Polis Politics

Supreme Court upholds Voter IDs

As you can read here, the United States Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of upholding Indiana's Voter ID laws, much to the chagrin of folks like Barack Obama. Justice John Paul Stevens, one of two Republican appointees considered to be in the Court's liberal wing, wrote the opinion, which was backed by Justices Roberts. Kennedy, Scalia, Thomas, and Alito. Justices Souter, Ginsberg, and  Breyer dissented.

Indiana's Law "is amply justified by the valid interest in protecting 'the integrity and reliability of the electoral process," Stevens stated. "We cannot conclude that the statute imposes 'excessively burdensome requirements' on any class of voters."

Dem Primary/Abercrombie come to Indiana

And we're not talking about the United States Representative from Hawaii's First Congressional District. But more on that later.

First, as you already know, Hillary Clinton maintained her 10 point lead in Pennsylvania to win the state's Democratic Primary. The inability of Barack Obama to close the deal was the talk of most of the pundits last night. Clinton's win ensures she will be in the convention race for the next two weeks before the Indiana primary.

Which brings up my first comment: when it comes to Indiana's May primary date, as INXS famously said, "Don't change for you; Don't change a thing for me." Indiana will be the final say on whether Obama wins or Clinton survives through primary season. Since presidents have started to be chosen before conventions, no single state has had so much say in the process. Sure, Iowa and New Hampshire play big roles, but they never cemented a winner outright. And how can you even argue that any of the Super Tuesday primaries in February have as much riding on them as we have in Indiana.

Obama knew this, and that he was going to lose last night. That's why he gave his concession speech not in Pennsylvania, but in Evansville, Indiana. During that speech, however, was the strangest sight we have seen at a presidential stump speech since people backgrounds became vogue. Barack Obama's background was three men in blatant Abercrombie and Fitch gear. See the footage below. Does Obama now have endorsement deals for his speeches? So much for saying no to the special interests...

New York Times: Why Obamania has Fizzled

Well, it's David Brooks of the New York Times, one of the paper's two conservative columnists. Good Read! Hat tip to the SchansBlog.

Update: Wall Street Journal on Obama and the FEC

Earlier, we told you of Barack Obama's role as to whether FEC complaints may get heard this year. Don't believe us? Here is John Fund's April 15th piece from the Wall Street Journal's Political Diary (subscription only):

Feckless FEC

The Federal Election Commission, down to only two out of its six required members since January, suffered another blow yesterday. A Democratic nominee for a vacancy announced he was withdrawing. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says it will "most likely" take several months to find a replacement for Robert Lenhard, who said in a statement he couldn't wait any longer in limbo.

Leaving the FEC with only a skeleton crew means the agency can't open new cases, hold public meetings or even issue advisory opinions. Michael Toner, a former FEC chairman, says the inability of the White House and the Senate to agree on nominees "hurts the ability of parties and candidates to comply with the law." The commission does not have the legal authority without a quorum to release the public financing funds that may be vital to John McCain's fall campaign -- a situation that perhaps suits Barack Obama, who has declared that his large haul of private Internet donations represents a new kind of "public financing" and who seems intent on reneging on his previous pledges to abide by the public financing system.

Democrats created the FEC impasse last year when they balked at confirming Hans von Spakovsky, who had served on the FEC for two years. Ironically, it was Sen. Obama himself who put the nomination on hold because Mr. von Spakovsky, as a Justice Department official, had supported laws requiring voters to show photo ID. Those laws have since been upheld as Constitutional by several federal courts and the Supreme Court is likely to follow suit in a decision it will hand down this June.

So much for Mr. Obama's call to transcend partisanship. So much for Democratic insistence on the importance of maintaining a strong federal watchdog to enforce all the campaign-finance regulations Democrats created. And so much for the wisdom of John McCain in promoting his infamous McCain-Feingold regulations -- which now appears to have entangled him in a federal snafu that is likely to damage his candidacy.

-- John Fund

Update: NRA rejects validitly of Obama endorsement

Hat tip to the Digital Farmers Blog for an update on our item last week that Barack Obama was trying to gain cover from a questionable gun lobby called the "American Hunters and Shooters Association." According to the National Rifle Association's press release from Friday:

AHSA would be more correctly called the “American Association for the Protection of Anti-Gun Politicians.”  No gun owner or sportsman should take the group seriously or fall prey to its carefully crafted lies and deceptions, as clearly demonstrated by their endorsement of Barack Obama.

You can read the NRA's full press release here.

Rick Santorum on John McCain

Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum had the following comments in the Philadelphia Inquirer about why doubting conservatives and third-party types should support John McCain this year:

"Those conservatives who still question whether they can support McCain should remember this: The next president will make more than 2,700 political appointments, those who really set policy, across the bureaucracy of our government. I, for one, will sleep better at 3 a.m. if Republicans are in the cabinet and in White House positions that make so many critical decisions. The idea of 'Attorney General John Edwards' and 'Energy Secretary Al Gore' should cause some sleepless nights for Republicans or conservatives - and those in a U.S. manufacturing sector now struggling to stay afloat."

You can read Santorum's full Op-Ed here.

FEC Complaint filed against David O

Circle City Pundit blogger Jacob Perry has filed a complaint against State Representative David Orentlicher for accepting contributions in excess of the federal limits. You can read the complaint here. We support all efforts to make sure political candidates do not run roughshod in their attempts to obtain public office. Kudos, Jacob.

