Going It Alone: Former Sheriff Gerald Hege is running to reclaim office he lost after felony conviction, and he's doing it without local GOP help

Winston-Salem Journal: Before he became the sheriff of Davidson County, Gerald Hege worked to build the county's Republican Party and relied on that machine to propel him into office in 1994.

Seven years after leaving the office in disgrace -- removed after pleading guilty to two felony counts of obstruction of justice -- Hege is back, making a bid for his old job.

This time, he is doing it without help from the party he helped build into the county's dominant political force.

REPORT: Emergency shipment of condoms headed to Olympic athletes...

Vancouver Now: Rowdy curling crowds; spontaneous street parties; public drunkeness. You don't have to look far for evidence that the crowds at Winter Games in Vancouver know how to have a good time.

And, as if anymore proof is needed that a wild Olympic atmosphere permeates B.C.'s largest city, now there's an apparent condom shortage.

That's right. As you read this, an emergency shipment of condoms is desperately making its way across Canada to the West Coast city.

SeaWorld Trainer Grabbed by Ponytail Was Growing Hair Out for ‘Locks of Love’

The State: Dawn Brancheau's college friends at USC remember her knack for lifting others when they were down. That trait might have played a small role in Brancheau's drowning death Wednesday. SeaWorld officials said a killer whale pulled Brancheau into the water by her long, blond ponytail. Last month, Brancheau told college friend Angie Weckel Madey she was growing her hair out to donate it to Locks of Love.

Pelosi Says She’s Running ‘Most Ethical’ Congress Ever

CNS News: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) insisted on Friday that she is running the most ethical and honest Congress in history. At the same time, however, she indicated she will not ask House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D.-N.Y.) to resign his chairmanship—at least for now.

Rangel was admonished this week by the ethics committee for taking corporate-funded trips to the Caribbean.

Howard Dean: Tea Party Movement Is Racist

The Daily Caller: In a speech Wednesday night at the George Washington University, Howard Dean told College Democrats that “the Tea Party is about a generation who grew up in an America where everyone looked like them” and implied that the movement is hostile to President Obama because of his race.

Dean, a former governor of Vermont and chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009, is not the first Democrat to make such a claim. Former President Jimmy Carter told students at Emory University last year: “I think people who are guilty of that kind of personal attack against Obama have been influenced to a major degree by a belief that he should not be president because he happens to be African American.” Actress and activist Janeane Garofalo put it more bluntly: “The functionally retarded adults, the racists — with their cries of, ‘I want my country back’ … you know what they’re really saying is, ‘I want my white guy back.’”

Dean went on to say that the views of older conservatives in the Tea Party movement were “diametrically opposed” to the views of the student generation on key social issues, including abortion and gay rights.

He also said that the Republican Party holds “untenable positions based on emotion and anger,” and that the GOP won’t be effective until they “stop pushing the hate button.”

“Republicans are great at opposing, but not leading … because they believe their own nonsense,” Dean said.

Democrats are different, according to the former DNC chair, because Democrats “respect the process” and “think other people have good ideas.” The comment comes amidst criticism from Republicans that the Democrats want to use the reconciliation process in the Senate to pass a health-care reform bill. Republicans have also criticized the president and congressional Democrats for not listening to proposed GOP ideas for health-care reform.

Bush Jokes About Intelligence, Knocks Jimmy Carter

CBS News: Former President George W. Bush joked about his intelligence, said Dick Cheney is doing well following his fifth heart attack and took a shot at Jimmy Carter at a breakfast for the Bush-Cheney Alumni Association Friday morning.

US senator warns of ‘financial meltdown’ risk

(The Financial Times) - The US is heading for a debt-driven “financial meltdown” within five to seven years, according to Judd Gregg, the outgoing Republican senator for New Hampshire.

In a robust and at times testy video interview for the Financial Times’s View from DC series, Mr Gregg also complimented China for showing rising alarm about the US’s mounting levels of public debt.

Tom Harkin: "It's Time To Stop Segregating On The Basis Of Your Health"

Paul Ryan on Health Care: Answers don't lie in Washington

'Stossel' – February 25, 2010: FDA

23,000 expected to lose jobs after space shuttle retirement...

(Florida Today) - The local economic forecast tied to President Barack Obama's proposed NASA budget keeps growing bleaker.

Revised projections now show that about 23,000 workers at and around Kennedy Space Center will lose their jobs because of the shuttles' retirement and the new proposal to cancel the development of new rockets and spacecraft.

Joe Biden: ‘It’s Easy Being Vice President’

"It's easy being vice president - you don't do anything."

MSNBC Host: We Ought to Rip Out Cheney’s Heart & Kick It Around

"Bozell, Bozell and his bozo crew. You're damn right, Dick Cheney's heart's a political football. We ought to rip it out and kick it around and stuff it back in him. I'm glad he didn't tip over. He is the new poster child for health care in this country."

French Anti-Smoking Ads Show Kids in Sexual Positions

"When you start smoking you don't become more free."

