Middle East Opinion on Obama's First 100 Days

/PRNewswire/ -- A recent survey by the market research company Real Opinions in the Middle East on the first 100 days since US President Obama was inaugurated shows that although the image of the US and leadership on the global stage has improved, performance on issues closer to home in the Middle East are dividing opinion.

There is success for Obama with overall opinion of the US from a Middle Eastern perspective improving by 42%. This is backed up with 35% believing the leadership of US on the global stage has also improved while 43% believe there is no change and just 9% believe it is actually worse. There are also encouraging signs on the subject of the economy with more than twice as many than his predecessor believing they are more confident with the global economy recovering under his leadership (37% improved, 15% worse).

However, in terms of key issues such as Middle East stability, the opinion is more closely divided with 20% believing it has improved and 14% believing it has become worse.

Dan Healy, the CEO of Real Opinions who conducted the survey commented 'Breaking some of these results down to the areas directly impacted by recent events such as those in the Palestinian Autonomous Area (PAA), 19% believed Middle East stability has worsened, 17% believe it has improved while just over half believe it has not changed (54%). When it came to the issue of the Palestinian & Israeli situation, 30% in PAA thought this was worse under Obama's leadership, which is twice as many as those who thought it had improved on 14%. For half of these respondents, they don't believe there is any change between Presidents Bush and Obama.

Healy added, "The overall acceptance of the image of U.S. has greatly improved but in terms of some key issues in the Middle East there is very little change. I think it's safe to say that under Bush's leadership and policies the goodwill and the favourable disposition towards the U.S. in the Middle East eroded away and now it's a new chapter, like a love affair, rekindled, very much awakened and I think it's a window of opportunity to leverage this favouritism in terms of policies to tackle some of these issues."

Research on the eve of the US presidential election showed the Middle East very much in favour of Obama over his then rival McCain in terms of being perceived as the best person capable of handling these key regional issues. Healy added "With the election of Obama, many have raised expectations in the Middle East of a change being made to policies and this appears to be transferring into dissatisfaction for some with the perception of little change being made by the time of this study."

On the eve of these results being released was the announcement by US officials that leaders of Egypt, Israel and Palestinians have been invited for talks in Washington in a new push for Middle East peace.

Healy commented 'Overall, these results suggest there is certainly a dramatic and favourable image change for the US in the Middle East with Obama as leader over the last 100 days. In terms of policy on some key Middle Eastern issues, there is certainly room for an improvement and this might be about to change with this invitation for talks.'

Research Methodology

The survey was conducted in both Arabic and English online from 10th to 20th April with n=2,789 respondents in the Middle East. Respondents were from the Real Opinion online panel and the results have approximately a 2%+/- margin of error with a CI of 95%.

About Real Opinions

Real Opinions is a full-service market research company, specialising in online media, with global and Middle East research expertise and best practice. Based in Dubai and London, Real Opinions has proven ability to help strategically guide communication, insight and assess the effectiveness of campaigns.

Real Opinions is an accredited member of ESOMAR, an international organisation for market research. For more information about us and this study, please visit http://www.real-opinions.com

   
   Q. The US President Barack Obama will soon have been in office for 100
      days and this is often a time to assess a political leader's progress.
      Please rate how you believe the following has changed under his
      leadership.

   Leadership of US on global stage

                Total   UAE  Bahrain Algeria Egypt Iraq  Jordan Kuwait

   Base: All    2789    334    51      191    487   32    251     54
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      35     52     35      23     35    47     25     39
   Worse          9      8     12       8      6     6     10     9
   No change     43     30     45      51     45    44     51     41
   Don't know    13     10      8      18     14     3     14     11


               Lebanon Libya Morocco  Oman    PAA  Qatar Saudi

   Base: All     37     44     288     27     116   32    538
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      59     32     31      33     32    38     36
   Worse          3      2     11      15     11    13     10
   No change     32     59     47      37     44    47     39
   Don't know     5      7     11      15     13     3     15


                Sudan  Syria Tunisia  Yemen  Iran

   Base: All     72     151    39      38      7
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      40     25     33      39     29
   Worse         10      7      5      21      0
   No change     40     54     46      29     43
   Don't know    10     14     15      11     29


   Palestinian & Israeli situation

                Total   UAE  Bahrain Algeria Egypt Iraq  Jordan Kuwait

   Base: All    2789    334    51      191    487   32    251     54
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      12     13      8      10     10    16     12     17
   Worse         21     15     20      23     22    13     25     13
   No change     58     60     67      56     60    63     55     61
   Don't know     9     12      6      11      8     9     9      9

               Lebanon Libya Morocco  Oman    PAA  Qatar Saudi

   Base: All     37     44     288     27     116   32    538
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      16      9     14       7     14    13     11
   Worse         11     18     24      33     30    22     22
   No change     62     68     55      56     51    59     58
   Don't know    11      5      8       4      5     6     9

                Sudan  Syria Tunisia  Yemen  Iran

   Base: All     72     151    39      38      7
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved       8     11     15      18      0
   Worse         15     19     21      26      0
   No change     71     62     54      45     86
   Don't know     6      7     10      11     14


   Iran nuclear issue

                Total   UAE  Bahrain Algeria Egypt Iraq  Jordan Kuwait

   Base: All    2789    334    51      191    487   32    251     54
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      28     28     35      30     25    34     25     28
   Worse         13     11     14      10     12    25     13     9
   No change     43     46     41      36     45    34     48     46
   Don't know    17     15     10      24     17     6     14     17

               Lebanon Libya Morocco  Oman    PAA  Qatar Saudi

   Base: All     37     44     288     27     116   32    538
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      46     20     30      44     28    31     23
   Worse         11     11     13      11     20    19     14
   No change     32     50     41      41     35    38     46
   Don't know    11     18     17       4     17    13     17

                Sudan  Syria Tunisia  Yemen  Iran

   Base: All     72     151    39      38      7
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      36     28     38      39     71
   Worse          7     14      5       5      0
   No change     42     42     38      29     14
   Don't know    15     16     18      26     14


