Obama’s Lowlights (9/17/12)

Campaign – Are we better off today than 4 years ago? As Democrats at the DNC say we are, here are some key statistics: Unemployment: 7.8% then, 8.3% now; Median income: $54,983 then, $50,964 now; Gas prices: $1.85 per gallon then, $3.78 now; National debt: $10.6 trillion then, $15.9 trillion now (with the debt hitting the magic $16 Trillion mark tonight, appropriately); Half of all Americans are now considered "poor" or "low income."; One out of every six Americans is living in poverty -- an increase of millions since Obama took office; Food stamp usage has increased by 45 percent under this president; Average family health care premium costs have increased to roughly $15,000 per year. In other news, Rahm Emanuel left the Obama campaign to raise money for a Super PAC.

Elizabeth Warren - Elizabeth Warren, tried to shift focus from her ongoing Cherokee scandal and dismissed demands from Native Americans who want her to explain her heritage claims at the Democratic National Convention.

DNC – All the speakers claim the president created 4.5 new jobs once the economy began to add jobs. The actual number, according to the Department of Labor, is half that amount. In fact, FactCheck.org has refuted most Democratic fear mongering claims during the DNC. In other news, God and Jerusalem as the capital of Israel were added back into the Democratic platform even though they did not get a two thirds majority from the delegates. Due to lack of attendance Obama had to move his DNC acceptance speech indoors. I particularly enjoyed Sandra Fluke’s speech that women are silenced victims in the US. Maybe she should move to the Middle East.

Washington Posts – In a column Richard Cohen writes “some of the furious opposition to him reeks of a deep, not superficial, racism. To some, Obama just doesn’t look like a president.”

Ironic - Rabbi David Wolpe of Los Angeles’ Sinai Temple, where Monica Lewinsky and her family were congregation members for decades and where Lewinsky attended religious school, delivered the benediction at the Democratic National Convention tonight — not long after Bill Clinton’s speech.

Welfare - In a legal opinion requested by Senator Orrin Hatch, Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Committee on Finance and Representative Dave Camp, Chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, the GAO General Counsel's Office determined that the Department of Health and Human Services' recent memo making changes to operation of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program... must be submitted to both Houses of Congress before it can take effect. This must happen for Obama’s recent unilateral movement to remove work from welfare to go into effect.

Food Stamps - Food stamp use has reached a record high 46.7 million Americans used food stamps in June, reflecting in part the government’s increased promotion of the program.

Crazy - A Boston judge ruled that a convicted murderer has the right to a tax-payer funded sex change operation. The judge determined that the prisoner is entitled to the operation because all prisoners’ health care needs are met by the federal government.