A daily compilation edited by Brent H. Baker, CyberAlert items are drawn from daily BiasAlert posts and distributed by the Media Research Center's News Analysis Division, the leader since 1987 in documenting, exposing and neutralizing liberal media bias.
Tracking Liberal Media Bias Since 1996
Tuesday July 06, 2010 @ 10:59 AM EDT1. Calls to 'Rein in the Federal Government' Are 'Not Very Rational,' Al Hunt Declares on ABC
"The side that talks about the need to rein in the federal government" is "not very rational," yet "is winning" the debate over whether to pass another "stimulus" bill, Al Hunt regretted on Sunday's This Week on ABC. Hunt's assessment came in reaction to an outnumbered Dan Senor, the lone voice on the panel against additional government spending to spur the economy and who warned of a Greece in our future. New York Times columnist Paul Krugman charged the 2009 stimulus bill wasn't big enough and proposed that in the face of a likely $20 trillion debt in ten years, "whether we borrow another $500 billion now" is "really trivial," Cynthia Tucker of the Atlanta Constitution yearned for a new "robust stimulus" and Jorge Ramos of Univision declared: "We need more government intervention."2. On Independence Day, CBS Frets Congress Becoming 'Paralyzed' Over 'Fear of the Deficit'
West coast viewers got to see a July 4 CBS Evening News on Sunday, and those who tuned in saw CBS's interim "report card" on Congress's performance so far. Under the headline of "unfinished business," correspondent Wyatt Andrews and his sole expert, Politico's Jonathan Allen, both fretted how Congress is now "paralyzed" due to a "growing fear of the deficit."3. CBS's Chip Reid Rails Against Failure to Extend Unemployment Benefits: 'Senate Republicans Are to Blame'
CBS's Chip Reid on Thursday railed against the Senate for failing to extend unemployment benefits. The Evening News reporter opined, "So who's fault is that? On the surface, it appears Senate Republicans are to blame. Led by Mitch McConnell, they killed the bill with a filibuster." Anchor Scott Pelley began the program by indignantly announcing, "We have decided to start with the 1.3 million Americans whose unemployment benefits have run out, stopped cold, in the last 30 days. And we're starting there because the U.S. Senate went on vacation today without solving the problem."4. CBS 'Early Show' Follows ABC's Lead, Touts Kagan's SNL-Worthy Humor
During the 'Early Wrap' segment on Friday's CBS Early Show, co-host Harry Smith discussed the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan with a panel of media pundits: "The almost unknown, practically under the radar, the Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan, before committees this week being funny. She was downright funny." GQ Magazine's Washington correspondent Ana Marie Cox agreed with Smith and added: "...a Saturday Night Live skit made live..."5. George Stephanopoulos Lashes Out at Republican Carly Fiorina: Are You Running for the Wrong Job?
Former Democratic operative George Stephanopoulos on Thursday attacked Republican Carly Fiorina for opposing the current unemployment plan in the Senate. The Good Morning America host derided, "And are you running for the wrong job? How do you create jobs in the Senate if you don't pass legislation?"6. MSNBC's Ratigan: American's Don't 'Give A Damn' About Iraq and Afghan Wars; Calls for Draft
On Thursday's The Dylan Ratigan Show, MSNBC host Dylan Ratigan went after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and complained about the lack opposition to the conflicts: "Why isn't there an alarm that we've been perpetrating this war?...there aren't enough people in this country that honestly give a damn. No one really cares." His solution to the supposed apathy? A draft. Ratigan later proposed: "...we have to raise the stakes on this to decide whether we get out or keep going. And the only way I can see to do that is to return the draft." He further declared: "Maybe if the sons and daughters of more Americans families, like those of our politicians, were either being killed in combat or facing the stresses of endless repeat deployment, our policymakers would start questioning why we're still there..."7. Today Show Marks One Year Anniversary of Palin's Decision to 'Cash In'
To mark the one year anniversary of Sarah Palin stepping down from her duties as governor of Alaska, NBC's Norah O'Donnell, on Friday's Today show, recounted for viewers what the former vice presidential candidate is doing, namely "cashing in." Accompanied by a "cha-ching" sound effect O'Donnell ran down Palin's various TV and book deals. And while O'Donnell also noted Palin has been very effective stumping for GOP candidates in the primaries she was careful to note that the "polarizing" Palin had "limits to her appeal," as she cited an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll saying 52 percent view her political endorsements negatively.8. MSNBC's Joe Scarborough Slams Boehner Work Ethic, Lauded Obama's Golfing as Trips to 'Happy Places'
MSNBC host Joe Scarborough on Thursday slammed John Boehner's work ethic, chiding the House Minority Leader for going to bars. This verbal assault came just ten days after the Morning Joe host defended Barack Obama's golf outing, asserting that he wants the President to have a "happy place to go to."
