E-Blast Archives

A message from your 2016 GOP Presidential nominee...

2011-01-11T01:21:00Z

Posted By: Laura Ingraham

Notice how many times former Florida governor Jeb Bush uses the term "center-right" in his appeal for more Republican "outreach." Query: Have the Bushes decided to start moving away from the word "conservative"? And doesn't this push for Latino "outreach" sound a lot like "compassionate conservatism", the approach that begat Medicare expansion, the campaign for immigration amnesty, and No Child Left Behind? Memo to all "evolving" pols--true conservatism is the most empowering and uplifting political philosophy the world has ever seen. It doesn't need to be re-invented or re-branded or re-conceived. It needs to be properly understood, followed, and passed on to all Americans, regardless of their ethnicity, skin color or religion. Marco Rubio didn't win his senate race in Florida because of "Latino outreach." He won because he articulated clear conservative principles, while rejecting the idea that America's decline is inevitable.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/A-message-from-your-2016-GOP-Presidential-nominee.../993518228103485848.html

Heartbreaking: Iraqi churches shuttered amidst threats during Christmas

2010-12-24T01:23:00Z

Posted By: Laura Ingraham

As we prepare for Christmas with friends and families, let us not forget our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters across the Middle East--especially in Iraq. The American media gave scant coverage to the brutal murder of 52 (parishioners, priests and nuns) at a late October mass in Baghdad. Ditto for the non-stop series of anti-Christian attacks across the country in the post-Saddam era. The goal of the radical Shiites is obvious--drive Christians from their ancestral lands. Ethnic and religious cleansing. And now another sad development: many Iraqi churches are reluctantly closing their doors during the holy days of Christmas, to avoid more carnage. This plague of persecution, torture and intimidation has led to a mass exodus of Christians from Mosul and Baghdad. Meanwhile, our State Department has been disgracefully quiet and disengaged on this critical issue. Why? Are we so concerned about offending the region's majority Muslim population that we look the other way during the ongoing terror campaign against these innocent people? Are only certain minorities worth protecting? Please pray for our fellow Christians this Christmas and join me in demanding that our government do more to stop these atrocities.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Heartbreaking:-Iraqi-churches-shuttered-amidst-threats-during-Christmas/-589178496307362631.html

Americans doubts about Obama persist...

2010-12-23T01:24:00Z

Posted By: Laura Ingraham

A new Gallup poll shows that most Americans view our country as exceptional but only 37 percent think Barack Obama agrees. This may not surprise you, but it should alarm you.

Whatever our policy differences with a sitting president, we should at least have confidence that he loves America and believes in American superiority--economic, military, cultural. But from the beginning, he was abundantly clear that he wasn't satisfied with our country "as is," and wanted to remake it. Unfortunately, that included sinking us further into debt and apologizing on the world stage for what he perceived to be our past transgressions. Two years into this we see that his policies and approach have made our nation weaker and less influential on the world stage. And let's face it, Pres. Obama seems fine with that, happy to cede a leadership role to other countries and international institutions. (And he has a Nobel prize to prove it!) He seems more concerned about offending the citizens of Copenhagen than Columbus.

Obama's "we are the world" diplomacy didn't stop him from going zero for 2 in his lavish, high-profile bids to bring the Olympics and the World Cup here. Yet why was he surprised? After all, Qatar must be a more deserving soccer host than that bully-on-the-block USA....

Note to file: when we elect a president who doesn't believe we're something special, we shouldn't expect other countries to think any differently. Our next president will have a full plate, but combating the narrative of America in decline must be one of his top priorities. Otherwise more Americans will begin to view their country as Obama does--just another nation state in the global community.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Americans-doubts-about-Obama-persist.../673845305944485756.html

CONSERVATISM'S COMEBACK ... IN NEW YORK !?

2009-11-02T04:29:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Of course "Republican" Dede Scozzafava endorsed the Democrat in the New York-23 congressional race! When I first got word of her dropping out three days before Tuesday's special election, I knew it was only a matter of time.

Ten days earlier, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was a guest on my radio show. He was booked to discuss his new historical novel, but I sensed history was unfolding in upstate New York and wanted to hear his justification for endorsing the liberal Scozzafava over her Conservative Party challenger, Doug Hoffman. The Republican National Committee, in typical tin-ear fashion, also supported Scozzafava. During a rather spirited back and forth, Gingrich's main contention was that the people of NY-23 had rejected Hoffman in the primary, and thus his "conservative friends" should support that decision. Yet the "primary" Scozzafava won was determined not by "the people," but by a gaggle of party pooh-bahs who obviously have their heads up their posteriors. Had these people not seen, felt, and heard the spirit of this summer's townhall events? Where were Republican primary voters rallying for a politician like Scozzafava, who is pro-union, pro-abortion, and -- as we've since learned -- pro-Democratic Party? The Republican Party needs warriors ready to fight for conservative principles; and yet Scozzafava couldn't even muster the courage to discuss taxes with a reporter from the Weekly Standard.

Listeners' reaction to Gingrich was overwhelming. No less than 95 percent of callers and emailers were outraged. For them, the country is already way beyond party affiliation; why fight for the RNC if it no longer represents core conservative values -- like fiscal restraint, individual liberty, and a pro-growth agenda? "If he doesn't want to be part of the solution, he needs to get out of the way," wrote one listener in Kansas . And from a mom of five in Syracuse: "He may be a brilliant thinker and writer, but he's soooo '90s." Ouch.

President Obama has done something no GOP pol has managed since Ronald Reagan -- he's spurring a reinvigorated conservative movement that transcends party, geography, and its own internal factions. It's now obvious the country didn't move left alongside Obama's ascendancy. The pundits and intellectuals who delivered election night eulogies to conservatism owe the public, and their own credibility, one big mea culpa. Conservatism is the most influential political philosophy of the past 100 years because it's built upon essential truths. Here's to more triumphs of orthodoxy over oscillation.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/CONSERVATISMS-COMEBACK-...-IN-NEW-YORK-!/-695144075757706334.html

TEN FOR '10: WINNING WASHINGTON BY EMPOWERING AMERICANS

2009-09-16T05:51:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Remember the days when the press ooohed and aaaahed every time Barack Obama and Michelle went out to dinner? The President's jump shot ... the First Lady's arms ... the adorable kids ... the dog search ... the vegetable garden ... it was Operation Razzle Dazzle run by an image machine working overtime. Team Obama believed that if people saw the First Family as cool and fun, they would be more likely to think Obama's "remaking of America" was cool and fun, too. Of course, it didn't work out this way.

Americans, it turns out, are sophisticated enough to separate their personal appreciation for the Obamas from their views on the President's policies. At this point, the entire White House operation is starting to have the look and feel of a tired Vegas lounge act. The economic forecast looks grim to most of us, who wonder why Washington can't cut back on spending in the same way our own families have. Everything Obama proposes carries a hefty price tag -- which ends up further burdening already beleaguered taxpayers and small businesses, who sooner or later pick up the tab for this profligate spending. The health-care debate has turned out to be a referendum on how well Washington manages big programs. The answer? Not well.

Clearly, there is a genuine opportunity today for any politician who is willing to stand with these Americans who feel Washington just doesn't give a damn about them. These people are looking for a voice of reason amidst the chaos and insanity of a world where numbers like $10 trillion are casually tossed around.

This feels like 1993, the last time I recall such widespread, intense anger with Washington. Back then, Gingrich's Contract with America tacked its sail to these prevailing winds, helping a demoralized GOP coast to a stunning 54-seat congressional coup. We need a new blueprint for a new age that our fellow Americans can read and think about. I suppose we could just sit back and hope to beat Democrats by default, but that would be foolhardy. Obama is a master campaigner and loves competition. The GOP needs to outline a coherent platform of specific ideas that every Republican candidate can run on in 2010 -- that way there's a clear post-election agenda that, assuming big GOP pick-ups, brings its own mandate. Call it "10 for 2010."

1) Taxpayers' Bill of Rights (TABOR). Limit federal spending growth to the percentage in population growth plus the rate of inflation; provide taxpayers the option of filing a post-card sized return using a low, flat tax rate of 15%

2) End Tax-funded abortions. Stop federal payments to Planned Parenthood and prohibit any taxpayer-subsidized health insurance plan from covering abortion

3) Defend American Borders. Complete America's border-protection initiatives using remaining funds from the so-called stimulus bill

4) King Dollar. Preserve a strong dollar so that Americans' savings aren't wiped out by inflation and the U.S. dollar remains the world's reserve currency

5) Empower American Business. Immediately slash corporate tax rates to 15% and scrap the capital-gains tax altogether

6) Defend America. Strengthen America to defend our homeland and fully fund an operational, layered missile-defense system

7) Statism Exit Plan. De-fund czars; immediately cease bailout payments to failed companies; ban future bailouts

8) End Generational Theft. As few believe America's entitlement programs will be able to pay benefits to future generations, provide younger workers the choice of diverting payroll/Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts

9) Restore America's System of Justice. Introduce penalties for frivolous lawsuits, where those who launch unsuccessful lawsuits are liable for the defendants' legal bills

10) American Energy Independence. All-of-the-Above strategy that embraces alternatives, expands and accelerates exploration and production of oil and natural gas, and jumpstarts dramatic increases in nuclear power

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/TEN-FOR-10:-WINNING-WASHINGTON-BY-EMPOWERING-AMERICANS/37726763025265498.html

OBAMA'S LAST STAND

2009-09-11T02:24:00Z

Posted By: Staff

I've just found out that once again, Barack Obama is shadowing me. I am in Minneapolis for a speech (scheduled for many weeks) about how we must defeat Obamacare. And now he is heading to Minneapolis for a speech (just scheduled) about how we (the people who disagree) must be defeated. What can we expect from Obama? Surely he won't miss the opportunity to trash America (a la last night's "we're the only modern Democracy that doesn't have blah blah blah"). He will no doubt continue to make farcical claims about how his plan won't add a dime to the deficit or interfere with patient-doctor relationships. Z-z-z-z-z

What is most striking about his Wednesday night speech is that for all the breathless build-up, he really didn't say anything to answer the main criticisms of the plan. For months now, he has been making three claims: (1) we will cover everybody; (2) there will not be significant rationing; and (3) we will not add significantly to the budget deficit. Last night, he merely repeated these same claims.

The problem is that those statements cannot be true. If we are giving everyone free health insurance, we will either see rationing, much higher taxes, or much higher deficits. That's just common sense. He can keep making these claims all he wants, but they're just not persuasive.

So despite all the fanfare, the president's speech was the same old same old broth with a bunch of red-meat rhetoric tossed in for the left. He brought no certainty or clarity to the debate. He didn't lay out any deadlines. He didn't even say whether he will veto a bill that does not contain a public option. And he certainly didn't respond to the serious concerns that have been raised by Republicans and others about the financial and economic consequences of this bill. Points that are not credible when made in a normal tone of voice are not made more credible in the louder tone of voice he used last night.