   Middle East stability

                Total   UAE  Bahrain Algeria Egypt Iraq  Jordan Kuwait

   Base: All    2789    334    51      191    487   32    251     54
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      20     20     31      13     15    22     17     26
   Worse         14     11      6      13     17     9     16     9
   No change     56     58     55      59     59    69     58     59
   Don't know    10     11      8      15     10     0     9      6

               Lebanon Libya Morocco  Oman    PAA  Qatar Saudi

   Base: All     37     44     288     27     116   32    538
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      38     14     22      26     17    25     21
   Worse          8     14     15      26     19    28     14
   No change     46     66     53      33     54    38     53
   Don't know     8      7     10      15      9     9     12

                Sudan  Syria Tunisia  Yemen  Iran

   Base: All     72     151    39      38      7
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      22     29     10      29     14
   Worse         14     11     23      18     14
   No change     58     52     51      45     57
   Don't know     6      8     15       8     14


   Confidence with global economy recovering

                Total   UAE  Bahrain Algeria Egypt Iraq  Jordan Kuwait

   Base: All    2789    334    51      191    487   32    251     54
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      37     46     37      28     38    41     35     37
   Worse         15     10      8      15     14    16     18     19
   No change     33     31     37      30     35    34     32     28
   Don't know    16     13     18      27     13     9     15     17

               Lebanon Libya Morocco  Oman    PAA  Qatar Saudi

   Base: All     37     44     288     27     116   32    538
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      41     27     35      37     41    50     37
   Worse          5     14     19      30     10    16     15
   No change     35     41     31      19     30    25     32
   Don't know    19     18     15      15     18     9     16

                Sudan  Syria Tunisia  Yemen  Iran

   Base: All     72     151    39      38      7
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      40     26     33      50     14
   Worse         14     15     21      21     14
   No change     33     43     36      16     43
   Don't know    13     16     10      13     29


   Overall opinion of US

                Total   UAE  Bahrain Algeria Egypt Iraq  Jordan Kuwait

   Base: All    2789    334    51      191    487   32    251     54
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      42     53     49      37     42    53     39     44
   Worse         10      9      6       7      9     6     10     6
   No change     30     25     35      30     31    31     34     39
   Don't know    19     14     10      26     18     9     18     11

               Lebanon Libya Morocco  Oman    PAA  Qatar Saudi

   Base: All     37     44     288     27     116   32    538
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %     %     %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      51     30     37      33     44    44     41
   Worse          3      7     13      33     12    16     10
   No change     24     32     31      15     23    19     30
   Don't know    22     32     19      19     21    22     19

                Sudan  Syria Tunisia  Yemen  Iran

   Base: All     72     151    39      38      7
   respondents
   Minimum        %      %      %       %      %
   Base: 20
   (**), Small
   Base: 50
   (*)

   Improved      40     40     46      50     57
   Worse          6      9     18       8      0
   No change     32     32     18      21     29
   Don't know    22     18     18      21     14

Pressure Grows for Accountability with Torture Memos' Release

/PRNewswire / -- Following the release yesterday of four key torture memos from the Bush administration and the concurrent statements by President Barack Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder that Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operatives who carried out interrogations of terrorism suspects will not be prosecuted, Amnesty International USA's (AIUSA) counterterrorism expert Tom Parker released the following statement:

"The continuing startling revelations about Bush administration detention and interrogation practices and the Obama administration's handling of them point unequivocally to the need for an independent investigation to expose the full scope of the practices and those involved.

"Attorney General Holder said yesterday that the Obama administration does not condone torture, but by refusing to investigate the coercive interrogation program used by the CIA that is precisely what the administration is doing.

"After 50 years of interviewing torture victims, Amnesty International has found that abuse, especially when sanctioned at the highest levels, inevitably escalates over time. If the now-public Bybee memo sets out such shocking scenarios, imagine what followed in practice.

"Americans will not know the truth until a comprehensive, independent investigation has been conducted.

"The Bush administration knew that what it wanted the CIA to do in the field was illegal, which is precisely why the administration, in essence, 'lawyered up' by calling in the Office of Legal Counsel. Jay Bybee, John Yoo and Steven Bradbury ignored decades of jurisprudence in drafting the now-infamous torture memos. This is not a 'good faith' misunderstanding or a difference of legal opinion; this was a calculated decision to torture prisoners in U.S. custody."

During President Obama's first 100 days, AIUSA activists have mobilized nationwide to press for an independent commission of inquiry into U.S. policies on detainee interrogation and treatment.

This week, more than 200 face-to-face meetings occurred with Members of Congress and AIUSA delegations. President Obama and the U.S. Senate have received more than 50,000 e-mails and letters and more than 700 people have hosted events in their communities -- all calling for accountability for abuse in the war on terror. On April 30 at 10 a.m., AIUSA and Witness Against Torture activists will make a last urgent call for action during Obama's first 100 days and march from the U.S. Capitol to the White House.

Obama's Latest Speech Dodges Campaign Promise to Small Businesses

/PRNewswire / -- Yesterday, President Barack Obama gave a 60-minute speech to the nation regarding the state of the economy. His speech discussed the Obama Administration's five pillars for addressing the economy, however President Obama's plans for helping America's biggest job creators, its small businesses, were conspicuously absent.

During the campaign, President Obama said he would create millions of jobs. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 98 percent of all U.S. firms have less than 100 employees, and those firms are responsible for over 98 percent of all new jobs in America. (www.asbl.com)

To date, President Obama has given 100 percent of the stimulus funds to the top 1 percent of American firms. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, those large firms have not created one net new job since 1977.

