Beach Peanuts

Marco Rubio Desperately Trying to "Lead From Behind" Again

Remember the other day when Marco Rubio, fresh from his latest bad acting temper tantrum, demanded, DEMANDED that the IRS Commissioner resign immediately when in fact there was no IRS Commissioner? That was because the commissioner at the time this controversy started, Douglas H. Shulman, a Bush appointee, had already left...last November.

Yesterday President Obama did what was expected and announced that the acting commissioner, Steven Miller, had resigned.

Since Rubio never lets the facts get in the way, he cranked up his mass propaganda machine not long after, and, in an act of either wishful or magical thinking, and a little help from some media outlets, went about spinning the fiction that this may have had something to do with him. 

Right.

Today, it appears he tried it again. It seems Marco put on his best outraged facial expression and ran right to his favorite FOX-GOP-TV camera to make more demands. This time he wanted the Justice Department to fully investigate the IRS post haste! The only problem is, Attorney General Eric Holder had announced that he had opened a criminal probe of the IRS already......on Tuesday. I guess since FOX news viewers are some of the most uninformed in the population maybe Rubio thought they would never figure it out.

It makes you wonder sometimes, is Rubio doing this on purpose, or is he repeatedly stepping on a rake every few days? Or a little of both? I would bet the latter. He probably didn't have a clue there was no IRS Commissioner to fire any more than he has a clue how to find the IRS on a map. With today's fumble it could go either way. But Rubio does seem to have a habit of trying to make it look like he has the same ideas as President Obama...after the fact, when the President's ideas have been out there in public for all to see. Wait a couple days and there's Rubio: "Me too!" He did that with immigration when his plan seemed to ever so oddly  look almost just like the one Obama had already come up with.

This method has a familiar ring to it. I believe it's kind of like what the Republicans refer to as "leading from behind."

 

Related articles

Marco Rubio And These 14 Senators Vow To Cowardly Block Any Debate On Gun Laws

Marco Rubio To 91% Of Americans: Take Your Freedom Of Speech And Shove It

Marco Rubio Demands That An Empty Chair Resign From The IRS Immediately

Leftovers: Disney Sickos, Clowns VS Cardboard, Slackers, Grifters And Profiteers

Florida Shortens Yellow Traffic Lights For Profit: Florida is "tweaking" the rules on time intervals for yellow traffic lights, and ignoring national standards, which means big profits for some, at the expense of unsuspecting ticketed motorists, who may face an even bigger fine if they contest their citations. There's also the potential for danger when the lights are shortened in some cases. You can thank the Legislature, The FDOT and lobbyists for camera companies. See the full story here.

How The Other Half Does Disney: Sing along with me, won't you? "It's A Sick World After All" and no, I'm not talking about Disney's "no sick pay" gift from the Florida legislature, but this will indeed make you ill. Wealthy mothers are foregoing FastPasses and hiring disabled tour guides so their families can skip long lines at Disney World.

Forget That Empty Chair, The RPOF Will Now Run Against Cardboard: Apparently Lenny Curry, the not so bright driver of the Republican Party of Florida's clown car, thinks that's the only way to win. Actually, he's fixated on Nancy Pelosi and Appalachian Trail enthusiast and former absentee Governor Mark Sanford's recent win over Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch. Curry seems to be under the illusion that because Sanford "debated" a cardboard cutout of Pelosi, that caused Colbert Busch's loss, so he's going to drive that narrative right off a cliff. Never mind that it would be difficult for any Democrat to win in the Red state, nor that Pelosi isn't nearly as scary to voters as he thinks she is. Let him have his dreams...

Rep. Frederica Wilson Saves A Dad From Deportation: During an immigration forum yesterday with Congressional Democrats in Florida, Rep. Wilson made a difference for an 18 year-old who said his father would be deported the next morning. Meanwhile, Sen. Immigration, Marco Rubio was busy obstructing elsewhere, demanding that another empty chair, this time at the IRS, be fired, trying to make it a crime for the IRS to do its job, and then fund-raising off of it. In other words, it was Monday. 

Rick Scott Continues His "Aren't I Just Awesome?" Tour: Rick Scott continues to ignore Medicaid inaction and other items piling up on his desk like the budget and bills he should veto, and instead continues to celebrate the only real thing that matters to him: More tax cuts for big business.

