22 Nauseating Quotes From Hypocritical Establishment Politicians About The NSA Spying Scandal

“Establishment politicians from both major political parties are rushing to defend the NSA and condemn whistleblower Edward Snowden. They are attempting to portray Edward Snowden as a “traitor” and the spooks over at the NSA that are snooping on all of us as “heroes”. In fact, many of the exact same politicians that once railed against government spying during the Bush years are now staunchly defending it now that Obama is in the White House. But it isn’t just Democrats that are acting shamefully. Large numbers of Republican politicians that love to give speeches about “freedom” and “liberty” are attempting to eviscerate the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The government is not supposed to invade our privacy and investigate us unless there is probable cause to do so. Apparently many of our politicians misunderstood when they read the novel 1984 by George Orwell. It wasn’t supposed to be an instruction manual. We should be thanking Edward Snowden for exposing the deep corruption that is eating away at our own government like cancer.”

Via Activist Post

Graham chides Issa for calling Carney ‘a paid liar,’ but called Reid a liar last fall

“On Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN’s “The Situation Room,” South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham criticized Republican House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa for calling White House press secretary Jay Carney a “paid liar.”

Graham said the California Republican overstepped in his comments on CNN’s “State of the Union.” But he neglected his own history of questioning opponents’ honesty.

“Yeah,” Graham replied when asked by host Wolf Blitzer if Issa went too far. “He’s actually done a very good job on Benghazi and all of these issues of trying to find the truth. He’s right. Ms. Lerner didn’t take the Fifth Amendment because it was some rogue. I don’t know where this goes but it’s very disturbing that she would take the Fifth Amendment and the prior commissioner, acting commissioner, said he only went to the White House one time he could remember and that was an Easter egg hunt, and he actually went 150-something times.”

Via The Daily Caller

Tales From Your Police State: Don’t Count On Republicans, Gun Owners

“Just in case you thought it was only the Democrats that wanted to take your guns, America, here’s Exhibit A: Mike Murphy, GOP strategist, is behind most of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns advertisements on television. MAIG is Michael “Call Me Napoleon” Bloomberg’s non-profit dedicated to stripping you of the ability to say “no” to him and other busybodies that know better than you how to live your life.

But that’s only one guy, right? So why was Pat Toomey hip deep in the gun legisation crafting in the Senate? (other than his desire to keep getting invited to all the swanky Democrat-funded parties in DC…) Why was John “Angry Gnome” McCain desperate to see a spate fo anti-gun legislation? Why was John “Crybaby” Boehner looking to do an end run around his own caucus to introduce anything that came out of the Senate?”

Via Scott Rhymer

SHERIFF: ‘We want people to call us if guy down street hates government’…

Palm Beach County sheriff gets $1 million for violence prevention unit amid questions about civil liberties, care for mentally ill

“The goal will be avoiding crime — and making sure law enforcement knows about potential powder kegs before tragedies occur, Bradshaw said. But the earmark, which is a one-time-only funding provision, provoked a debate Monday among mental health advocates and providers about the balance between civil liberties, privacy and protecting the public.

Bradshaw said his proposal is a first-of-its-kind in the nation, and he hopes it will become a model for the rest of the state like his gang prevention and pill-mill units.

“Every single incident, whether it’s Newtown, that movie theater, or the guy who spouts off at work and then goes home and kills his wife and two kids — in every single case, there were people who said they knew ahead of time that there was a problem,” Bradshaw said. “If the neighbor of the mom in Newtown had called somebody, this might have saved 25 kids’ lives.”

Bradshaw is readying a hotline and is planning public service announcements to encourage local citizens to report their neighbors, friends or family members if they fear they could harm themselves or others.”

“Mental health advocates, however, worry about a potential new source of stigma, and the potential for erosion of the civil rights of people with mental illnesses.

““We want people to call us if the guy down the street says he hates the government, hates the mayor and he’s gonna shoot him,” Bradshaw said. “What does it hurt to have somebody knock on a door and ask, ‘Hey, is everything OK?’ ”

That’s enough for Senate budget chief Joe Negron, R-Stuart, who helped push through the funding last weekend.”

“How are they possibly going to watch everybody who makes a comment like that? It’s subjective,” said Liz Downey, executive director of the Palm Beach County branch of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. “We don’t want to take away people’s civil liberties just because people aren’t behaving the way we think they should be.””

Via The Palm Beach Post

“Pre-crime” comes to FL…..everyone think and act like the government demands or else they will label you as having a “mental illness”

Lawmakers, aides may get Obamacare exemption

“Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, sources in both parties said.

