• “Just Below Zero”
  yeah, because I like stuff like this and Moleskins got trendy.
• Democrats Quietly Announce a Holiday Tax Increase
  Thanks you Democrats! Please sirs, can we have another?!
• Focus on the Family FAIL
  There's big news out of the evangelical movement — the Manhattan Declaration. It's a great document put together by committed Christian conservatives.

  Just one problem — they decided to announce on the day before Thanksgiving when not one person on earth is paying attention.

  Come on FOF. Relaunch next week please.

• The Meal of Love
  How do I know my wife loves me? She made this for me. This morning. Yup. She got up, sneaked out of bed, down the hall, into the kitchen, and whipped this up. Just for me. Damn, but I have got to lose some serious weight between now and January. This ain't helping. But I am loved.
• Buttered Rosemary Rolls – Tasty Kitchen
  If you need a last minute bread item for Thanksgiving, these are SUPER easy and delicious.
• Riehl World View: Climate Change: BBC Didn't Hide The Story?
  Good post. BTW, the only blog I find myself reading every single day these days besides RedState and Instapundit is Dan's blog. You should be reading it too.
• The Complete List of NewEgg Black Friday Deals
  More! BTW, I refuse to venture out on Friday, even to the Apple Store. If I can't buy my clothes and stuff from a place ending in dot-com, I don't want 'em.
• Black Friday Deals on Amazon.com
  Awesome. (H/T Kottke)

I am thankful for my wife and family who support what I do and let me do this. I’m thankful for Eagle Publishing, which since 2007, has provided a helpful team to make RedState happen. I’m thankful for Neil Stevens who keeps the lights on for us. I’m thanking for each of our front page contributors who daily work hard to provide some of the best insight and commentary on the internet.

I am thankful for Mike Pence and Jim DeMint being leading voices of conservatism in the House and Senate. I am thankful for Jim DeMint’s Senate Conservatives Fund, which has provided conservative activists an alternative to the NRSC to elect real conservatives to the United States Senate.

I am thankful for Rush Limbaugh willing to, every week day, take on the left and inspire and embolden Levin, Hannity, Beck, Ingraham, and many others to be voices for the right.

Above all save my God and my family, though, I am tremendously thankful for each and every one of you. You guys inspire me, give me energy, and drive my passion to fight the left and clean up the right. I thank each and every one of you for your friendship.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day.

Bring on the food!!!!!!!!!

• Inside the numbers: How Obama has fallen
  Wow. Other than black voters, the poor, and the Godless atheists of America, Barack Obama isn't exactly winning anymore.

Dang.

With President Obama having concluded his trip through one of the fastest-dying regions of the planet, complete with literal prostrations to a symbolic Emperor and metaphorical prostrations to an Emperor in all but name, this is as good a time as any to ask whether his Administration has developed a coherent foreign policy grand strategy yet. The evidence, to date, suggests that Obama foreign policy is like Obama campaign promises: destined to be realized in some shadowy future likely – but not certain – to come, yet already awarded rich accolades merely for promise.

The usual people who don’t understand foreign policy – which is to say, the sorts of people who are well-received, if not employed, by the State Department (which hasn’t understood foreign policy since Kissinger, or perhaps Dulles) – are of course charmed by the President’s playacting on the global stage. This is probably because the kabuki-dance of Metternichian diplomacy, though likely to allow untold millions to die of starvation, rape, genocide, torture, ethnic cleansing, and imprisonment, is more visually appealing than war and open conflict – not least because all of that starvation, rape, genocide, torture, ethnic cleansing, and imprisonment tends to happen in countries that don’t allow cameras near the atrocities.

This terrible conflation of form over substance elides the fact that Baron von Metternich developed the balance of power system he did to avoid a repeat of the devastation of Napoleon, and that ultimately, that very system of diplomatic communiqués, bows, negotiations, dinners, and playacting not only failed to avert the First World War, it positively accelerated and worsened the Second. In other words, the modern system is a shell of a remnant of a means of preventing a disaster that has long-since passed, and that failed miserably both times it was really well-tested. It is, in short, a system intended to devolve larger conflicts into smaller, more manageable ones, and is instead a method for preventing small conflicts by accumulating them into larger ones. Perversely, the whole, nominal point of the modern system of international diplomacy is to provide channels through which substantive foreign policy – that is, the real goals and desires of nations and nation-states – can flow without having more wars than necessary. Its loveliness should be secondary to its effectiveness. Applauding what President Obama has delivered – a foreign policy with better aesthetics than President Bush’s, without President Bush’s substance – is like wanting a faster car always stuck in the driveway: There’s no point if it’s not going anywhere.

