Hey Mr. Obama: Your Spending Increases Did NOTHING to Reduce Poverty!

From CNS News:

The vast majority of current programs are focused on making poverty more comfortable … rather than giving people the tools that will help them escape poverty.”

The federal government is not making much headway reducing poverty despite spending hundreds of billions of dollars, according to a study by the libertarian Cato Institute.

Despite an unprecedented increase in federal anti-poverty spending, the national poverty rate has not declined, the study finds.

“[S]ince President Obama took office [in January 2009], federal welfare spending has increased by 41 percent, more than $193 billion per year,” the study says.

Federal welfare spending in fiscal year 2011 totaled $668 billion, spread out over 126 programs, while the poverty rate that remains high at 15.1 percent, roughly where it was in 1965, when President Johnson declared a federal War on Poverty.

So much for that throw money at the problem strategy, eh Barry? But, what it tells us is that perhaps the motivations are more sinister...like say, creating a nation dependent on programs just to make poverty "comfortable" :

finds that some of the increase is deliberate, with the government having expanded eligibility for welfare programs.

In fiscal year 2008, anti-poverty spending was $475 billion. In fiscal year 2009, when Obama took office, it had risen to $590 billion.

“But the dramat­ically larger increase also suggests that part of the program’s growth is due to conscious policy choices by this administration to ease eligibility rules and expand caseloads,” the Cato report says. “For example, income limits for eligibility have risen twice as fast as inflation since 2007 and are now roughly 10 percent higher than they were when Obama took office.”

In fact, the study points out that according to the administration’s own projections, federal welfare spending is unlikely to decline even after the economy recovers – further evidence that not all of the increase in spending is recession-related.

So, what should be done?

The study faults the way poverty programs are designed, saying that the increase in spending and largely unchanged poverty rate showed that the issue is not a matter of money, but a matter of what the programs aim to achieve.

“The vast majority of current programs are focused on making poverty more comfortable – giv­ing poor people more food, better shelter, health care, and so forth – rather than giving people the tools that will help them escape poverty.”

Instead, the study recommends refocusing anti-poverty efforts on keeping people in school, discouraging out-of-wedlock births, and encouraging people to get a job – even if that job is a low-wage one.

“It would make sense therefore to shift our anti-poverty efforts from government programs that simply provide money or goods and services to those who are living in poverty to efforts to create the condi­tions and incentives that will make it eas­ier for people to escape poverty.

But, you see, that doesn't give you a slate of addicted to government cash voters who will do whatever you say as long as you keep the drug of welfare spending coming.....government is the drug pimp, Americans in trouble are the addicts. Pathetic....

Queen Michelle NoBelle Obama: $10Million for Massages and Booze

This woman is a modern day Marie Antoinette. While the people are starving, she is living in the lap of luxury....ON YOUR DIME. Seriously:

The Obamas' summer break on Martha's Vineyard has already been branded a PR disaster after the couple arrived four hours apart on separate government jets.

But according to new reports, this is the least of their extravagances.

White House sources today claimed that the First Lady has spent $10million of U.S. taxpayers' money on vacations alone in the past year.

Branding her 'disgusting' and 'a vacation junkie', they say the 47-year-old mother-of-two has been indulging in five-star hotels, where she splashes out on expensive massages and alcohol.

'It's disgusting. Michelle is taking advantage of her privileged position while the most hardworking Americans can barely afford a week or two off work.

'When it's all added up, she's spent more than $10million in taxpayers' money on her vacations.'

The First Lady is believed to have taken 42 days of holiday in the past year, including a $375,000 break in Spain and a four-day ski trip to Vail, Colorado, where she spent $2,000 a night on a suite at the Sebastian hotel.

And the first family's nine-day stay in Martha's Vineyard is also proving costly, with rental of the Blue Heron Farm property alone costing an estimated $50,000 a week.

The source continued: 'Michelle also enjoys drinking expensive booze during her trips. She favours martinis with top-shelf vodka and has a taste for rich sparking wines.

'The vacations are totally Michelle's idea. She's like a junkie. She can't schedule enough getaways, and she lives from one to the next - all the while sticking it to hardworking Americans.'
But the situation sparked further anger after he and his wife elected to fly separately to the Massachusetts retreat - despite travelling on the same day.

Mr Obama left the White House aboard Marine One on his way to Andrews Air Force base to hitch a lift aboard Air Force One - along with First Dog Bo.

After landing at Cape Cod Coast Guard Air Station, he then took a final helicopter to his holiday destination to complete the remarkable 500-mile journey.

His wife and daughters, who arrived just four hours earlier, were also travelling from Washington, but took a specially designed military aircraft.

They would also have had their own motorcade from the airport to the vacation residence.

Disgusting. This woman is lavishing on herself at a time when she and her husband want all the rest of us to engage in "shared sacrifice?" Child, please!

Of course, with her propensity for the expensive booze and the 'massages', maybe this is more appropro:

Give Me Poverty In America Over Anywhere Else

The liberals make a lot of hay about the poor in this country. And while it is the duty of charitable groups in society to help the poor, the lies and misstatements regarding conditions of the poor in this country are finally being refuted. From National Review:

When Americans think of poverty, we tend to picture people who can’t adequately shelter, clothe, and feed themselves or their families.

When the Census Bureau defines “poverty,” though, it winds up painting more than 40 million Americans — one in seven — as “poor.”

Census officials continue to grossly exaggerate the numbers of the poor, creating a false picture in the public mind of widespread material deprivation, writes Heritage Foundation senior research fellow Robert Rector in a new paper.

“Most news stories on poverty feature homeless families, people living in crumbling shacks, or lines of the downtrodden eating in soup kitchens,” Rector says. “The actual living conditions of America’s poor are far different from these images.”

