Fat Tax a Reality in New York
State Health Commissioner Richard Daines has become the point man for one of the more controversial of Gov. David Paterson's revenue-generating budget proposals: The so-called "fat tax" - an 18 percent levy on sugary drinks like non-diet soda.

Congress to Get Pay Raise
Members of Congress don’t need a $4,700 pay raise and should vote to nullify a provision that automatically kicks in during January giving them a cost of living adjustment, taxpayer and senior citizens’ groups tell CNSNews.com. “I think there’s something hypocritical about a Congress that will lambaste automakers or the financial industry for reaping big executive pay packages as they are very quietly getting a $4,700 raise themselves,” Brad Phillips, head of the Senior Citizens League.

Breaking! Rezko attorney 'owns' Obama mansion
An attorney for convicted fundraiser Tony Rezko is listed as the owner and taxpayer for Barack Obama's Chicago mansion. Meanwhile, WND has reported that since arresting Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald has taken new interest in Rezko's involvement in the Obama mansion purchase. Real estate credit analyst Kenneth Conner has filed a civil suit alleging he was wrongfully dismissed by Mutual Bank of Harvey for objecting to what he considered a fraudulent appraisal of the vacant lot. The appraisal was submitted by the Rezkos at an intentionally high figure, he claims, permitting them to borrow an additional $125,000 that amounted to a "political payoff" to Obama.

Blago Corruption Scandal Threatens Obama and Emanuel
Gov. Rod Blagojevich is legendary in Illinois political circles for not picking up the phone or returning calls, even from important figures like the state's senior senator, Dick Durbin. But there was always one call Blagojevich regularly took, say his aides, and that was from Rahm Emanuel - his congressman, his one-time campaign adviser and, more recently - and troubling for Emanuel - one of his contacts with President-elect Barack Obama's transition staff. The friendly rapport Blagojevich and Emanuel shared over the years has suddenly become a troubling liability for Emanuel and the new president he will serve as chief of staff.

Are Americans safe from U.S. mosques?
When the five Muslims convicted this month of plotting to kill U.S. soldiers at Fort Dix were charged, the New Jersey mosque where four of the men worshipped reacted to negative publicity by holding an "emergency town hall meeting" to calm neighbors and persuade Americans that Islam poses no threat. But having investigated the Islamic Center of South Jersey one year ago, Middle East expert and former Air Force special agent Dave Gaubatz insists not only is the mosque a threat to national security, it represents a pattern that has prompted him to launch a massive project to systematically classify every known mosque in the U.S. Mapping Shariah in America: Knowing the Enemy seeks by the end of next year to document in a rigorous, scientific fashion the controversial premise that the more a mosque or community of Muslims adheres to Shariah, or Islamic law, the greater its threat to U.S. national security.

Taliban beheading their enemies
Taliban militants are beheading and burning their way through Pakistan's picturesque Swat Valley, and residents say the insurgents now control most of the mountainous region far from the lawless tribal areas where jihadists thrive.

Chaos in Illinois – Blago Appoints Senator
Brushing aside charges that he tried to sell Illinois' vacant U.S. Senate seat, Gov. Rod Blagojevich appointed former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris to the post today in defiance of Senate leaders who said they would not admit anyone he selected.

Blago Press Conference with Appointee
A transmission from Bizarroland, where Blago’s only option to make sure Illinois has two Senators in January is to appoint someone himself rather than resign now and let the lieutenant governor make the appointment. I’m giving you four and a half minutes of lowlights, but if you can’t spare the time, skip ahead to 3:25 and watch Rep. Bobby Rush — a former Black Panther and the only person to defeat Barack Obama in an election — stoop to some of the most exquisite race-baiting you’ll ever see.

