KEEPING STRONG ON DEFENSE

IN THOSE FOGGY BOTTOM DAYS OF 2006, among other things, the US Senate debated an amendment—Vote 177—that commended the government of Iraq for affirming its position of not granting amnesty to terrorists who attack U.S. armed forces.

This occurred at a time when the situation in Iraq was bleak and terrorist activity high, in the year prior to the onset of the “surge” and the new counterinsurgency strategy successfully executed by General Petraeus.

For the Iraqi government, during this time, to affirm its position that terrorists who attack U.S. armed forces should not be granted amnesty, was a commendable act of courage by Iraqi leaders. This courage deserved our support.

John McCain voted FOR this amendment. Barack Obama voted AGAINST this amendment, as did his running mate, Joe Biden.

To see other votes profiled in the ACT! for America Congressional Scorecard, please click here.

I know this territory has been covered, but here is another fine conundrum of this election cycle. Obama’s entire campaign is based upon Americans trusting him to do things he has never in his life done.

Lower taxes—never done it, but he says he will;

Reform government—never done it, but he says he will;

Work in a bipartisan manner—never done it, but he says he will;

Keep money out of politics—never done it, but he says he will;

Display better judgement—never done it, but he says he will; and the phat-ass kicker of all campaign promises Obama has made—transcend race—absolutely never done it, but he says he will.

SENATOR CLINTON EXPLAINS HER VOTE

OUR ECONOMY RUNS ON CREDIT, and underlying that credit is trust. Both the credit and the trust is running out. Essentially what we are doing here in an intangible way is restoring trust and confidence in a very tangible way: helping to restore credit. Banks will refuse to lend to businesses and even to one another. Investors continue to withdraw into the safest if investments, treasury bills, even cash. Tens of thousands of jobs in New York have been lost and a study this morning projected that New York alone would lose at least 120,000 jobs.

Now I think we are here in some respects because we failed to tackle a home mortgage crisis, and now we are facing a market crisis. If we fail to tackle the market crisis, we risk an even deeper economic crisis. I don’t think any of us want to see irresponsibility on Wall Street compounded by ineffectiveness in Washington. That’s why we must act, even as we do so with regret and reservations, because we have little choice.

The proposal we are considering is far from perfect, but it is a far cry from the original plan sent over by the Treasury Department that installed virtually unlimited powers in the hands of the Treasury Secretary. As I said when we first examined that original three-page proposal, we needed a plan that included checks and balances, not a blank check.

And thanks to the leadership here in the Senate and in the House, we have negotiated through the Congress, on a bipartisan basis, a better alternative that installs taxpayer protections, asserts oversight, and maintains greater accountability. As is the case very often in effective compromises, no one is happy. But we cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good, or in this case, the enemy of what’s necessary. But as we vote for this proposal tonight, we must do so considering what steps we will take next.

This speech was given on the Senate floor in the ours leading up to the vote. Read the entire speech.

OBAMA'S NEW WORLD ORDER

THE UNITED STATES SENATE MAY vote any day on the stealth imposition of what could amount to an $845 BILLION United Nations style global tax on American citizens? It's called the Global Poverty Act (S.2433), and it is being sponsored by none other than Senator Barack Obama. According to some conservative sources, this disastrous legislation could eventually force U.S. taxpayers to fork over as much as 0.7 percent of the nation's Gross Domestic Product—or $845,000,000,000.00—on welfare to third-world countries.

Here's what Phyllis Schlafly, conservative activist and founder of Eagle Forum, recently wrote: "Obama's costly, dangerous and altogether bad bill (S. 2433), which could come up in the Senate any day, is called the Global Poverty Act. It would commit U.S. taxpayers to spend 0.7 percent of our Gross Domestic Product on foreign handouts..."

Time is of the essence because Senator Joe Biden, the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee just issued a report on the Global Poverty Act and it was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar on Thursday, April 24. That means that time is of the essence as this potentially massive surrender of your hard-earned tax dollars to the third world may be close to a vote. That's why we must act today. BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!

