• The Daily Brief
• The Middle East in Focus
• The Daily Jot!
• Soros's hands in public coffer
• Obama's Catholic Problem
• Today's Legislative Focus
• Important Legislative Dates
• War On Terror Is Over?
• The Good News Corner
• Worship with Us Today!
Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
"Partners in Prayer for Our Nation"
P.O. Box 5152
Herndon, VA 20172-1970
chpp@patriot.net
The Daily Brief - Friday, April 24, 2012
O LORD, You are our God; let not man prevail against You. (2 Chronicles 14:11)
The Daily Brief
1. Power is top prize in Arizona immigration battle - Washington Times
The Supreme Court's health care showdown last month was all about Constitution theory and prerogatives. Wednesday's arguments between Arizona and the Obama administration over the state's tough immigration law looks to be all about power.
- Lord, we continue to pray for our Supreme Court justices to make right judgments. We pray especially this week that the arguments presented this week regarding Arizona's attempt to protect itself through its immigration law be presented with clarity. We pray that truth will come forth in the presentation of both cases. We pray for Your truth and justice to prevail in the Supreme Court decision. In the name of Jesus, our righteous judge, we pray. Amen.
- "Does God subvert judgment? Or does the Almighty pervert justice?" (Job 8:3)
2. Shift on executive power lets Obama bypass rivals - MSNBC
One Saturday last fall, President Obama interrupted a White House strategy meeting to raise an issue not on the agenda. He declared, aides recalled, that the administration needed to more aggressively use executive power to govern in the face of Congressional obstructionism.
- Lord, we intercede on behalf of our President and ask that he come under Your wisdom, Your dominion and Your power. Lord, we pray that our leaders become united under Your authority and that we may become "One nation under God". May ungodly division come into unity under Your authority and Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus. Amen.
- "To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power." (Jude 25)
3. Obama announces new Iran, Syria technology sanctions - Ha'aretz
United States President Barack Obama on Monday announced new sanctions on people and entities in Iran and Syria who have deemed to use technology to target citizens and erode their human rights.
- Lord, we pray for clarity for leaders and all those dealing with the situation in Iran and Syria. May the planks be removed from eyes to see clearly for decisions. Open the eyes, Lord. We pray for clarity and discernment of truth in the name of Jesus. Amen.
- "First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." (Matthew 7:5)
4. "The War on Terror Is Over" - Weekly Standard
In the wake of the Arab Spring, the Obama administration is grappling with how to handle Islamists, radical adherents to Islam. Particularly, the issue has come to the fore in regards to Egypt, which, as Reuel Marc Gerecht notes, "is now certain" to elect "an Islamist" as its leaders the next time the Egyptian people go to the polls.
- Lord, we pray that the spirit of truth would arise about Islam and all that is happening in relation to it. May those who would, including those from Islam, start looking to You and seeking You on how to report and handle the Islamic situations. In the name of Jesus, the Way the Truth and the Life, we pray. Amen.
- "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." (Matthew 7:7-8)
5. Losing the jihadists' war on America - Jewish World Review
lslamist propaganda is slowly blinding us to the enemy within
(Frank J. Gaffney Jr.)
In addition to the threat of violent jihad, America faces another, even more toxic danger - a stealthy and pre-violent form of warfare aimed at destroying our constitutional form of democratic government and free society. The Muslim Brotherhood is the prime mover behind this seditious campaign, which it calls "civilization jihad." (Read more)
- Lord, we cry out to You to awaken our people to the danger that is now at the door. We cry for mercy, Lord. Let us never lose sight of our inheritance as a nation, and our identity, through Christ, as American people. Let the evil agenda of the Moslem Brotherhood be clearly exposed by the media, and let us not be afraid in this dark hour. In Jesus' Name, amen.
- "And he said to the human race, "The fear of the Lord-that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding." (Job 28:28)
6. Bishops call for 'aggressive attack' on Obama policies - Newsmax
Roman Catholic leaders are calling for two weeks of public protests against President Obama's policies as they intensify their argument that the administration is engaged in a war on religion.
- Offer praise for the bold actions of the Catholic church in defending the faith. A war is on. Only by walking in unity will we win this battle.Praise God!
- "How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity! . . . For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore." (Psalm 133:1,3)
The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime. (2 Samuel 7:10)
1. Top Palestinian leaders Abbas, Fayyad reportedly cut all contact with each other - Ha'aretz
Communication channels between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad are completely cut off, Al Quds Al Arabi reported on Sunday in London.
According to the report, the two top Palestinian officials cut all forms of communication, after Fayyad refused to head a delegation to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week.
2. Netanyahu was briefed on efforts to stop '60 Minutes' report on Israel's Christians - Ha'aretz
PM was fully updated by Israeli ambassador to U.S. Michael Oren on his attempts to halt an investigative report on Israel's treatment of its Christian community which he thought would harm Israel's interests.
3. Hamas to publicly execute 'collaborators' - Jerusalem Post
Hamas will soon start publicly executing Palestinians who are found guilty of "collaboration" with Israel, Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad announced Monday.