Related articles

The Florida GOP And Sick-Time: "Small Government" Hypocrites

Leftovers: Florida Turns 500, Or Not, Sugar Or Not, Scott Blunder, Legislative Re-Do, Election Laws, Nelson, Graham, Crist, West, BP, ObamaCare, And More...

Action: Tell Rick Scott To Veto "Paid Sick Days" Bill

GOP Intolerance Alienates Their Own Florida Hispanic Outreach Director

Pablo Pantoja

(Photo: Kevin Cate, The Florida Nation)

How badly is the Republican Party's so-called project on "outreach" to Hispanics going?

This badly:  Citing the "culture of intolerance surrounding the Republican Party," and the recent report from the Heritage Foundation, and one of it's now former members, Jason Richwine's views, the State Director of Florida Hispanic Outreach for the Republican National Committee, Pablo Pantoja, has now become a Democrat. 

It's understandable, given that their so-called savior on immigration, Marco Rubio, seems to set up more roadblocks on immigration reform than actual solutions, like warning that green cards for gay couples is a deal breaker, and saying the only reason he's jumped into immigration reform in the first place is because "the President and the Democrats who control the Senate were going to bring this issue up" anyway. (Although he may have other reasons entirely.) He's also said that he will "strongly oppose" the confirmation of President Obama's Hispanic labor secretary nominee Thomas Perez, merely because he's a "liberal" Democrat.

But it goes much deeper than just Marco Rubio's numerous immigration barriers, and the Republican Party seems to have little interest in really reaching out to Hispanics. (Beyond window dressing, re-branding, and voter suppression.) As the director of their outreach in Florida, Pablo Pantoja's reasons for becoming a Democrat couldn't make that more clear.

It also goes beyond just immigration, as the GOP is alienating more voters every day. 

Here is Pantoja's letter in full, from Kevin Cate at The Florida Nation:

Friend,

Yes, I have changed my political affiliation to the Democratic Party.

It doesn’t take much to see the culture of intolerance surrounding the Republican Party today. I have wondered before about the seemingly harsh undertones about immigrants and others. Look no further; a well-known organization recently confirms the intolerance of that which seems different or strange to them.

Studies geared towards making – human beings – viewed as less because of their immigrant status to outright unacceptable claims, are at the center of the immigration debate. Without going too deep on everything surrounding immigration today, the more resounding example this past week was reported by several media outlets.

A researcher included as part of a past dissertation his theory that “the totality of the evidence suggests a genetic component to group differences in IQ.” The researcher reinforces these views by saying “No one knows whether Hispanics will ever reach IQ parity with whites, but the prediction that new Hispanic immigrants will have low-IQ children and grandchildren is difficult to argue against.”

Although the organization distanced themselves from those assertions, other immigration-related research is still padded with the same racist and eugenics-based innuendo. Some Republican leaders have blandly (if at all) denied and distanced themselves from this but it doesn’t take away from the culture within the ranks of intolerance. The pseudo-apologies appear to be a quick fix to deep-rooted issues in the Republican Party in hopes that it will soon pass and be forgotten.

The complete disregard of those who are in disadvantage is also palpable. We are not looking at an isolated incident of rhetoric or research. Others subscribe to motivating people to action by stating, “In California, a majority of all Hispanic births are illegitimate. That’s a lot of Democratic voters coming.” The discourse that moves the Republican Party is filled with this anti-immigrant movement and overall radicalization that is far removed from reality.  Another quick example beyond the immigration debate happened during CPAC this year when a supporter shouted ““For giving him shelter and food for all those years?” while a moderator explained how Frederick Douglass had written a letter to his slave master saying that he forgave him for “all the things you did to me.” I think you get the idea.

When the political discourse resorts to intolerance and hate, we all lose in what makes America great and the progress made in society.

Although I was born an American citizen, I feel that my experience, and that of many from Puerto Rico, is intertwined with those who are referred to as illegal. My grandfather served in an all-Puerto Rican segregated Army unit, the 65^thInfantry Regiment. He then helped, along my grandmother, shatter glass ceilings for Puerto Rican women raising my aunt to become the first Puerto Rican woman astronomer with a PhD in astrophysics (an IQ of a genius as far as I’m concerned). Puerto Ricans, as many other Americans still today have to face issues of discrimination in voting and civil rights.