Charles Krauthammer: Obama Has ‘Given Up the Aura of the Presidency’

"He's now at the level of prime minister."

Update: Second Video Captures Extent of Canadian Teachers’ Infamous Lap Dance



(Winnipeg Free Press) - There are still no answers about why staff at Churchill High School didn't immediately step in to stop the performance in front of at least 100 students, or why it took two days for the school to take action.

Charlie Rangel Says He’ll Be Admonished Over Travel Payments

(CNN) - Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel will be formally admonished Friday by the House Ethics Committee, he told reporters Thursday. The issue concerns who paid for travel he and several other members of the Congressional Black Caucus took to the Caribbean in 2007 and 2008. The powerful chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee told CNN that the ethics committee had approved the travel.

‘A Poor Man’s Teleprompter’: Palin Explains ‘Hand Notes

"Hey remember those talking points I had written on my hand..."

Sarah Palin Tells Sean Hannity: Tea Party Should ‘Take Over’ GOP

“There’s no easy answer, but there is a simple answer.”

David Gergen: GOP Had Their Best Day In Years

Surprise, surprise!

Pat Buchanan: GOP Wins In Health Summit

He appears on MSNBC

Rush Limbaugh's Morning Update: Soaring!

Rush Limbaugh: Folks, I hope I get through this without throwing up. Many of America's top CEOs belong to the Business Roundtable. This week, Obama showed up there with a speech on competitiveness. He said we should get past the "old debates and crippling divides between right and left, business and labor, private enterprise and the public sector."

"Rather than hurling accusations about big government liberals or mean-spirited conservatives," he said, we must answer tough questions. "Getting this balance right has less to do with big government or small government than it does smart government. It's not about being anti-business or pro-government; it's about being pro-growth and pro-jobs."

Ah, I did it. Now the truth. Obama and his liberal Democrat Party have launched an unprecedented attack on American businesses. Democrat health care, energy, and environmental policies assume that businesses have unlimited treasuries to be endlessly taxed. Obama's financial policies assume that big businesses are corrupt, greedy, and immoral; his mission is to punish them.

Contrary to what he claims, this is all about being "anti-business and pro-government." Liberals are growing a bigger government every second of every day while they destroy as much of the private sector as they can. Obama and the Democrats have not advanced a single pro-growth or pro-jobs policy; it is they who are dividing this nation. This is all about the right and the left, folks, with business fending off big government and big labor.

Mr. Obama: soaring speeches don't create jobs, or make us more competitive. In fact, your slash-and-burn policies do just the opposite. Smart government? Yours... ain't it.

Read the Background Material on the Morning Update...
• FOXNews: President Obama's Speech to Business Roundtable

Hike on river tract gives glimpse of group's work

Winter lingers at South Deep Creek at its confluence with the Dan River in Stokes County. Ken Bridle of the Piedmont Land Conservancy works to preserve such tracts.

Winston-Salem Journal: You know it's going to be a fine day for a hike when you spot 12 or so wild turkeys waddling around the base of a hill you are about to climb.

Another sign?

The presence of Ken Bridle, a hiking encyclopedia of geology, wildlife, botany and history.

Bridle is the stewardship director for the Piedmont Land Conservancy, and on Friday mornings he leads hikes on some of the conservancy's protected areas.

The health care summit is an "evil" trap... :-)

Obama at Waterloo... :-)

Bill O'Reilly Nails Stephanopoulos' Critique of Palin, Compares: 'Nancy Pelosi's a Genius?'

(Eyeblast.tv) - Fox News host Bill O'Reilly on Thursday knocked down questions by George Stephanopoulos as to whether Sarah Palin is ready to run for President. After allowing that the former Alaska governor needs some "seasoning," O'Reilly mocked, "...Give me a break. Nancy Pelosi's a genius? She's the Speaker of the House. She's afraid to come on my program, Stephanopoulos."

Obama to McCain: We’re not campaigning anymore, the election’s over!

(The Right Scoop) - The arrogance of power at work. From the man who can’t stop campaigning.

It’s clear Obama doesn’t care how much he humiliates McCain over his victory, over a year later, on live TV, and in front of all of America. People generally talk about bad sportsmanship on the loosing side, not the winning side.

"I'm reminded of that every day," Sen. John McCain said.

Dem Congresswoman: ‘She Wore Her Dead Sister’s Teeth’

"You will not believe this and I know you won't, but it's true. Her sister died. This poor woman had no dentures. She wore her dead sister's teeth, which of course were uncomfortable and did not fit."

What Part of "Party of No" Don't You Understand?

(By Ann Coulter, Townhall.com) - Inasmuch as Obamacare has a snowball's chance in hell of passing (but did you see how much snow they got in hell last week?), everyone is wondering what President Obama is up to by calling Republicans to a televised Reykjavik summit this week to discuss socializing health care.

At least they served beer at the last White House summit this stupid and pointless.

If the president is serious about passing nationalized health care, he ought to be meeting with the Democrats, not the Republicans.