The talks — which involve Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), the Obama administration and other top lawmakers — are extraordinarily sensitive, with both sides acutely aware of the potential for political fallout from giving carve-outs from the hugely controversial law to 535 lawmakers and thousands of their aides. Discussions have stretched out for months, sources said.”

Via Politico

Poll finds Pelosi best known, but least liked congressional leader

“House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is the most well-known but least-favored of the four Congressional leaders, according to a new poll.
The Gallup poll released Wednesday found that only 11 percent of those surveyed said they had never heard of Pelosi, making her the best known of the four top Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate. But Pelosi also topped the list in unpopularity. Forty-eight percent of those surveyed said they have an unfavorable opinion of her while 31 percent have a favorable opinion.

By comparison, 14 percent said they had not heard of Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). The poll found that 41 percent have an unfavorable opinion of Boehner while 31 percent have a favorable view.

Twenty-two percent say they have never heard of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Twenty-six percent said they have a favorable view of McConnell, with 34 percent holding an unfavorable view.

The numbers are similar for McConnell’s counterpart, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). The poll found that 21 percent said they had never heard of Reid and 27 percent had a favorable opinion of the top Senate Democrat while 38 percent said they had an unfavorable opinion. “

Via The Hill

Chutzpah: After Taking Four Years To Pass A Budget, Dems Attack House GOP For Not Moving Fast Enough On A Budget…

Republicans spent four years berating the Democratic-led Senate for failing to pass a budget. Now that the Senate has approved a budget resolution, Democrats are accusing House Republican leaders of retreating from the legislative process they demanded.

“Republicans have repeatedly called for regular order … they call for regular order all of the time,” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said at a press conference Wednesday, noting that House Democratic leaders sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) urging him to appoint conferees “without delay.” “They’ve repeatedly chastised the Senate for not passing a budget bill,” Pelosi said.

“Regular order” refers to the legislative process under which bills go through a committee and then to the floor, allowing lawmakers to debate and make amendments. Leaders may also put forward bills, often negotiated in backroom deals, and bring them straight to the floor without much chance for amendments.

Via Weasel Zippers

U.S. House of Rep. Shamefully Passes CISPA; Internet Freedom Advocates Prepare for a Battle in the Senate

“Today, Internet freedom advocates everywhere turned their eyes to the U.S. House of Representatives as that legislative body considered the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act.

For the second year in a row, the House voted to approve CISPA, a bill that would allow companies to bypass all existing privacy laws to spy on communications and pass sensitive user data to the government.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation condemns the vote in the House and vows to continue the fight in the Senate.

“CISPA is a poorly drafted bill that would provide a gaping exception to bedrock privacy law,” EFF Senior Staff Attorney Kurt Opsahl said. “While we all agree that our nation needs to address pressing Internet security issues, this bill sacrifices online privacy while failing to take common-sense steps to improve security.”"

Via Activist Post

House “wouldn’t even allow debate” on CISPA amendment requiring warrant before database search

“The U.S. House of Representatives passed CISPA today with the majority of the major problems intact. When Rep. Alan Grayson proposed an amendment that would require the National Security Agency, FBI, Department of Homeland Security and others to obtain a warrant before searching a database, it was shot down without debate.

Grayson, a Florida Democrat, proposed a simple amendment only a sentence long that would require “a warrant obtained in accordance with the fourth amendment to the Constitution of the United States” when a government agency sought to search a database of private information obtained from e-mail and internet service providers for evidence of criminal activity.

Grayson complained earlier today on Twitter saying, “The Rules Committee wouldn’t even allow debate on requiring a warrant before a search.”

Via Activist Post

Obama Quietly Passed a Law Making Insider Trading Easier for US Politicians

“The whole concept of avoiding ‘conflicts of interest’ is a virtue now consigned to history in the United States.

Remember the good old days, when the good men and women of America got into politics to help serve their country, and not for the money?

Imagine if you were able to pass a law that would regulate your own behavior and ultimately define the consequences of that behavior. That’s what all politicians in Washington DC do on a regular basis.

When it comes to regulating their investments whilst in office, they are able to pass laws that allow them to use special foreknowledge (that only lawmakers and government regulators have) for personal gain.

It’s all about finding that golden loophole. Once upon a time it was called “insider trading” … hardly a crime on Wall Street anymore (props to Goldman Sachs), and neither in Washington DC, or so it seems, according to the President and his legislative branch.”

Via Activist Post