In his March 22, 2009 column in the New York Times, Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman wrote about President Obama's plan to save the economy and stated, "This is more than disappointing. In fact, it fills me with a sense of despair." In March, Krugman also stated that Obama's economic policies are almost certain to fail. (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/23/opinion/23krugman.html?_r=1)

Since 2003, over 15 federal investigations have found that hundreds of billions of dollars in federal small business contracts have been diverted to Fortune 500 corporations and thousands of other large businesses in the United States and Europe. (http://www.asbl.com/documentlibrary.html)

Groups like the American Small Business League (ASBL) are angry with President Obama because of his refusal to make good on a February 2008 campaign promise in which he stated, "It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants." (http://www.barackobama.com/2008/02/26/the_american_small_business_le.php)

Small business owners around the country are angered and disappointed that President Obama has refused to make good on his campaign promise, and has allowed an estimated $2 billion a week in federal small business contracts to be diverted to some of the largest corporations in the world, including Fortune 500 firms.

"You don't have to be a Nobel Prize winning economist to figure this out. Small businesses create 98 percent of all new jobs. So far, not only has President Obama not given those companies a dime of the stimulus funding, but he is refusing to end blatant, widespread fraud and abuse in existing government economic stimulus programs for small businesses," ASBL President Lloyd Chapman said.

President's Visit to Mexico Comes at Pivotal Point in Bilateral Relations

/PRNewswire/ -- As ambassador, when government officials visited Mexico, I'd pen a one-pager offering current insight into the bilateral relationship and timely assessments of the economic, political and social situation in the country.

With President Barack Obama's visit April 16-17 to Mexico City, I offer him a similar memo, with advice I hope he's hearing from his own team of advisors.

And, so I begin, Mister President:

U.S. and Mexico relations are at a pivotal point, and in spite of the challenges our countries face from economic and security threats, we must look for ways to forge stronger partnerships and encourage investment by U.S. and Mexican companies in both countries.

The failed state talk that so dominated our headlines these past few months has subsided somewhat, and--I hope--will continue to fade. It was rhetoric that did more to harm our two nations than produce meaningful progress.

As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton saw firsthand, Mexico is far from finished in its fight against the transnational drug cartels, but there are clear signs of progress and far more awareness in the United State of our own responsibility to reduce consumption and stop the flow of arms to Mexico.

In President Felipe Calderon's first two years in office, the Mexican government has arrested more criminals and seized more weapons, drugs and cash than the previous two administrations over the same period.

Make no mistake, the country is not as safe as it needs to be, but unfair comparisons have been made and substantial progress overlooked. While tragic, drug war fatalities are concentrated largely in areas where cartels war over territory, but the country's homicide rate remains 13 percent below 1997 statistics, and far lower than many other countries in the region.

Our nations are inextricably tied to one another, and we must not only understand this fact, but leverage it for our respective economies, our security and our people.

In spite of its critics, the North American Free Trade Agreement has benefited the United States. Since NAFTA's implementation in 1994, U.S. exports to Mexico have increased by 198 percent. Our countries trade at a pace of nearly $1 billion each day, and bilateral trade totaled more than $367 billion in 2007. Tourism remains a strong economic driver, with more than 21 million visiting Mexico each year, the vast majority from the U.S.

Mr. President, we must focus on trade, and specifically, show leadership and fairness on the trucking provisions in NAFTA. If we don't, we run the risk of further retaliation with additional tariffs on U.S. products, which only jeopardize American jobs. We must stand firm against protectionist measures that would further stifle both countries' economic growth.

These difficult economic times should not lead the U.S. to shy away from investments in Mexico, nor should Mexican companies be afraid to explore opportunities to the north.

Key reforms by Mexico's government in the past two years reaffirm the country's commitment to competitiveness, to job creation and improved living standards.

You've stated your commitment to comprehensive immigration reform, but it's going to take a lot of hard work and political capital to push reform to reality. It's an uphill battle, as President George W. Bush found out, but it's a battle we should wage.

Mr. President, your visit to Mexico could come at no better time. You should view Mexico as your getaway to the Americas, a perfect bridge both north and south. Take this opportunity to draw on the key regional insights that President Calderon can offer.

Lastly, as you prepare for the upcoming Summit of the Americas, a clearly focused and energetic approach to Mexico relations should be among your highest priorities. Regional security and prosperity is critical to Mexico, and perhaps even more critical to the United States.

Antonio O. Garza, Jr. is the former United States Ambassador to Mexico. He is online at www.tonygarza.com.

Opinion: The Nation's Health -- And Ours

It's hard to go anywhere without seeing a "going green" logo. I'm all for saving the planet -- this is a good thing. What's missing, however, is an equally energetic effort for saving our own health. As we focus attention on making our planet healthier, isn't it at least as important that we begin making ourselves healthier as well?

President Barack Obama has placed reforming health care among his highest priorities and bringing down costs as job No. 1. Recently, Gov. Beverly Perdue hosted a regional forum on health reform, and it drew almost 1,000 attendees. Governmental health care reform initiatives will likely address key issues such as decreasing the number of uninsured, improving information technology, decreasing bureaucratic waste and rationalizing reimbursement -- all necessary, but only part of the solution.

To truly improve the health of our state and nation, we must also focus on preventing disease and promoting health and well-being. Our current health care system must be transformed from its current ineffective, expensive and reactive "sick care" approach to one that is proactive, personalized, preventative, cost effective and appropriately focused on enhancing health as well as rationally managing disease.

Treating events of late-stage chronic diseases consumes nearly three-quarters of health care expenditures. Many of these conditions can be minimized by effective and far less costly prevention. We each have our own inherited tendencies for disease susceptibility, but how we manage what we inherit is largely up to us.

So why don't we harness the momentum of health reform and do something big and bold -- spur a North Carolina "going healthy" movement to help us deal more effectively with disease prevention and health enhancement? If "going healthy" were as front of mind as "going green," we would make great strides toward health care reform.

Improving health requires better nutrition, exercise, stress reduction and health risk avoidance -- it isn't as though we've not heard this before. But healthy living is not easily adopted in our environment, which inundates us with a culture of sloth, overeating and high stress. The "going healthy" movement would change this by making what's good for us easier to attain and by empowering us to do what's good for our health.