McConnell Calls for More Equal Division of Time in Health Summit

"To this point, the Republicans have used 24 minutes, the Democrats 52 minutes. Let's try to have as much balance as we can."

Obama: I Didn’t Divide My Time Evenly Because I’m the President

"There was an imbalance on the opening statements because I'm the President. So, I made ... I didn't count my time in terms of dividing it evenly."

British Health System Nightmare: Hospital 'caused unimaginable suffering'...

(U.K. Times Online) - Patients were routinely neglected or left “sobbing and humiliated” by staff at an NHS trust where at least 400 deaths have been linked to appalling care.

An independent inquiry found that managers at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust stopped providing safe care because they were preoccupied with government targets and cutting costs.

The inquiry report, published yesterday by Robert Francis, QC, included proposals for tough new regulations that could lead to managers at failing NHS trusts being struck off.

Related Material...

• (U.K. Mail Online) - Patients left 'unwashed in their own filth for month'...

• (U.K. Independent) - Wards were left bloody, discarded needles; Sick drink water from flower vases...

Dem: Every Republican a ‘Wholly Owned Subsidiary of the Insurance Industry’

(New York Daily News) - Rep. Anthony Weiner — saboteur? Rabble-rouser? Entertainer? Perhaps all of the above, as the unfortunate GOP Rep. Dan Lungren discovered this afternoon on the House floor when he decided to interrupt the Brooklyn boy and demand that he withdraw his remarks that Republicans have chutzpah and are “wholly owned subsidiaries” of the insurance industry. “Mr. Speaker, I ask the gentleman’s words be taken down,” an offended Lungren piped up, invoking a rule to chastise members for using inappropriate language on the House floor. “You really don’t want to go here, Mr. Lundgren,” responded Weiner, with arms crossed and a cat-that-ate-the-canary look.

Related Material...

• (Hot Air) - Video: The kind of Democratic outreach GOP can expect at summit

Family Shoots Video of Trainer With Killer Whale Moments Before SeaWorld Attack

"It seems surreal that this whole thing happened. A nice day down at Sea World and we couldn't believe what we were seeing, what we were witnessing. Just unbelievable." [There is no audio with this video.]

Pelosi: Health Bill Will Create 400,000 Jobs ‘Almost Immediately’

"So this bill is not only about the health security of America, it's about jobs. In it's life, it will create 4 million jobs - 400,000 jobs almost immediately."

Related Material...

• (Hot Air) - Pelosi: It’s not a health-care reform bill, it’s a jobs bill!

President Reagan's Remarks at the Conservative Political Action Conference - Feb. 26 , 1982

(Reagan Foundation) - President Reagan's Remarks at the Conservative Political Action Conference on February 26, 1982.

I'm no socialist, Obama tells CEOs

Business is economic engine but government is catalyst, the president says

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - President Barack Obama told business leaders Wednesday that he's no socialist plotting a government takeover of the economy.

His administration isn't anti-business, he said in a speech to the Business Roundtable, an organization of chief executive officers of major U.S. corporations. "It's pro-America and I don't apologize for it."

"Contrary to the claims of some of my critics, I am an ardent believer in the free market," Obama said. "I believe businesses like yours are the engines of economic growth in this country."

Commissioners split on vote for grant: Motion to apply for funds to renovate former Danbury daycare facility fails

(By Leslie Bray Evans, The Stokes News) - The Stokes County Board of Commissioners met for over four hours on Monday night. One of the pressing issues that resulted in much discussion was the request for authorization to apply for a grant for the now vacant daycare center in Danbury.

The board split on the vote to authorize the application for a grant that could be utilized to renovate the Danbury facility formerly used as a daycare. With board members Dr. Ron Carroll, Stanley Smith and Chairman Jimmy Walker voting no, the motion failed. Commissioner Leon Inman and Vice Chair Ernest Lankford voted in favor of applying for the grant.

The item was on the discussion agenda before being moved to action. Lankford introduced the topic, stressing the large financial impact of the daycare business on the economy of Stokes County. He noted that there are only 20 licensed/regulated daycare centers in the entire county and that many of these are run with the aid of grant money.

Mark Badgett to be disbarred? NC State Bar says they will serve the order

(By Leslie Bray Evans, The Stokes News) - A legal case that has been in the public eye for a few years now may soon be coming to an end. The Disciplinary Hearing Commission (DHC) of the North Carolina State Bar (NCSB) reached a decision on Friday to enter an order to disbar Stokes County lawyer, Mark Badgett.

The decision was announced in open court on February 19 in Raleigh. Badgett had been found guilty of violating the rules of professional conduct in his legal career and had already been removed from his position as a district court judge for the 17-B Judicial District of NC. He had, however, been allowed to practice law privately since his removal from judicial office in the fall of 2009.

Now, even that may be coming to an end.

Liberal Hypocrisy on Full Display

(Fox News) - Former Obama 'czar' Van Jones preaches on political civility.

Fox News 'Special Report' Online Show: 2/24/10

(Fox News) - All-star panel on whether the White House is secretly plotting a 2012 campaign; will native Hawaiians get sovereignty?