Of course the media savored the slaps at conservatives over "death panels" and the like. And for a few days, we will hear that the speech was a "home run." But if the GOP holds firm, and gives the people time to process the speech, we will see that he hasn't really answered any of the major concerns expressed by so many Americans during August.

My prediction: the summer of the Democrats' discontent will turn into their fall.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/OBAMAS-LAST-STAND/924754872594879700.html

WHY HE'S LOSING

2009-09-02T00:51:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Political guru Charlie Cook is predicting Democrats will lose 20+ seats in the House of Representatives next year. Pollsters Zogby, Gallup, Rasmussen all show a striking downward trajectory of public approval for this administration, across almost every major demographic group. So why is this happening?

It's true that President Obama won last November because people wanted a change from Bush policies. But for many independent voters, that meant an end to dirty politics and Washington excess -- promises Obama made at every stop along the campaign trail. Instead what they got is what most conservatives predicted -- huge deficits, higher taxes, a ballooning federal government, and a weak, appeasement-first foreign policy. Heck, when we can't even convince Scotland to keep the despised Lockerbie bomber behind bars, you know we've lost ground.

Some -- such as David Brooks of the New York Times -- suggest Obama's in trouble because liberals in Washington hold too much sway over his administration. Newsflash: HE IS A LIBERAL! He is obsessed with climate change. He adores socialized medicine. He wants to jack taxes even higher. Obama, in other words, is a typical 80s Ivy League liberal who still thinks Reagan got it all wrong. Far from being too influenced by lefty powerbrokers, the president has breathed them new life.

In the end, history will likely show that when Obama started dropping in the polls, it wasn't because "he took on too much at once" or "because he wasted time negotiating with Chuck Grassley." He lost ground because his ideas were rejected by the American people, just as they were after the Carter era.

Most Americans want the government to tighten its belt and clear the way for businesses to expand. We want real economic growth, fueled by dynamic companies creating new job opportunities. Fake growth, enabled by government make-work and financed by Chinese lenders, is a lot less popular -- and, for that matter, sustainable.

For all the recent discussion of the Kennedy dynasty and Obama's glamor, the reality is that even from the grave, Reagan is still beating Democrats on the issues that matter most.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/WHY-HES-LOSING/500565961594737249.html

"USEFUL IDIOT" WATCH...

2009-03-17T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Memo to Meghan McCain: Enjoy the media coverage while it lasts, but know you're being used. You are the flavor of the month in left-wing media land because you are a Republican bashing the GOP. Likewise, your dad is most popular among the same people when he is slamming his Republican brethren in full-blown "maverick" fashion. At least he backs up his views with a lifetime of sacrifice and public service. What is Ms. McCain's own political, business, or real-world experience that lends credibility to her argument that the GOP needs to "moderate" (read: abandon its core principles)?

Now the Left is seizing on one satirical line from our show to paint Meghan as the victim of a right-wing hate crime. This comes from the same playbook responsible for the ongoing demonization of Rush Limbaugh -- where his take on President Obama's economic policies are misrepresented as some kind of attack on America. Their goal is to malign outspoken conservatives (specifically in talk radio) as members of a radical fringe movement whose right to free speech is questionable at best.

The left's indignation in this instance is manufactured and totally phony. If any off-the-cuff remark about a woman's size was condemnable, then where was the outrage when President Obama's passing reference to Jessica Simpson's "weight battle" during his Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer? And of course they look the other way when obvious personal attacks are levied against conservatives. Remember when Al Franken was the toast of all media for his book "Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot"? Last month The View's Joy Behar called him a "fat guy"; and when I was a guest on The View a few years back she ridiculed Ann Coulter and me as "peroxide" blondes on Fox. I laughed it off. If you can't stand the heat...get out of the punditry business.

Next time, just for fun, Meghan should pretend that she's had a change of heart and is now a pro-life conservative. Then she'll really see how the Mean Girls treatment feels.

Click here to listen to the entire segment from March 13th, instead of the version that was edited and sent around by left wing smearmongers.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/USEFUL-IDIOT-WATCH.../818045149621598687.html

What a difference 17 days make!

2009-02-07T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

What a difference 17 days make!

It seems like just yesterday when the biggest challenge facing President Obama was whether or not he could keep his Blackberry, or which puppy to get his daughters. Now, long after Will.I.Am and Beyonce have cleared out of Washington, and the glow of the inauguration has faded, reality is setting in. Turns out that leading is a lot more difficult than campaigning.

Last night, a petulant President Obama, frustrated that the so-called stimulus bill had stalled, railed against "cable talkers" and whined about how he "inherited this debt"! Excuse me, I thought he was elected on the promise that he was uniquely positioned to clean up America's economic mess! Even the perpetually mushy David Gergen said President Obama's speech was overly partisan and risky. Lately, President Obama sounds a lot more like candidate Obama -- yet now the slogans and high-minded rhetoric are odd and ineffective.

The more time people have to absorb the contents of this spendiferous bill, the faster its popularity sinks. According to the latest CBS News poll, only 21 percent believe the bill will significantly shorten the recession. Forty-five percent say it won't make a darn bit of difference! So today, President Obama announced ... an economic advisory board! The last refuge of a clueless politician is the formation of a commission, task force, or, in this case, an advisory board. So this is what he meant by "change"? Hiring more Washington "experts" is the last thing we need now. What we need is real leadership.

There is no doubt about it -- this economic recovery plan is the centerpiece of President Obama's first year in office. Yet as it's now surrounded by controversy and questions, the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan" is on the verge of being passed without any meaningful Republican support. President Obama, in the role of Charmer-in-Chief, wrongly thought he could win Republican support merely by wining and dining a few GOP leaders at the White House. Thank God they aren't such cheap dates.

If he'd stuck around Congress a little longer, President Obama might have learned just how messy the legislative process can get without strong executive leadership. Now he's stuck trying to convince Americans that his radioactive crap sandwich is just what the doctor ordered.

Good luck with that.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/What-a-difference-17-days-make!/555286139971027096.html

Laura's E-Blast - January 28, 2009

2009-01-29T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Who said Republicans were a bunch of spineless, unprincipled ninnies? Tonight's news that every single House Republican voted NAY on the Democrats' Generational Theft Act of 2009 is already breathing new life into conservatism. Notwithstanding tales of Republicans fighting for pictures of themselves yukking it up with President Obama, the congressional GOP -- finally free from President Bush -- is no longer apologizing for its conservatism.

Even better: Republicans are also rediscovering that conservatism can and should be fun. Rep. John Carter, a Republican from Texas, has introduced a bill that would create the "Rangel Rule." Advancing the idea that everyone deserves equal treatment under the law, Carter's bill stipulates that anyone paying overdue taxes can write "Rangel Rule" across his/her returns and the IRS would be forbidden from charging fees or penalties.

House Republicans said their counter stimulus bill would create twice as many jobs at half the cost. Whose numbers did they rely on? None other than President Obama's Council of Economic Advisers' Chairwoman. (Clearly, a right-wing nutjob!)

Here's hoping Senate Republicans follow in-kind. Perhaps one might even have the audacity to filibuster.

Polls may show Obama to be the cat's pajamas, but that doesn't mean his policies make sense. Committing America to a trillion dollars in new debt is a path not to prosperity, but to poverty. Senate Republicans need to embrace their conservative principles now more than ever.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---January-28,-2009/-183790594255537473.html

Laura's E-Blast - January 16, 2009

2009-01-17T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Like every history-conscious president before him, President Bush has spent his final weeks in office shaping what he hopes to be his legacy. In short, he wants to be remembered for advancing America's security. In last night's final primetime national address, he described how after al Qaeda attacked America, "most Americans were able to return to life much as it had been before Nine-Eleven. But I never did. Every morning, I received a briefing on the threats to our Nation. And I vowed to do everything in my power to keep us safe." He's taken this message of protecting Americans to interviews with Mike Wallace, Brit Hume, and Sean Hannity.

He even sat down with Larry King.

Yet there's one thing he's still not done: Commute the sentences of U.S. Border Patrol Agents Ignacio "Nacho" Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean.

As Laura Ingraham Show listeners already know, Ramos & Compean were arrested and jailed after shooting an illegal alien along the El Paso border in 2005. The victim, not that he deserves such a label, was a drug smuggler fleeing for Mexico. He wasn't badly hurt, yet after a problem-riddled trial, the agents received 11- and 12-year sentences. (By comparison, radical attorney Lynne Stewart received 28 months for providing material support to anti-American terrorists.) Since then, Ramos & Compean have been locked up in solitary confinement; Ramos has been beaten by fellow inmates, his home has been burglarized and vandalized; both agents' children are being raised without a father, and their wives have been deprived of their husbands.

Again, all of this comes as payment for their attempts at securing America. Commuting Ramos and Compean's sentences would hardly be partisan or even controversial.

Democrats like Reps. Bill Delahunt (D-Ma.), Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) support commutation, as do all but three of Texas's 34 congressmen. Even Johnny Sutton, the U.S. Attorney who tried the case, has said the decade-plus sentences are excessively harsh.

Last night President Bush acknowledged the importance of immigration and border control (homeland security) to American security: "America has gone more than seven years without another terrorist attack on our soil. This is a tribute to those who toil day and night to keep us safe - law enforcement officers, intelligence analysts, homeland security and diplomatic personnel, and the men and women of the United States Armed Forces."

President Bush has shown, time and again, his reservoir of compassion for U.S. troops is bottomless. Yet the Border Patrol is no less deserving. Already Ramos and Compean have served three years behind bars. Before departing, Bush must right this grave wrong - by issuing a final reminder that he always stood behind those serving on behalf of America's security.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---January-16,-2009/-526130007874956341.html

Laura's E-Blast - January 9, 2009

2009-01-10T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

If you've ever wondered what America might look like as a one-party country, Republicans are trying to help you out. And by "trying" I mean rolling over and dying. President Elect Obama and his congressional henchmen are in the midst of swiping another $1 trillion-plus from American taxpayers. And Republicans -- who once upon a time professed concern for taxpayers -- could apparently care less. Either they believe stealing from our grandkids makes for sound policy, or they're too afraid to second-guess the second coming of Jimmy Carter. Whatever the case, it's embarrassing.

Today's Gallup poll finding 53 percent of Americans support Obama's "stimulus" plan is actually shocking. That his plan only registers support from half the country -- without anyone speaking in opposition! -- shows not every American has lost his way. Unfortunately those who have all work in Washington.

Today's pols -- and their media co-conspirators -- are monopolizing the "debate" over America's recovery. To sell a Washington economic power-grab, Obama spin-doctor David Axelrod is reportedly teaching Dems to use poll-tested, focus group-approved words -- like, "recovery" instead of "recession," "investment" instead of "infrastructure," "bold" and "urgent" instead of "a reckless and impulsive waste."

The sad reality is that marketing-as-politics actually works. Just ask President-elect Barack "Hope 'n Change" Obama. Or even Republicans of yore. In the 90s, opposition to the estate tax grew to more than 80 percent once Republicans took to slurring it the "death tax."