Senator-Select Donated Thousands to Blagojevich
According to Illinois State Board of Elections records, Burris donated $1,000 to Friends of Blagojevich on June 27. On Oct.22 of last year, he donated another $1,500. The records also show that Burris’ company, Burris & Ledbed Consulting, Inc., a government relations, media and political consultancy firm, made two donations totaling $4,000 to Blagojevich’s campaign on March 13, 2006, just as Blagojevich’s gubernatorial contest was heating up that year.

Bush’s Awful Auto Bailout
This week President Bush announced that his Administration, acting unilaterally after Congress declined to intervene, will bail out the auto industry to the tune of $13.4 billion now, another $4 billion in February, and who knows how much thereafter. What a terrible proposal!

RNC draft rips Bush's bailouts
Republican Party officials say they will try next month to pass a resolution accusing President Bush and congressional Republican leaders of embracing "socialism," underscoring deep dissension within the party at the end of Mr. Bush's administration.

Conservative Gov Slashes Budget
Conservative Governor Tim Pawlenty stated that Minnesota will rely on government reductions in spending rather than tax hikes to eliminate budget shortfalls due to the deteriorating economy. Pawlenty unveiled $271 million in cuts yesterday afternoon, attempting to close an expected $426 million deficit for this biennial and looking towards a $4 billion deficit in the 2010-11 budget.

SC Gov Fights Against Welfare Corruption
The standoff between South Carolina's governor and state officials continues, with only two days before the state must stop printing unemployment checks for 77,000 people. Last month, South Carolina reported the nation's third-worst unemployment rate at 8.4 percent. Forecasters have said the jobless rate could reach an unprecedented 14 percent next year. Sanford says he won't request a $146 million federal loan to pay unemployment benefits through March until the commission agrees to his demands that include an audit by the state's watchdog agency.

Democrat Leader Says Fairness Doctrine Should Extend to Cable, Satellite TV
House Republican Leader John Boehner (Ohio) says he’s troubled by a California Democrat’s plan to push for the return – and expansion – of the Fairness Doctrine. In a newspaper interview on Monday, Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said she would work on bringing back the federal regulation that requires equal time for the expression of different political views on the public airwaves. Eshoo reportedly wants the regulation to apply not only to radio and television, but also to cable and satellite TV.

Kenyan detention of Reporter orchestrated by Obama's political friend
The Kenyan official who reportedly orchestrated the detention of WND senior staff reporter Jerome R. Corsi when he visited Kenya to investigate President-elect Barack Obama's close ties to the nation's prime minister, Raila Odinga, was Odinga himself, according to WND sources inside Kenya.

Students suspended for refusing anti-Christian class
Seven Christian students in Quebec have been handed suspensions in the last few days – and could face expulsions – for refusing to participate in a new mandatory Ethics and Religious Culture course that, according to a critic, is a "superficial mishmash of trendy theoretical platitudes" with the goal of convincing children that "all religions – including pagan animism and cults – are equally 'true.'"

12-time deportee repays compassionate stranger with murder
An illegal alien – who has been deported more than a dozen times – is being charged with first-degree murder after allegedly beating a woman to death when she took him in, gave him work and treated him like family.

$1 Billion More a Year for Gender Equality, Clean Energy and NASA
Despite the recession, House Science and Technology Committee Chairman Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN) introduced an expanded agenda for his committee for 2009, which includes developing clean energy technologies, a proposed expansion of NASA space missions and restoring gender equality to America’s laboratories. It is estimated to cost $1 billion a year in new spending.

Bush Administration Finalizes Rule Protecting Medical Professionals on Abortion
The Bush administration has finalized the new rules that protect both medical professionals and medical staff who don’t want to be involved in abortions or abortion referrals. The Department of Health and Human Services released the final rule that will go into effect on January 20.

Liberal AG’s to Fight Bush Abortion Rules
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut says he will lead a fight against a federal rule issued by the Bush administration to protect doctors and medical facilities from being pressured to participate in abortions. The rule enforces federal law protecting the conscience rights of medical professional. State attorney generals from Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah and Vermont joined Blumenthal in opposing the rule originally.