Charles Krauthammer On Obama's 2-Act H'care Production: "The Children Of Light Vs. The Apostles Of Nihilism"

Jack Cafferty On Obama's 2012 Campaign

Is that Community Organizer job still open?

Rush Limbaugh's Morning Update: State of States

Rush Limbaugh: Folks, the financial state of most of these United States is dismal. According to a new report from the Nelson Rockefeller Institute of Government, states' tax revenues last year were down for a fifth straight quarter; it's the longest period of declines since the Great Depression. Prospects for a quick turnaround are also dismal. Why? Well, because in too many of these states, liberals are running the show.

According to the New York Times, "The revenue decline comes despite the tax increases imposed by many states since the recession began." Well, shazaam! Actually, the revenue decline is a direct result of tax increases, and the out-of-control spending imposed by these states, which was made even worse by this slush fund spending from the Porkulus bill. The Democrats' slush fund gave states a one-time cash infusion that has come to an end -- for now -- until the next round of slush fund money comes through.

The Rockefeller report warns that state tax revenues will continue to be "insufficient to support current spending commitments," and that more spending cuts and tax increases are likely. But they say sales tax collections should rise when retail sales pick up. (That's if they pick up.)

Look: This is not that hard. Government spends too much money on too many things. The government doesn't have the money they're spending. People are already taxed beyond the breaking point.

If you want to grow state economies, there are three steps to make it happen: You cut spending, you lower tax rates, and you fire liberals. It's that simple.

Read the Background Material on the Morning Update...
• New York Times: Recession Tightens Grip on State Tax Revenues

World’s Strongest Boy Smashes Record With Incredible Series of Air Push-Ups

(Ananova) - Romanian Giuliano Stroe - who has been trained by his gymnast dad Iulian since he could walk - stunned TV viewers in his homeland by almost doubling the current world record of 12. The body-building youngster pulled off 20 of the special press ups - where the legs never touch the floor - before stopping.

NY Times on Obama: ‘Will His Gentle, Consensus-Building Style Be Enough to Pass Health Legislation?’

(From the NY Times YouTube post) - Ever since his days as a community organizer, President Obama has believed that by listening and appealing to reason, he can bring people together to get results.

Caught on Video: Canadian Teachers Perform Lap Dance in Front of Students

(CBC News) - Two Winnipeg high school teachers have been pulled off the job after they performed a lap dance in front of about 100 students during a school-sanctioned pep rally.

The incident took place during a spirit week dance competition at Churchill High School last Wednesday, and a minute-long cellphone video was posted on the internet afterwards. Access to the footage has since been blocked.

In the video, the teachers — a man and a woman — can be seen grinding against each other while the woman sits in a chair placed in the middle of the gym floor. At one point, the male teacher simulates oral sex by bobbing his head several times near the woman's genitals.

Students in the background were clearly flabbergasted at what was happening.

Chris Matthews intentionally mischaracterizes Newt Gingrich

What Budget Troubles? Plans For $1 Billion U.S. Embassy In London...

(Times Online) - The United States has unveiled plans for its new $1 billion high-security embassy in London — the most expensive it has ever built.

The proposals were met with relief from both the present embassy’s Mayfair neighbors and the residents and developers of the Battersea wasteland where the vast crystalline cube, surrounded by a moat, will be built.

The decision to abandon the former site in Grosvenor Square by 2016 came after a prolonged battle with residents angered by the security measures demanded after the September 11 attacks. More than a hundred residents took out a full-page advertisement in The Times to oppose tighter measures that they said would leave the area more vulnerable to attack.

Related Material...

• (Hot Air) - Medieval Times: New US embassy in London to have high-tech security device

Pledge of Allegiance: No Laughing Matter

(Fox News) - Controversy over congressman's reaction to pledge request.

Bart Stupak: 'No Public Funding for Abortion'

(Fox News) - Democratic lawmaker blasts language in president's health care plan.

Life's Easy For Government Workers

(Fox News) - Public sector salaries outpace private sector's.

Senator James Inhofe Demands Al Gore Testify About His "Science Fiction," Calls for a ClimateGate Criminal Probe

‘American Treasure’: Former Green Jobs Czar Van Jones Will Receive NAACP Image Award

(NAACP Statement) - He resigned from the White House last year after some sought to discredit him for missteps, such as political statements made years ago. However, we can never afford to forget that a defining trait of our country is our collective capacity to practice forgiveness and celebrate redemption. This is a nation built on second chances.

Harry Reid to GOP: ‘Stop Crying About Reconciliation’

"They should stop crying about reconciliation. It's done almost every Congress, and they're the ones that used it more than anyone else."

Obama & Dems in 2005: 51 Vote ‘Nuclear Option’ Is ‘Arrogant’ Power Grab Against the Founder’s Intent

"I pray God when the Democrats take back control we don't make the kind of naked power grab you are doing."

Joe Biden

Related Material...