4. Israel ministers to ask Supreme Court to postpone eviction of West Bank outpost - Ha'aretz
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a panel of ministers decided on Monday night to instruct the State Prosecution to ask the High Court of Justice for another extension for the eviction of the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El, after a previous attempt to delay the evacuation of five buildings in a West Bank settlement failed.
5. Hamas Leader to Jewish Paper: No Peace With Israel - AP
A Hamas leader said that if his militant group came to power in a future Palestinian state, it would not abide by any previous Palestinian peace deals with Israel.
6. Palestinian Sentenced to Death for Selling a Home to Jews - Weekly Standard
Former Palestinian intelligence official Muhammad Abu Shahala has reportedly been sentenced to death by the Palestinian Authority for selling a Hebron home to Jews. In response, Jewish officials from the community in Hebron are calling for international officials now to get involved -- in order to save Abu Shahala's life.
The Daily Jot!
Americans dangerously close to living in dictatorship
On Sunday, April 22, The New York Times published a story about how the man who occupies the Oval Office and his staff have set course on a strategy to use Executive Orders and "executive power" to do what it wants without the consent of Congress. The plan, as former White House Chief of Staff William M. Daily put it, was to "push the envelope in finding things we can do on our own." The president, himself, had publicly said on September 15, 2011, "There are times where -- until Nancy Pelosi is speaker again--I'd like to work my way around Congress." According to the Times story, it was on "a Saturday last fall" that this dictatorial strategy was discussed among the White House staff and actually implemented.
On January 4, the president defied the Senate by the recess appointment of leftist Richard Cordray as the director of a new consumer protection agency and by filling three labor board vacancies. The Times reported that standing beneath a "We Can't Wait" banner, he declared, "I refuse to take 'no' for an answer. When Congress refuses to act, and--as a result--hurts our economy and puts people at risk, I have an obligation as president to do what I can without them." Several such actions prompted the Senate's watchdog member, Iowa Republican Charles Grassley, to accuse the president of behaving "more and more like a king that the Constitution was designed to replace."
For the liberal leaning New York Times to devote a Sunday story about the president's deliberate strategy to ignore the checks and balances decreed by the Constitution says a lot. For Congress to allow him to get away with it with little or no challenge says a lot more. And it speaks volumes for the American people to stand by as mere observers while the president issues executive order after executive order taking away personal liberties and firmly establishing government control over habeas corpus, the food and water supply, property ownership, and more. The lack of political will of the elected combined with the apparent apathy of the citizenry brings America dangerously close to becoming a dictatorship.
Christians were the driving force behind the American Revolution. If not for brave pastors and brave patriots, this nation would not have survived. They knew what the apostle Peter meant in Acts 5:29 when he said, "We ought to obey YHVH rather than men." Under the battle cry "No King, but Jesus," the Christian farmers and merchants, pastors and congregants took on the most powerful military in the world that they might worship and live free from tyranny. Obviously, the gospel at that time was not watered down by a self-indulgent generation of false teachers and ear-tickled disciples. Somewhere along the line here, Christians are going to have to decide if they want to live free or be slaves to the wicked.
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com
Report: Soros's hands in public coffer
A new report reveals that billionaire George Soros has tapped into Obama stimulus money to advance his left-wing agenda.
The report -- called "Obama Stimulus Dollars Funded Soros Empire" -- has been released by America's Survival, which published it on the website SorosFiles.com. The report's author, Dr. Tina Trent, uses recently released tax documents to state her case that Soros used seed money to form numerous state-based, non-profit organizations, which then lobbied for funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 -- a.k.a. the "Obama stimulus."
According to Trent, Soros can do more social engineering at the state level.
"You can get a couple of activists on the ground and they can really affect state legislation and they can make their way into state government," she explains. "And the Recovery Act was an enormous transfer of funds from the American taxpayer to state and local government entities. And we saw that Soros had groups on the ground that were positioning themselves to take advantage of that money."
READ MORE:
- Father, we intercede over these maneuvers by Soros. We pray You block his schemes to take control of the government and advance his agenda.
- Therefore I have poured out my indignation upon them. I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath. I have returned their way upon their heads, declares the Lord God." (Ezekiel 22:31)
Obama's Catholic Problem
Responding to the Obama Administration's repeated assaults on faith, the nation's Catholic bishops are calling for the faithful to engage in a series of public protests in defense of our First Amendment freedoms. Dubbed the "Fortnight for Freedom," from June 21st to July 4th, the bishops are promising to "focus all the energies the Catholic community can muster" in defense of religious liberty. And they are calling on all men and women of faith to join them.
This news is giving the Obama campaign heartburn. Obama won 54% of Catholic voters in 2008. But today his numbers are terrible. A February Rasmussen poll found that 59% of likely Catholic voters disapproved of Obama's job performance. And against Mitt Romney, Obama was losing Catholic voters 35%-to-52%.