Now, everyone's a slave to platitudinous political rhetoric. No pol interested in surviving the next election will oppose an "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan," aka Obama's trillion-dollar Treasury blowout.

Yet it's not like we need to dust off our Econ 101 textbooks to find out how well this latest "fix" will work. The U.S. economy has already taken a swan dive into a bottomless abyss of debt. This time last year Congress passed a $200 billion "stimulus" -- and just look how well that's worked out.

Let's see how popular this "stimulus" bill is once Republicans rebrand it the "Downfall of the American Economy Act." Or the "Trillion Dollar Deficit Protection Act." Or, my favorite, the "Suicide Pact of 2009." Whether the GOP's still capable of being so bold is another matter. After yesterday's Obama presser, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell took to the mic and threw down the gauntlet. Yes, he'd support a "stimulus bill" -- but only if it costs less than a trillion dollars. Pow! Take that, Democrats!

But at the risk of sounding cynical, it's worth noting Congress still has a few voices of sanity. USA Today reports, "As Congress prepares to borrow and spend billions of dollars to revive the economy, a growing group of conservative House Democrats is angling for long-term changes to reduce the federal government's soaring budget deficit. Leaders of the 51-member Blue Dog coalition ... say they want tighter spending controls in exchange for their support of the proposed stimulus."

That's right -- Democrats are now the last best hope for the American taxpayer. Not that the Blue Dogs will ever prevail against their party's poobahs.

To at least slow down America's rapidly accelerating deficits, the first step is clear. Republicans need to address its leadership deficit. Fast.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---January-9,-2009/496802144809278505.html

Laura's E-Blast - November 24, 2008

2008-11-25T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

It was show time in Chicago today, as Barack Obama trotted out his economic team in an attempt to boost Americans' confidence in our financial future.

Obama voiced support for the Congressional Democrats' massive stimulus package -- another $700 billion of YOUR money. The bill is planned for delivery right when Obama takes office in January. But for some in the church of Obama, that's not soon enough.

In Saturday's New York Times, columnist Gail Collins urged Bush to step aside now so Obama could take power immediately! This is what she wrote: "Putting Barack Obama in charge immediately isn't impossible. Dick Cheney, obviously, would have to quit as well as Bush. In fact, just to be on the safe side, the vice president ought to turn in his resignation first... Then House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would become president until Jan. 20. Obviously, she'd defer to her party's incoming chief executive, and Barack Obama could begin governing."

Then there's Tom Friedman, Collins' colleague on the New York Times editorial page, who thinks that Bush should allow Obama's Treasury secretary to step in now.

And way back in October, The Boston Globe, anticipating an Obama win, also outlined a plan for the Bush Administration to pack it in before Inauguration Day.

We need the Messiah and we need him now!

Two problems -- one, this is just stupid. President Bush is already consulting with Obama on the economy. Plus, Bush and Obama both seem to believe that bailouts are the right medicine for an ailing economy anyway.

Second, subverting the orderly transition of power would only heighten the sense of panic -- not just about the economy but about the state of government itself.

Obsessive Bush hatred is an affliction that even Obama's victory didn't seem to cure. Maybe Ms. Collins should take some of her own advice and retire immediately. Readers would receive better economic analysis if she just handed her column over to an intern...or one of the Times' restroom attendants.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---November-24,-2008/637485866795186605.html

Laura's E-Blast - November 5, 2008

2008-11-06T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

First, let no one tell you that this election was a failure of conservatism--it was the product of failed Republican leadership. Conservatism gave way to "compassionate" big-government Republicanism, which failed big time. Too many on Capitol Hill abandoned first principles like fiscal discipline, and failed to connect with middle class economic anxiety that has been brewing for two years, not two months. When one loses one's sense of purpose, so too goes moral clarity and credibility.

Despite all this, and despite Obama's huge money and media advantage, 56 million Americans still pulled the lever for the Republican ticket. That is not nothing. It certainly is a base we can build on.

Second, we are moving into a new era that demands new leadership. You who were not lulled into complacency and stood for conservatism are going to have more influence over the GOP going forward than you've had during the Bush years. So take heart.

Third, after Inauguration Day, President Obama will have to finally start making some hard choices that no liberal has had to make. Is he really willing to trash the economy in an effort to stop global warming? Is he really willing to let terrorists reign in the Middle East? Is he really willing to go along with the casual anti-Americanism of most Europeans? If he does, his popularity will erode quickly. Conservatives, in the meantime, will be rebuilding, and refreshing their message and messengers.

Fourth, communications skills matter. Laugh all you want about Obama's soaring rhetoric (and we do), there is no doubt that we got beaten in the PR department. We must cultivate a new generation of leaders who are both proud of their conservative beliefs and comfortable articulating them with vision, clarify and optimism.

Fifth, too many Americans -- younger people especially -- don't understand conservatism. Obama advertised everything under the sun (health care, tax cuts, expanded government services, compassionate judges, peace in our time). Those who've never learned the basics of American history or conservative philosophy have a hard time grasping how anyone could oppose this bill of goods. Part of the answer is taking back our schools and universities. We also need to stop relying on ineffective slogans ("legislating from the bench," "class warfare," "socialism!") and start conveying broader principles and truths through direct, pithy language.

Let the rebuilding begin!

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---November-5,-2008/534657938467605797.html

Laura's E-Blast - November 4, 2008

2008-11-05T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

McCain can win. Here's how, via Bill Kristol:

McCain would have to win every state where he now leads or is effectively even in the polls (including North Carolina, Indiana and Missouri). He'd have to take Florida and Ohio, where he's about four points down but where operatives on the ground give him a pretty good shot. That gets him to 247 of the 270 votes needed.

McCain's path to victory is then to snatch Pennsylvania (which gets him to 268), and win either Virginia, Colorado, Nevada or New Mexico (states where he trails by about four to seven points) -- or New Hampshire, where he's 10 points behind but twice won dramatic primary victories.

Here's an alternative path, via John McCormack:

Colorado - Obama leads 51/47, after last week's 50/46. Within the MOE, but not much movement.
Florida - McCain leads 50/49, after trailing 51/47 last week. Definitely moving towards McCain.
Missouri - Dead heat at 49 all, after Obama led 48/47 last week. Movement to McCain.
North Carolina - McCain 50/49, after being up 49/48 last week.
Ohio - Tied at 49, after Obama led 49/45 last week. Movement to McCain.
Virginia - Obama leads 51/47, same as last week.
Nevada - Obama leads 49/43.

During the Democratic primaries, Hillary Clinton did 3 points better on Election Day than she did in the final Real Clear Politics averages of polls for Ohio and Pennsylvania. It's possible that McCain might outperform the polls in Virginia, Colorado, and Nevada by four or five points.

And, of course, McCain would only need one of those three states if he pulls off an upset in Pennsylvania, where he's currently trailing by 7.6 points according to RCP. But remember that Hillary Clinton was down by 8 points in New Hampshire before she eked out a dramatic 2 point win in the Democratic primary.

Today's Election Day and Sen. Obama still leads in national polling. The question: What more does Obama have to do to prove he's unfit for the presidency? Have extensive ties with terrorists? Check. Proclaim America's founding document to be "fundamentally flawed"? Check. Threaten to bankrupt an industry that provides half this country's juice? Check. Promise to weaken America's military, empower the United Nations, boost the standing of the world's tyrants. Check, check, check. Push an economic plan ripped from the pages of Karl Marx? Check. Denounce self-interest -- i.e., the lifeblood of a market economy -- as "selfishness"? Check. Have a late-game revelation about an aunt who's an illegal alien enjoying public assistance, ignoring deportation orders, and making illegal campaign contributions to Obama? Check, check, and check.

Sure, America could use a change in focus, but that doesn't mean the most radical departure possible will somehow pay the biggest dividends. On the contrary. Everything Obama threatens to do will actually weaken America and her standing in the world.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---November-4,-2008/475747993959045798.html

Laura's E-Blast - November 3, 2008

2008-11-04T01:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

I may be temporarily silenced due to a wicked virus that has left me with laryngitis, but I have a lot to say about the homestretch. First, some thoughts on the campaigns.

What the Obama campaign did that worked:

1. raised huge sums of money
2. understood that there was no reason for Obama to be too available to the media
3. pivoted to the right on numerous issues
4. responded to all efforts to probe Obama's past with claims of "smear" and "Karl Rove"
5. targeted Southeastern states like VA, NC, GA, and FL
6. had no harmful leaks
7. for the most part, kept Michelle out of the spotlight
8. managed to find a way to win without having to owe anything to the Clintons

What the Obama campaign did that didn't work:

1. picked Joe Biden, who hasn't really helped them at all
2. failed to build popular support for all the liberal policies Obama intends to implement after the election

What the McCain campaign did that worked:

1. made some very entertaining ads ("The One" and Paris Hilton)
2. had a very successful convention
3. brought Sarah Palin into the national spotlight

What the McCain campaign did that didn't work:

1. failed to recognize that the left would try to destroy Palin, and that any damage to Palin would also hurt McCain
2. failed to stop campaign officials from leaking to the press
3. kept switching attacks on Obama, instead of simply going after him as a tax-and-spend liberal
4. completely mishandled the economic crisis (should have either opposed the bailout or said nothing--this was their biggest error.)
5. never clearly decided whether he wanted to be a "maverick" or a conservative
6. did not recognize until very late that the voters care more about domestic policy than foreign policy
7. did not articulate a persuasive economic argument

Turning to Election Day. John McCain offers a clear and stark contrast to the slogans and bromides of an untested Barack Obama. McCain's policies are undeniably pro-growth, pro-military, and pro-American. Obama's record is that of a hard-core left-wing Chicago politician. Since the general election began, however, he has tried to sound more like a moderate conservative on economic and foreign policy issues. The man who has never voted to eliminate wasteful spending now says he'll "go through the budget line by line and eliminate programs that don't work" as well as "give tax relief to the 'middle class." The man who has opposed every major military weapons program now claims he'll "modernize our military," too!

So who's the real Barack Obama? The one who wants America to emerge stronger from this economic crisis, or the one who wants to "bankrupt the coal industry"? Maybe we should ask people who've known him since he kicked off his political career. Does anyone have Bill Ayers's e-mail address?

Sarah Palin continues to be the bright spot in the McCain campaign (which explains why the media has held her to a standard that it never applied to Joe Biden), and she'll be a force in the conservative movement for years to come. It was sadly predictable that John McCain used precious time and energy Saturday night courting the media elite by appearing in an SNL skit ridiculing Palin. If McCain loses, we will remember this truth: He's always been more comfortable blasting Republicans and conservatives than his liberal friends. And in the homestretch of this campaign, he chose to give a wink to those who spent the past several weeks working overtime to destroy a good woman.

Go Sarah.