Regardless of what political affiliation people choose, my respect for some remains. I don’t expect all Hispanics to do the same (although I would hope so) but I’m taking a stand against this culture of intolerance.

I am also making a modest contribution (here: http://bit.ly/12uf3g8) to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) for the efforts in helping protect the rights of immigrants and civil liberties in general.

With warm regards,

-pablo

Pablo Pantoja should be commended for taking a stand.

Too bad the rest of the GOP can't do the same.

 

Related articles

From The Department Of "No, He Really Can't Make This Stuff Up," Marco Rubio

Immigration Hypocrisy, Rubio Style

Marco Rubio Demands That An Empty Chair Resign From The IRS Immediately

Oh my. The GOP's "best and brightest" "golden boy" "Tea Party Darling" and "savior" is at it again, faking outrage and making demands. 

Today, in the wake of the IRS "scandal" Rubio is demanding that the IRS Commissioner resign post haste:

"[I]t is clear the IRS cannot operate with even a shred of the American people’s confidence under the current leadership," Rubio wrote in a letter to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew. "Therefore, I strongly urge that you and President Obama demand the IRS Commissioner’s resignation, effectively immediately. No government agency that has behaved in such a manner can possibly instill any faith and respect from the American public."

Had Rubio done a little research and weren't so quick to register his outrage, he may have discovered that there is no IRS Commissioner. There hasn't been one for almost 6 months. Donald Shulman, the Commissioner at the time of the IRS probe, who was a Bush appointee, left last November. There is currently an "acting Commissioner" only.

But whether Rubio bothered with that pesky detail or not, it's really all about the outrage for him and the Republican Party. Not only is this just the latest in scandal fodder to use against President Obama, I'm guessing that it's also a way to try and intimidate the IRS from investigating the activites and qualifications of any 501(c)(4)  in order to determine if they're political in nature, and in order to give them their government subsidy.

It's quite possibly designed after the fake outrage when reports showed that right wing hate groups with the potential for violence were on the rise. Recall back then the GOP was outraged, and forced an apology for the accurate report, as if it weren't true. Those groups are on the rise, and of course there are groups applying as 501(c)(4) which are very much political in nature, but LOOK AWAY! They would also love it if you didn't recall that political targeting done by the Bush Administration was the norm and business as usual. (Did I mention the IRS Commissioner in question at the time of the probe was a Bush appointee?)

It's because of the rise in these groups, thanks to Citizens United, that the IRS was doing its job looking around in the first place:

Lois Lerner, head of the IRS unit that oversees tax-exempt groups, noted that the number of 501(c)(4) group applications doubled between 2010 and 2012. As a result of this influx, she explained, low-level workers at the agency’s Cincinnati office had flagged about 300 applications for additional review based on a keyword search. None had their status revoked or denied and the IRS apologized for the mistake. 

In the meantime, we'll watch to see if Marco Rubio, true to form, uses this as a way to fund raise off of said outrage for his very own Reclaim America PAC.

Ka-Ching!

Related articles

Rubio Still Running Scared On Guns, Refuses To Take Calls From Sandy Hook Victim's Daughter

Marco Rubio And These 14 Senators Vow To Cowardly Block Any Debate On Gun Laws

Ayotte Wants To Redefine Background Checks, Rubio Wants To Redefine Democracy

Sinking To A New Low To Defend The Indefensible

For a man who "aspires" to be President someday, Marco Rubio sure has a frightening way of twisting that whole "Democracy" thing.

From Think Progress:

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) is asking supporters of his Reclaim America PAC to support beleaguered Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) for voting down a bipartisan amendment extending background checks for gun purchases.

Ayotte is the Senator who, after voting against background checks, saw her approval ratings do a nosedive. Having tanked in the polls, she now claims she supports, and in fact voted for background checks. She's so desperate to have constituents believe this that she penned an op-ed at the Bedford Patch, opening with this statement: 

I want to set the record straight: I support effective background checks and in fact voted recently to improve the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

By "setting the record straight," Ayotte is in fact saying that as long as you ignore her voting record, don't read the fine print on what she actually voted for, and redefine what a background check actually is, then sure, she voted "for background checks." The kind of background checks that are easier to pass.  Because that's what the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), and Amendment, would have done. 