• (Hot Air) - Video: God doesn’t listen to Joe Biden

Lawyers accuse Edwards aide of theft

HILLSBOROUGH (AP) - Attorneys for John Edwards' mistress yesterday accused a former aide to the Democratic presidential candidate of theft after he turned over a videocamera that belonged to the woman.

Attorneys for Rielle Hunter said that the videocamera was taken from a home where she had been living.

The videocamera was one of several items that former aide Andrew Young gave to the judge.

Young's attorney said he did not know whether the videocamera was Hunter's or whether it belonged to Edwards' presidential campaign.

Hunter has sued Young for invasion of privacy and sought the return of the videotape purportedly showing Edwards in a sexual encounter with his pregnant mistress.

That video has been turned over to the court and placed under seal.

Lawyers for Hunter have pressed Young about conflicting statements he's made about the sex tape. "That's disturbing to me," said Judge Abraham Penn Jones of Superior Court. "I'm not quite sure what I should do about it."

Hunter's attorneys also balked after lawyers for Young said they wanted to see the sex tape to be able to defend Young against Hunter's lawsuit.

Spreading the name: BB&T sees benefit in affixing bank's name to stadiums here and elsewhere

(By Richard Craver, Winston-Salem Journal) - The new downtown baseball stadium will be called BB&T Ballpark, a long-term partnership that owners of the Winston-Salem Dash hope could ease concerns about the viability of the heavily subsidized stadium.

BB&T Corp. and the team announced yesterday that the bank has taken the naming rights to the stadium for 15 years at an undisclosed price. The first game at BB&T Ballpark is set for April 13.

Billy Prim, the majority owner of the Class A-level Dash, said he believes that BB&T's civic and corporate reputation will create good vibes for a $48.7 million stadium that has been saddled with an escalating cost and an increased taxpayer role since it was approved by the Winston-Salem City Council in 2007. At that time, the stadium was expected to cost $22.6 million.

Exclusive Look at 'Generation Zero'

(Fox News) - Filmmakers of groundbreaking documentary examine root of economic crisis.

How America's culture shift shook our entire financial system

Sen. Bernie Sanders Compares Climate Skeptics To Nazi Deniers

Related Material...

• (Hot Air) - Bernie Sanders: Climate-change skeptics kind of remind me of Nazi appeasers

Charles Krauthammer: Obama Tried Governing & Failed, So He's Returning to Campaign "Theater" w/Health Summit

Charles Krauthammer On ObamaCare And Jobs Bill

(YouTube) - Bill O'Reilly segment summarizes what most Americans do not know about the Obama Health Care and Jobs bills. Charles Krauthammer contributes. Aired on 2/23/2010.

SEIU Union Thugs Ready to Fight for the Laughable Obamacare Bill

Rush Limbaugh: It's the Lord of the Rings played out before our very eyes.

Rush Limbaugh's Morning Update: The New Poor

Rush Limbaugh: Well, according to the New York Times, the economy has produced another class of Americans: "The New Poor." These are millions of jobless people, "long accustomed to the comforts of middle-class life," but they're now relying on government assistance to get by for the first time in their lives -- and they'll be relying "for years to come."

Sadly, for these new poor relying on the government is risky, because the social safety net is strained. For almost 3 million new poor, unemployment benefits will run out before May (if Democrats don't come up with another extension). Men are hardest hit here, losing more jobs than any other group during this prolonged recession -- which the State-Controlled Media declared officially over months ago.

"Labor experts" say that jobs will continue to be scarce in the future because the economy has undergone "fundamental changes":
1.) evil business owners want quick profits, so they've cut payrolls, moved jobs offshore, and automated factories
2.) the persecuted, abused unions have lost clout -- allowing evil employers to shift to part-time and temp workers
3.) small businesses don't have the money to hire or expand
4.) for some reason, the economy just can't produce jobs fast enough to absorb the unemployed, let alone those just entering the workforce.

In short, folks, we are screwed. But to those of you new poor -- who will be poor for years to come -- don't worry. Be happy. Be grateful. At least the Democrats are working on health care for you. And I might add, this "new poor," dependant on the government? That's sort of the plan from the beginning; that's what Obamanomics is. Learn it, love it, live it.

Read the Background Material on the Morning Update...
• New York Times: Millions of Unemployed Face Years Without Jobs

Bill O'Reilly: Global Warming Hot Air?

Bill O'Reilly hosts a debate on the evidence of Global Warming. Aired on 2/22/2010.

Governmental Flow Chart

Steve Doocy on Harry Reid: "I Wonder How Abusive He Would Be If He's Out of Work After this Next Election"

Family Says Former Vice President Cheney Had Minor Heart Attack

WASHINGTON (Fox News) - Former Vice President Dick Cheney suffered a minor heart attack but is resting comfortably in a Washington hospital and will be released in a day or two, his family announced Tuesday.

"Former Vice President Cheney was admitted to (George Washington University) Hospital after experiencing chest pain. Lab testing revealed evidence of a mild heart attack. He underwent a stress test and a heart catheterization. He is feeling good and is expected to be discharged in the next day or two," reads a statement from his office.