And, as I predicted, the media know-it-alls are bemoaning the "ugliness" of the campaign in its final hours. (Translation: McCain and his supporters are finally telling us what we need to know about Obama, and it's not pretty.) The Obama cheerleaders at NBC have been giddy about the prospect of an Obama presidency all along. But today NBC hit an all time low when its go-teed political director Chuck Todd came out and declared the race over. In front of his magic electoral map, he said McCain had "zero percent" chance of winning the election. This is outrageous. If facts were different--if Obama were the one on the ropes and the media were writing off his chances -- his supporters would cry foul and charge voter suppression.

So be of good cheer when you cast your vote tomorrow. And bring everyone you know with you to the polls--there is too much at stake to sit out this one. Wolverines!

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---November-3,-2008/509354163378455918.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 30, 2008

2008-10-31T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

For many Americans this campaign season seems to have gone on forever. Yet with only five days until Election Day, there is still much that we don't know about Barack Obama. Among the unresolved questions:

Khalidi tape. Here's a compromise, LA Times. How about at least starting by providing a second-by-second transcript of this tape? This way you don't break your supposed agreement with your source and Americans receive the information they need.

The Times's initial story DID report Obama saying that his many dinners with Khalidi had been "consistent reminders to me of my own blind spots and my own biases. For that reason, I'm hoping that, for many years to come, we continue that conversation." Does Obama still speak with Khalidi? What biases is Obama trying to overcome? How is Khalidi helping in that effort?

Campaign finance information. Obama has yet to release information on more than 80 percent of his contributors. Could this be because it's really more like 5 percent posing as 80 percent? (Obama's website allows contributors to use phony names, thereby allowing well-off financiers to circumvent contribution limits.)

Does Obama support or condemn Ohio state officials using government computers to rifle through Joe the Plumber's personal paperwork in a partisan hit job?

If Obama believes the Constitution provides a "right to privacy" that includes aborting babies, does this right not also protect against Joe the Plumber-styled intrusions by the state?

What exactly did Obama mean when he compared America to Nazi Germany in a 2001 radio interview?

Does Obama still believe America suffers a "fundamental flaw" that is embodied in the Constitution? What is it, exactly? How does he plan on "fixing" the Constitution?

Obama has expressed disappointment that the Constitution "imposes restraints" on income redistribution; as president, would he seek to undo these "constraints"?

When Obama says he's willing to sit down with leaders of terrorist states like Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who aspires to destroy Israel, just what exactly is Obama willing to negotiate away? Only half of Israel?

Obama said that community-organizing groups like ACORN will have a voice in setting the agenda when he's in the White House. In light of revelations over ACORN's massive voter fraud and other criminal activity, does he still plan to give them a seat at his table?

Barney Frank is proposing cutting military spending 25 percent, arguing, "We don't need all of these fancy new weapons." Obama has also pledged big cuts to defense, promising that as president he would "slow our development of future combat systems." Just how much is he planning on cutting? What weapons systems? Missile defense?

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-30,-2008/262010888225980739.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 28, 2008

2008-10-29T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

SIX DAYS AND COUNTING...
Nearly every American reveres the U.S. Constitution, but not Barack Obama. In a just-released 2001 radio interview with Obama, he said, "I think it is an imperfect document, and I think it is a document that reflects some deep flaws in American culture." He also bemoaned the fact that the Supreme Court isn't better suited to redistribute wealth.

After the Framers finished drafting the Constitution, a Philadelphia woman asked Benjamin Franklin whether America was to be a monarchy or a republic. His quick response: "A republic, if you can keep it." So, will we be able to keep it through an Obama presidency? Let's hope we don't have to find out.

PLUMBING JOE'S RECORDS
The Columbus Dispatch reports that Ohio's child-support computer database was accessed by someone trying to uncover dirt on Joe "the Plumber" Wurzelbacher. The director of Ohio's Department of Job and Family Services, Helen Jones Kelley -- a maxed-out Obama contributor -- granted access to the database. According to the Dispatch, this was the fourth time state computers were used to find information on Joe. Has the ACLU or any other privacy advocates lodged any protest about this? You know the answer. Will an Obama Administration carry on this pattern of using official power to intimidate critics? I'd put money on it.

NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS AT THE LOS ANGELES TIMES
What if a few years ago John McCain had partied the night away with a house-full of assorted terror sympathizers and Fox News had a video of the festivities that it refused to air? The national media would not stop until they shamed Fox into releasing the tape. According to National Review's Andy McCarthy, the Los Angeles Times was given a copy of a tape of Sen. Obama at a farewell party in 2003, held in honor of Rashid Khalidi, the erstwhile terrorist mouthpiece for Yasser Arafat. The newspaper has declined to release the tape. Yesterday we asked listeners to write the Times and demand that the tape be made public. Here's one response:

Readers Rep

Date: Monday, October 27, 2008 16:14
Subject: RE: Not read: The L.A. Times Suppressing Obama's Khalidi Bash Tape?

Thanks for your note. More than six months ago the Los Angeles Times published a detailed account of the events shown on the videotape. The Times is not suppressing anything. Just the opposite -- the L.A. Times brought the matter to light. Please read the article at: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/washingtondc/la-na-obamamideast10apr10,0,3025411.story
Thanks again for taking the time to write.

Jamie Gold
Readers' Representative

Nice try, Jamie. How can the Times possibly argue that the content of this video is not newsworthy?! It's one thing to read what Obama said at the party--it's another to hear him talk about "his friend" in his own words. Big shock that with this lack of news sense and obvious pro-Dem bias, the Times is bleeding money, losing circulation, and laying off staffers.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-28,-2008/290634824525386891.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 27, 2008

2008-10-28T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Peggy Noonan said Friday that if "Mr. McCain loses, the reason will not be press bias." That, of course, will be impossible to determine one way or the other. But we do know the media is trying its best to prove Peggy wrong. The media's malfeasance and malpractice may prove decisive:

Money. The airwaves are saturated with Obama advertising. These ads are financed by record campaign hauls, much of which comes from illegal fund-raising. (Obama's website allows contributors to use phony names, thereby allowing well-off financiers to circumvent contribution limits.) More than 80% of Obama's fund-raising has come from "small donors," whose names we don't know. Where are the calls for transparency? Who knows how many Obama commercials would be possible absent the illicit cash.

Reporting. Sen. McCain is quickly learning that the media is consistent only in mangling his words and his ideas, all the while giving a free pass to inaccurate criticisms against him. Like countless Republicans before him, McCain now knows that if he wants his message to reach the people, he needs to speak to them directly, bypassing the dinosaur media. Even worse, though, is that when an Average Joe (e.g., Joe the Plumber), asks a question the press won't, the media joins, and in some cases leads, the partisan witch-hunt to destroy him.

Unholy alliances. No, I'm not talking about Barack Obama's terrorist connections. Rather, NBC/MSNBC's work with "Election Protection," an autumnal cornucopia of far-left groups like ACORN and People for the American Way. These stations are telling viewers to call an Election Protection hot-line on Nov. 4th if they spot any "trouble." Please.

The power of suggestion. Notice how only the polls showing big leads for Obama ever get picked up? Other polls show the race in a statistical dead heat, yet receive zippo coverage. Instead, the only polls receiving any air time have Obama up double-digits. By planting this idea that McCain's hopeless, potential conservative contributors will be less inclined to donate.

Wagon circling. Barack Obama has never been made to answer any questions about what views he shares with his radical left-wing friends (like, Jeremiah Wright, Bill Ayers, Bernandine Dohrn, Michael Klonsky, Rashid Khalidi and Franklin Marshall Davis). In Chicago, Obama oversaw the disbursement of funds to school projects that taught radical, socially-divisive afro-centric curriculums that yielded no positive gains to students. Does he have something similar in mind for schools nationwide? It's not unreasonable to at least ask. I'm sure parents are curious.

Selective curiosity. While the media may or may not have been involved in the illegal accessing of Joe the Plumber's DMV and tax records, we do know this for sure: It certainly wasn't involved in any kind of thorough investigation of Sen. Obama's tax records. From what his campaign released -- which was later pored over by a few conservative websites -- Obama earned income in 2000 and 2002 from speaking fees. In Illinois, it's illegal for legislators to accept speaking fees. Would it not sway at least a few votes if people learned Obama broke the law while serving in the state senate?

So what now?

Far from a disinterested actor working on behalf of the people, the media's regressed into Obama cheerleaders. That McCain is holding up as well as he is actually signals serious Obama weaknesses. For these to be fully appreciated, though, it will be up to the people -- not the press -- to use these last eight days to inform their fellow voters.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-27,-2008/-370041032991917437.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 23, 2008

2008-10-24T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

AUDACITY WATCH Forget measuring the Oval Office drapes, Sen. Obama is way beyond that. After meeting with his team of "national-security advisers," Obama yesterday gave a press conference where he played make-believe president. With a phalanx of Washington foreign-policy insiders behind him, Obama discussed plans for the post-election transition period. In Chicago, construction on a massive stage at Grant Park is underway for an Obama election night victory speech. This would be the first election-night speech from a candidate since Bubba's in '96. Speaker Pelosi, for her part, said it's "100 percent [certain] Obama is going to win," while Senator Schumer says Obama's electoral tally will top 300. Even God is doing his part. Obama told a northern Virginia crowd yesterday that he felt a "righteous wind at our backs." (When can we expect the left's attacks on Obama for harboring the same messianic complex they accuse President Bush of having?)

But Obama's cockiness comes at its own peril. Americans don't take well to being discounted, and that's exactly what an overconfident Democratic Party is doing.

PUNISHING PALIN. You know she must be doing something right. Since Sen. McCain asked her to be his VP -- thus surprising every confident "expert" prediction in Washington -- Gov. Palin has received every criticism the media talking heads' little brains can muster. Dan Henninger's piece today (which takes sly digs at the elitism of his WSJ colleague, Peggy Noonan) offers a sampling of the invective: "Republican blow-up doll," "idiot," "Christian Stepford wife," "Jesus freak," "Caribou Barbie," "a dope," "a fatal cancer to the Republican Party," "liar," "a national disgrace," and "her pretense that she is a woman." And let's not forget the latest "scandal" -- some new clothes!

Pennsylvania is case-in-point. Despite assuring voters Palin is a lying idiot anti-woman baby-moose killer, GOP enthusiasm is soaring. And this comes from no less a source than Democratic Governor Ed Rendell, who fired off two warnings to the Obama camp that the state was in danger of slipping away. According to the far-left Daily Kos website, Obama internal Keystone State polling shows just a two-point differential. Seems the less Palin cares about media attacks against her, the better she does, and the angrier the media becomes. Process, repeat.

OBAMA'S MINISTRY OF TRUTH: Should Obama win in November, thanks and credit will be in order to his 1984-inspired alteration of the historical record. In only the last few months, we've seen the following: When it was revealed in the "Fight the Smears" section of his website that he was lying about his involvement with ACORN (minimizing an actually long-established partnership), his site quietly scrubbed the falsehoods; when a blogger noticed that Michael Klonsky, an unashamed communist education "reformer" happened to be blogging on Obama's site, any hint of his existence was expunged; after Rev. Wright became a household name for his desire to send America to Hell, Obama's site suddenly stopped boasting of his involvement in the campaign; when a video of young California kids appeared singing Obama's glories in a style reminiscent of North Korea, that too was wiped from the e-book of history.