Abortions Increasing in America
Hard financial times are having an impact on non-profit health care centers, like Planned Parenthood. We're not talking about a lack of funding but a significant increase in demand for services. One service Planned Parenthood has experienced a notable increase in is abortions. It could be the first such increase in almost 20 years.

Wind Farm’s Full of Hot Air
The wind farm industry has been forced to admit that the environmental benefit of wind power in reducing carbon emissions is only half as big as it had previously claimed.

President Calderon's Guard Accused of Spying for Mexican Drug Cartel
Mexico's drug corruption scandals reached into the presidential guard as authorities identified one officer as a possible spy for the country's violent drug cartels.

America's Toughest Sheriff, Gets TV Show
In Arizona, seeing Joe Arpaio on TV is nothing new. But the self-described "America's toughest sheriff" now has a national platform to pursue lawbreakers that stretches beyond the 5 o'clock news. The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, which oversees the state's most populous county, has a starring role in "Smile ... You're Under Arrest!," a new reality show debuting Saturday on Fox Reality Channel.

God is the true source of peace in the world
During his Christmas homily, Pope Benedict XVI explained that wherever God is, “there is peace.” By being born as a child, the Pontiff continued, Christ brought love into the world so that those who draw near to him might be bearers of his peace. The Holy Father continued his homily by asking those present to pray for the children of the world, especially those who are victims of violence, abuse or pornography. “The Child of Bethlehem summons us once again to do everything in our power to put an end to the suffering of these children; to do everything possible to make the light of Bethlehem touch the heart of every man and woman. Only through the conversion of hearts, only through a change in the depths of our hearts can the cause of all this evil be overcome, only thus can the power of the evil one be defeated. Only if people change will the world change; and in order to change, people need the light that comes from God, the light which so unexpectedly entered into our night.”

Church of England puts its faith in Al Gore
The Church of England’s Church Commissioners have gone green, investing $200 million with former US Vice-President Al Gore’s environmentally minded investment firm, Generation Investment Management.

UK Leader: “Man-made climate change is a con”
Spending billions on trying to reduce carbon emissions is one giant con that is depriving third world countries of vital funds to tackle famine, HIV and other diseases, United Kingdom Environmental Minister Sammy Wilson said.

Put a Hold on Holder's Nomination
A conservative senator would be a true American hero if he or she would put a hold on -- i.e., threaten to filibuster -- the nomination of Eric Holder to be the next attorney general. Let me be clear: Senators should explore Holder’s views on the right to bear arms and the Elian Gonzales raid before they consent to his appointment. The Second Amendment is sacrosanct to all freedom-loving Americans. Yet Holder, in his capacity as former deputy attorney general from 1997 to 2001 and acting attorney general in 2001, signed a brief to the Supreme Court last year arguing that “the Second Amendment does not protect firearms possession or use that is unrelated to participation in a well-regulated militia.” This strongly suggests that Holder is hostile to private gun ownership and will work to restrict gun rights.

Did Sebelius' paid day off cost taxpayers more than $9 million?
In a day when many business or furloughing and laying off workers, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius declared last Friday a state holiday, giving all state employees a paid day off from work, it's a gift that may have cost Kansas taxpayers more than $9 million. Thanks again Governor for your fiscal prowess.

Welfare State: Medicaid Fraud in Kansas Rampant
An audit of the state's Medicaid program found $13 million in suspicious claims including one that claimed a Caesarean section was performed on an 8-year-old boy. The findings of apparent fraud and abuse in the $2.4 billion health care program for Kansas' poor were presented Friday to a House-Senate audit committee, less than a month before lawmakers begin the 2009 legislative session facing a massive state budget deficit.