Rubio of course knows this, and while he's not all that sharp in some departments, he knows how to grift. So if he can cash in on ignorance and score political points at the same time, what's not to love? "Freedom" at any price is Rubio's cash cow, and his selling of it has little to do with actual Democracy, or common sense.

This is his argument in support of Ayotte:

Liberals just can’t get over the fact that their most recent attempt to restrict our Second Amendment rights was defeated soundly by the American people.

Whether Rubio can read, or chooses not to, is beside the point here. It's not "liberals" that can't get over the background checks that failed, which in no way would have restricted Rubio's beloved Second Amendment rights. It's the 91% of all "the people" regardless of party affiliation who favored those very same background checks that won't easily get over the fact that Rubio and his "freedom loving" colleagues voted against their will. It wasn't "defeated soundly by the American people," it was defeated by 46 NRA backed Senators, several of which are now seeing their poll numbers plummet. Go figure. If "the people" had soundly defeated it, the NRA would have no need to spend $250,000 to support Ayotte now, and Rubio would have no reason to grift anew. And yet, here he is waving a petition in the face of the gullible as he hands them a pen to sign it with, and while they're at, another check. "Reclaim America" indeed.

No, for the sake of this particular argument, these are a few of the only people that matter in Rubio's world right now. The people who have vowed to break the law by marching into Washington armed on the Fourth of July, and daring any authorities to enforce that law against openly carrying loaded weapons in the subtlest way possible. Nothing says "subtle" like knowingly break the law, then claiming enforcement of that law means "the government chooses to make it violent." 

Beyond that, apparently anyone who doesn't fit into Rubio's minority mold is a "liberal," and I know more than a few Republicans who would be surprised to hear it. (Even if you're of the minority Rubio is using as a political stepladder, no Democrats or liberals need apply.)

Speaking as a "liberal" I would be the first to stand up for, and support anyone, Republican or Democrat, who would be willing do what all of "the people" want, not just the ones who Rubio defines as "Americans." The majority of Americans do, but they have no representation in Marco's world, and he's not being subtle in pointing that out. For those who still need a little convincing, he and Ayotte have to grift their way around reality to get where they want to go. Unfortunately the dishonesty is catching up with them, and their desperation is showing.

Obtaining power by propaganda and force rarely bodes well, but then isn't that the whole idea that Rubio has propped up his history and political ambitions with?

Related articles

Marco Rubio And These 14 Senators Vow To Cowardly Block Any Debate On Gun Laws

Marco Rubio Has Shown His True Colors, And They Aren't Red, White, And Blue

Marco Rubio To 91% Of Americans: Take Your Freedom Of Speech And Shove It

From The Department Of "No, He Really Can't Make This Stuff Up," Marco Rubio

Marco Rubio, Pausing To Insert His Political Agenda

Today Marco Rubio "took a stand" and said he will "strongly oppose" the confirmation of President Obama's Hispanic labor secretary nominee Thomas Perez, even though he acknowledges his "sharp intellect:"

...Rubio acknowledged the politics of opposing a fellow son of immigrants, complimenting Perez's "sharp intellect" even as he trashed him as a liberal.

In a news conference yesterday, Hispanic lawmakers warned Republicans not to block Perez. “Tom Perez is eminently qualified for this job,” freshman Rep. Joe Garcia, a Florida Democrat, said in an interview with McClatchy. “If Republicans wanted to show an understanding of the Hispanic electorate or sympathy for the Hispanic electorate, they picked the wrong guy to make a scapegoat.”

Unfortunately the particular goat in question is a Democrat, a sin that far outweighs intellect, or the lack thereof, to Marco Rubio. After all, Rubio's own mentor is, of course, former Sen. and Republican Jim DeMint. DeMint is now the head of the Heritage Foundation, a "think tank" which is big on "tank" but small on "think." They recently hired Jason Richwine, who wrote: 

‘No one knows whether Hispanics will ever reach IQ parity with whites, but the prediction that new Hispanic immigrants will have low-IQ children and grandchildren is difficult to argue against.‘

Of course Jim DeMint's "brilliance" is another subject entirely, but I digress. Getting back to Rubio's opposition to Perez:

“Before joining the Obama Administration, Mr. Perez built a long record as a committed liberal activist and politician, particularly in the areas of labor and immigration.  It was that record that gave many senators pause over his initial nomination to be Assistant U.S. Attorney General. 