With such a cavalier approach to information control, what exactly we know about Obama -- really and truly -- is harder to discern every day.

RIDDLE OF THE DAY: What do the following names have in common: Bernadine Dohrn, Rev. Wright, Bill Ayers, Saul Alinsky, Michael Klonsky, Rashid Khalidi and Franklin Marshall Davis?

Give up?

Barack Obama!

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-23,-2008/146396915321136639.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 22, 2008

2008-10-23T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

THOUGHT EXPERIMENT: What if instead of using the word "change," Barack Obama had all this time instead been saying "revolution"? Would he still be the front-runner? Doubtful. Americans like occasionally switching things up, but a full-fledged abandonment of the American way is something else all together. Is that what Obama's promising? Well, the word "change" is less than precise. He has confessed to envisioning his presidency as "the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal," and we all now know he wants to turn the government's revenue collection system into a mechanism for enforcing socialism.

OBAMA'S FIRST AMENDMENT THREAT: The examples of the Obama camp harnessing government to extinguish its critics are accumulating at a disturbing pace. If twice is a coincidence and three times a trend, then four times and more is megalomania. Obama has sicced his lawyers on TV stations airing NRA ads critical of his Second Amendment record, he's called on the DOJ to shut down the American Issues Project for airing ads highlighting his relationship with Bill Ayers, his ACORN-styled "action wire" regularly calls on its foot soldiers to bombard any radio station brazen enough to invite on Obama-skeptics like David Freddosso and Stanley Kurtz, his "truth squads" has recruited government prosecutors in states like Missouri ... And now the latest: the campaign's general counsel Robert Bauer is demanding the DOJ punish McCain and certain surrogates for raising objections to ACORN's flagrant and wide-scale voter fraud. Of course, by sticking up for ACORN Obama explicitly rejects his previous assertion that his relations with the group are limited to some mid-90s legal work, but even more worrying is what this whole pattern portends. In an Obama administration, there would be no hesitation to use the forces of government to suppress speech and thus solidify Obama's power.

HOW QUICKLY THINGS CHANGE: Was it only a month ago the media (conservatives included) regularly criticized the McCain camp for keeping Gov. Palin bottled up? What were they afraid of? Let the woman speak! Since then, she's done frequent interviews and even held a few press conferences. Meantime, Sen. Biden -- who initially gave press conferences until his traveling press corps begged for mercy -- hasn't given a single one in weeks. Yesterday, after Biden's Sunday gaffe -- whereby he "gauranteed" that electing Sen. Obama would herald an international crisis -- he wasn't speaking to the media at all. Remember: This is the "experienced" half of the ticket, the guy supposedly ready to take over as commander-in-chief at the drop of a hat -- yet he's suddenly in hiding from the press. Trust me, I can understand why the press isn't exactly flying into fits of rage of his sudden silence, but does this still mean Palin's qualifications are what Americans need to be questioning?

PREDICTION: If Sarah Palin keeps giving speeches like she did yesterday in Reno, Nev., her conservative critics (like Peggy Noonan) will be eating their words by Election Day. Palin quoted Biden's now-infamous remark that an international crisis will develop within six months of an Obama presidency, seizing on his line that he already knows of "four or five places" where the trouble could get started. After giving four examples of how an Obama administration would worsen certain global conflicts, Palin let loose this zinger, "But I guess the looming crisis that most worries the Obama campaign right now is Joe Biden's next speaking engagement." If she keeps this up, the race could end with Team Obama crawling to the finish line.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-22,-2008/-149342512229387106.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 21, 2008

2008-10-22T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

NEW RULE: Whenever someone criticizes Sarah Palin for her supposed unfitness for the job -- or, in Peggy Noonan's words, her lack of a "philosophical grounding" -- they must follow up with an explanation of how Joe Biden is somehow better. Yesterday Biden said Obama's lack of experience gaurantees America will face a renewed threat from our enemies "within the first six months of our presidency." This, of course, is only the latest; he seems to be averaging about one gaffe/day. While Sarah Palin offered a less-than-brilliant response to Couric's question about her reading materials, at least she isn't batting 0-for-every-major-issue-over-the-last-30-years.

PREDICTION: As Obama heads to Hawaii to be with his ailing grandma, expect to see any and all McCain criticisms of Obama's policies objected to as poorly timed and in bad taste. But the media doesn't really care about good taste, and McCain doesn't need to continue tying one arm behind his back. He needs to keep making the case that he's the safer pick for America. Unless he's criticizing the Obama grandma herself, he's acting perfectly appropriately.

THE "OBAMA RULES": According to That One, noting that his tax policies are based on socialist tenets is below the belt and utterly inappropriate. Meanwhile, it's apparently totally acceptable for Rep. John Lewis to call McCain and his supporters George Wallace-styled segregationists, for the New York Times to slime Cindy McCain as a pill-popping junky, and for his friend John Kerry to make jokes about Sen. McCain wearing adult diapers. Thou shalt not worship false idols and all.

STIMULUS STUPIDITY: Pelosi & Co., are now planning another round of "stimulus," this time rumored to be as high as $300 billion. And why not? Last June's $152 billion stimulus package worked so well! What's another $300 billion? Are we even monitoring the federal deficit anymore? Why not just print an infinite amount of money until everyone has $1 million? Who cares if we have Zimbabwe-style inflation. Even President Bush and Ben Bernanke say another round of stimulus is worth considering!

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-21,-2008/-457482999204885059.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 20, 2008

2008-10-21T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Congratulations, Team Obama, we've still got two-plus weeks until Election Day and you're already destroying jobs. After last week's now-notorious encounter with Joe the Plumber, Obama's media foot soldiers were dispatched with a simple mission: destroy Joe. On Sunday's Fox and Friends, Joe announced their success; his business has been shut down.

Thanks to the intrepid reporting of journalists who've obviously lost all sense of perspective, it turns out Joe has been fixing Ohioans' plumbing without a government-issued license. Talk about irony. Joe came under fire for humiliating Obama by noting his tax plans interfere with Joe's American Dream. He wanted to buy his plumbing company and expand it, but higher taxes on small businesses threaten to turn that dream into a nightmare. The left, in other words, used Big Government to silence Joe Citizen for speaking ill of Big Government.

In turn, Americans have offered financial support to Joe - offers he's politely declined.

Americans have taken to Joe for his willingness to go where the media refuses - that is, for actually speaking truth to power. Nothing's more infuriating than reporters allowing themselves to be used by politicians, yet that's exactly what's being done on a daily basis at CBS, NBC, CNN, etc. Joe got the opportunity to tell Obama directly that his tax plans - which penalize hard work while claiming to further America's best interests - were an insult to his intelligence.

Meanwhile, conservative websites are left to do the real reporting on Obama. NewsMax's Ken Timmerman reports that as much as $63 million of Obama's $150 million September haul may originate from illegal foreign donations. (Conveniently, the campaign refuses to release the names of more than 80% of its 2.5 million contributors.) Obama's tax returns also indicate that in 2000 and 2002, he violated Illinois state law by accepting speaking fees while serving as a state senator.

The press is supposed to hold politicians accountable on behalf of the people. Yet while Obama collects millions in dubious donations and ACORN registers phantom voters in battleground states by the thousands, today's media is doing the Democrats' heavy lifting with its slash-and-smear campaign against people like Joe.

Never before in our history has the media establishment been so derelict in its responsibilities, so one-sided in its coverage, that today it is nothing more than a cheerleader for the Obama campaign. Never with so much at stake for America's security and our way of life, has the media worked with such single-minded zealousness to elect a dilettante with so little experience and such faulty judgment.

Is the type of bullying and intimidation that Joe's endured what Americans can expect from an Obama administration in response to serious criticism? Will the media closest to the people - talk radio and the blogosphere - be the next targets?

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-20,-2008/-810945966780888301.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 13, 2008

2008-10-14T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

McCain's Mission

John McCain is in the fight of his political life. The media lemmings have all but called the race for Obama. Certain so-called Republicans are already assigning blame for a McCain defeat. Question: At this crucial time, will McCain dig deep to prevail during these dark days? No one who doesn't know how to win survives 5 1/2 years tortured in a prison cell.

McCain has time to turn his campaign around. This requires a nimble, devastating response to the Obama worldview, specifically his far left economic vision for America. Obama laid out his economic plan on Monday, which included initiatives to:

--help people who remain in homes they can't afford
--impose a 90-day ban on foreclosures
--bailout states and localities awash in budget deficits
--create a new federal lending entity
--reduce health-care costs by having government invest (read: spend tax-dollars) for "preventive care, new technology" and increased access to providers
--government "investment" (read: spending) for new teachers, college tuition, and "green jobs"
--payments of $3,000 to businesses for each new job created

This all comes on top of Obama's "tax cut" plan -- in reality a massive new welfare program that envisions cutting checks to 95% of Americans. John McCain should issue a reminder that one-third of Americans don't pay any taxes at all--yet they will be getting a check during Obama's Excellent Utopian Adventure.

A self-employed plumber in Holland, Ohio asked The One directly why he--a productive member of society--had to cough up for the rest of the country. Obama's response was telling: "It's not that I want to punish your success. I just want to make sure that everybody that is behind you, that they have a chance for success too."

"I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody."

Read that again. When you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody. Obama's economic plans aren't concerned with generating new jobs and new wealth; his concern is with socializing America. And he's not even hiding it!

A shocking new Rasmussen poll shows why he may succeed. A staggering 47 percent of Americans now believe hiking taxes on the wealthy is a good idea. Why? Americans have not witnessed a convincing example of fiscal conservatism in the last eight years, and John McCain has been woefully inadequate in providing a meaningful tutorial on why tightening our federal belts makes sense now more than ever. With Americans monitoring the Dow Jones like a personal EKG monitor, it's understandable people want to try something different.

McCain needs to separate himself from Obama and Bush. He needs to offer Americans step-by-step directions out of the morass. He needs a few pithy thoughts for growing our economy -- like tax cuts on income, capital-gains, dividends as well as serious-minded reform in Washington.

McCain offered hope this afternoon. Noting contrasts with Obama, he finally delivered a few choice blows: "If I'm elected President, I won't spend nearly a trillion dollars more of your money, on top of the $700 billion we just gave the Treasury Secretary, as Senator Obama proposes. ... If I'm elected President, I won't fine small businesses and families with children, as Senator Obama proposes, to force them into a new huge government run health care program, while I keep the cost of the fine a secret until I hit you with it. ... If I'm elected President, I won't raise taxes on small businesses, as Senator Obama proposes, and force them to cut jobs. ... I will keep small business taxes where they are, help them keep their costs low, and let them spend their earnings to create more jobs."

Boo-yah! That's the kind of fighting spirit we need. The economy is by no means Obama's strong suit. To win Wednesday night's debate -- and, indeed, the election -- McCain needs to keep his newfound fighting spirit alive.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-13,-2008/-230847490142645660.html

MUSIC TO OUR EARS

2008-10-02T18:32:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Composer James MacMillan warns of the liberal elite's "ignorance-fuelled hostility to religion."