Go read the whole thing.

We know from Haystack’s earlier post that Barack Obama’s “casualty count is nearly DOUBLE that of George Bush’s worst year as Commander in Chief.”

We know that Barack Obama is dithering while our soldiers and sailors die in Afghanistan. Yesterday, Barack Obama fell back on his typical blame Bush.

At a news conference in the East Room with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, Mr. Obama suggested that his approach would break from the policies he had inherited from the Bush administration and said that the goals would be to keep Al Qaeda from using the region to launch more attacks against the United States and to bring more stability to Afghanistan.

“After eight years — some of those years in which we did not have, I think, either the resources or the strategy to get the job done — it is my intention to finish the job,” he said.

How exactly was George Bush not committed to stability in Afghanistan and stopping Al Qaeda from “using the region to launch more attacks against the United States.”

Just because the guy says it, does not make it so. But there is something more troubling in all of this that is flying under the radar.

In Obama’s “prosecution” of the war and dealing with military issues, he has decided to treat American soldiers and sailors worse than the terrorists.

Fox News is reporting that Navy SEALs have captured the mastermind behind the 2004 Fallujah massacre that saw 4 Blackwater USA employees murdered and mutilated.

What thanks is the Commander in Chief giving to these American heros? He is send them to court martial. Why? Because the terrorist got a bloody lip while detained.

Seriously.

In Barack Obama’s America terrorists are treated better than our soldiers and sailors.

From 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. this morning, I’ll be on WMAC-AM in Macon, GA filling in for Chris Krok.

You can listen here if you are interested.

RedState Morning Briefing
For November 25, 2009

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the Morning Briefing every morning at no charge.

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Roll Call reports the Democrats intend to bring up immigration next year as a big fight leading into the 2010 elections. Their approach will be predictable — support extended family immigration, amnesty for all illegals, and no input from the GOP.

Lindsey Graham is no doubt beside himself with delight over this one.

This got me thinking though. The GOP is said to be absolutely opposed to immigration in all cases — some of you might like that, but it does not sell with the general voter. First, it is politically an untenable position. Second, very few of us are really opposed to all immigration. Being a second generation American, I cannot see myself being in favor of sealing up the borders in all cases whatsoever.

However, it seems a Democrat plan to allow full amnesty and extended family immigration will be politically unpopular not just with middle class white voters, but with a great deal of immigrants, Hispanic and otherwise, many of whom are having a hard enough time finding work without competing with a new influx of job seekers. I think the GOP has the ability to beat the Democrats at their own game on immigration next year if done right.

Read More →

• My favorite website
  Always captivating, especially with Nat Geo photographs.
• Providing Health Care for Illegal Immigrants: Understanding the House Health Care Bill
  Why yes, Joe Wilson is right. The Democrats are intentionally covering illegal aliens in their health care bill. None of them will have to adhere to the individual mandate however. Only citizens will have to do that.

I typically see eye to eye with RNC Committeeman Jim Bopp, but we are going to have to agree to disagree on a proposed resolution to be debated at the RNC’s Winter meeting. The media is calling it a “purity test” for Republicans. In essence, candidates would be presented with a list of vaguely worded issues and the RNC would be asked to withhold money from any candidate that disagreed with more than two.

Rome long ago stopped selling indulgences, but conservatives keep right on selling them. Look, for example, at NY-23. The moment Dede Scozzafava signed ATR’s no new tax pledge, she was absolved of all her sins, including voting for 198 tax increases in the New York legislature.

Therein lies the inherent problem with candidates signing off on well meaning pablum — there are no teeth and the party will not serve as its own enforcer.