This initiative requires collaboration among businesses, restaurants, grocery stores, schools, communities, media, government and others who could play major roles by providing, for example, accurate education and nutritional information at the point of purchase; making wholesome foods easily accessible; increasing the ability to exercise at work, in our communities and schools; providing stress reduction and smoking cessation programs; and facilitating walking and bike paths (a good use of stimulus funds).

The media, with the help of sports teams, could encourage fitness and activity rather than watching others do this. Appropriate interest groups could be convened to coordinate the movement to emphasize health and well-being. Most importantly, the "going healthy" initiative would articulate the value of health and well-being as critical resources that we can control. By striving to improve our health and well-being, we would not only live healthier lives, we also would consume fewer health care resources and feel far better about ourselves and those around us.

So where does it start? It begins with us, our state and federal governments, communities, organizations, workplaces and schools. An example of a creative endeavor is at Duke University, where a group of students formed the Duke Prospective Health Care Club to educate undergraduates about how they can improve their health. The club just kicked off a yearlong health care competition for which students team up with university employees to meet healthy goals. The winners will get the ultimate prize -- tickets to next year's Duke/Carolina basketball game at Cameron. The club is working to expand efforts across college campuses nationally. Many business and communities have similar initiatives, but what is needed is a coordinated focus to create a groundswell leading to a state then a national movement.

As Perdue and Obama have indicated, health care costs are a major factor driving our economic tailspin. With appropriate focus on "going healthy," we would help save the economy and, even more importantly, ourselves. Why shouldn't North Carolina set an example for the nation by leading the "going healthy" initiative? We have the opportunity to create a truly healthier, happier and economically sound state and to show the nation another example of North Carolina's vitality and creativity. All we need now is to get started, then a logo!

By Ralph Snyderman

Dr. Ralph Snyderman is chancellor emeritus at Duke University, chairman of Proventys Inc., former CEO and president of the Duke University Health System and former chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges.

-----
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
Follow us on Twitter: @GAFrontPage

Notre Dame Obama Scandal: Remove School From Catholic Directory

/PRNewswire / -- American Life League wants the University of Notre Dame removed from the Official Catholic Directory (Kennedy Directory) - the official list of Catholic institutions in the United States.

Removal from the Kennedy Directory by Bishop John D'Arcy will cut the school off from much Catholic foundation funding.

The call comes a week after American Life League went on location to interview Notre Dame's student body after news rocked the Catholic world that pro-abortion President Barack Obama was invited to address the graduating class and receive an honorary degree from one of the nation's most identifiable Catholic universities.

While 25 bishops have condemned the school's actions and hundreds of thousands of Catholic faithful are calling for the invitation to be rescinded, the report shows a student body divided by the school's institutionalized opposition to Catholic teaching and their desire to restore Catholicism to Our Lady's University.

"We found a tragic attitude at the University of Notre Dame -- apathy, if not hostility, toward the faith," said Judie Brown, president of ALL. "In the service of truth, we ask Bishop D'Arcy to acknowledge what the entire nation and Notre Dame itself already know: The university is backing away from the Catholic Church."

"In light of Notre Dame's past in the service of Our Lady, what is now keeping Notre Dame Catholic? Not the president who honors a man guilty of promoting an intrinsic evil; not the faculty -- notoriously liberal. The hope of Notre Dame lies with the students faithful to the mission of the Church," Brown said. "For their sake we hope and pray Notre Dame rescinds this honor to President Obama and upholds the Catholic identity that made the school one of the glories of the Catholic Church. If the university will not do this, then it should be removed from the Official Catholic Directory."

FRC Action Asks President Obama to Stop Treating Taxpayers Like Fools

/PRNewswire/ -- Last night it was reported that President Obama's nominee to be the next Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, had failed to pay back taxes. She now joins a growing list of current and failed Administration nominees who think they are above the law.

Tom McClusky, Senior Vice President of Family Research Council Action, had this to say:

"It is ironic that today is April Fool's Day, for the Obama Administration seems to think that American taxpayers can be so easily duped. By failing to pay her taxes, Kathleen Sebelius joins Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel and others in the Democratic leadership who appear to think they are above the very laws they create and are supposed to protect.

"As the House and Senate continue to debate President Obama's budget, which seeks to raise taxes on all Americans to the tune of $700 for every household in the U.S., they should perhaps start reading and obeying the laws they already have passed.

"Kathleen Sebelius's fealty toward abortion-on-demand and government run health care clearly shows she is unfit to have control of the American health care system. If she refuses to do the honorable thing as former nominee Tom Daschle did, and remove her name from consideration, the U.S. Senate needs to reject her nomination and stop treating the American people as fools."

Ten Tax Facts for Tax Day Tea Parties

/PRNewswire / -- President Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress have gone on a spending and debt spree that the country cannot afford. As a result, a spontaneous grassroots movement is emerging from every corner of the nation with a message for Congress and the President: Stop spending us into an inevitable spiral of debt and higher taxes ... now!

To that end, groups of Americans will be meeting in towns and cities across the nation on April 15 for "Tax Day Tea Parties." These "Ten Tax Facts" are an effort by the Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) to make sure the American people are well-informed as they gather together to express their concern about the direction Washington is headed.

#1 .Under the Obama budget, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the national debt will double over the next five years; and it will triple over the next 10 years to $17.3 trillion.

#2. Under the Obama budget, CBO projects that the national debt will soar over the next 10 years from 40 percent of GDP today to a shocking 82.4 percent. (Ronald Reagan left office with the national debt at 42 percent of GDP).

#3. The President's budget also states that total federal borrowing will grow by $2.7 trillion this year alone, an increase of 27 percent in one year!

#4. The budget President Obama proposes for this year increases federal spending by an incredible 34 percent over the previous year, with a total of $4 trillion in federal spending, the highest ever.

#5. The federal budget deficit (not the national debt) would reach $1.845 trillion this year, according to the CBO, the highest ever. That would be more than seven times Reagan's largest budget deficit of $221 billion, which caused so much consternation among Reagan's critics.