Roeland Park mayor censured for First Amendment Violation
The mayor and a council member exchanged heated words at Monday night’s Roeland Park council meeting following a nearly unanimous vote to censure the mayor. The council censured Mayor Steve Petrehn for inappropriately restricting a city council member’s right to speak at a previous meeting. Councilman Scott Gregory made the motion, which was approved 7-0. Councilman Mark Kohles abstained because he was absent during the portion of the meeting during which the episode occurred. Gregory said that Petrehn “immediately and abruptly silenced” Adrienne Foster on Dec. 1 during a discussion about seeking grant money for trails at Nall Park. A transcript of the meeting revealed that Petrehn spoke 11 times on the subject, which was more than everyone else combined, Gregory said. Foster spoke twice on the subject. “This is the latest incident in which someone is silenced when they disagree with the chair,” he said. “The council has complained about this in the past to no avail.” Similar First Amendment violation accusations have occurred in Mission to City Councilman Steve Showengerdt.

Incredible! Olathe wants to Increase Funding and Taxes for Arts
The commission desires a permanent funding source, said Mike Haskin, who provided three options to the council for increasing arts funding: have the council agree to use the general fund to allocate a certain amount per resident; use revenues from the liquor tax; or increase the city’s hotel excise tax by 1 percent and provide money from the increase for the arts. The commission’s recommendation is to increase the hotel tax, currently at 6 percent. Based on 2008 figures, the increase would generate about $140,000. Haskin told the council that other metro area cities generally fund the arts more than Olathe. Leawood, for example, collects $5 per resident for public art projects and assesses new commercial properties or renovations of commercial buildings to provide funding for sculptures. Overland Park and Lenexa each provide about $1 per resident for arts programming.

Audit: State agency viewed as top-heavy
The state's leading economic development agency Friday pushed back against a government report portraying the department as burdened by a management structure more top-heavy than at least five other state agencies. The audit of the Kansas Department of Commerce revealed 15 percent of the department's staff was on the management payroll. The proportion of management at other state agencies in the survey ranged from 4.4 percent to 8.8 percent.

Regents fail to understand supply and demand
The state Board of Regents approved increases in housing and food services charges at the state's six public universities for next year. The hikes ranged from 3.4 percent at Wichita State University to 6.5 percent at Pittburg State University. Charges will jump 5.1 percent at the University of Kansas. 4.9 percent at Emporia State University and 4.7 percent at Kansas State University.

Minorities a majority in 3 cities in Kansas
New Census numbers show that minorities now make up at least half the population in four of Kansas' 18 largest cities. The figures show that non-Hispanic whites are now a minority in Liberal, Dodge City and Kansas City, Kan. In Garden City, at least 50 percent of the residents are minorities. However, the suburban communities of Derby, Olathe and Overland Park showed some of the fastest gains in minority population.

Invasion of the Deer Hordes
KC Star: “But what the visitors are really seeing is a disaster for Mother Nature. There are too many deer and too little vegetation, and the park’s fragile ecosystem is beginning to spin out of control. At last count, the whitetail deer population was roughly eight times as high as the 1,250-acre park could support.” Um, it’s called Deer Hunting. Perhaps you should try it.

Shock: Released Christmas Inmate Fails to Return to Jail
A Douglas County Jail inmate who failed to return to the correctional facility after being released by a judge over Christmas has been identified as Candice Amyx. Amyx was released from the jail at 8 a.m. Christmas Day and ordered to return at 8 p.m. the same day, but hasn’t. District Judge Jack Murphy granted a temporary leave for Amyx, court records said.

Kansas City Kansan to publish only online
The Kansas City Kansan, the only news source exclusively devoted to covering Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., will discontinue publishing its printed newspaper. The newspaper’s final issue will be Jan. 10, the Kansan announced in an article Wednesday on its Web site. After that, it will post its news online at www.kansascitykansan.com. The Kansas Federalist has been web-based only for two years! Again, TKF leading the way in today’s journalism!