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Fwd: MRC Alert: Calls to 'Rein in the Federal Government' Are 'Not Very Rational,' Al Hunt Declares on ABC
Fwd: MyHeritage.org: 234 Years Later, We Still Hold These Truths
FEATURED VIDEO
Heritage energy policy expert Jack Spencer discusses government intervention in BP on CNBC. More videos »July 2, 2010 | By Amanda J. Reinecker
234 Years Later, We Still Hold These Truths
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress declared to the world America's independence from the British crown. They stated with great conviction that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights." The rights are natural and are not the creation of any man, monarch, or government.
The signers of the Declaration of Independence proposed a new theory of government: that the authority of the government should arise from the people and should depend on "the consent of the governed." This model of self-government was a pioneering experiment. Many expected the Founders to fail.
But two hundred and thirty-four years later, we still hold these truths to be true.
The Declaration of Independence is one the greatest statements of human liberty ever written. Its bold statements and timeless truths reveal to men of all ages that "they have a right to claim it as though they were blood of the blood and flesh of the men who wrote that Declaration," proclaimed Abraham Lincoln. "And so they are." After all, they're our Founding Fathers.
The Founders recognized that governments depend on imperfect men, and they worried about the threat of an all-powerful central government, where the few dictate to the many. In 1787, as the Constitutional Convention completed its work to enshrine the principles of the Declaration into law, Ben Franklin famously said the Constitution established "a republic, if you can keep it."
In an address before the Naples Committee for Heritage, Heritage Foundation scholar Matthew Spalding recounted a story from the Revolution. It was the story of a man who fought in the battle of Concord. His name was Levi Preston. Many years later, Capt. Levi Preston was asked by a young historian why he had fought in the American Revolution. Was it the Stamp Act, the Tea Act, perhaps the treatises of John Locke? But Capt. Preston explained that he didn't use stamps. He didn't drink tea. And he never read Locke.
"Then why?" The interviewer asked. "It's very simple," Capt. Preston responded. "What we meant in going for those Redcoats was this: we always had been free, and we meant to be always free. They didn't mean we should."
» Watch a video of Spalding's remarks on the importance of first principles.
The fight to remain free continues today. Today's progressives are enacting policies that expand government and limit our freedoms. Heritage President Ed Feulner explains that Americans face a new set of "Intolerable acts" -- Wall Street bailouts; "stimulus" packages; cap-and-trade legislation; and, perhaps most harmful of all, Obamacare.
But the Founders warned us of this ongoing threat to liberty: Thomas Paine once warned that "the greatest tyrannies are always perpetrated in the name of the noblest causes."
This Fourth of July, America's greatest defense is our commitment to the principles of our Founding. We must take pride in our heritage and echo the words of Capt. Preston, "We have always been free. And we always intend to be free." And we must do so with the same conviction, tenacity and foresightedness as those individuals who, on that glorious day in July of 1776, brought to life the United States of America.
From all of us at The Heritage Foundation, have a safe and happy Independence Day!
> Other Heritage Work of Note
- The United States cannot afford the massive increases in welfare spending -- $10.3 trillion over the next 10 years -- planned by President Obama and his allies in Congress. Like most government spending, welfare spending is on an unsustainable course, and it is in dire need of reform. In a recent analysis, Heritage experts Robert Rector and Kiki Bradley outline important reform measures. They include: slowing the growth of the welfare state; promoting personal responsibility and work; providing a portion of welfare assistance as loans, not grants; ending the welfare marriage penalty; and limiting low-skilled immigration. Rector's research led directly to the 1996 welfare reforms.
»Watch Heritage's latest video explaining welfare spending and the need for reform.
- Online media is in its "teenage phase of growth" reports Heritage Foundation vice president Mike Gonzalez, and boy does it have an attitude. Gonzalez attributes the snarky tone of new media in part to the millennial generation, who "trust nothing and no one, least of all society's institutions." Unless something changes, he argues, it could ultimately be the death of this new form of communication as prominent voices are forced to step down after their words come back to haunt them—as happened recently with Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel.
- With the recent discovery of a sloppy Russian spy ring in America, Heritage Foundation senior fellow Peter Brooks argues there is more here than meets the eye. "The Russian government still sees us as an important target and competitor, no matter how often Team Obama mashes the U.S.-Russia 'reset' button," he writes in the Orange County register.
If these sub-par Russian spies were able to operate under our noses for so long, one can only wonder how many other covert agents are living among us right now. The Chinese are widely heralded for having a great spy program. Could terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaida have covert operations also operating as we speak? These are some major holes in our counter-intelligence operations that must be addressed now before it is too late.