#6. The CBO estimates that this Obama budget deficit will total an astounding 13.1 percent of GDP, more than one-eighth of the entire U.S. economy, for the federal budget deficit alone! Under George Bush, the federal deficit for 2008 was 3.2 percent of GDP. The deficit for fiscal year 2007, in the last budget adopted when Congress was controlled by Republican majorities, was $162 billion, or 1.2 percent of GDP.

#7. The Obama budget also includes $1 trillion in tax increases on the upper 5 percent of income earners, mostly tax rate increases. But the top 5 percent of income earners already pays 60 percent of all income taxes.

#8. The Obama budget projects that revenues from the corporate income tax will more than double in 3 years, increasing, in fact, by more than 124 percent.

#9. Another $645 billion tax increase comes from President Obama's anti-global warming cap and trade system, which is essentially an energy tax on the production and use of carbon energy, such as oil, natural gas, and coal.

#10. While the Obama administration claims to have cut $2 trillion from the budget over 10 years, fully $1.5 trillion of those "cuts" actually represents the troop drawdown in Iraq, which was already scheduled to occur under the Bush administration. Of the remaining $500 billion in budget "savings," fully $311 billion is categorized as "interest savings" but is actually an additional tax increase on upper income earners.

It's not as if you can't stimulate economic growth while at the same time cutting government spending. President Reagan did it. Reagan adopted budget cuts soon after he entered office equal to close to 5 percent of the federal budget at the time. Even with his defense buildup, total federal spending declined from a high of 23.5 percent of GDP in 1983 to 21.3 percent in 1988 and 21.2 percent in 1989. That's a 10 percent real reduction in the size of government relative to the economy. Reagan's policies conquered inflation and started a 25-year period of economic growth, which would look awfully good today.

AIG Gives $644,000 in 'Campaign Bonuses' to U.S. Senators and Representatives According to The O'Leary Report

/PRNewswire/ -- As President Barack Obama and Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) continue to point fingers over which one of them is to blame for the stimulus bill's "Dodd Amendment," which specifically excludes bonuses from caps on executive pay, one thing is clear: both Obama and Dodd profited from AIG campaign "bonuses" and an overwhelming majority of Americans want them to give this money back.

According to a breaking poll conducted by The O'Leary Report and Zogby International, 73 percent of Americans think any members of Congress who received campaign contributions from AIG over the last two years should return the money.

This might go double for President Obama and Senator Dodd, who were by far the largest recipients of AIG campaign cash in the last election cycle. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Obama received $104,332 from AIG and Dodd raked in $103,900. Obama and Dodd far outpaced the rest of Congress, as the next largest beneficiary received about $45,000 less than each of them. All told, AIG gave a total of $644,218 to federal candidates over the last election cycle.

The O'Leary Report/Zogby poll, which was conducted March 20-23 and has a margin of error of plus-or-minus 1.5 percentage points, asked 4,523 likely voters: "Should members of Congress who received campaign donations over the past two years from the troubled financial giant AIG return the contributions?"

Seventy-three percent of all respondents say "yes," these members of Congress should return their AIG bonuses. Among self-described Democrats, 61 percent say yes, as do 83 percent of Republicans and 78 percent of Independents.

Sixty-four percent of young voters aged 18-29 years old, one of the President's most enthusiastic support groups, think that Obama and congressional recipients of AIG donations should return them. Seventy-four percent of taxpayers and 70 percent of Americans who have no federal income tax liability also think the money should be returned.

The Center for Responsive Politics lists AIG as the fourth largest contributor to Senator Dodd, who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, giving him a total of $281,038 in campaign bonuses over his career. Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, has received more money from AIG over his career ($91,000) than he has from any other company. The Center also reports that stimulus bill supporter Senator John Kerry (D-MA) "was by far the biggest investor in AIG, with stock valued around $2 million."

Congress may be undecided on how best to recoup AIG's taxpayer-funded bonuses, however, a clear majority of American voters want members of Congress to return the campaign bonuses they received from AIG.

U.S. Gun Industry Feeds Gun Violence on U.S./Mexico Border, Violence Policy Center Analyst Tells Congress

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Weak regulation of the U.S. civilian gun market and the gun industry's focus on increasingly lethal military-style firearms have combined to fuel the drug war in Mexico and violence in the United States, Violence Policy Center (VPC) Senior Policy Analyst Tom Diaz told a Congressional subcommittee today. For a copy of Diaz's testimony, please see http://www.vpc.org/diaztestify.pdf.

"If one wanted to design a system to pour military-style guns into criminal hands, it would be hard to find a better one than the U.S. civilian gun market," Diaz testified before the Subcommittee on National Security & Foreign Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. "The only 'better' way would be openly selling guns to criminals from the loading docks of manufacturers and importers."

Diaz pointed out that officials of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) have stated that Mexican drug lords increasingly seek military-style weapons easily available on the U.S. civilian market. These include: the Barrett 50 caliber anti-armor sniper rifle capable of piercing armor plate from a mile and a half; semiautomatic assault rifles, including variants of the Colt AR-15 and the Kalashnikov AK-47; and, the "vest-busting" anti-armor handgun the FN Herstal Five-seveN 5.7mm pistol, known as the "cop killer" in Mexico.

The VPC has issued numerous studies on the increasing military-bred lethality of civilian firearms in the United States and on the lax regulation of the U.S. gun market. These are available at the website www.vpc.org.

"The U.S. gun market doesn't just make gun trafficking in military-style weapons to drug cartels and their criminal associates in the United States easy," said Diaz, "it practically compels that traffic. Lax regulation of the U.S. gun market and the gun industry's ruthless design choices fit like gloves on the bloody hands of the drug lords and their criminal gang associates."

Diaz told the subcommittee that President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder could immediately direct ATF to strictly exercise its statutory authority to stop the importation of all semiautomatic assault rifles as "non-sporting" weapons under existing provisions of the 1968 Gun Control Act.