Earlier in the day, a source close to Cheney said he remained in the hospital, a day after complaining of chest pains, out of an abundance of caution. Cheney family members said Cheney was stable and watched the Olympics Monday night.

Related Material...

• (Fox News) - Bob Dole Hospitalized, Undergoing Therapy

‘This Coconut’: Deutsch Uses Racially Charged Word to Attack Rubio

(Newsbusters) - MSNBC and CNBC contributor Donny Deutsch used racially charged language on Monday night, smearing Republican senatorial candidate Marco Rubio as a "coconut." Deutsch appeared on HLN's Joy Behar Show and used the word, which both the New York Times and Urban Dictionary define as a "person who is tan on the outside" and "white on the inside."

Vandals strike statue

The Andy and Opie statue was painted red and green during a vandalism discovered Sunday.

(By Tom Joyce, The Mount Airy News) - The familiar statue of Andy and Opie that greets those passing by the Surry Arts Council building on Rockford Street has a noticeably different look due to being painted red and green during a weekend vandalism.

“It’s very disappointing,” Arts Council Executive Director Tanya Jones said Monday of an act that will require a huge expense to correct.

“It’s disheartening that you’ve got people out here in the community that would do that,” said Lt. Jeff Inman of the Mount Airy Police Department, which is investigating the crime. “It’s a childish-prank kind of thing.”

Scott Brown's Daughter: If My Sister or I Want to Pose Nude, Cosmo Dad 'Can't Say Anything About It'

ABC's "World News" Tackles Black Abortions In America

Obama To ACORN: "You Know You've Got A Friend In Me"

Related Material...

• (Fox News) - Did Obama Lie About ACORN?

Scott Brown Breaks Rank

(Fox News) - Newly minted Republican senator advances president's jobs bill.

Conflict of Interest at Justice?

(Fox News) - Attorney General Holder: At least nine Justice Department officials have represented terror detainees in the past.

Canadian Premier on US health procedure: 'This was my heart, my choice and my health'...

(By Tara Brautigam) - An unapologetic Danny Williams says he was aware his trip to the United States for heart surgery earlier this month would spark outcry, but he concluded his personal health trumped any public fallout over the controversial decision.

In an interview with The Canadian Press, Williams said he went to Miami to have a "minimally invasive" surgery for an ailment first detected nearly a year ago, based on the advice of his doctors.

"This was my heart, my choice and my health," Williams said late Monday from his condominium in Sarasota, Fla.

Wife charged with assaulting wrestler Ric Flair

CHARLOTTE (AP) - Police say the wife of pro wrestler Ric Flair has been charged with assaulting him in their North Carolina home.

In a statement, Flair called the incident an unfortunate disagreement and said he did nothing wrong.

Authorities say officers were called to Flair's home in south Charlotte on Sunday night. Flair said his wife attacked him after they went out for dinner. He had minor injuries, but refused treatment from paramedics.

Police charged Jacqueline Beems, 41, with simple assault. She was released from jail a few hours after her arrest.

The 60-year-old platinum blond grappler nicknamed "The Nature Boy" is currently wrestling for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling after a long career with World Wrestling Entertainment.

DOT work in Triad may end up being delayed

Tight budgets expected to put many of the 1,500 projects statewide on hold

GRAHAM (By Richard Craver, Winston-Salem Journal) - The N.C. Transportation Department offered good news -- and a dose of reality -- about future Triad infrastructure projects yesterday.

Four projects, including adding four lanes to Interstate 85 along the Davidson and Rowan county line, are ranked among the state's top priorities for 2015-20.

However, because money is expected to remain tight, it's likely that a substantial number of the 1,500 proposals statewide will remain on the back burner, including many of the 124 proposals for the Triad and Northwest North Carolina.

Prayer appeal OK'd: Plyler agrees to go along with his party

(By Wesley Young, Winston-Salem Journal) - After hearing emotional appeals both for and against, the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners voted 4-3 last night to appeal a federal judge's ruling that county meetings cannot begin with prayers that include the name of Jesus or otherwise show affiliation with some particular faith.

Dave Plyler, the chairman and swing vote on an otherwise evenly split board, aligned himself with fellow Republicans Debra Conrad, Richard Linville and Gloria Whisenhunt to appeal the case to the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Opposing the appeal were Democrats Beaufort Bailey, Ted Kaplan and Walter Marshall.

"I think we need to make it clear to the community that we have always made a practice of having an open door to all religions," Conrad said after the meeting. "I certainly hope we win the appeal."

Read His Lips: Obama Calls for Increasing Payroll Taxes on ‘Households’ Earning Less Than $250,000 Per Year

(CNSNews.com) - President Obama presented a new health care plan on Monday that calls for raising the Medicare payroll tax on some households earning less than $250,000, an apparent breach of his campaign pledge not to raise taxes on families earning less than that amount. The president’s plan also calls for increasing taxes on interest, dividends, annuities, royalties and rents.

Related Material...

