No quiet retirement for Delahunt

Infidel Bloggers Alliance
MyWay: Without ambassadors, US-Venezuela tensions grow Jan 1, 2:32 PM (ET) By IAN JAMES Caracas, Venezuela (AP) - The United States and Venezuela are starting the year without ambassadors in Caracas and Washington due to an intensifying diplomatic dispute that is likely to persist and boost President Hugo Chavez's long-standing antagonism. Both sides have shown firmly entrenched stances and no willingness to Compromise in the past week as the U.S. government revoked the Venezuelan ambassador's...

Can I propose a trade?
I would like to propose another trade between Cuba and Venezuela. Cuba can give Venezuela Cardinal Jaime Ortega in exchange for Venezuela's Archbishop, Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino. I hate to deprive our Venezuelan brothers of this brave prelate, but right now we need him more than you do. Hugo Chavez's eighteen months of special ruling powers and the new package of laws that dramatically expand his rule in the country created a strong debate inside Venezuelan against the government. The Catholic...

Julian Assange Case Is Being Driven by a Tangled Web in Sweden
* The Accusers--The women who have alleged that Assange committed sexual crimes, under Swedish law, are Anna Ardin and Sofia Wilen. Our source says Ardin has a background in the Foreign Service and has spent time at the U.S. Embassy in Washington, D.C., and worked as a spy in Cuba. She has ties to the Swedish media and apparently has left the country for the Palestinian West Bank. Little is known about Wilen, other than that she is an aspiring photographer. Numerous Web sites have reported tha...

Masked revelers ring in new year at historic courthouse
The historic Williamson County Courthouse on the square in Georgetown was the site of the first-ever New Year's Eve event, called the Unmask the New Year Gala, benefitting the Williamson Museum. The Courthouse was transformed into an upscale venue for dancing, eating, drinking, socializing and having fun. The band, London Calling, did a great job making the party lively. They performed in the well of the commissioner's courtroom, right below the dais. The benches were moved to the edge of the ro...

Chavez, Clinton Shake Hands, Chat Amid Tensions
Jan. 1, 2011: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks with Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez during the swearing-in ceremony of Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff Caracas, Venezuela - President Hugo Chavez and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton shook hands and chatted briefly Saturday in a rare cordial encounter amid a diplomatic dispute that has left Venezuela and the United States without ambassadors in each other's capitals. The handshake came as leaders were milling a...

Without ambassadors, US-Venezuela tensions grow
CARACAS, Venezuela - The United States and Venezuela are starting the year without ambassadors in Caracas and Washington due to an intensifying diplomatic dispute that is likely to persist and boost President Hugo Chavez's long-standing antagonism. Both sides have shown firmly entrenched stances and no willingness to Compromise in the past week as the U.S. government revoked the Venezuelan ambassador's visa in response to Chavez's refusal to accept the chosen U.S. Envoy. "They thought we w...

Without ambassadors, US-Venezuela tensions grow
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez dared the U.S. to expel his ambassador in retaliation for his move to reject the U.S. Envoy to the South American country. On Wednesday, that's just what the Obama Administration did. Chavez issued his dare a day earlier, saying he would not allow the U.S. Diplomat, Larry Palmer, to be ambassador because the U.S. official made what Chavez described as blatantly disrespectful remarks about Venezuela. "If the government is going to expel our ambassador t...

Chavez, Clinton shake hands, chat amid tensions
CARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chavez and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton shook hands and chatted briefly Saturday in a rare cordial encounter amid a diplomatic dispute that has left Venezuela and the United States without ambassadors in each other's capitals. The handshake came as leaders were milling about at the inauguration of new Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. It was unclear what Chavez and Clinton discussed. Both governments have shown firmly entrenched...

Revisiting Immigration Reform... Likely to Fall to the States
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace of Independent Conservatism As the ineffective Federal Government has refused to stop the flow of illegal Immigration into our country, going back the the Reagan years, Rational Nation USA fully supports Arizona's Immigration Law. The combination of an ineffective and inattentive Federal Government combined with businesses that willfully broke Immigration law to exploit the cheap labor of Illegal Immigrants are responsible for our present situat...

Russell Pearce on Why the 14th Amendment Bars “Anchor Babies”
I have stated my belief many times that the language of the 14th amendment prevents babies of illegals to be US Citizens. I posted on this in May 2010 (I agree with Rand Paul - persons born of Illegal Aliens are NOT US Citizens). Part of that post included the actual 14th amendment to the US Constitution:All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof , are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or en...

Brazil's first female president sworn in
Dilma Rousseff has taken over as Brazil's first female president with pledges to build on the policies of her hugely popular predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The 63-year-old divorced grandmother, who was Lula's former cabinet chief, assumed the presidency in a carefully staged ceremony under at times rainy skies. A 1952 Rolls-Royce convertible took her along streets lined with an estimated 70,000 well-wishers. As the rain lifted, the car's roof came down and she stood up in the back, dress...

Californian Activist Warns RNC to Choose Wisely
If Michael Steele or Reince Priebus wins the chairmanship of the Republican party, Activists will punish the committee people who voted for them, an e-mail obtained by National Review Online warns. In the e-mail, Ron Robinson, a member of the Los Angeles Republican Central Committee, slams Priebus for his Law Firm’s work in behalf of recipients of stimulus funds. With 28 publicly declared supporters, Priebus is the current front runner in the race. Now hold on, says Robinson: The new chair...

Davis Will Stay in Congress
Rep. Danny Davis has decided to skip a run for mayor of Chicago and instead continue to represent “the greatest Congressional District in the whole country,” the Illinois Democrat said at a news conference on New Year’s Eve. “That’s pretty cool,” he said, according the Chicago Sun-Times. Only days ago, Davis had insisted he would stay in the race and resisted efforts by prominent African-American leaders in Chicago to unite behind a single Candidate. But Frida...