Money Grab by Obama Administration is Short-Sighted and Bad for Ohio

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Mike Carey, president of the Ohio Coal Association (OCA) today issued the following statement in response to President Barack Obama's recently released "Budget Blueprint":

"President Obama should be commended for his continued pledge to invest in clean-coal technology and to build five commercial-scale, coal-fired power plants. However, that commitment seems like mere lip service to the coal industry when considered in the context of his larger proposed investment in renewable energy thanks to an extraordinary 'energy tax' on America's coal operators.

"Again, President Obama has sent a clear signal to coal producers and the thousands of Ohioans who work in the coal industry about his long-term agenda of dramatically restricting the use of coal for electricity. While increasing the role of renewable energy is a laudable goal, it simply is not a comprehensive solution to addressing our nation's rapidly growing demand for electricity.

"Regardless of the final provisions of this proposal, one thing is certain: consumers will pay more for electricity. And during an economic crisis, that's about the last thing our working families need. Even supporters of the plan - including the President himself - acknowledge there will be significant price increases for electricity customers.

"Coal provides electricity at about half the cost of other fossil fuels. In Ohio, we have an almost 250 year supply of coal, and clean-coal technology is the key to maximizing the use of those reserves.

"Furthermore, domestic coal holds the key to our nation's long-term energy security - a goal that cannot be overlooked during this time of unprecedented economic instability.

"Access to reliable, affordable energy supplies is a core tenet of economic growth, and any U.S. energy policy change must be feasible to implement, economically beneficial and environmentally sound."

A.L.L. Launches 'Stop Sebelius' Campaign

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- American Life League launched a campaign today to oppose President Barack Obama's nomination for Health and Human Services Secretary, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius.

"The American people will not stand for Sebelius' disturbing and radical record of promoting abortion on demand," said Judie Brown, president of American Life League. "Sebelius, governor of Kansas - the late-term abortion capital of the world - is a threat to the health and well-being of our country and her appointment must be stopped."

American Life League's supporters are being activated to fight the Sebelius confirmation. Sebelius' record of unflinching support for abortion on demand has even led her to defend and even entertain notorious Kansas abortionist Dr. George Tiller - now on trial for performing illegal late-term abortions - at the governor's mansion.

"Sebelius, Obama's latest appointee has been using her high office to defend and promote one of the bloodiest, most lawless abortionists in the nation. Yet Obama thinks this woman should be in charge of American health and human services! What an insult to the people of this great nation, born and preborn," Brown said.

The American Life League "STOP Sebelius" Petition is available at: http://www.all.org/kathleen_sebelius.php

"President Obama's appointment of Gov. Sebelius for HHS Secretary is rock solid proof our new president has no concern for the health of Americans," the petition reads. "Rather, Obama's modus operandi has and will continue to be full-scale attack on the personhood of the weak, disabled and preborn."

American Life League asks the pro-life community and all right-thinking Americans concerned with the radical pro-abortion Obama administration, to join us in confronting this grave threat to the health and welfare of the nation.

Obama Pro-Venture Capital Policies Could Damage Middle Class Economy

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Barack Obama is expected to support legislation or policy that will allow wealthy venture capitalists to dominate federal programs designed to assist small businesses. If he is successful, it will force thousands of small businesses to close their doors and cost countless American jobs. (http://www.vcjnews.com/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=46450)

The Small Business Act requires that a small business be "independently owned." Firms that are owned and controlled by venture capitalists are not considered small businesses in federal small business contracting and grant programs.

The venture capital industry, led by the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), has spent millions of dollars lobbying members of Congress to change the current definition of a small business to allow even billionaire venture capitalists to own a controlling interest in a small business and still qualify as participants in federal small business programs. Small business advocates are concerned that such a change would set a dangerous precedent for venture capital participation in all federal small business programs, and lead to the diversion of billions more in federal small business contracts to wealthy venture capitalists.

The American Small Business League (ASBL) is concerned that President Obama may attempt to sell federal small business programs to the venture capital industry by pushing Congress to add language to the omnibus spending bill, making changes to existing Small Business Administration policy or by issuing an executive order.

According to MAPLight.org, the venture capital industry contributed more than $1.2 million to President Obama's campaign. Additionally, the venture capital lobby has focused its campaign to buy political influence on key democratic leaders like Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D - CA) and Senator John Kerry (D - MA). (http://www.maplight.org/map/us/interest/F2500)

Small business advocates point to the appointments of venture capitalist and Tootsie Roll heiress Karen Gordon Mills to run the Small Business Administration (SBA) and Julius Genachowski of Rock Creek Ventures to head the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as further indications that President Obama may support the interests of the venture capital industry over small businesses.

"Small businesses are the engine that drives this nation's economy in the car that takes Americans to work. That 'car' is responsible for nearly all-new jobs. President Obama needs to consider America's 27 million small businesses before he facilitates the wholesale diversion of billions of dollars in small business grants and contracts to some of our nation's wealthiest investors," ASBL President Lloyd Chapman said. "Legislation or policy that will allow venture capitalist-owned firms to participate in small business programs would damage our nation's small businesses, cost America's middle class billions and push our country further towards a depression. It is just not reasonable."

Two questions for President Barack Obama from the American Small Business League (ASBL):

How much longer will you allow Fortune 500 firms to take federal small business contracts?

Why didn't you push congress to allocate some of the stimulus bill spending to small businesses, the firms that create 97 percent of net new jobs?

Obama Lied to Gun Owners, Says CCRKBA; Attack Plan Revealed by Holder

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama deliberately and repeatedly lied to America's 90 million gun owners across the country when he insisted that he would not try to take away anyone's firearms, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said today.

CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, reacting to yesterday's remarks by Obama's Attorney General Eric Holder that the president will seek to reinstate the ban on semi-automatic firearms, said Obama "knew he was lying to the nation because his own Web site touted his plan to revive the gun ban and make it permanent."