The Subprime Lending Bias

Media: If, as they say, it's journalists who write history's first draft, then future texts will be riddled with errors about the origins of the subprime disaster, teaching future leaders the wrong lessons.

Just how did Americans come to lose $10 trillion in real estate and stock wealth? And why are our children and grandchildren on the hook for as much as $8 trillion in federal bailout money? These are some of the most important questions of our time. Yet the mainstream media, plagued by monopartisan bias, are not providing the public honest answers.

Take, for instance, a recent front-page article in the Washington Post, under the headline, "How HUD Mortgage Policy Fed the Crisis." The piece correctly fingers HUD for helping fuel risky lending at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But the newspaper starts its analysis in 2004 (in fact, the first sentence begins, "In 2004 . . . "), making it seem as if the Bush administration crafted "affordable housing" policy and created the subprime market. The Post knows better. The Bush HUD merely continued a politically correct policy launched by the Clinton administration. For the first time, President Clinton ordered HUD to set quotas for Fannie and Freddie to buy huge portions of Community Reinvestment Act loans and other low-income mortgages made to borrowers with poor credit. The Post failed to mention this key fact.

By 2000, fully half of the mortgage giants' portfolios consisted of these risky loans, most of them subprime mortgages. In effect, the Clinton HUD set a time bomb that would explode years later with the collapse of home prices, which happened to occur on Bush's watch.

At the same time, HUD pressured the federally subsidized giants to lower their loan-to-value ratios and other underwriting requirements to accommodate minority borrowers. HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo even admitted that the administration was mandating a policy of "affirmative action" lending (his words, not ours).

And it was Clinton who initially spread the subprime rot to Wall Street. To help Fannie and Freddie reach their "affirmative action" lending quotas, HUD in 1995 let them get affordable-housing credit for buying subprime securities that included loans to low-income borrowers.

Less than two years later, Freddie partnered with Wall Street investment banker Bear Stearns to issue the first securitizations of low-income CRA loans.

There's even a press release still available on the Web that memorializes the historic deal, which dumped hundreds of millions of dollars in the risky loans on the market — a down payment on the hundreds of billions that were to follow. The Post left all of that out of its story, even though the deal marked the beginning of the boom in subprime securities.

Of course, providing such background to readers would ruin the impression that Bush and Republicans were responsible for the crisis, an impression the Post and other liberal media elites hope will stick in the public's mind and become conventional wisdom. And conventional wisdom, once galvanized, is a powerful thing in Washington. Whole agendas and coalitions are built around it.

The Post also provided just one side of the data in its story. The paper said that Bush "ratcheted up" the affordable-housing goal for Fannie and Freddie, from 50% to 56%. But it left out the fact that the previous president, the liberal Democrat, institutionalized the quota and ballooned it up to 50%. Which move do you think had a greater impact on the subprime market?

A recent story in the Associated Press was equally tendentious. It blamed Bush for not cracking down on loose lending standards that had become the norm in the mortgage industry, while completely ignoring the systematic dismantling of those standards during the previous decade under Clinton.

"The administration's blind eye to the impending crisis is emblematic of its governing philosophy, which trusted market forces and discounted the value of government intervention in the economy," wrote AP Washington correspondent Matt Apuzzo. Reality check: "Government intervention" is what planted the seed to this whole crisis. As we've noted, Clinton in 1995 revised CRA regulations to pressure banks into adopting "flexible" lending standards to increase minority homeownership. In a 1,389-word story, AP cited that easily verifiable fact not a single time.

Make no mistake: It was Clinton who forced banks — most importantly, Fannie and Freddie — to go into the subprime market to serve the targeted populations that HUD and other Clinton banking regulators wanted them to serve.

In effect, the media are blaming Bush for Clinton policies. Whoever controls the debate in Washington controls the truth. Right now, it's Democrats and their press courtiers. And so far, they've managed to shade the truth about the root causes of this epochal financial crisis.

To view the original editorial:
http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=314582096700459