- Join Heritage at the Family Research Council Action's Values Voter Summit 2010 in Washington, DC, from September 17-19. The event will feature prominent conservatives including Phyllis Schlafly, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR), Bill Bennett, Star Parker, and many more. Heritage will hold a screening of Let Me Rise, our powerful documentary on education reform, and host a panel discussion about the connections between social and economic conservatism. Register at ValuesVoterSummit.org.
> In Other News
- Despite slim chances that anything could pass this year, President Obama is again pushing immigration reform and asking for broad, bipartisan support.Republicans remain skeptical, arguing that the President's "reform" really means amnesty for illegal immigrants.
- The June unemployment numbers are in, and they're worse than expected. Though the jobless rate fell to 9.5 percent, the economy shed 125,000 jobs.
- Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) used her time questioning Elena Kagan to ask: "I keep wanting to ask you about the famous camp of Edward vs. Jacob or the vampire vs. the werewolf."
- According to the CBO, the federal debt will represent 62% of the nation's economy by the end of this year, the highest percentage since World War II.
Amanda Reinecker is a writer for MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation. Nathaniel Ward, the Editor of MyHeritage.org, and Stephen Congdon, a Heritage intern, contributed to this report.
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Fwd: Morning Bell: Reclaiming Our Founding Principles
07/05/2010
Reclaiming Our Founding Principles
Happy Birthday America! America is 234 years old. She was born on July 4, 1776, with the passage of the Declaration of Independence. Since then, America has grown from thirteen colonies on the east coast to fill a vast continent. Her economic and military power is envied around the world. And the American people are hardworking, churchgoing, affluent, and generous.
Independence Day is an opportunity each year to remember the root of our success—our founding principles as set forth in the Declaration of Independence.
The Declaration of Independence serves as a philosophical statement of America's first principles. As Matthew Spalding describes, the Declaration affirms that all men are created equal. By nature, men have a right to liberty that is inalienable, meaning it cannot be given up or taken away. And because individuals equally possess such inalienable rights, governments derive their just powers from the consent of those governed. The purpose of government is to secure these fundamental rights, and the people retain the right to alter or abolish a government that fails to do so.
Fwd: Issue in Depth- Why We Need to Keep the Coast Guard Afloat
Issue in Depth:
The U.S. Coast Guard
From the recovery in Haiti to the continuing oil cleanup effort in the Gulf the Coast Guard continues to be at the forefront of important U.S. missions. Despite these roles, it is facing a 3.3% cut in the FY 2011 budget in addition to a 2.6% cut in active-duty personnel. The Coast Guard has continuously been stretched thin following the expansion of its mission and its transfer to the Department of Homeland Security. Admiral Thad Allen has pointed out that while the average age of a Coast Guard cutter is 41 years, the average Navy vessel is only for 14 years old. The proposed budget cuts will greatly hinder modernization efforts and can only lead to a slower response when the next emergency hits. In the words of the late Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV), the President's budget cuts of Coast Guardsmen are "pennywise and pound foolish." Please see our most recent research on the Coast Guard and its ongoing efforts in the Gulf in this week's National Security Update.
Latest Research:The Heritage Foundation: Reject Coast Guard's Maritime Security and Counterterrorism Mission Budget Cuts
The U.S. Coast Guard's advanced interdiction and counterterrorism capabilities are being scaled back at a time when they should be expanded. President Obama's fiscal year (FY) 2011 budget request for the Coast Guard explores killing five of the 12 Maritime Safety and Security Teams (MSSTs) in addition to nine aircraft and five cutters.The Heritage Foundation: U.S. Coast Guard At Risk: Modernization Plans Sinking Under Budget Constraints
Given the backbreaking demands currently placed on American forces around the world, the U.S. military's significant humanitarian response efforts in Haiti have been extraordinary. This response has been led by the frequently forgotten fifth member of the U.S. Armed Forces: the U.S. Coast Guard.The Heritage Foundation: Massive Oil Spill Makes Case For Reversing Obama Coast Guard Cuts
The recent disaster in the Gulf Coast, where a massive oil spill now threatens to cause billions of dollars in environmental damage, demonstrates how under-funding the Coast Guard is adding unacceptable risk to the safety, security, and prosperity of all Americans.The Heritage Foundation Special Report: Stopping the Slick, Saving the Environment: A Framework for Response, Recovery, and Resiliency
On April 20, 2010, the explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in a mas¬sive, continuing release of underground oil. Washington must develop a comprehensive response to the crisis that mitigates damage, promotes economic and environmental recovery, and delivers solutions to ensure resiliency in the face of future catastrophes.More Blogs and Commentary:
The Foundry: Coast Guard Deserves More Than A Thank You
Unfortunately, if one follows the money trail, America is falling short when it comes to adequately resourcing the military—including the U.S. Coast Guard. As a consequence of President Obama's fiscal year 2011 budget request, the Coast Guard is being "forced to make asset reduction decisions without full appreciation of the impact of those reductions to operational performance."The Foundry: Obama's Oil Spill To-Do List
The oil spill crisis in the Gulf of Mexico gets worse by the day. Oil spews from the broken well, further polluting our water and shores. The clean-up efforts drag on with bureaucratic interference, making matters worse.The Foundry: You Can Bet These Clowns Are No Joke
Just when you thought that bumbling Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale had retired for good, the FBI uncovers an 11-person, deep-cover Russian spy ring stretching from Boston to Washington.
