strategy is to smash America apart and then cobble together 51 percent of the pieces,” Mr. Romney said. “If an American president wins that way, we all lose.”

The latest offense, Mr. Romney said, came on Tuesday, when Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. delivered a speech in Iowa. Mr. Biden mocked Mr. Romney for seeking to undo regulations on big banks. “Unchain Wall Street,” the vice president said. “They’re going to put y’all back in chains.” Later, an Obama aide said the White House stood by those provocative words.

Continue reading.

Plus, Robert Stacy McCain was on the ground, "THE CHILLICOTHE ADDRESS: Romney’s Best Speech of the Campaign":

REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio — Folks, Mitt Romney’s event tonight in Chillicothe was the best I’ve seen of this campaign. The crowd was huge — estimated between 5,000 and 6,000 — and the setting was awesome: In front of the beautiful courthouse downtown, with the sun just setting behind the courthouse and the sky glowing golden.

The speech itself was awesome. I’d already heard Mitt speak twice earlier today — first at a coal mine in Beallsville and then in downtown Zanesville — and parts of the speech were already familiar. But I noticed Mitt was reading from a teleprompter at the Chillicothe event, so this particular speech was prepared in advance. But given the content, including references to the “wild and reckless accusations . . . a few hours ago in Virginia,” it was obvious that it had been updated quite recently.

At several points, Mitt was interrupted by cheers and applause, and at times the crowd broke into chants of “Mitt! Mitt! Mitt!” or “USA! USA! USA!” The candidate was fired up and the crowd was fired up, and it was very exciting to be there with my 13-year-old son Jefferson. Afterwards, as we left, I talked briefly to a National Correspondent Whose Name You Would Recognize and said, “Great speech, huh?” The correspondent replied: “He wrote it himself, you know.” My reaction was skeptical. Does any big-time politician write his own speeches anymore? I said, “Really? He wrote it himself?”

The correspondent said, “Swear to God. He wrote it himself” — and then did a cross-my-heart motion.

How would the correspondent know Mitt wrote the speech himself? I don’t know, but his confidence was such — and the speech was so genuinely awesome — that I called my source at Romney campaign HQ in Boston and asked him if he he had a text of the speech he could send me. It just arrived by e-mail and so here, ladies and gentlmen, is what I call The Chillicothe Address...

Read the full speech at the link.

More at The Lonely Conservative, "Romney to Obama: “Take Your Campaign of Division and Anger and Hate Back to Chicago”." And at Weasel Zippers, "Chutzpah: Obama Campaign Accuses Romney of Being “Unhinged”…"

I'll be updating this post with some of my earlier commentary on Romney's rapid response efforts. This is good, but Eric Fehrnstrom, Andrea Saul and the others can't continue falling down on the job.

Off! Opened for Red Hot Chili Peppers' Two-Night Stand at Staples Center

RHCP made it a punk rock homecoming at Staples Center over the weekend.

At LAT, "Review: Red Hot Chili Peppers celebrate L.A. at Staples."

"Hello L.A., my beautiful home, my beautiful home!"

The words were heartfelt and unsurprising from Flea (nee Michael Balzary), spoken Sunday with intense passion by the acclaimed bassist at the second of two sold-out nights at Staples Center with the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

It is all part of the band's life mission, which was never just musical, but also remains an endless celebration of the city and punk-rock scene that birthed them in the early 1980s.

The Chili Peppers catalog includes many lyrics and song titles about "Hollywood," "L.A." and "California," and the same message was there onstage, down to the Lakers banner draped across Flea's amplifiers and their opening act, Off! — homegrown punks chosen specially for the two Staples shows.

It's a glowing write-up, by Steve Appleford, and he concludes with hip review of Off!'s performance:

Off! is a band at all times stripped down to the punk-rock essentials, each of them dressed in T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, raging on guitar, bass and drums. The foursome — also including guitarist Dimitri Coats, bassist Steven McDonald and drummer Mario Rubalcaba — erupted immediately with "Panic Attack," as band members raged and hopped and banged their heads.

Bearded in ripped jeans and with long dreadlocks down his back, Morris barked with rage, humor and charisma, slapping his forehead or leering at the crowd. Songs were barely a minute in length, drawn from the band's two collections, including its album "Off!"