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/MUSIC-TO-OUR-EARS/9603573214028737.html

Laura's E-Blast - October 1, 2008

2008-10-02T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

Eight Bailout Questions

How many times over the last few days have we heard politicians, talking heads and other self-proclaimed "experts" tell us the reason the $700 billion bailout is so wildly unpopular is that we just don't understand it. The economy is complicated. Just trust Congress, President Bush and his royal highness, Hank Paulson. They'll fix it. Don't worry about that $700 billion number. It only sounds high.

Well. If that's the case - if we're really too dumb to understand what's happening - perhaps Congress can show us how much they know. To start, here are some questions I'd like answered.

1) Since the White House introduced the bailout last week, a number of alternative ideas have been proposed. For one, Michigan Republican Thaddeus McCotter wrote a 10-point plan that carries no cost to taxpayers. Others, like George Soros', are significantly less expensive and, in his estimation, likelier to be effective. Can you explain why this bill is the best option, despite being the most expensive?

2) We're told the bailout could actually turn a profit for taxpayers. Assuming that's true, how can we be sure the money actually ends up back in taxpayers' hands? For years the Social Security system took in more money than it paid out, yet instead of putting the surplus revenue toward future benefits, Congress snatched that extra cash for general expenditures. Likewise, Fannie and Freddie's "profits," were used for congressional pet projects. With this track record, how can we trust that this program will be any different?

3) The McCain campaign yesterday pointed out that the most recent housing bill gave the government nearly $1 trillion to purchase mortgages. If this is true, why exactly does Congress need to pass this monstrous legislation?

4) Does the latest version of this bill still "allow the government to purchase troubled assets from pension plans, local governments, and small banks that serve low- and middle-income families"? Americans are having a hard enough time swallowing the idea of a bailout for irresponsible home, car, and student lending. The notion that we'll be on the hook for insolvent pension plans administered by awful, union-controlled lawmakers in cities like Detroit and New York is simply insane.

5) Does the bill's preamble still proclaim that the law "provides authority to the treasury secretary to ... ensure the economic well-being of Americans?" Does anyone know if there are limitations to this seemingly unbridled authority? Otherwise, what prevents the Treasury secretary from becoming a de-facto dictator? This strikes me as especially worth discussion.

6) Are there still no meaningful curtailments of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? Does the bill contain anything even hinting at accountability?

7) What concrete assurances do taxpayers have that the turmoil's provenance - Carter and Clinton-era social-engineering dictums that upended safe-lending practices in favor of higher minority home ownership - will forever be outlawed? How do we know taxpayers won't be asked to finance another $700 billion bailout in 10 years? What has Congress learned from its past mistakes?

8) After Enron's collapse, former CEO Jeffrey Skilling, then-CEO Ken Lay, and then-CFO Andrew Fastow, were called to testify before Congress. According to the Business and Media Institute, Fannie's and Freddie's overstated earnings were 19 times larger than Enron's fake numbers. So when can we expect Congress to call Jim Johnson, Franklin Raines, Barney Frank, Chris Dodd, and the rest of Fannie's and Freddie's enablers to testify before Congress?

At the end of the day, we're not being asked to bailout Wall St. so much as we are the Democratic Party. For $700 billion, answers to the questions above are the least Congress can do in return.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---October-1,-2008/-302638717371372590.html

Laura's E-Blast - September 16, 2008

2008-09-17T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

THE CONSERVATIVE ELITES ATTACK!

In today's New York Times, David Brooks launches a critique of Sarah Palin, essentially concluding that her populist appeal is dangerous and ill-conceived. He yearns for the day when "conservatism was once a frankly elitist movment," one that stressed "classical education, hard-earned knowledged, experience, and prudence." Brooks, like a handful of other conservative intellectuals, believes Palin "compensates for her lack of experience with brashness and excessive decisiveness."

Well, at the risk of appearing brash, let me say that I am glad to see my old friend finally pushed to the point where he has to make an overt defense of elitism, after years of demonstrating covert support for elitism. We conservatives who believe Governor Palin represents a solid vice-presidential pick should be extremely comfortable engaging this issue.

Brooks's main argument against Palin is that she lacks the type of experience and historical understanding that led President Bush to a 26 percent approval rating in his final months in office. Yet the notion that the Bush Administration got into trouble because it didn't have enough "experience" is absurd. George W. Bush was governor of Texas for six years. His father was president. His primary advisors on matters of foreign policy were Dick Cheney, Don Rumsfeld, and Colin Powell. In 2000, it could hardly have been possible to find a more experienced team to head up a GOP administration. Brooks's notion that the Bush Administration was "the anti-establishment attitude put into executive practice" is simply ludicrous. Does anyone believe that Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld count as "anti-establishment"?

Of course, we could also consider the Nixon Administration. Who had more experience than Richard Nixon? How'd that work out? What about George H.W. Bush? How did his administration do? What about Herbert Hoover -- who had vast experience both in terms of dealing with foreign countries during World War I and in terms of dealing with the U.S. economy as secretary of Commerce? How did he do? The truth is that Brooks's basic claim -- that experienced leaders are necessarily better than inexperienced leaders -- simply doesn't hold water.

Now let's look at the broader issue of elitism versus populism. For Brooks to be right, his elites have to make better policy judgments than average Americans. But he overlooks the fact that in America we have a particularly bad elite, an elite that holds most Americans in contempt and has no sympathy for the history and traditions that make us great. And that elite has been wrong on issue after issue for most of the last 40 years. Who was more right about the Soviet Union, the elites or the people? Who was more right about the need to cut taxes in the 1970s, the elites or the people? Who was more right about the need to get tough on crime, the elites in black robes with life tenure, or the folks cheering for Dirty Harry? Who would Brooks trust to decide critical issues regarding the War on Terror today, the voters or the inside-the-Beltway types who lose sleep over tough interrogation tactics? Elites -- particularly our American elite -- are much more likely to go for the latest fad, for seek to apply whatever notion is currently trendy in the salons of Europe. To find true Burkean conservatism in this country -- to find citizens who are both respectful of our country's traditions and anxious to see our country remain a world leader -- you have to turn to the voters.

The truth is that it is no longer possible to govern this country through a conservative elite. We have a radical elite, an elite that believes in climate change, gay marriage, unrestricted abortions, and the United Nations. We have an elite that intends to make massive, liberal changes to every aspect of American life. This elite ruins almost everything it touches -- from the schools, to the media, to the universities. Giving more power to the elites means watching the United States become more and more like Europe.

Populism rests on two great insights. First, it understands that the people (taken as a whole) are often wiser and more prudent than the elites. Average people are almost always respectful of tradition, while elites tend to act like an angry mob trying to tear down the old idols. Second, populism understands that it's not enough to actually have the right policy ideas, you have to have the will to take on the elites who will try to prevent those ideas from going into place. In order to get anything accomplished, the GOP is going to have to use public opinion to override the objections of liberals, including liberals in the media.

Does Sarah Palin have the political skills to successfully govern this country from a populist perspective? It's far too early to say. She is certainly the most promising such figure to come along since the elites were denouncing Ronald Reagan. And therefore we should all wish her well. It is silly to criticize her at this early stage until we know a lot more about her abilities as a leader. I am glad to say that her instincts appear to be sound.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---September-16,-2008/-66898316418595231.html

Laura's E-Blast - September 15, 2008

2008-09-16T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

LAURA ADDS 20+ NEW STATIONS TO 300 STATION POWER BASE

Note to all listeners: We are living up to this political season of "change" with major readjustments to our radio station line-up. If you can't find The Laura Ingraham Show on the station you are used to hearing it on, please go to www.lauraingraham.com for a listing of its new home and (perhaps) time slot. We are on new stations in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Denver, Dallas, Seattle, Louisville, San Diego, and Atlanta--just to name a few.

The station changes are due to the fact that Talk Radio Network (Laura's syndicator) and Salem Radio group have amicably parted ways after five extremely successful years. (See the news report from today's Inside Radio.) If after consulting the website you still cannot find the show, please call your city/town's big talk stations and tell the program directors you want to hear Laura Monday through Friday live. We are adding dozens of new stations over the next few months to our base of 300+ but realize the transition may be disruptive to you during this critical election season.
And by now you know that the show is an addiction! In the long run, this move will significantly expand the listening audience, reach, and influence of The Laura Ingraham Show. Follow us to our great new radio stations and/or join Laura365 for a totally uninterrupted personalized listening experience. Power to the People!

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---September-15,-2008/-583993022459702413.html

Laura's E-Blast - September 12, 2008

2008-09-13T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

IMPALIN' THE LEFT
Why do they hate her? What is it about Sarah that is driving left-wing elites to say the most idiotic and bizarre things? Since her explosive arrival onto the political scene, Palin has endured far more than the customary and expected vetting and scrutiny.

Obama underlings and their dinosaur media apparatchiks have dug through her garbage, rifled through her dirty laundry, and interviewed every friend, foe, and caribou in Alaska. She has been (falsely) branded a book-burner, a religious zealot, "anti-women," and "anti-science."

Today's Washington Post claims that Gov. Palin falsely equated Saddam Hussein with the 9/11 hijackers at the ceremony yesterday seeing Alaska troops off to Iraq. In reality she said they'd soon be taking on forces aligned with those who hit us on 9/11 - an obviously true statement. Al Qaeda in Iraq is part of Al Qaeda, and it's been a coon's age since Saddam Hussein was fighting this war.

Then came Charlie...er...I mean Charles Gibson. The ABC News star tried to jettison his nice-guy image in the first interview with Palin and ended up coming off like a pedantic snob. Aside from tripping up on the Bush Doctrine (she explained it as his general worldview, as opposed to the doctrine of preemptive military action), she acquitted herself well.
Sorry, Charlie.

In the past two-weeks, Obama-friendly columnists and commentators have questioned Palin's fitness as a mother. CNN, NBC and the other left-wing media outlets have expended more man-hours looking into Palin's faith than they did in two years looking into Barack Obama's. My personal favorite, though, is actor Matt "Bagger Vance" Damon's saying that the mere possibility of Vice President Palin was like a "bad Disney movie."

The vitriol is so over-the-top that it is having a boomerang effect. As the attacks over the last two weeks have intensified, the McCain/Palin poll numbers have shot up. Today's Gallup numbers show for the first time in years Republicans winning a generic congressional ballot among likely voters. Elites from Los Angeles to Manhattan are sensing that their chance at a political utopia may be slipping away.

Sarah Palin's entire existence is a refutation of everything the left holds sacrosanct. They champion abortion rights, she stands for life, personally and politically. They think the redistribution of income is indispensable to achieving "economic justice." She sees it as their means to grow government and penalize prosperity. They look at America and see a collection of oppressed minorities. She sees America as the land of opportunity. They believe we need to do more to court "world opinion."
She's not embarrassed over having little use for Europe.