• (CNSNews.com) - Obama’s Proposal Includes Individual Health Insurance Mandate

• (CNSNews.com) - Obama Administration Sinking Millions Into Government-Run Health Care for Children

• (CNSNews.com) - Obama's ‘New’ Health Care Plan Would Use Tax Dollars to Pay for Abortions

Obama’s ‘BFF’ Likes Idea of Simple Booklets to Educate ‘Typical’ Tea Partiers

"It's an anti-government...I mean that's the Tea Party. They really are, um, are, uh, trying to rebel against government at all. And I think that that's...again it's an extreme. It's always easier to scare people and get them angry when they're already scared...and I think that's what the Tea Party is trying to capture."

Bill Bennett Slams Glenn Beck's Critique of the GOP

Charles Krauthammer: ObamaCare 2.0 "Is Really a Travesty Masquerading as an Outreach to the Republicans"

White House Won’t Rule Out Using ‘Nuclear Option’ to Pass Health Bill

“The avenue exists if one wants to pursue it.”

Harry Reid: ‘Men, When They’re Out of Work, Tend to Become Abusive’

(The Hill) - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) suggested Monday that domestic violence by men has increased due to U.S. joblessness. Reid, speaking in the midst of a Senate debate over whether to pass a $15 billion package meant to spur job creation, appeared to argue that joblessness would lead to more domestic violence. "I met with some people while I was home dealing with domestic abuse. It has gotten out of hand," Reid said on the Senate floor. "Why? Men don't have jobs."

Rush Limbaugh's Morning Update: Bad Actors

Rush Limbaugh: Over the weekend, President Obama warned lawmakers not to turn his health care summit show into "political theater." He urged them to instead find "common ground." Translation: he wants Republican cover as Democrats implement their health care takeover.

So let's talk "political theater," shall we? After Scott Brown was elected Senator in Massachusetts (to the "Ted Kennedy seat"), many Democrats claimed they "got it." They finally understood that Americans wanted the economy fixed -- instead of massive unemployment. So Obama focused like a laser beam on a series of campaign-style shows to talk about jobs, but offering no policy changes. He read a few lines about job creation from the prompter, took a few questions, and went to the next city and did it all over again.

Now with that out of the way, the focus is back where Democrats want it: taking over one-sixth of the US economy against the will of the American people. This health care summit is nothing but "political theater," folks -- a triple-X theater because it's a naked political maneuver to mount another Democrat health care offensive.

Obama's short-lived focus on jobs was also just "political theater." It was a distraction to placate voters while Democrats plotted their next step on health care.

This president and this Democrat Congress could care less if Americans are out of work and can't find work. Implementing their radical agenda is the only thing they care about. They are bad actors, after all.

Read the Background Material on the Morning Update...
• Sweetness & Light: Obama's Healthcare Proposal - Overview

Remembering the Gipper...

Our current circumstances in the 21st century are not greatly different from those surrounding our Founders, who remarked on the long train of abuses and usurpations whose ultimate design seemed clearly to abrogate all the citizens' rights and render them subjects of an absolute despotism. The Founders' impending tyranny arose under an unjust king; ours derives from a centralizing and increasingly powerful national government that intrudes into ever-growing aspects of our lives, and prevents us from freely exercising our acts of self-government. We New Federalists therefore seek a return to our foundation on the principles of self-government. We seek a new birth of federalism because we seek a new birth of freedom, both for ourselves and for our posterity."

Ronald Reagan

Newt Gingrich Defends 'Party of No' Label in Face of 'Really Bad Dem Ideas'

Dallas Tea Party Invites White People at MSNBC to Anniversary

"We have more diversity on our three-person steering committee than your entire TV network line-up."

Sen. John McCain: I was misled on bailout

(The Arizona Republic) - Under growing pressure from conservatives and "tea party" activists, Sen. John McCain of Arizona is having to defend his record of supporting the government's massive bailout of the financial system.

In response to criticism from opponents seeking to defeat him in the Aug. 24 Republican primary, the four-term senator says he was misled by then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. McCain said the pair assured him that the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program would focus on what was seen as the cause of the financial crisis, the housing meltdown.

Chris Matthews Stunned Obama Can't Move Mountains With Words

(By Noel Sheppard, Newsbusters) - Chris Matthews is beginning to realize that Barack Obama can't change things with just the power of his personality.

Such was amazingly discussed during the syndicated talk show bearing his name this weekend as two White House correspondents made some astonishing claims about the current resident at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

"He feels that he has some ability to bring people together," noted NBC's Savannah Guthrie.

Helene Cooper of the New York Times agreed, "[T]here's this fundamental belief that he can change, that the power of his personality and the power of his oratory can change people... But you can't just do it with the power of your personality."

A seemingly stunned Matthews replied, "Well, we're learning that"

N.C. faces a $500 million gap

RALEIGH (Raleigh News & Observer) - Top lawmakers say North Carolina will come up $500million short of its $19billion budget by the end of June.

"It would not surprise me if it hit $600[million] or $700million," said Sen. David Hoyle, a Gaston County Democrat and co-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. "But $500million seems like a given."

