A quick trip around Hannity's America...
European Scolding
We told you last night about the various French critics of the escalating tax rates in the United States. Now, another voice joins the European chorus: Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, who is now serving as the president of the European Union.
Topolanek told the Associated Press that the United States' plan to spend its way out of the current recession is "a way to hell" and that President Obama's stimulus package will "undermine the stability of the global financial market."
It's a sad and scary day in America when European leaders are lecturing our president on the virtues of a free market. And based on what we have seen from the Obama administration, we may have many more lectures from these wise gentlemen in our future.
Try, Try, Try Again!
Tuesday, President Obama tried once again to convince the American people that he has an effective plan to jumpstart our economy. In case you dozed off in the middle, we have the crucial part for you, because President Obama is getting our Liberal Translation treatment:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: The first step we took was to pass a recovery plan to jumpstart job creation and put money in people's pockets.
LIBERAL TRANSLATION: By people, I meant my Cabinet and a handful of AIG execs. Hey, you can't please everybody!
OBAMA: This plan's already saved the jobs of teachers and police officers. It's creating construction jobs to rebuild roads and bridges.
LIBERAL TRANSLATION: Those Caterpillar employees, however, weren't so lucky. Oops!
OBAMA: And yesterday, I met with a man whose company is reopening a factory outside of Pittsburg that's rehiring works to build some of the most energy efficient windows in the world.
LIBERAL TRANSLATION: I call him "he who shall not be named."
OBAMA: And this plan will provide a tax cut to 95 percent of all working families. It will appear in people's paychecks by April 1.
LIBERAL TRANSLATION: Which you'll notice is a holiday called April Fool's Day. Psyche!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Mr. President, we look forward to having you back on Liberal Translation after your next failed attempt to convince the American people that bankrupting our children is actually a really great idea.
Hits Keep Coming
The cloud of controversy hanging over the head of Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd just won't seem to go away. The senator's troubles began when we learned of the VIP mortgage rates he received from a company he would later help bailout.
The Hartford Courant is reporting that it's not the first time Dodd has received preferential treatment when purchasing a home. About a decade ago he purchased a massive home in Ireland, which he refers to only as a "cottage". The senator bought it with a friend for, according to his Senate records, between $100,000 and $250,000.
Jump ahead to 2001 when an associate of the co-owner of Dodd's home received a pardon from then President Bill Clinton, allegedly at the urging of the senator. What happened not long after that pardon? Surprise, surprise, the co-owner of the home sold his share to Dodd for a generous $122,000, only slightly more than its value eight years earlier and despite the surge in the irish real estate market.
And the hits just keep on coming: Real Clear Politics reported earlier this week that Dodd's wife served as a director for an AIG controlled insurance company from 2001 to 2004.
Quite an interesting turn of events, Mr. Dodd. Last week, it sounded to me like you had never even heard of AIG before. I'm not surprised you are finding yourself in some re-election trouble.
Madoff's Lotto Win
Bernie Madoff may now be behind bars for the rest of his life for duping hundreds of his clients out of their life savings, but believe it or not, the evil billionaire was actually responsible for a little bit of good recently.
One lucky man said he read a story about Bernie Madoff's sentencing in the newspaper and decided to play the last three digits of Madoff's prisoner ID number in the evening lottery. On March 15 the lucky numbers 0-5-4 hit for a construction worker from Queens, New York.
But the AP reports that he wasn't the only one with that idea. A total of 500 other tickets also had Madoff's prison number that day and were also winners, which, according to lottery officials, is actually a common phenomenon. They point to the recent miracle on the Hudson as an example, saying after that event so many people bought lottery tickets using that flight number, sales were actually stopped.
That may not be enough to get Madoff off the naughty list, but at least it's a start.
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