Perry is the third Indiana blogger who has recently filed a public complaint against a federal candidate. Democrat Thomas Cook filed a complaint against John McCain alleging that John McCain did not submit the required number of signatures in a particular congressional district; the complaint was dismissed. Scott Fluhr of The Hoosierpundit and Hoosier Access filed a complaint that Barack Obama's presidential campaign violated Indiana campaign law "Pay to Play"/"No Purchase Necessary" provisions with its "free" Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds concert. What does all this mean? If you are walking the line on campaign regulations in Indiana, our blogging community has no qualms about reporting you.

Interesting aside: both of the presumptive presidential nominees have tangential roles in the David O donation fiasco. Of course, it was McCain Feingold that set the contribution limits Orentlicher is accused of violating. Barack Obama may also have a role in whether this case sees the light of day before the November election. Obama and his fellow Senator supporters have blocked President Bush's recent appointments to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), leaving it dangerously close to not being able to legally achieve quorum to transact business. As a result of Obama's blocks, the FEC may not be able to issue rulings on complaints such as Perry's until after the next president takes office in 2009.

Why Obamanomics Will Fail

Brendan Miniter of the Wall Street Journal writes about the impending failure of one of Barack Obama's campaign flanks is headed towards impending disaster: College Student Loans: (link subscription only)

School of Finance

One of the loudest promises made by Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats when they regained control of Congress was to make college "more affordable." Sure enough, a new Democrat-sponsored law aimed to do just that... and now student lenders are dropping out of the business like so many frat boys after the first round of finals. Millions of students are being left in the lurch just as they're seeking help with next fall's tuition.

By one count, some four-dozen student lenders have either curtailed loans to students in recent months or closed up shop entirely. Sallie Mae, the biggest, rolled out its Chief Executive Al Lord yesterday to warn of a "train wreck" in the $85 billion student loan market without a federal bailout.

The broader credit crunch is certainly playing a role, but Mr. Lord laid most of the blame on a Democrat-sponsored law that took effect in October. As part of her "First 100 Hours" agenda, Ms. Pelosi and Co. slashed interest rates banks can charge students in half to 3.4%, leaving Uncle Sam to make up the difference. Democrats also pushed through cuts to the fees the federal government pays to banks for underwriting student loans. "It's not even a matter of break-even. [The lenders] lose money on these loans if they originate them," one financial analyst told Dow Jones Newswires last month.

The Federal Family Education Loan Program likes to boast that it's now the dominant source of college loan funding, making "it possible for borrowers with no income, credit history, cosigner or collateral to get student loans at low interest rates." Talk about subprime. All this federal money is also a substantial reason for the rapid inflation in tuition costs. Every Congressionally-created problem must have a Congressional solution. Pelosi ally Rep. Mike Miller, chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, is now pushing legislation through that will both lift the cap on federally subsidized student loans and expand Uncle Sam's direct loan program -- completing Washington's takeover of the business and no doubt setting the stage for bigger meltdowns ahead.

-- Brendan Miniter

Uh-oh, Andre!

WISH-TV's Jim Shella writes this on his blog today:

TV ads for Congressman André Carson slated to run on Tuesday, Wednesday, and today did not air because of a failure to make the required advance payments.

Carson campaign manager Alex Zwerdling confirmed this afternoon that no payment was made.  He, at first, suggested that that it was the result of a strategic decision, then changed his answer to, “No comment.”

When Andre held off from endorsing Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton immediately, most thought it was smart, as it would not alienate either camps voters. Yesterday, he endorsed Obama, and got Obama's endorsement in turn. Our initial thought upon hearing the news was 1) Obama was doing poorly and Carson was doing well, 2) Carson was doing poorly and Obama was doing well, or 3) Both Carson and Obama were doing well, and Carson is just stupid.

We now know the case is #2: Carson is doing poorly in his first Democratic Primary.

Obama tries to mend fence with Gun Owners through meeting with Gun Control Group

Wikipedia may not be the most most accepted source in academia, but this speaks for itself.

Gary Welsh over at Advance Indiana writes this on the Obama gun flap:

After making disparaging remarks during a San Francisco fundraiser at a Getty mansion about small town folks being bitter and clinging to their guns and religion, Sen. Barack Obama plans to smooth things over with gun owners. "The Obama Campaign will hold a press conference call today with the American Hunters and Shooters Association to discuss Senator Obama’s commitment to the rights and tradition of sportsmen and hunters," a press release from the campaign reads today. Good luck.

Wikipedia writes this about the AHSA:

The American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA) is an association of hunters and shooters in the United States that was founded in 2005. As an advocacy group, it presents itself as a force of moderation and "common sense" in the debate over gun politics in the United States. Its critics claim that AHSA is a front organization aimed at dividing gun owners by pointing to AHSA members' bias against private ownership of the most popular modern sporting firearms, and note AHSA leaders have both donated money to gun control groups and maintain close ties to individuals and organizations who advocate strict gun control.

Looks like Obama is trying to fool small town America again, with a gun group that has only been around THREE YEARS! Democrats lamented after 2004 that they were never going to lose values voters again. They started making overt statements that Universal Single Payer Health Care and College Loans are moral issues. And they formed shell groups like the one Obama deals with to fool voters.

He ain't fooling us.