While I applaud the desire of conservative RNC members to try to put the train back on the tracks, I am afraid this will do what the ATR pledge did in Scozzafava’s case — give a lot of candidates cover to pretend to be conservative. People are naturally inclined to short circuit educational processes. People will look at this list to see if a candidate signed off on the issues. If the candidate did, well by God they must be conservative — never mind their voting record or prior statements. After all, only a week before Scozzafava signed the ATR pledge she was bashing Hoffman for having signed it. Never mind though, all was forgiven once Scozzafava signed it too.

Conservatives in the RNC, however well meaning they may be, risk giving liberal candidates easy opportunities to get conservative endorsements simply by checking the box without ever meaning it.

Compare this to the Contract With America in 1994. That document had ten items that were substantive policy positions heavily poll tested and vetted to make sure something like 70% of the American public agreed with each one. Each statement was popular and therefore did not put candidates in awkward positions with voters, as some of the presently suggested issues do. And while there was no enforcement mechanism there either, there did not have to be — every issue was poll tested, mother approved, and voter supported.

Not so with this. And because this, unlike the Contract With America, might affect funding and seals of approval in the primary process, this becomes far more troublesome.

I would encourage the conservative members of the RNC to let conservatives sort out who is and is not a conservative, as opposed to letting any Dede sign up with no intention of ever living up to the pledge. Besides, the Republican Platform specifically says the GOP is opposed to government bailouts of industry, something the GOP, with a Republican President, pushed through Congress in 2008. If the GOP cannot live up to its own platform adopted at a national convention, it sure as heck won’t live up to any pledge put forward by a group of RNC committeemen.

Actions are far more important than words. We should leave it at that.

Rowan Scarborough has the top story at Human Events today.

Some of the nation’s wealthiest and most powerful law firms have donated hundreds of millions of dollars in free legal services to terror suspects at the Guantanamo Bay prison.

Their work, bolstered by left-wing activists groups, has helped to free, or force the transfer, of hundreds of al Qaeda suspects to third countries. Some have gone back to terrorism and the job of trying to kill Americans.

The work of big American law firms on behalf of al Qaeda is drawing new attention since Attorney General Eric Holder decided this month that Khalid Sheik Mohammed, who orchestrated the murder of over 3,000  9-11, is coming to New York City for trial. Holder was a partner at Covington & Burling, which in 2005 gave one its attorneys an award for aiding 17 Yemeni suspects at Guantanamo.

RedState Morning Briefing
For November 24, 2009

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the Morning Briefing every morning at no charge.

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Charlie Crist just hurts himself more and more every time he opens his mouth. In January, when he decides to quit the Senate primary (you heard it hear first) and get back in the Florida Governor’s race, he’s going to be doing some scrambling to douse the flames on all the bridges he is burning.

In the latest rant against Marco Rubio Crist attacks Rubio for voting for tax increases in Florida, which were actually unanimously endorsed and Jeb Bush sponsored refusals to roll back property taxes for education initiatives. Crist is also attacking Rubio for wanting to get rid of property taxes by raising sales taxes, a measure that Crist had actually suggested in the first place.

It that wasn’t bad enough, Crist called himself pro-life, ignoring that until recently he called himself pro-choice and called himself “anti-tax” despite proposing and signing into law several recent tax hikes on Florida citizens.

But it gets even better.

Crist also attacked conservatives generally. He pointed out a left wing Daily Kos poll that shows people who question Barack Obama’s citizenship support Marco Rubio. He called conservatives supporting Rubio “angry.” Then he said something peculiar.

“There are a lot of Republicans that don’t have the inclination to go to executive committee meetings,” he said. “There is wide swath of republican voters out there that don’t necessarily listen to cable tv all the time.”

Now, I don’t know if he means that as a good thing or a bad thing. My suspicion is Crist views people who show up at GOP meetings and watch cable news as bad for him. Why? Because all of the county GOP executive committee’s in Florida are backing Marco Rubio and the cable channels are documenting Crist’s flip-flops with great diligence. In other words, Crist is hoping a lot of ignorant voters show up to vote for him on election day.

The Wall Street Journal reports Joe Lieberman is digging in his heels. He will filibuster any health care legislation that contains a public option, even if the legislation allows states to opt-out.

Lieberman has been a thorn in the side of the left ever since they decided to challenge him back in 2006. In that year, the left beat Lieberman in the Connecticut Democrat Primary. Lieberman decided to stay in as an independent in the general election and won. With a number of his long time Senate friends endorsing the Democrat in 2006 because the man had a “D” next to his name, Lieberman has been his own man ever since.