Oh my, sounds so scary! After you pause for a refreshment, please continue Senator....

Those who voted against his confirmation then feared that he lacked the capacity to put his political agenda aside when he became a federal official tasked with enforcing the law. Unfortunately, his record as Assistant U.S. Attorney General confirmed those fears," Rubio said in a statement. 

“During his tenure at the Justice Department, Mr. Perez has been associated with some of the Department’s most controversial decisions and appears to have engaged in selective and politically motivated applications of the law.

Again, sounds so ominous. I'm sure Rubio will get to those "controversial decisions" in detail sooner or later...

“As the son of immigrants, Mr. Perez rose from modest beginnings to the highest levels of government through his obviously sharp intellect and impressive work ethic.  Many Americans, especially those of us of Hispanic descent, celebrate his success and his personal story as yet another example of all that’s possible in America no matter where you or your family came from.

So far so good. Sounds like a ringing endorsement. Also, most of it sounds oddly familiar. Son of immigrants, rose from modest beginnings, smart man, good work ethic, seems to have overcome that old Heritage Foundation low IQ standard. So what's the problem? 

Unfortunately, intellect and work ethic are not sufficient qualifications for a cabinet secretary.

“Mr. Perez’s far left views and troubling record at the Justice Department simply do not qualify him to lead the Labor Department, and I will strongly oppose his confirmation.”

It all just comes down to the "being a Democrat" problem? "Being a liberal?" Is that really the best Rubio can do? He can't support Perez because "he lacked the capacity to put his political agenda aside when he became a federal official tasked with enforcing the law?"

By those standards, I wonder if Marco Rubio would also oppose this guy, who lacked the capacity to put his political agenda aside when it came to voting to block the Violence Against Women Act? Twice. Or this one, who opposes gun laws because of his political agenda? Or the one who blocks student loan rate extensions for others? What about the guy who draws the line between those who shouldn't get Social Security and Medicare and his own family? 

How would Rubio feel about this guy, who only jumped in to the immigration debate in the first place  "because with or without us, the president and the Democrats who control the Senate were going to bring this issue up?"

Saying "no" to anyone simply because they're a Democrat? No political agenda to be found there, no sir! When it comes to making an "intellectual argument" you sure fooled us, Marco!

If there's one thing we know about Marco Rubio, it's that he ALWAYS "puts his own political agenda aside" when tasked with legislating and making decisions on the behalf of others.

Right?

 

 

Related articles

Immigration Hypocrisy, Rubio Style

Marco Rubio To 91% Of Americans: Take Your Freedom Of Speech And Shove It

If Dems Try To Give Gay Couples Green Cards, Marco Rubio Will Take His Immigration Bill And Go Home

 "Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor, Your Huddled Masses (Of Heterosexuals ONLY) Yearning To Breathe Free"

It's been speculated that Marco Rubio may seek to find a way to shelve any immigration reform in order to appeal to his Tea Party anti-immigration base, while at the same time appearing to be in favor of reform in order to appeal to his establishment Republican base. In other words, he's trying to play both sides of the fence.

Now it appears he's found another potential off-ramp on the road to reform and a couple of new scapegoats: Democrats and gay Americans.

According to Politico, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) is planning to offer an amendment that would allow gay Americans to sponsor their foreign-born partners for green cards, just as heterosexual couples can:

The measure is likely to pass because Democrats face pressure from gay rights advocates to deal with it in committee, rather than on the Senate floor, where the odds of passage are far less favorable.

Rushing in to warn that this will kill the entire immigration bill, Rubio says that allowing yet another equal right for gay Americans will not stand. In sum "C'mon, we're Republicans and discriminating against 'the gay' is in our official platform! That is a line we will not cross."

“It will virtually guarantee that it won’t pass,” Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), a member of the Gang of Eight negotiating group, told POLITICO in a brief interview. “This issue is a difficult enough issue as it is. I respect everyone’s views on it. But ultimately, if that issue is injected into this bill, the bill will fail and the coalition that helped put it together will fall apart.”

Because nothing says "I respect everyone's views" like also saying that if you dare to use those views as an excuse to push equal rights, I will turn this car around right now, take my immigration bill, and go home!

I suppose the list of six "triggers" that Rubio says must be achieved before the newly legalized are allowed to apply for a green card actually includes a seventh which is not mentioned in his plan: 

Must Be Heterosexual.