There were no covers from their former bands. No Circle Jerks or Black Flag favorites, just new tunes to set the stage on fire.

Sounds awesome. RTWT at the link.

Mountain Lion Roaming Los Angeles Griffith Park

I love the stories of mountain lion in the local parks, but this one is unusual in that Griffith Park is completely surrounded by urban areas. The lion must have crossed at least one freeway to get up there. It's a three-year old puma and, boy, he's a beefy sucker.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Mountain lion makes itself at home in Griffith Park."

The photos are here, "A mountain lion has settled in Griffith Park."

Sarah Palin on Biden's 'Back in Chains' Comments: 'Unhinged'

A great interview with Governor Palin, at C4P, "Governor Palin Goes ‘On the Record!’ (Video)."

Palin shakes her head and denounces Vice President Biden as a "drag on the ticket." She suggests Hillary Clinton should be brought on the bolster the ticket, jettisoning the Biden "unhinged" dead weight. Good Stuff.

RELATED: At LAT, "Biden clarifies 'chains' remark, takes shot at GOP rivals."

Paul Ryan Interview With Brit Hume on Fox News

Here's the video clip, at Fox, "Paul Ryan on Medicare, budget plan, relationship with Romney." If you're pressed for time, Ryan discusses Medicare, quite effectively, at about 10:00 minutes.

And FWIW, check the related piece from yesterday's Los Angeles Times, "A closer look at Paul Ryan's federal budget plan."

Russia Helps Syria Evade U.S.-European Economic Sanctions

I read the Wall Street Journal's report early yesterday, "Syria's Russian Connection: Regime Attempts to Sidestep Sanctions by Using Foreign Banks in Oil Sales."

And CNN had an interesting segment yesterday afternoon, and the video clip is here "Syria, Russia plans to bypass U.S.-EU sanctions?"

WSJ's report is behind the paywall, but the Current.Mil-Tech.News blog cross-posted it. An excerpt:

Syria's embattled regime laid plans to use Russian banks as part of an emergency effort to sidestep American and European sanctions on oil and financial transactions, according to Syrian government documents and correspondence reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

The documents offer an inside look at how a shrinking group of regime loyalists is working to prop up Bashar al-Assad's government. Over the past several weeks, senior Syrian officials have held a series of meetings to discuss how to conduct business after being cut off from most Western banking institutions and trade, the documents indicate.

The documents, which span a period from March until early July, also underscore the difficulties facing Western governments in sustaining comprehensive sanctions against Syria, as long as Damascus keeps its strong diplomatic alliance with Moscow. Earlier this month, Russia received a delegation of top Syrian economic officials, including its oil and finance ministers, to discuss the possibility of government loans and long-term oil deals, Syrian Deputy Prime Minister Qadri Jamil said in a news conference.

The sanctions, which began last year and were strengthened this spring, are aimed at Syria's oil and financial sectors. The unilateral actions are coordinated by Western and Middle Eastern countries allied against Syria, but aren't legally binding on Russian and other companies that don't have operations in the U.S. or Europe. Russia and China have used their veto power at the United Nations Security Council to block the possibility of international sanctions.

A cache of documents reviewed by the Journal includes what appears to be authentic correspondence between Syrian government officials and certain foreign companies. In interviews with the Journal, some people who were parties to correspondence confirmed details. None of the people reached by the Journal questioned the authenticity of documents referenced in this article, although some denied conducting any business with Syrian entities.

Syria isn't a globally significant oil producer. The 360,000 barrels of crude it pumps daily represent less than 1% of the world's daily oil production. But Syria's oil sales are one of the last sources of foreign currency for President Assad.

The roughly 150,000 barrels per day Syria has available for export, after its domestic needs are met, are worth approximately $380 million per month at current prices. That is a key reason why the U.S. and the European Union targeted Syria's state oil companies, its central bank and financial sector. The sanctions have cut Syria off from its traditional buyers in Europe, including in Italy, Germany and Spain...

The Syria crisis reminds me of Cold War international politics, which I've written about previously. See: "U.S. to Focus on Forcibly Toppling Syrian Government."