Lieberman retains his Senate committee chairmanship and the privileges of being a Democrat member of the Senate. That may change soon as Harry Reid is staking his reputation on passage of the health care legislation.

I don’t think the GOP is going to pick up enough to take back Congress next year, which I actually think is a very good thing. It increases the odds of Obama being Carter, not Clinton, and will force the GOP to reconsider whether it has the right leadership in place to win — it does not.

But more stories like this one mean the GOP gains in 2010 are going to be significant.

Rep. Dennis Moore (D-Kan.) is reportedly going to announce today that he won’t seek re-election, making him the first Member of Congress this cycle to announce an outright retirement from the House.

The six-term Democrat’s departure, which was reported first by the Kansas City Star Monday morning, will leave his Republican-leaning district up for grabs in 2010.

Jed Babbin has the top story today at Human Events.

Many of President Obama’s critics argue that he and Democratic congressional leaders are out of touch with America.  That judgment is both too harsh and too kind.

It’s too harsh because President Obama congressional Democrats are already reacting to the Tea Partyers’ rebellion against his massive increases in government spending. It’s too kind because the president, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are undeterred. They will do whatever is necessary to convince voters that their relentless pursuit of their hyperliberal agenda will reduce the deficit in the hope that voters won’t stop them until it is too late.

Back in May, Obama’s administration was projecting a deficit of $7.1 trillion for the years 2010-2019 on top of the $1.8 trillion deficit in 2009.  Those projections would result in a 2019 deficit that amounted to 82% of the GDP. At that level, America would be a bad credit risk, and the deficit would either result in huge tax increases or an America that would, simply, be bankrupt.

From: John Borowski
Subject: climate change
Date: November 22, 2009 11:06:00 PM EST
To: contact@redstate.com

Dear Redstate,

I am a long time environmental/marine science teacher who lives in a state where climate change is making its mark. Our ocean’s pH is dropping? Glacial ice in the Cascades is receding? Bird migrations have been altered? We are watching invertebrate migration off the coast change? The carbon dioxide levels are 387 ppm? And because of hacked email…now, climate change is definitely a fraud? How sad that you put politics above all us. It is transparent and pathetic. I was…a registered Republican. A Ted Roosevelt/fiscal conservative/God fearing conservative for years and years: now I see my party taken over by fools and corporate shills. Shame on you!
John F. Borowski

Here’s the funny bit — if you google this guy you will find that he is anything but a conservative, let alone a “God fearing” conservative.

Why do lefties always feel the need to lie to establish some level of credibility with their hate?

RedState Morning Briefing
For November 23, 2009

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the Morning Briefing every morning at no charge.

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Back in the old days, people would at least look ashamed when caught being bribed, but not Mary Landrieu. It’s being called the Louisiana Purchase. Senator Harry Reid put a provision on the health care plan that originally called for $100 million to be funneled to Louisiana exclusively.

Mary Landrieu refused to vote for cloture on the motion to proceed to the health care debate. Reid raised the offer to $300 million and Mary proved she wasn’t a cheap date after all — she took the increase, voted for cloture, and then bragged about the $300 million bribe.

In a statement sure to be repeated by Republicans endlessly over the coming weeks of Senate health care debate, the senator flaunted the inclusion of the provision. “I will correct something. It’s not $100 million, it’s $300 million, and I’m proud of it and will keep fighting for it,” Landrieu told reporters after her floor speech. “But that is not why I started this health care debate; I started this health care debate for all the reasons I just mentioned in my statement” on the floor.

It should not be surprising to learn, though it may make your blood pressure go up. The terrorists who orchestrated 9/11 and masterminded the deaths of thousands of Americans will plead not guilty. They will use their case to try American foreign policy.

Fox News has the details.

Scott Fenstermaker, the lawyer for accused terrorist Ali Abd al-Aziz Ali, said the men would not deny their role in the 2001 attacks but “would explain what happened and why they did it.”

The trial of Zacarius Moussaoui tied up the federal courts for six years and he had pled guilty. How long will the American court system be tied up with pleas of not guilty and claims that America made them do it?