A year of 'firsts' in S.C. politics
It was a year of firsts. Now, as 2011 unfolds, South Carolinians will learn what difference those firsts will make. Or do they matter at all, when there is no money? First woman. State Rep. Nikki Haley, R-Lexington, in November was elected South Carolina’s first woman and first nonwhite Governor ever, a post she will assume next month. Haley – a protégé of Controversial outgoing Gov. Mark Sanford – immediately will face Deficits of $264 million in state agencies that r...

Some advice for the congressional freshmen
All it took was a case of beer. As a Milwaukee kid, I should have understood that from the beginning. We were all in a panic. I was about to be sworn in to Congress, and a huge party would follow in the Longworth House Office Building. Friends and relatives from back home had flown in for the event, and we had no furniture. The folks at office services said the tables, desks and chairs were on their way. My office was on the list. So were the other new members of the House of Representatives a...

Obamas Weakly Address
From WhiteHouse.gov WASHINGTON - In his weekly address, President Obama resolved to do everything he can to make sure The Economy is growing, creating jobs, and strengthening the Middle Class in the new year.  With each party controlling one house of the Congress, Democrats and Republicans will share the responsibility to move the country forward, and the President reiterated his commitment to work with anyone who has a good idea in either party. ~snip~ This is a farce. Obama has his mind m...

President, GOP share different New Year resolutions in weekly radio addresses
Both President Barack Obama and the Republicans used their weekly radio addresses on Saturday to tell the American People their hopes and resolutions for the New Year. Obama promised to make jobs his top priority in 2011, but also said he was happy the country had been “riding a few months of economic news that suggests our recovery is gaining traction.” He said even though Economic Indicators were trending more positively, there was much work left to do. “And our most importan...

Obama's New Year's resolution? Fix the economy
President Barack Obama has set his New Year's resolution high for 2011: repair the struggling US economy. In his weekly radio and Internet address today, the vacationing president said recent data showed the Economic Recovery was gaining traction even as millions of Americans are still out of work. "Our most important task now is to keep that recovery going," Obama said. "As president, that's my commitment to you: to do everything I can to make sure our economy is growing, creat...

President Obama looks ahead to new year, urges accountability
President Obama this morning announced his New Year's resolution in his weekly address: "To make sure our economy is growing, creating jobs, and strengthening our Middle Class. That’s my resolution for the coming year." While he made it clear that part of the burden will fall on Republicans to help make this vision a reality, he also reiterated his stance to hold office holders, including himself, "accountable": In a few days, a new Congress will form, with one house controlled by Democra...

Cardinal says Cuba will free prisoners as promised
Havana | Sat Jan 1, 2011 10:23pm EST Havana (Reuters) - Catholic Cardinal Jaime Ortega assured on Saturday that "in coming months" Cuban leaders would release 11 Political Prisoners as promised under a landmark deal with the government. Speaking at a New Year's Day mass, Ortega expressed confidence the Communist-led government would fulfill its commitment to release the men, who were among 52 Dissidents included in the accord he brokered and announced on July 7. The announcement said the proc...

Cardinal says Cuba will free prisoners as promised
Havana | Sat Jan 1, 2011 10:23pm EST Havana (Reuters) - Catholic Cardinal Jaime Ortega assured on Saturday that "in coming months" Cuban leaders would release 11 Political Prisoners as promised under a landmark deal with the government. Speaking at a New Year's Day mass, Ortega expressed confidence the Communist-led government would fulfill its commitment to release the men, who were among 52 Dissidents included in the accord he brokered and announced on July 7. The announcement said the proc...

Cardinal says Cuba will free prisoners as promised
Speaking at a New Year's Day mass, Ortega expressed confidence the Communist-led government would fulfill its commitment to release the men, who were among 52 Dissidents included in the accord he brokered and announced on July 7. The announcement said the process would take three to four months, but so far, almost six months later, only 41 of the Prisoners have been freed. The 52 were part of a group of Dissidents jailed in a 2003 government crackdown that strained Cuba's international relation...

Pant Suits and Hugo Chavez Have a Friendly Chat
gastorgrab on Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Lilliputian) Say if GOP Attacks ObamaCare it Will Lead to Single-Payer Government Run System… gastorgrab on Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Lilliputian) Say if GOP Attacks ObamaCare it Will Lead to Single-Payer Government Run System… (AFP)- Despite a simmering diplomatic row, President Hugo Chavez and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were seen having a brief, friendly chat Saturday at the inauguration of Brazil’s President&...

Fewer join unemployment rolls; good sign for '11
In this Dec. 26, 2010 photo, a sign advertises that a new Target store is hiring workers in Marborough, Mass. The number of people applying for Unemployment Benefits drops Thursday, De. 30, 2010, to Lowest Level since July 2008. Far fewer people are applying for Unemployment Benefits as the year ends, raising hopes for a healthier Job Market in 2011. Applications are at their Lowest Level since July 2008, the Labor Department says. They fell to 388,000 in the week ending Dec. 25, bringing the f...

Summary Box: Stocks dip as 2010 nears end
FILE - In this Dec. 2, 2010 file photo, Andrew O'Connor, second left, works... TAX TIME: Stocks dipped Thursday as investors locked in their positions at the end of the year. Many investors were selling stocks or funds that have lost money in order to reap the tax benefits. BETTER JOBS NEWS: The Labor Department said that the number of Americans applying for Unemployment Benefits for the first time fell to its lowest point in nearly two and a half years, a sign that the Job Market is slowly imp...