Archive for December, 2014

Liberals' vote dives in WA poll

Tony Abbott has declared that his governments disappointing result in the WA Senate election will only increase his resolve to scrap the carbon and mining taxes.

The Prime Minister has also described the dive in support for the Liberal Party at Saturdays Senate election re-run as a typical by-election result.

Primary votes for the Liberal and Labor parties have dropped about 5 per cent in the count thus far, while the Greens have picked up a swing of about 6 per cent.

Clive Palmers Palmer United Party, which outspent the Liberal Party by nearly 10 to one on television advertising, gained a swing of about 7.5 per cent.

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The rerun will give the Liberals two seats and Labors controversial Senate candidate Joe Bullock has won a seat.

The swing to the Greens is expected to see Scott Ludlam retain his seat, with the Palmer United Party, Labors Louise Pratt and Liberal Linda Reynolds fighting it out for the fifth and six seats.

The ABCs election analyst Antony Green has predicted PUP candidate Dio Wang and Ms Reynolds will claim the final two spots. On this result, the government would need to negotiate with Mr Palmers party in order to pass its legislation in the Senate.

Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, where the government is negotiating a free trade agreement, Mr Abbott said there was nothing in Saturdays vote to suggest that the voters have suddenly decided they love the carbon or mining tax.

Asked if he would move for a double dissolution on the carbon tax, Mr Abbott said he expected the new Senate from July 1 to respect the governments mandate.

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Liberals' vote dives in WA poll

Ontario Gas Plant Scandal: Cops Say Liberals Paid Expert $10K To Wipe Hard Drives

TORONTO - The Ontario Liberal caucus paid the spouse of a top aide to Dalton McGuinty $10,000 to wipe computer hard drives in the premier's office, police alleged in court documents released Thursday.

The information used by Ontario Provincial Police to obtain a search warrant that was executed in November at a provincial government cyber security office in Toronto was made public after media lawyers requested it be unsealed.

The warrant is part of an OPP investigation into deleted documents on the Liberals' decision to cancel two gas plants prior to the 2011 election, at a cost to taxpayers of up to $1.1 billion.

Computer expert Peter Faist was asked by his spouse, Laura Miller, "to wipe off personal data on approximately 20 desktop computers in the premier's office," alleges Det.-Const. Andre Duval in his application for the warrant.

"Faist was under the impression that Cabinet Office was aware of his presence and the work requested of him," wrote Duval. "He was paid an amount of $10,000 by the Liberal caucus for his work."

Miller was McGuinty's deputy under chief of staff David Livingston, who is being investigated by the OPP for alleged breach of trust.

No charges have been laid, and Livingston has insisted he has done nothing wrong. Lawyers representing Miller and Faist said their clients also did nothing wrong.

The opposition parties said the court documents were proof the Liberals used the majority they won June 12 to shut down legislative committee hearings into the cancelled gas plants before Faist could be called to give damning testimony.

"It really tells the tale of why the premier and the government was not in any way shape or form allow the truth to come out," said Progressive Conservative house leader Steve Clark.

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Ontario Gas Plant Scandal: Cops Say Liberals Paid Expert $10K To Wipe Hard Drives

Obama to Decide Over Arming Ukraine: Bipartisan support for Ukraine from Democrats and Republicans – Video


Obama to Decide Over Arming Ukraine: Bipartisan support for Ukraine from Democrats and Republicans
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Obamacare, Spending Orgy Destroying Democrats? (Limbaugh) – Video


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Rush Limbaugh (12/11/14): "Her whole point here is how Obamacare has destroyed the Democrat Party. Now, you may not see that written in such terms because the media of course is not going to...

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Democrats employ strategy to get the most bang for Obama nominations

President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) and other Democrats have made a concerted effort over the past two years to seat as many federal judges as possible, and this week they could declare victory, having confirmed the most judges in a single Congress since 1980. But this strategy based on the political calculus that lifetime judicial appointments will have greater, longer impact than executive branch nominees means some federal agencies will still face serious gaps during Obamas remaining time in office.

In private conversation with a Republican senator earlier this year, Reid acknowledged that confirming federal judges was his top priority, according an aide to the GOP senator, because, Its what lasts.

While Senate Democrats were able to confirm dozens of the presidents stalled nominees in the final legislative frenzy before Congress adjourned for the year, the Obama administration will enter its last two years in with more than a quarter of all its senior cabinet agency posts 96 presidentially appointed positions unfilled, according to a White House analysis. The reason, in most cases, is that nominees for those jobs have not been confirmed by the Senate.

But which nominations advance to confirmation and which ones flounder has become a political choice that reflect the ideological divisions that now define Washington.

Reid spokesman Adam Jentleson said given the fact that federal judges serve well beyond the course of a single administration, One is truly a legacy situation, and one is less sweeping. But he added that Reid had tried, under difficult circumstances, to confirm key agency nominees where it made a difference.

It was a triage situation, and we tried to address the crisis where it was the most acute, he said, noting that while Reid has had more latitude in calling up nominees, he has been limited by time available to debate the nominations.

The feud between Democrats and Republicans on the issue reached a low point in November 2013, when Democrats were so frustrated with their efforts to seat three judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, they lowered the threshold for confirmations by eliminating filibusters for most of the presidents nominees.

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), who has helped broker bipartisan deals on the confirmation process in the past, said in an interview that by upending the rules, Democrats have undermined their ability to seat future nominees in the GOP-controlled Senate next year.

There was a price to pay. Alexander noted there are more nominees that have cleared committee and are waiting for a vote than on Nov. 21, 2013, when Senate Democrats changed the confirmation rules.

Most lawmakers and academic experts said it will be increasingly difficult for Obama to win approval of his executive branch nominees during his last two years in office.

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Democrats employ strategy to get the most bang for Obama nominations