Just one more blatant Rubio hypocrisy to add to the list.

He would have voted for the Violence Against Women Act if it hadn't included gay, or native American women. His heart goes out to victims of gun violence and their families, but his heart actually belongs to the NRA and gun manufacturers, therefore no gun regulations or laws that might cut into profits from gun sales. He favors Medicare and Social Security for the Rubio family, but the rest of Americans must do without, and the list goes on.

Rubio is indeed a man ofprinciple. He believes in freedom for all as long as you meet his criteria, and no exceptions will be made if you're gay.

(Photo: Marco Rubio, U.S. Senate)

Will Rubio Have The Guts To Vote For Background Checks On Explosive Powders Used In Bombings?

Last week it was reported that authorities searching for clues in the Boston Marathon bombing were hampered in their efforts because of an NRA backed law that prevents tracing explosives. Had the law not been in place, the investigation might have moved along quicker and perhaps could have saved the life of a policeman who was shot by one of the bombers. 

In addition to that, current laws on the books also allow anyone to purchase up to 50 pounds of explosive powders without a background check. 

That may be about to change:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Tuesday introduced a bill that would require background checks to be run on anyone buying explosive powder, a reaction to last week's Boston Marathon bombing.

Reid introduced the bill, S. 792, for Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), who has been out sick for much of the year. But in a press statement, Lautenberg said the Boston bombing shows that background checks are needed for explosive materials.

"It defies common sense that anyone, even a terrorist, can walk into a store in America and buy explosive powders without a background check or any questions asked," Lautenberg said Tuesday. "Requiring a background check for an explosives permit is a small price to pay to ensure the safety of our communities.

The bill would not only require background checks on purchases of the powder, but would also stop the sale of explosives to suspected terrorists, and require a permit to make homemade explosives.

Last week Republicans filibustered gun background checks, so it will be interesting to see if they'll have the guts to actually do something about this, especially when it's a law that could have helped just days ago in the investigation of a terrorist attack. 

More to the point, will Marco Rubio once again block any legislation that would protect the public safety of his constituents? Given his track record, I would say the chances of him doing anything that the public wants doesn't stand the chance against his big donors like the NRA.

I sincerely hope he'll prove my assumption wrong.

Next GOP Sequester Public Safety Threat: Hurricane Forecasting

(Source: National Hurricane Center)

After the sequester began in March, Americans all over the country began feeling the cuts that Republicans forced on them because they wanted to preserve tax cuts for the wealthy while killing Social Security and Medicare. While Medicare patients were being turned away from cancer clinics, all Republicans were worried about were White House tours.

Then it was flight delays due to air traffic controller furloughs that were causing Republicans pain, so they complained this week while trying to place the blame on President Obama, knowing full well that the sequester was pushed and voted for by them. (Rick Scott tried his hand at it too, as noted here earlier.) 

Last week, as the hunt for the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings was underway, the Director of National Intelligence James Clapper was delivering this warning on cuts to Homeland Security and intelligence to the Senate Armed Services Committee:

Sequestration's full impact on the intelligence community and U.S. national security will not truly be felt by Americans until the next terrorist attack happens or the next bomb goes off.

"Unlike more directly observable sequestration impacts like shorter hours at the parks or longer security lines at airports, the degradation to intelligence will be insidious," Clapper told Senate Armed Services Committee members.

"It will be gradual and almost invisible until, of course, we have an intelligence failure," he added during Thursday's committee hearing on emerging national security threats. 

These cuts are just the beginning of some of the things Americans are having to give up merely because the now radical Republicans in Washington want to prevent the rich from paying their fair share of taxes while killing social safety nets.

Yes, Republicans are putting national security at risk so they can keep their precious tax cuts.

Now there's another round of furloughs looming that could have potentially devastating and dangerous consequences for Floridians: Those in weather forecasting systems. The cuts will fall on the National Hurricane Center in Miami, the National Weather Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

It's nearly a certainty that before long we will hear the next round of complaints and false finger pointing from Republicans (probably accompanied by a catchy Twitter hashtag) just in time for Hurricane season. When that happens, just remember who really put Floridians and others around the country in danger just as we're seeing larger and more devastating weather events on a regular basis.