"We warned America that Obama's 'support' for the Second Amendment was empty rhetoric," he stated, "and now Holder's disclosure has confirmed it. Obama was lying, and now gun rights may be dying."

Several times on the campaign trail, Obama told voters "I'm not going to take your guns away." He said it at rallies in Duryea, Pennsylvania and in Boise, Idaho. He also told a news conference that "Lawful gun owners have nothing to fear... I think people can take me at my word."

"Right now," said Gottlieb, "I wouldn't take Obama's word if he said it rains a lot in Seattle. Apparently, law-abiding gun owners have nothing to fear unless they own sport-utility rifles, semiautomatic shotguns, handguns and any other firearm that Obama and his anti-gun attorney general don't like."

"Thanks to Eric Holder, who has been far more honest than his boss about his anti-gun philosophy, it is now clear that the new president doesn't support the Second Amendment at all," he observed. "American gun owners should remind Democrats in Congress that the Second Amendment means what it says, especially when the president doesn't."

With more than 650,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (www.ccrkba.org) is one of the nation's premier gun rights organizations. As a non-profit organization, the Citizens Committee is dedicated to preserving firearms freedoms through active lobbying of elected officials and facilitating grass-roots organization of gun rights activists in local communities throughout the United States.

LNC Chairman Response to Obama and Jindal

-Libertarian National Committee (LNC) Chairman William Redpath released the following statement Wednesday:

“Americans have always bounced back from adversity by exercising the freedoms guaranteed by limited government, which is why Libertarians are so disappointed in the recovery-delaying policies laid out last night by President Obama.

“No nation has ever spent its way out of a recession. In fact, budget-busting policies, like those proposed by President Obama, and our society’s overreliance on debt, are largely what got our economy into this needless situation.

“Obama’s statement that ‘A surplus became an excuse to transfer wealth to the wealthy instead of an opportunity to invest in our future’ was particularly disturbing. He wrongly assumes that tax money belongs to government, not the taxpayer it was taken from, and only government can create prosperity. The private sector’s investment, not government’s, is what is really responsible for the wealth of ordinary Americans.

“The American people know better. They know entrepreneurs, not government, create prosperity for all. That is why they agree with Libertarians that tax relief for employers and taxpayers must be at the center of any stimulus plan.

“Instead of an unceasing focus on ‘jobs’ the government should be creating the conditions for wealth creation for long-term prosperity. Government policies should be changed to stop rewarding debt incurrence and to promote private savings and investment.

“Sadly, President Obama is taking America in a different direction. His promise last night to raise taxes on employers will delay our eventual recovery, prolonging the suffering of the unemployed and underemployed.

“I hope President Obama is serious about ending ineffective programs. We shall see. I was also heartened by his call for Universal Savings Accounts for all Americans as part of Social Security reform, but future details will have to be carefully examined.

“I salute Governor Jindal’s opposition to the large stimulus bill, and his mea culpa on behalf of the Republican Party. Republicans have a well-earned reputation for expanding deficits, bloated budgets and government largesse. The Medicare entitlement expansion, ‘No Child Left Behind’ and TARP bailout are just a few of the Republican proposals responsible for our unsustainable budget. Hopefully, as the current opposition major party, the Republicans can return to the limited government beliefs that the Libertarian Party has never abandoned. President Obama last night simply promised to carry on the Republican legacy of explosive spending and expansive welfare that not only creates a generation of dependents, but also got us into this situation to begin with.

“America is unique in its greatness and the promise it offers it citizens to live their lives as they please, so long as they do no infringe upon the rights of others. The Libertarian Party stands alone as the only party that still believes in the protecting the civil liberties Americans have fought and died to protect, as well as the entrepreneurial spirit that creates prosperity and jobs. The American people agree, and we welcome them to join their friends and neighbors here in ‘the Party of Principle.’”

Stimulus Fight Helps Bring Real Obama Into Focus

Perhaps we'll all start to lose our rose colored glasses soon? Interesting reading.


February is the cruelest month - at least for Barack Obama. After the very real sense of hope and renewal that surrounded Obama's inauguration, shared even by many who did not vote for him, came the morning after. First, another scandal over unpaid taxes took down Health and Human Services nominee Tom Daschle. Then came the acrimonious battle over the stimulus bill, with a victory that may or may not turn out to be a Pyrrhic one......
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/02/stimulus_fight_helps_bring_rea.html

By Cathy Young

Duke News Tip: Obama’s Canada Trip Could Yield Lessons in Banking, Health

When President Barack Obama makes his first trip abroad Thursday to Canada, he has an opportunity to learn valuable lessons in health care, foreign policy and financial regulation -- if he is willing listen to leaders from the United States’ northern neighbor, says a Canadian studies professor at Duke University.

“Canada’s banking system is doing really, really well,” said John Thompson, a professor of history and in Duke’s Center for Canadian Studies. “Canada hasn’t had a single bank failure, and the World Economic Forum ranks their banking system as the healthiest in the world. America’s is number 40.

“Canadians save at much higher rates than people in the U.S., and because they’re not allowed to deduct mortgage payments, they aren’t seeing overheated real estate markets,” said Thompson, author of “Canada and the United States: Ambivalent Allies.”

“Canadians spend nine percent of their GDP on health care -- compared to the U.S.’s 16 percent -- and still get better results overall,” he said. “And because the system is national, you don’t have this problem of businesses losing their competitiveness due to huge health insurance costs.

“In foreign policy, Canada has been pretty wise, too. They’ve fought alongside the U.S. in every major modern war -- except Iraq and Vietnam. That looks like pretty good judgment in hindsight.

“Of course, there’s not really a trend of U.S. presidents taking advice from Canadians,” he added. “There’s a pretty good chance this visit will be no more than a photo op for a rock-star president before his adoring Canadian fans.”