Republican Political Professionals 'Fret Over' Paul Ryan

I didn't read this Politico hit piece yesterday, at Memeorandum, "GOP pros fret over Paul Ryan."

Romney's Ryan pick is so bold and significant I almost laughed at the headline.

So now it turns out that the editors at the Wall Street Journal were irked enough to write about it. See, "The Bedwetter Caucus: GOP 'pros' trash the Republican ticket."

BONUS: Bryan Preston at PJ Media hammers Politco's "Frummish" report, "Attack of the Raging Professional Moderates!"

Anything Goes for Morally Bankrupt Obama Campaign — And There's No Price to Pay

From Roger Aronoff, at Accuracy in Media, "For the Left, Anything Goes and No Price to Pay":

It shouldn’t surprise anyone at this point that Stephanie Cutter, the deputy campaign manager of the Obama presidential campaign, could be so completely caught in a lie, as she was last week in the cancer ad produced by the Obama-linked Super PAC that was shown to be dishonest on so many levels, with no price to pay. She came back on numerous shows—NBC’s The Today Show, Andrea Mitchell’s show on MSNBC—and wasn’t even asked about that. On Andrea Mitchell’s show today she was asked about Vice President Joe Biden’s comment earlier in the day before an audience in Danville, Virginia that included several hundred black supporters. Biden told them that if elected president, Mitt Romney was “going to put y’all back in chains.” Cutter told Mitchell that President Obama stood behind both the sentiments and the comments themselves.

They're abject f-king liars.

More at that top link, and also seen there, Victor Davis Hanson, "Our Not So Best and Not So Brightest."

Mitt Romney 'Has Not Launched the Type of Aggressive Messaging and Counter Offensive Necessary to Beat the Campaign of a Saul Alinsky Acolyte'

From Laura Ingrahm on the O'Reilly Factor last Friday, the day Team Romney announced Paul Ryan's veep selection. Hey, it's been pretty awesome since then, but with the exception of the grassroots enthusiasm for Ryan, I'm not seeing the kind of really hard punch back we should be seeing. I'm personally enthusiastic, but still waiting for #RomneyRyan to get Obama on the ropes, to hammer him until he's staggering.

Here's Ingraham, "Laura Ingraham: What Mitt Romney has to do to turn his campaign around":

Now, I realize that some of you won't like hearing this, but if the election were held today, Romney would probably lose. Two surveys released within hours of each other by CNN and Fox reported Obama up by seven points and nine points respectively.

The swing state story is not a good one either. The real Clear Politics average has Obama up seven in Pennsylvania, five in Ohio, and three in Virginia. Obama leads by slim margins in Florida and Colorado.

So with unemployment still above eight percent and two-thirds of the country thinking that we're going in the wrong direction, how on earth is Obama still ahead? Is every poll other than Rasmussen flawed or biased? First reason, negative ads and Romney brand management.

Just about every week this summer, Democrats have launched a new attack against Romney. And by August, they've stereotyped him as a tax dodging, cancer causing, outsourcing, 1950s aristocrat with a car elevator. Romney has spent a lot of time raising money which is important and he's done that well. But he has not launched the type of aggressive messaging and counter offensive that is necessary to beat the campaign of a Saul Alinsky acolyte.

The Obama team throws a knife and Romney's team tosses a pillow. An effective rapid response team would have nailed Obama on the Super PAC cancer ad. I would have said something like this, we're all getting sick, sick of this poisonous style of campaigning and sick of politicians like President Obama who blame others for their broken promises and failed policies. Instead, Romney's spokeswoman responded by lauding universal healthcare in Massachusetts. Terrible...

Watch it at the link.

See also Politico, "Laura Ingraham: 'Romney's losing'."

PREVIOUSLY: See also my earlier concerns, "Mitt Romney Sought 'Pact' With Obama to Take 'Business or Family or Taxes' Off the Table."

Ashley Greene Bikini Pics!

Looking good.

At London's Daily Mail, "Making them Greene with envy! Ashley shows off her incredibly toned bikini body as she goes paddle-boarding with an equally buff mystery man."

I just mentioned Ms. Greene the other day. See, "Helen Gurley Brown, Former Editor-in-Chief of Cosmopolitan, Dead at 90."