The Senate Shell Game...
Advocates of the Global Poverty Act are claiming that it does not really commit the United States to anything—that it won't really cost anything—that it simply requires the President—in conjunction with the Secretary of State—to "develop" strategies to alleviate world poverty.

In fact, Biden's report incredulously states, "implementing S. 2433 would cost less than $1 million per year." Technically he's correct—after all, it doesn't really cost that much to develop and formulate strategies.But such a cleverly worded contention begs the question:  Why formulate or develop a strategy if there is no intention to follow through on that specific strategy? And what would it cost to actually follow through on a strategy to alleviate world poverty? The Global Poverty Act intentionally gives no specific figures but it does contain clues, and those clues are stated repeatedly in the legislation's reliance on the United Nations Millennium Development Goal. WorldNetDaily.com quotes Cliff Kincaid of Accuracy in Media as saying: "The bill defines the term 'Millennium Development Goals' as the goals set out in the United Nations Millennium Declaration. In addition to seeking to eradicate poverty, that declaration commits nations to banning 'small arms and light weapons' and ratifying a series of treaties, including the International Criminal Court Treaty, the Kyoto Protocol (global warming treaty), the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child."

As for specific figures, WND reports:

"Those U.N. protocols would make U.S. law on issues ranging from the 2nd Amendment to energy usage and parental rights all subservient to United Nations whims."

"[T]he legislation, if approved, dedicates 0.7 percent of the U.S. gross national product to foreign aid, which over 13 years would amount to $845 billion 'over and above what the U.S. already spends.' The plan passed the House in 2007 'because most members didn't realize what was in it.' Congressional sponsors have been careful not to calculate the amount of foreign aid spending that it would require."

And, how would the United States pay for this $845 BILLION commitment?  According to Kincaid, who published a report on the legislation; "A global tax will clearly be necessary to force American taxpayers to provide the money."

And that $845 BILLION global tax is in addition to our nation's current Foreign Aid programs, which, in 2006, cost American taxpayers about $300 BILLION! Senator Obama's Global Poverty Act has already passed the House (many Members unfortunately voted in favor of it without carefully noting exactly what was in it) and President Bush may very well sign it!

That's why it must be stopped, and it must be stopped NOW! It Gets Worse!

Here are some of the additional provisions of the Millennium Development Goal:

a "currency transfer tax," that is, a tax imposed on companies and individuals who must exchange dollars for foreign currency;

a "tax on the rental value of land and natural resources"; 

a "royalty on worldwide fossil energy projection—oil, natural gas, coal";

"fees for the commercial use of the oceans, fees for airplane use of the skies, fees for use of the electromagnetic spectrum, fees on foreign exchange transactions, and a tax on the carbon content of fuels."

a "standing peace force," meaning a standing United Nations army that might, in time, be large enough to force us to bend to its will;

a "UN arms register of all small arms and light weapons," the beginning of the end of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution;

the "eradication of poverty" by the "redistribution [of] wealth and land"

How do you suppose the United Nations expects to "redistribute" the land and the wealth?  And what country do you think the third-world majority will go after first?

cancellation of "the debts of developing countries,"

"a fair distribution of the earth's resources."

"political control of the global economy."

In other words, it's a blueprint for a world government, owned and operated by the United Nations. One thing is clear: the Millennium Development Goal is a dagger aimed at the heart of America. While the Global Poverty Act, as presently championed by its Senate supporters, embraces certain aspects of the Millennium Development Goal, one should wonder if some of our legislators also support land and wealth "redistribution."

We must stop this bill dead in its tracks. We must stop this subversion NOW!  Don't let Senator Obama's Global Poverty Act sneak through the Senate. 

Use the hyperlink below to send your urgent and personalized Blast Fax messages to President George W. Bush and each member of the Republican leadership of the United States Senate. Let them know in no uncertain terms that you are watching and you will not tolerate massive United Nations style giveaways that are passed in the dark of night—or in broad daylight for that matter. Tell them that putting us on the road to give billions to petty tyrants and dictators is NOT a solution to poverty. This bill can come up for a vote at any time. Demand that our conservative legislators do whatever it takes—a filibuster if necessary—to stop this bill dead in its tracks.

Click here to keep America free from global plundering.