Six Things You Should Know About the 'Stimulus'

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As President Barack Obama signs into law the trillion dollar spending package promoted under the guise of economic "stimulus" and rushed through Congress by Friday, February 13th, Americans for Tax Reform has compiled a list of six things you should know about this package and the circumstances under which it passed:

1.) The House of Representatives has broken a commitment to posting the legislation online for no less than 48 hours before a vote.

Only a few hours after the U.S. House of Representatives passed a motion to instruct conferees on H.R. 1 mandating that the conference report be posted online in a searchable and downloadable form for no less than 48 hours before it may be voted on, negotiations began under the cover of night behind closed doors with no representatives of the Congressional minority present. Ultimately, the Democratic House leadership did not make the bill's language available until around 11:00 p.m. on Thursday, giving the public a mere 15 hours to scrutinize the bill (mostly overnight hours during which most Members of Congress were no doubt sleeping), of which only 5 hours were working hours. Congressional Record, page H1096.

2.) In signing this bill today, President Obama is violating his own transparency pledge.

Consider his campaign promise: "No more secrecy. ... when there's a bill that ends up on my desk as president, you, the American voter, will have five days to look online and find out what it is before I sign it, so that you know what your government's doing."(1) Manchester, New Hampshire, June 22, 2007 http://tinyurl.com/dl2wog (time: 20:20) Today, the bill will have been posted for only four days - not five.

3.) No Member of Congress voting for the bill confirmed prior to the vote that they had read the bill.

Americans for Tax Reform had asked all Members of Congress intending to vote for the conference report to sign and fax back/email to ATR the following form:

I, _____________________________, commit to the taxpayers of the (___________________ district of the) State of _______________________, that my vote in favor of the conference report on H.R. 1 will be an informed vote, because I will have read the full text of the bill and the conference report by the time I cast my vote.

All Members who voted for the package refused to make this commitment. http://atr.server278.com/even-one-democrat-read-bill-a2887

4.) No Member of Congress voting for the bill confirmed that they were not looking to personally benefit corruptly from the bill with their vote.

Americans for Tax Reform asked all Members of the U.S. House of Representatives who voted in favor of the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009" and U.S. Senators planning to support the package to commit to their constituents in writing that they will not accept political contributions from any recipient of "stimulus" funds, nor will seek or accept employment with any recipient.

All Members who voted for the package refused to make this commitment. http://atr.server278.com/atr-challenge-pelosi-obama-reid-spending-a2858

5.) In signing the bill, President Obama also breaks his promise to enact net spending cuts

During a discussion about government spending in the second presidential debate on October 7, 2008, Obama said "So we're going to have to make some investments but we've also got to make spending cuts, and what I've proposed -- you'll hear Senator McCain say 'he's proposing a whole bunch of new spending' --but, actually, I'm cutting more than I'm spending. So that it will be a net spending cut."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM0Eri8VWiw

6.) The "Stimulus" package will undo much of the progress of the 1996 welfare reform.

The package contains language that would essentially abolish the accomplishments of the 1996 welfare reform which drastically reduced welfare rolls and child poverty. Further, it would add large amounts in new welfare spending over the next decade. http://tinyurl.com/dax6xf

Says ATR president Grover Norquist: "President Obama hasn't even been in office for a full month yet - but, aided by the Democratic majority in Congress, he has already managed to break a series of promises in an effort to burden taxpayers with a massive spending package that will do nothing to promote economic growth, but will permanently grow the size of government undo much of the progress made in the mid-1990s in the area of welfare reform. If this first month is a sign of what's to come, then taxpayers will be in for a rough ride."


(1) Conveniently, that pledge was later massaged to only extend to "non-emergency" bills, however even by that standard, the President has already twice violated that commitment with the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the S-CHIP reauthorization bill that contained a tax increase (and broke another one of his campaign promises not to raise taxes on anyone making less than $250,000).

CEA Warns That ‘Buy American’ Provisions in Economic Stimulus Package Will Hurt U.S. Economy

(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® today expressed deep disappointment that the U.S. Congress agreed to keep the “Buy American” provisions in the economic stimulus package poised for final passage and President Barack Obama's signature. These provisions would require use of U.S. iron, steel, and manufactured goods in public works projects funded by the stimulus bill, H.R. 1, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro issued the following statement in response to the “Buy American” provisions included in the final bill:

“The ‘Buy American’ provisions in the stimulus bill will signal to our trading partners around the world that the United States is returning to the bad old days of protectionism and economic nationalism. Rather than stimulate the American economy, these provisions will lead to retaliation from abroad and cost precious jobs in the United States.*

“The promise that the ‘Buy American’ provisions keep with the letter of World Trade Organization commitments is a meaningless gesture - it contradicts recent statements by both President Obama and G-20 leaders to avoid protectionism, which exacerbate the global economic crisis.

“The lessons of Smoot-Hawley and the Great Depression are clear - if we close our borders to international trade and artificially prop up our own industries, we deepen the global recession and further make ourselves vulnerable to a trade war.”

*The Peterson Institute for International Economics, a nonpartisan think tank, estimated that the "Buy American" provisions could cost as many as 65,000 U.S. jobs, far outweighing the number of jobs that would be created. (“Buy American: Bad for Jobs, Worse for Reputation,” Peterson Institute, February 2009)

Political Expert: Bipartisanship Not a Likely Reality for Congress

President Obama's call for bipartisanship in Congress is not likely to be answered due to the overwhelming polarization between the Democrats and Republicans on how best to address the issues, policies and problems facing the nation, says Emory political scientist Alan Abramowitz.

In a new column on "The False Hope of Bipartisanship" for the popular "Crystal Ball '09" political analysis web site, Abramowitz says the lack of moderates in both parties will likely make the "ideological gulf" too wide to be overcome in most cases.

"Like it or not, in order to produce the kinds of policy changes for which he campaigned, Mr. Obama is going to have to depend overwhelmingly on the support of his fellow Democrats in the Congress and in the country," says Abramowitz. "So expect more party-line votes in the House and Senate, more complaints from Republican leaders about being ignored, and more strident attacks on the president by conservative pundits and talk-show hosts."

-----