When Hurricane season arrives and those cuts to weather forecasting and hurricane monitoring place Floridians in danger, Sen. Marco Rubio, and these House Republicans from Florida are the ones who are holding public safety hostage to protect tax cuts for the wealthy (and yes, in most cases, that includes them.) 

Give them a (courteous) call and thank them, or let them know what you think. House numbers here, Marco Rubio's number here. (Sen. Bill Nelson voted against the sequester.)

Gus Bilirakis (R)

Jeff Miller (R)

Steve Southerland (R)

Ted Yoho (R)

Ander Crenshaw (R)

Corrine Brown (D)

Ron DeSantis (R)

John Mica (R)

Bill Posey (R)

Daniel Webster (R)

Rich Nugent (R)

Bill Young (R)

Vern Buchanan (R)

Tom Rooney (R)

Trey Radel (R)

Mario Diaz-Balart (R)

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R)

 

 

 

Immigration Hypocrisy, Rubio Style

Taking On Water: Enough Hypocrisy To Sink A Ship

As Tea Party members, Conservatives, and members of his own party have begun pushing back at him from all directions, Marco Rubio's little experiment at furthering his own political ambitions with immigration seems on the verge of implosion.

And he thought all it would take to "reach out" to Latinos and Hispanics was having the last name "Rubio."

As his little rescue boat appears on the verge of sinking, he's penned a little gem of appeal to his base, FOX News, and something tells me his arguments are only going to create another hole in it, or perhaps damage the rudder for good.

Here's the part where he explains why he's jumped into the immigration issue in the first place:

I thought long and hard before taking on this issue. I understand how divisive it can be. I’ve seen how the left has used it to accuse opponents of their version of reform of being bigots and racists. 

Oh my, someone, quick, get a faint Sen. Rubio a fan and a bottle of water! That someone might see a party who has members that recommend controlling immigration by using gunmen to shoot illegal immigrants like feral pigs from helicopters, or forcing them to self-deport, for God's sake, as racist or bigots has caused him a case of the vapors! But please, do go on:

And I would much rather be having a debate on the more fundamental ways we can grow our economy and get our debt and spending under control. But with or without us, the president and the Democrats who control the Senate were going to bring this issue up.

Sure. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free....because we're going to be forced to deal with you anyway" is really the Republican outreach re-branding that will appeal to Latinos, Hispanics and other minorities. That should bring new minority voters in droves! Marco Rubio. What a charmer.

It's almost as if Rubio doesn't think that anyone who will be impacted by his proposed immigration policies will read columns designed only for FOX News viewers and readers, or they're too stupid to actually understand what he's proposing. Because this is what he's proposing:

And that is why I support a process to identify and register those who are here illegally. They will have to submit biometric data in order to pass multiple national security and criminal background checks, pay $2,000 in fines, pay taxes, and learn English and American civics. They won’t be able to get any federal benefits like welfare or ObamaCare.

Before they can even apply to become permanent residents, they will have to wait at least ten years. They will have to get in line behind those who are trying to come the right way.

They will have to wait until we have a system in place to prevent illegal immigrants from being hired.

They will have to wait until we have a system in place to track people who overstay their visas.

And they will have to wait until we implement plans to spend at least $5.5 billion dollars to secure the border through more border patrol officers, more technology and more fencing.

Sure. And if you don't mind spending most of your natural life jumping through all those hoops, and prefer pipe dreams to an actual DREAM Act, Marco Rubio is your man! What's not to love?

And if that's not enough, here's a bit of immigration trivia for you: Who didn't have to get in line and wait like the rest, as Rubio will demand of those in the future? Why, that would be the Rubio family. As we've heard, they were also big fans of Medicare and Social Security, but I guess those details got overlooked in this little Rubio FOX essay.

There's also one other thing to point out. While Rubio will demand that anyone coming into this country will have to submit to multiple national security and criminal background checks, there's another background check he missed.

A background check to obtain a gun.

If he's prepared to ignore one for getting a gun, we can hardly take his other proposals very serious. If you can get a gun that easy, what better way to get whatever else you want while you're at it regardless of what politicians like Rubio propose?

With that little bit of hypocrisy, Rubio's shot a few more holes in his little Republican rescue dinghy. Add that to the others, and as we've seen in the last few days, it doesn't look like conservatives, or anyone from the Tea Party or the Republican Party are going to throw him a life preserver.

It sure looks like the U.S.S. Rubio may be going down.