It is not enough for them to beat Sarah Palin, they must destroy her.

It's a long way 'til November 4th, but I'm betting on the gal with the double-barreled shotgun and camouflage ski jacket.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---September-12,-2008/92981983776146765.html

Laura's E-Blast - August 21, 2008

2008-08-22T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

WEDNESDAY'S TALKING POINTS MEMO: REACHING FOR THE GOLD
A new Reuters/Zogby poll shows that John McCain now leads Barack Obama by five points among likely voters. Obama is even slipping in the key demographic groups that have been among his strongest -- including the 18-29 voting bloc, where he has dropped 12 points in just one month.

So what's going on here?

First, any sane observer of politics has to now admit that the Obama World Tour -- especially his Berlin speech -- backfired in a major way. That marked the beginning of the Obama crumble. His standing side by side with foreign leaders might have boosted his numbers in Paris, but not in Pittsburgh. It didn't sit right with a lot of voters in the states that are up for grabs now -- states like Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Michigan.

Second, Senator Obama underestimates how much Americans love to win. Whether we're talking the Olympics, the military or the economy, we like being NUMBER ONE. And we want a president who doesn't give into the pessimism of those who say that American must conform to a new global order, where China is the dominant player.

Americans are can-do people and always will be. While McCain touts the success of the surge in Iraq, Obama downplays it. While McCain pushes for more domestic oil exploration to grow the economy, Obama rants about windfall profits. Apparently, it's "yes we can" -- except when it comes to tapping all energy sources.

Third, McCain is ahead because he is connecting with conservatives. At the Saddleback Forum, he spoke with clarity and conviction, while Obama struggled. Even if you disagreed with McCain that life begins at conception, as compared to Obama's "above my pay grade" stumble, McCain appeared confident and strong. He came across as a proud conservative, not an apologetic one.

McCain can lose the ground he has made up by doing something really stupid like picking a pro-choice running mate, but right now he looks like a winner. And most important, he thinks American can, and will, win, too. Silver and bronze are nice, but we still want the gold.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---August-21,-2008/-962012011284936263.html

Laura's E-Blast - August 8, 2008

2008-08-09T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

OBAMA'S AMERICA-- NOT-SO-GREAT
At a townhall event in Indiana this week, a 7-year-old girl stood up and asked Sen. Obama why he's running for president. This simple question left him stammering: "America is --is no longer, uh-- what it could be, what it once was. And I say to myself, 'I don't want that future for my children.'" Profound. We need a president who thinks America is great now, and will continue to be regardless of any particular election's outcome.

IS MICHELLE SMARTER THAN A 7-YEAR-OLD?
In Norfolk, Virginia, Michelle Obama visited a 2nd grade class. Unfortunately for her, a wayward staffer neglected to vet the tots thoroughly. After they were asked what messages they wanted passed on to her husband, one student chirped: "I think we should finish what we started in Iraq." Michelle suddenly wished she was back on couch at The View. Watch video of the exchange here.

NOTE TO LAURA LISTENERS
We will be on break next week, returning August 18th. Please tune into the "Best of Laura" all week long.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-E-Blast---August-8,-2008/-280062321017719039.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - August 5, 2008

2008-08-06T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

PHALLIC FALLACY: On last night's "Countdown," Keith Olbermann claimed Sen. McCain's celebrity ad contains "three phallic symbols, two blondes and Barack Obama. So this is not just a sexist ad anymore. This is what they used to called 'miscegenation,' isn't it? This is what they used against Harold Ford." The phallic symbols he referenced were the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Berlin's Victory Column, and the Washington Monument. Trouble is, the Victory Column is the only one these structures that's actually featured! Paging Dr. Freud!

THE LEFT'S RACE OBSESSION: The always-entertaining Pat Buchanan appeared on today's show and tackled this radioactive topic head-on. (Check out a free clip here)

YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK! Planned Parenthood wants your kids to "Take Care Down There." This effort -- partly financed by our tax dollars, courtesy of Title X -- is gross and over-the-top. "Safe sex" is peddled based on the Left's old self-fulfilling prophecy that they'll do it anyway! If you have an empty stomach, check it out for yourself.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---August-5,-2008/-421287255828412315.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - August 4, 2008

2008-08-05T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

BARACK OBAMA, A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS: So what if Barack Obama now supports expanding offshore drilling, even though he was vehemently opposed to it last week? He's just doing what all power hungry liberal politicians do when they are backed into a corner -- he's evolving!

"HUMANITARIAN PHOTO-JOURNALISM"? Photojournalist Zoriah Miller is at the center of a controversy over photos he took during an embed with U.S. Marines in Iraq. Going against the wishes of his military escort, he posted gruesome shots of dead U.S. troops on his blog; after refusing to remove them, his embed credentials were withdrawn, and now he's crying censorship.

Did Zoriah overstep his bounds, or did the military? What do these grisly photos say about the media's coverage of the war? You be the judge -- click here for part of the segment.

REPUBLICAN REVOLT! At long last, are Republicans finally recapturing their mojo? San Fran Gran Nan and her merry band of do-nothing clods have already skipped town for their summer recess. No wonder the humidity has dropped 30 percent in recent days! As Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) said on today's show, "the lights and mics are off but the debate is on." A hearty bunch of House Republicans are hunkering down, protesting Pelosi's politburo-styled approach to governance. Conservative leaders simply want SFGN to allow an up or down vote on expanded drilling, a move three-quarters of the country supports. (365ers, click here to listen).

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---August-4,-2008/974734840606180943.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - August 1, 2008

2008-08-02T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

OUR DO-NOTHING CONGRESS: Today the House of Representatives left for their August vacation with an abysmal record of accomplishment for the American people. When Congress voted to head out on summer recess, despite its failure to pass critical legislation to expand domestic oil production, many of us weren't surprised.

This is the same bunch that recently won the worst national approval rating in history -- nine percent! The anti-exploration Democrats led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi acted more like schoolyard bullies during recess than national leaders as they refused to allow votes on any proposal -- even those supported by moderate Dems -- that would have allow for more domestic oil production.

So since it hasn't addressed our energy woes, what exactly has the Democrat-controlled House done for us lately? Well, it authorized the FDA to regulate tobacco, it apologized for slavery and Jim Crow laws, and let's not forget, the House Transportation Committee moved to ban in-flight cell phone use.

But a number of Republicans refused to adjourn today, choosing to stay behind, only to have the cameras, microphones and even the lights turned off on them.

Contrast what Pelosi's "accomplished" with one of her favorite targets -- the Iraqi government: a de-Baathification law, new Iraqi brigades formed, October elections planned, a Sunni voting block is returning to parliament.

We'd rate Nouri al Maliki's leadership over Nancy Pelosi's, hands down.

Since it did virtually nothing in recent months to alleviate our energy woes, Congress should have at least had the decency to do what so many families have had to do this summer because of high gas prices -- cancel their vacation plans.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---August-1,-2008/-133987367792468492.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 31, 2008

2008-08-01T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

MR. "POST-RACIAL" PULLS THE RACE CARD: Despite being ballyhooed as the most unifying candidate who's ever run for any political office in the history of the universe, Barack Obama can't help but see color in everything. He claimed Republicans are trying to "make you scared of me. You know, 'he's not patriotic enough, he's got a funny name,' you know, 'he doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills.'" Translation: criticize Obama and you're a racist. Why, how post-racial.

JUST BACK FROM ANWR: Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) stopped by the studio today to discuss drilling in that barren wasteland otherwise known as ANWR. She'd actually planned on staying longer, but the place Nancy Pelosi and her "radical eco-liberal" ilk describe as a veritable enviro-tourist mecca is somehow short on Hampton Inns and Marriott Courtyards.

SHUT UP & DON'T SING ALERT! In a musical shout-out to Barack Obama, Ludacris pens a hip-hop oped in which he opines Sen. McCain shouldn't "be in a chair unless he's paralyzed." Ray Charles and Louis Armstrong must be rolling over in their graves ... If you feel like wasting two minutes of your life, here it is ...

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-31,-2008/311599927791981290.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 30, 2008

2008-07-31T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

SERIOUSLY, COULD THE TIMING BE ANY WORSE?! Just when the GOP had a few sparks of hope -- Sen. Coburn's defeat of the so-called Advancing America's Priorities Act, Democrats' politically inept refusal to permit wildly popular offshore drilling -- Alaska's Republican Sen. Ted Stevens went and got himself indicted. The seven felony counts leveled yesterday center on gifts he received from Vexo, an Alaskan oil company. Will he step down? Republicans in trouble usually do.

PROFESSOR OBAMA, SLACKER: The New York Times reports today that in the 12 years Sen. Barack Obama spent teaching at the University of Chicago Law School, he never completed a single work of legal scholarship! Richard Epstein, a former Obama colleague and one of the most influential legal scholars alive, observed that "His entire life, as best I can tell, is one in which he's always been a thoughtful listener and questioner, but he's never stepped up to the plate and taken full swings." Could it be that the candidate of Hope! and Change! was concerned the content of his writing might come back to haunt him later in his political career? Or maybe he was too busy running five political races during his twelve years there? Most likely, it was both: Obama spent every moment scheming plots for higher office.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-30,-2008/-419226690274623781.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 29, 2008

2008-07-30T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

P2TP VICTORY! Thanks to Sen. Tom Coburn's fearless leadership, the Democrats' $11 billion pork-filled monstrosity ironically titled the Advancing America's Priorities Act has gone down in flames! Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid fell eight votes short of the 60 needed to break the Republican filibuster. To the consternation of clueless Democrats everywhere, this means such pressing "priorities" as funding Polish museums, creating a commission on the War of 1812, and regulating the interstate transport of apes and monkeys will just have to wait.

So don't forget to say thanks. If your senators voted the right way, take a moment to send them an 'atta boy.

THE DUMBEST GENERATION? Emory University English professor Mark Bauerlein (author of "The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future") appeared on today's show (365ers, click here to listen) to confirm what many of us have already started to notice: The Digital Age is wreaking havoc on young Americans' reading and writing abilities. Of course, the Internet offers countless opportunities for learning, but Mark's research found that kids are using it for vanity rather than intellectual enrichment. Spending endless hours texting, chatting, and posting every intimate detail of their lives online, kids today suffer a new kind of peer pressure -- one that keeps them locked in a state of immaturity. Far from using the 'net for mental enrichment, Bauerleins discovered that average high school students spend an hour per week studying for their classes online and nine hours on social networking sites. No wonder kids' standardized test scores for reading comprehension have been falling since the birth of the 'net.

Worried about your kids? Here's an easy solution: Get the computer and television out of their rooms and set limits! Trade online time for time spent reading and writing. The study and work habits your kids learn during their teenage years will stick with them for years. They'll thank you for it later.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-29,-2008/589675056495765646.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 28, 2008

2008-07-29T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

TALKING POINTS MEMO FROM FRIDAY'S "O'REILLY FACTOR"

I've been thinking a lot about how McCain can use Obama's excellent adventure tour to his advantage. At his next campaign event, McCain should say something like this: "My friends, after watching the Obama campaign during the past week, I can confidently conclude that my opponent wants to be president of the world. I'm running to be president of the United States. Barack Obama just returned from speaking to his constituents in Europe. My constituents are right here."