Revenue at the end of January was $35million behind estimates. The state would be in a $300million hole if not for a special Revenue Department program that settled dozens of business tax disputes, bringing in a flood of money.

Corruption, History Could Sting Democrats in 2010

Easley scandal, economy weigh on voters’ minds at the ballot box

RALEIGH (By David N. Bass, Carolina Journal Online) — As a series of volatile midterm elections approach this November, most eyes are on the nation’s capital. But North Carolina could be in for some historic races of its own, as scandals, retirements, and political tides threaten Democrats’ majorities in the state General Assembly.

Political analysts expect a bumpy ride this year as Republicans hope to take the reigns of legislative power for the first time since the 19th century. Democrats have solid advantages in both chambers — a 68-52 majority in the House and a 30-20 majority in the Senate. But the GOP smells blood in key races that could tip the balance of power.

To take control, Republicans need to pick up nine seats in the House and six in the Senate. The N.C. Free Enterprise Foundation, a conservative election-analysis group in Raleigh, has identified 10 Senate races and 18 House races as competitive, meaning the victor in 2008 won by 55 percent or less.

Teens Killed In Train Accident

MELBOURNE, Fla. (WFTV Orlando) - A train killed three teenage girls who were trying to cross a bridge Saturday night in Brevard County. The girls tried to get off the bridge once they saw the train coming, but could not make it in time.

A fourth teen was able to make it off the bridge before the train hit him.

The accident happened at around 6:30pm near Melbourne Avenue and US-1 in Melbourne. Police don't what lead the four teenagers to walk onto Crane Creek Bridge.

John Vallee, who lives nearby, heard the Florida East Coast Railway train make a sudden stop. He ran to the tracks and made a horrible discovery.

"That's the first thing I seen is a body under the train," Vallee said.

As investigators worked the scene, the stopped train closed down crossings for about two miles as distraught family members gathered in a nearby parking lot.

Police worked into the night trying to find the parents of all the teenage victims.

"It's basically a homicide investigation times three, it involved the Florida East Coast Railway police, it involves us, the fire department and basically try to piece together what happened here” said Lt. Marc Claycomb with the Melbourne Police Department.

Shuttle Endeavour Makes Rare Nightime Landing

(CNN) - In a rare night landing, space shuttle Endeavour touches down in Florida after a two-week mission.

Repurposed Video Becomes ‘Two Obama Voters on an Escalator’

(Mediaite) - Liveleak picked up the video two days ago, retitled it “Two Obama Voters on an Escalator” and suddenly everyone is paying attention.

White House Health Plan Details Emerge: Obama to Propose Limits on Insurance Rates

(Fox News) - A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity because details have not yet been officially released, said the insurance rate proposal would give the federal Health and Human Services Department -- in conjunction with state authorities -- the power to deny substantial premium increases, limit them, or demand rebates for consumers. The president also will propose eliminating the so-called Nebraska deal and other special arrangements made to secure previous health care reform agreements -- including an additional series of measures proposed by Republicans to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse.

Rush Limbaugh's Morning Update: Scam

Rush Limbaugh: In 2006, Michigan's Department of Human Services signed an agreement with a community college in Flint to create a government agency: the Michigan Home-Based Child-Care Council. The council's mission was to "recommend" good child-care practices. Even though the new agency didn't have a large staff or control of state dollars, the agency became a "public employer."

Now follow me here.

At the same time, the United Auto Workers and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees joined forces. They wanted to unionize private day-care services. So they came up with a new identity -- "the Michigan Employment Relations Committee" -- and conducted a union certification election. By mail. Only 6,000 day-care providers voted. The other 40,000 day-care providers in the state weren't even aware of the election. But -- shazaam! Suddenly, all the state's private day-care workers were in the union.

Here's where this all comes together. Since some low-income parents using private day-care get state subsidies, the new union claimed all its private day care workers are "public employees." And that new government agency designed to simply "recommend good child-care practices" is now the employer.

The result? In Michigan, private day-care providers are forced to pay union dues. And the Department of Human Services gives almost $4 million a year to the new union. It's a perfect scam set up by the Democrats who run Michigan, the community college, and the unions.

And you wonder why Michigan (and soon the rest of us) is broke?

Read the Background Material on the Morning Update...
• Mackinac Center for Public Policy: The Michigan Zombie Child Care Council
• Wall Street Journal: Michigan Forces Business Owners Into Public Sector Unions

White House Sends the Dalai Lama Out the Back Door with the Trash

Rush Limbaugh: Sharpton always exits the White House by the front door.

Herman Cain at CPAC: Yes, we are crazy!

The Right Scoop: I loved this moment so much I decided to clip it and bring it to you. As for the context, Herman Cain has developed an acronym that describes liberal tactics:

S = Shift the subject
I = Ignore the facts
N = Name calling

We pick up at the name calling portion. Enjoy!

Uncovered Clip: Obama Reveals Closer Relationship With ACORN

"I’ve been always a partner with ACORN."