More Events: July 8, 2010, 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Location: Washington, DC
The Heritage Foundation: U.S. Capabilities To Manage Irregular Conflicts in the 21st Century
Roy Godson and Richard Shultz argue that the United States needs a set of tools and skills suited to the world as it is and as it is likely to evolve, not as it was.
July 14, 2010, 12:00 p.m.
Location: Washington, DC
The CATO Institute: What to do About North Korea?
Stephen Linton will discuss what he has learned about Pyongyang's international objectives and suggest possible strategies for the U.S. to use in engaging the North.The Heritage Foundation | 214 Massachusetts Ave NE, Washington, DC 20002 | 202.546.4400
Fwd: Morning Bell: Remember the Gulf
07/06/2010
Remember 9/11. Remember Katrina. Remember Haiti. Often, after a disaster of epic proportions, we are urged to remember the victims and the lessons of how to avoid a similar catastrophe. These reminders are necessary because after the moment of impact passes, people's attention is drawn to other major events. Rarely ever, however, is the phrase used while the crisis continues unabated; while the administration that the media needs to hold accountable flounders in a sea of ineptitude, red tape and finger pointing.
Yes, we're talking about the Gulf oil spill. It may be the first time in U.S. history that a president and the national media's attention need to be refocused on a crisis while it is still, in fact, underway. Remember the Gulf.
We at The Heritage Foundation are not forgetting it. Starting today, a team of respected energy, environment, homeland security and response experts are traveling to the Gulf region. Over the coming week, we'll investigate what is and is not working and what more needs to be done (or in many cases, where the federal government should simply step out of the way), and we'll report our findings back to you.
Fwd: Warning: Dismissing State Sovereignty May Be Hazardous to Your Health
What does it mean to be an American patriot?
Have you heard the story of why Levi Preston fought in the Revolutionary War? Check out some of our favorite stories about the Founding.
Around the Country
Is it better to be a sports star in China or to work in a restaurant in America? Learn about Kai Chen's story in Coral Ridge Ministries' latest documentary "Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger."
"Why are we going to America? Because, we were born Americans, but in the wrong place." Learn about the story of Peter Schramm's escape from Hungary and journey to become an American Citizen. Quick Thoughts
What does Elena Kagan think about Natural Rights? The Declaration of Independence is still an expression of the American mind all year round. What We're Reading: 1776 by David McCullough
Warning: Dismissing State Sovereignty May Be Hazardous to Your Health
The recently passed health care bill represents an unprecedented federal incursion into state sovereignty, and thereby threatens the core of American federalism. It not only requires every American to purchase health insurance; it also turns state governments into mere instruments of the national government's authority.
In his latest backgrounder "Revitalizing Federalism: The High Road Back to Health Care Independence," Robert Moffit argues that states must respond forcefully to the legislation's federal intrusion into state sovereignty. Rather than passively waiting to respond to federal regulations, states ought to assert their proper role in the health care debate. If states do not actively fulfill their roles, people may look to the federal government for assistance in times of need. Such an expansion of the federal government's power not only damages state sovereignty but also threatens individual liberty.The federalist system is one of the most important safeguards against tyranny in American politics. In this system, state and federal governments have separate spheres of authority to form "a double security" for the people, as James Madison wrote. The tension between state and federal government created a "certain rivalship" that would protect American liberty. The founders established a Constitution of enumerated powers to protect individual liberty and carve out a distinct role for the states. The Tenth Amendment which and furthermore explicitly supports federalism stating "the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
Thomas Jefferson warned that "to take a single step beyond the boundaries thus specially drawn around the powers of Congress, is to take possession of a boundless field of power, not longer susceptible of any definition." The recently-passed health care legislation represents such a transgression of the constitution boundaries. States must respond to this federal intrusion with force and vigor. Several states have already filed lawsuits to halt the mandate's enforcement. Others have enacted legislation that would challenge this incursion on constitutional grounds. Such firm action is necessary to protect America's federalist system and the future of American liberty.Read More about the Challenges to Federalism in the Health Care Bill
Forward this message to a Friend! Quote of the Week
Patriotism is as much a virtue as justice, and is as necessary for the support of societies as natural affection is for the support of families.~ Benjamin Rush
On PatriotismFor more quotes, visit westillholdthesetruths.org
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