Politicians use these crafted images, which are sad, to try to create class warfare and further divide us into voting blocs. Also, it is an effort to get more people addicted to the drug of entitlements and welfare. The article continues:

Data from the Department of Energy and other agencies show that the average poor family, as defined by Census officials:

● Lives in a home that is in good repair, not crowded, and equipped with air conditioning, clothes washer and dryer, and cable or satellite TV service.

● Prepares meals in a kitchen with a refrigerator, coffee maker and microwave as well as oven and stove.

● Enjoys two color TVs, a DVD player, VCR and — if children are there — an Xbox, PlayStation, or other video game system.

● Had enough money in the past year to meet essential needs, including adequate food and medical care.

Rather than report such detailed surveys, Rector and co-author Rachel Sheffield write, the media “amplified” the Census Bureau’s annual misrepresentation of poverty over the past 40 years. News reports routinely suggest that poor Americans typically are homeless and hungry — and U.S. foes and rivals such as Iran, China, and Russia are delighted to report the same.

So, maybe some of those entitlement programs do need reformed whereby we can have some savings.

I know this, I would rather be in one of the so-called "Two Americas" than anywhere else. For more info, check out the full paper here.

Another Reason to Love Jan Brewer, Governor of Arizona

First, she took the brave step of doing what a clear majority of her citizens wanted in signing immigration enforcement. Now, she is cracking down on welfare fraud! Thatababy! You go, girl! From KVOA:

overnor Jan Brewer and the Arizona Department of Economic Security set in motion a new anti-fraud unit effective July 1. The new DES Trafficking Detection Unit will ensure that people obtaining food stamps are not using these benefits illegally.

"We have an obligation to taxpayers," said Governor Brewer. "These benefits can only be used by people who are eligible and need help. The State of Arizona will not tolerate any abuse of government benefits. The Nutrition Assistance Program is a necessary part of the safety net, particularly in these difficult times, but these benefits must be used to purchase food. Anything else is illegal."

Her and Chris Christie are shining examples of fiscal conservatism in action, folks.

Discrimination in Financial Reform Bill...Where's my PostRacial Government?

I thought it was just supposed to stabilize the markets. Well that's what Chris Dodd (see Countrywide) and Bwarney Fwank (see Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) told us. We can trust them, right? I mean, they are part of the same party that gave us the wonderful Community Reinvestment Act. Well, of course, we can't trust them. Buried deep within the new Financial reform laws is discrimination based on gender and race. Whatever happened to the notion that his Annointed Oneness would bring about a postracial America? Not so much. From RealClearMarkets:

In addition to this bill’s well-publicized plans to establish over a dozen new financial regulatory offices, Section 342 sets up at least 20 Offices of Minority and Women Inclusion. This has had no coverage by the news media and has large implications.

The Treasury, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the 12 Federal Reserve regional banks, the Board of Governors of the Fed, the National Credit Union Administration, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau…all would get their own Office of Minority and Women Inclusion.

Each office would have its own director and staff to develop policies promoting equal employment opportunities and racial, ethnic, and gender diversity of not just the agency’s workforce, but also the workforces of its contractors and sub-contractors.

What would be the mission of this new corps of Federal monitors? The Dodd-Frank bill sets it forth succinctly and simply – all too simply. The mission, it says, is to assure “to the maximum extent possible the fair inclusion” of women and minorities, individually and through businesses they own, in the activities of the agencies, including contracting.
Lest there be any narrow interpretation of Congress’s intent, either by agencies or eventually by the courts, the bill specifies that the “fair” employment test shall apply to “financial institutions, investment banking firms, mortgage banking firms, asset management firms, brokers, dealers, financial services entities, underwriters, accountants, investment consultants and providers of legal services.” That last would appear to rope in law firms working for financial entities.

Contracts are defined expansively as “all contracts for business and activities of an agency, at all levels, including contracts for the issuance or guarantee of any debt, equity, or security, the sale of assets, the management of the assets of the agency, the making of equity investments by the agency, and the implementation by the agency of programs to address economic recovery.”

This latest attempt by Congress to dictate what “fair” employment means is likely to encourage administrators and managers, in government and in the private sector, to hire women and minorities for the sake of appearances, even if some new hires are less qualified than other applicants. The result is likely to be redundant hiring and a wasteful expansion of payroll overhead.

Yay, just what we need, wasteful expansions of payroll and hiring people who are incompetent. Well, we did hire Barack Obama to be our President, and we see how that experiment in incompetency is working out. How is that hopey-changiness doing for ya?

Food Stamp Case

I wish I could say that I didn't believe stuff like this didn't happen very often, but I am afraid that it actually does... What you are about to see is an actual email from a source in the business. I want to assure everyone that there were no names attached with this, but I trust the source.

Subject: Food Stamp Case

One of the workers here just approved an onoing food stamp case where the family have over $80,000 in bank, own a 2001 Toyota and 2006 Mercedes Benz, and a $311,000 home that is paid for. Monthly benefits of over $500 in FS, received over $300 in expedited.

3 household members--husband, wife and child. Wife recently lost job, husband receives SS benefits.


THERE'S SOMETHING BAD WRONG WITH THIS PROGRAM THAT ALLOWS A FAMILY THAT KIND OF RESOURCES AND STILL GET FOOD STAMPS.


................................................................

This is where things have gotten to. I would think the world would want to know about this.

And people wonder why I get all in a tizzy over the Farm Bill...

Insta-Update: Here's more...

When [the] County runs out of State money to give people Food Stamps, we will have to supplement the Food Stamp Account from the General Fund. The same fund that pays for the people issuing the Food Stamps. When the General Fund runs out of money, [the county] will have to lay off the people issuing the Food Stamps.

Last one out – Turn out the Lights!

This stuff is just unbelievable...