News flash to all the people wondering why Obama is so popular in Europe: Obama is loved by so many there because the Europeans think he's one of them. He's too cool to be one of those ugly cowboy Americans. They believe an Obama presidency will diminish America 's supremacy in the world. They think President Obama will shrink our military, limit our energy use, and eventually, sign on to the Euro elite vision of a world without nation states. They're salivating over the prospect that America become just another member nation who's views and values aren't considered any better than any other country's.

The throngs in Berlin, who weren't just there for the free beer and music, believe that after four years of Obama, the United States will be weaker than it is today. That is why they like him so much.

The elites worldwide don't trust the American people and are determined to force us to obey global rules. They know that Obama is on board with this program. The Europeans won't have to work harder that way to keep up with us. The Chinese won't have to fear an America opposing their global ambitions. The Russians won't have to worry about Obama standing up to their international bullying. And the elites in our own country are confident that Obama will help them promote a post national global identity.

The only people who will really suffer under this world view are the plain old ordinary Americans who cherish our country's sovereignty and independence. They will see their standard of living decline relative to the rest of the world under this whole regime. This is all part of the crusade for global economic justice. The so-called rich in the United States should be forced to give to the less fortunate around the world.

This stuff wins rave reviews in the foreign press, but I think it could all backfire here at home. John McCain needs to remind voters here that he'll fight aggressively for American security, American values, and the American worker, even when doing so offends the Europeans. This will allow McCain to reclaim the patriotic high ground that has helped Republicans dominate presidential politics for the past 40 years.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-28,-2008/-270776365743006652.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 25, 2008

2008-07-26T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

EUROPE FAWNS, AMERICA YAWNS: The political transformation is underway. The world is hungry for change ... or maybe it's just a bunch of screaming Germans hungry for sausages and beer.

Make no mistake: Barack Obama's speech in Berlin's Tiergarten park was one of the most revealing and, frankly, terrifying moments of the campaign so far. We witnessed a man who may very well be the next president of the United States APOLOGIZE to a bunch of foreigners for his own country's failings! He told the crowd of 200,000 that he addressed them "as a fellow citizen of the world" and then dropped this bomb: "I know my country has not perfected itself. At times, we've struggled to keep the promise of liberty and equality for all of our people. We've made our share of mistakes, and there are times when our actions around the world have not lived up to our best intentions."

Apparently lost on Obama and the crowd was the incredible irony that a Nazi flag would be flying over Berlin at this very moment if it weren't for the sacrifices made by the United States and our allies in WWII; hundreds of thousands of Americans died to liberate Europe and prevent the spread of tyranny around the world.

The crowd, of course, was enthralled with the speech. But there's a very simple reason why Obama's been received like a rock star everywhere he goes in Europe: the European people have no desire to see America remain the world's number one power!

Here's the bottom line: The United States can't afford a commander-in-chief who travels to other countries with his hat in his hand and begs for some understanding. We need a president who will stand up for America, not apologize on her behalf. And if Obama had no qualms about delivering this speech to the European public, what's to stop him from doing it in private with Ahmadinejad in Iran?

Say goodbye to America, the superpower; say hello to America, the good global citizen.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-25,-2008/105429150839843117.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 24, 2008

2008-07-25T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

OBAMA DITCHES TROOPS, WORKS OUT INSTEAD: "Barack Obama will not be coming to us," a spokesperson for the US military hospital in Landstuhl announced. "I don't know why." Well, Barack Obama clearly has his priorities in the right place during his time in Germany. A planned visit with wounded U.S. troops at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center was abruptly canceled today, but "citizen of the world" Obama still managed to squeeze in a workout at (where else?) the Ritz Carlton in Berlin. The campaign's pathetic excuse for the change? Obama adviser Robert Gibbs tried to spin the situation faster than Barack Obama on his elliptical machine, claiming it "would be inappropriate to make a stop to visit troops at a U.S. military facility as part of a trip funded by the campaign." Wow, how ethical of him.

CONGRESS' ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT PORK BUFFET: A billion here, a billion there ... it's just money, right? Say hello to the "Advancing America's Priorities Act." This little gem, which Senator Reid will bring to the floor Saturday, contains a whopping $11 BILLION in earmark spending. Wonder how Congress plans to finance this monstrosity? Take a look in the mirror. Among its top legislative priorities: $5 million for a Jewish history museum in Poland, $183 million for "reconnecting homeless youths" (whatever the heck that means), and $1.5 billion for the DC Metrorail system, which the Heritage Foundation identifies as "the biggest earmark in history." Are Democrats trying to repeat the mistakes made by Republicans leading up to 2006? It'll be great if they suffer the same consequence, though it'll be less great if they drain our wallets in the meantime.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-24,-2008/-603778765514173306.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 23, 2008

2008-07-24T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

WIN BEN STEIN'S BRAIN! He certainly doesn't seem to be using it these days. After last night's appearance on Larry King Live in which he couldn't say enough good things about Barack Obama's trip to the Mideast -- "He seemed to be much better briefed on what was going on in Iraq than Senator McCain. I was absolutely floored at what a good job he did, and my head is just spinning ... he is the most masterful campaigner, I think, of my lifetime" -- AND squeezed in a plea for higher taxes, we can only assume that Ben Stein's been possessed by some kind of left-wing demon.

His line on taxes was straight out of the Democrats' class-warfare playbook: "We have a very, very, very rich one percent of this country. They're paying much less of a percent of their income in tax than they ever have since the Great Depression. Let's change that and tax them more ... if they can afford to pay more tax, let's give it to the people who need it." If there was a punch line, Ben forgot to reveal it. Anyone know a good exorcist?

IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE AN UMBILICAL CORD REATTACHED? America's great summer camp tradition has taken a disturbing twist. Betsy Hart, syndicated columnist and radio host, regaled today's listeners with tales of obsessive moms and dads who can't get through a single day without checking on their little snowflakes 10 times. Sneaky parents have started sending their kids off to camp with two phones -- one to hand over to camp officials and another for secretly texting home. Some even sew the second cell phone inside stuffed animals to avoid detection!

Three of Betsy's four kids are now at summer camp. In a recent column, Betsy wrote that her biggest concern isn't checking in with them every five minutes, but rather "bringing up resilient kids who can confidently engage with their world." It's called growing up, and kids learning they can survive a week or two without constant reassurance from mom and dad is an important part of it.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-23,-2008/-377893300238048719.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 22, 2008

2008-07-23T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

OBAMA'S MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR, CONT'D: A unifying message is beginning to emerge as Barack Obama continues to hopscotch around the Middle East on Hope Force One: He's not a nominee, he's already president! We may as well just cancel the November election -- it looks like Obama's already got the ins and outs of the job figured out. From strategizing with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on how to cure all that ails his country, to advising General Petraeus on what he could be doing better to win in Iraq, he's just got commander-"of"-chief written all over him.

Add to the mix the media's wall-to-wall coverage and reporters' barely-contained excitement, and perceptions of this weeklong posture-fest have lost all ties with reality. "Presumptuous" doesn't even begin to cover it. It's an all-around nauseating spectacle of Obama worship.

BARLETTA FOR CONGRESS! Mayor Lou Barletta of Hazelton, Pennsylvania, stopped by the studio today to talk about his run as the GOP's nominee in Pa.'s 11th congressional district. Mayor Barletta is best known as the immigration stalwart who took a bold stand against the threat of violent crime, gang activity, and drug trafficking from illegal immigrants. He enacted some of the country's toughest anti-illegal immigration legislation, which worked wonders until it was struck down by a federal judge last year. Barletta's opponent, 25-year incumbent Rep. Paul "We stretched the facts to win in 2006" Kanjorski, is currently trailing Barletta by about five points in the polls.

SF'S SANCTUARY POLICY BRINGS UNSPEAKABLE TRAGEDY: Our prayers are with Danielle Bologna, the San Francisco woman who joined us on today's show (Laura 365 members can listen here). Danielle's husband and two sons were senselessly and brutally murdered last month by Edwin Ramos, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador. Thanks to San Francisco's "City of Refuge" policy, Ramos remained in the United States despite TWO prior convictions for gang-related felonies. And as if two felony convictions weren't reason enough to deport him, Ramos was also arrested on a gun charge in March, but authorities again failed to place an immigration hold on him.

The blood of Anthony, Matthew and Michael Bologna is on the hands of San Francisco officials and Mayor Gavin Newsom in particular, a staunch defender of the city's sanctuary policy.

From the ashes of this tragedy we see a real Power to the People opportunity, and over the coming days and weeks we will keep you updated on what you can do to make your voice heard to leaders around the country. In the meantime, click here to contact Mayor Newsom's office.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-22,-2008/562955525315688556.html

Laura's Daily E-Blast - July 21, 2008

2008-07-22T00:00:00Z

Posted By: Staff

OBAMA'S MIDEAST TOUR OF DOODIE: On the Sunday edition of NBC's Nightly News, anchor Lestor Holt declared Obama's overseas trip a "tour of duty." Aside from being a sharp slap in the face to those who actually have put their lives on the line serving our country, the fawning coverage of Barack Obama has just gotten way over the top. If the dino media put down their jugs of Obama Kool-Aid for a second or two they might see his trip for what it truly is: a week-long marathon of posturing and photo-ops designed to make Obama appear tough and experienced, neither of which he actually is.

To avoid any further confusion about the "objectivity" of our friends in the mainstream media, today we sent off a special care package to each of the major network anchors full of "Obama for president" buttons and hats. Look closely and you might see them cropping up on lapels and heads later this week.

"MAD MAN" JIM CRAMER POPS IN: Jim Cramer, host of CNBC's "Mad Money" and all around financial whiz, said American politicians (Click here to listen) are turning America into "a nation of wimps" for not allowing greater domestic drilling. Unlike northeastern liberals who preach the glories of green energy while employing NIMBY tactics to block local wind farms, Cramer puts his money where his mouth is: He wants a drill right next his beach house.

A MIRACLE BORN FROM TRAGEDY: We were fortunate to be joined today by Gary McCaleb, senior counsel at the Alliance Defense Fund, and Jesse Ramirez, a Gulf War veteran whom doctors claimed was in a permanent vegetative state (á la Terri Schiavo) following a horrific auto accident in 2007 (365ers, you don't want to miss this). Just 10 days after the accident, doctors followed through on Jesse's (now) ex-wife's order to remove his feeding tube. For five days Jesse was deprived of food and water until his sister, Marlene, contacted the ADF for help. Thanks to the efforts of the ADF and his family, Jesse walked out of the hospital months later under his own power, and today he's a walking, talking testimony to the inherent value of every human life. Last month, Arizona enacted Jesse's Law, which protects people in similar circumstances.

http://www.LauraIngraham.com/b/Lauras-Daily-E-Blast---July-21,-2008/-886243218940834498.html