Religious liberty in America is truly at a tipping point. Catholic charities are no longer permitted to assist with adoptions in some states because the church believes marriage is between a man and a woman. Christian business owners are being fined for their faith. Now Obama wants to force religious institutions to pay for services and products that violate their values.
If the government can force a church to pay for services that violate its values, it won't be long before it tries to force churches to perform services that violate their values. It was a lesson learned the hard way by Methodists in New Jersey, and a local ordinance in Kansas appears to be pushing the envelope.
If Barack Obama gets four more years to pack the courts, including the Supreme Court, with left-wing activists, the battle for faith and family may be lost for generations. (Gary Bauer)
Today's Legislative Focus
From The Madison Project
www.madisonproject.com
Fellow conservative patriots,
This will be a very busy week for both chambers of Congress. With all the talk of balanced budgets in Washington, Congress plans to begin work on appropriations bills that will ensure that the budget will never balance. There are also some other important social and fiscal issues that we must watch carefully. Let's get to work.
For Liberty,
The Honorable Jim Ryun
Chairman of the Madison Project
Postal Bailout - In recent years, it has become clear that the United States Postal Service (USPS) can no longer generate enough revenue to operate in this age of electronic communications. The Postal Service lost $25.4 billion between FY 2007 and FY 2011, and would have lost another $9.5 billion if not for the bailout in 2006. They're projecting a $14.6 billion net loss for FY 2012. Additionally, the fact that they are heavily regulated by Congress (due to their monopoly on first class mail) makes it impossible for them to innovate by cutting costs, eliminating their mandate to provide universal service, and restructure their operations.
They also have a massive unfunded liability problem due to their pension and healthcare promises for retirees. As a pre-condition to their 2006 bailout, the Postal Service was required to prefund its future retirees' health benefits with $5.6 billion per year to the Treasury for 10 years. Yet, Postal Service revenue has declined so precipitously over the past few years that Congress granted them a deferment from paying those prefunded obligations in 2009 and 2011. Now, liberals in Congress want to defer those payments even further and grant them money from the Treasury, claiming that the USPS overpaid on their retirement payments. Without a bailout, the USPS will not be able to make payroll later this fall. To that end, Democrats have introduced a bailout bill (S. 1789) that leaves taxpayers on the hook, without reforming the USPS with structural changes that the Postmaster General himself supports!
Last week, the Senate voted 74-22 to proceed with debate on this bill. Sadly, it was supported by 27 Republicans. The Senate planned to vote on 40 amendments today before invoking cloture on the underlying bill. As always, the Senate amendment process will provide us an opportunity to support good and bad amendments that are often non-germane to the underlying bill.
Conservative concerns on underlying bill
1. Bailout: This bill will offer a backhanded channel to grant the USPS $41 billion from the Treasury. This is accomplished in two ways. First, the bill would rebate $11.1 billion in "overpayments" to the Treasury. The problem is that these are not overpayments. Last year, the GAO ruled that the Postal Service was wrong in their assertion that they overpaid for employee retirement benefits. After all, like anyone who pays a fixed amount into a pension fund with a variable rate of interest, there are ups and downs depending on the market. As such, any money recouped from the Treasury would engender more taxpayer funding. Second, this bill would re-amortize the entire prefunded payment structure, denying the Treasury of nearly $30 billion. Supporters of the bill refer to it as an intra-governmental transfer. In reality, it is a backhanded bailout.
2. No Reforms: Even the Postmaster General, Patrick Donahoe, wants to reform the Post Office and cut $22 billion in costs by closing offices and ending Saturday delivery. This bill precludes those reforms and ensures that the USPS will remain insolvent, exposing taxpayers to future bailouts.
Punchline: This is another seminal vote for free-markets and limited government. Every Republican must oppose S.1789, sponsored by Joe Lieberman. Republicans should support John McCain's substitute amendment (S. 1625), which would create a new postal oversight board (similar to BRAC) to close $3 billion worth of facilities over a two-year period and seize financial authority over the Postal Service if it defaults with more than a $2 billion deficit for more than two years. It would also allow them to make reforms, such as ending Saturday delivery. This will ensure that the USPS either succeeds on its own merits or becomes a private entity - free of government regulations, but also free of its government-sponsored monopoly on first class mail.
Important Legislative Dates
Over the remaining months of this legislative session there will be some important dates to remember. There are several major government programs that are set to expire and will require a reauthorization bill to continue their functions. These expiration dates will provide conservatives with important leverage to end big-government programs and agencies. We will be providing comprehensive coverage of these issues throughout the rest of the session:
April 30: Pursuant to the Ryan budget, six committees (Financial Services, Ways & Means, Energy & Commerce, Judiciary, Agriculture, Oversight & Government Reform) must report their reconciliation savings packages. This will be an important opportunity to force major non-defense discretionary cuts.
May 31- Both the Export-Import Bank and the Flood Insurance program expire
September 30 - The end of the fiscal year; Congress must pass a budget. Also, the 2008 Farm Bill expires. Additionally, the Post Office will likely fail to meet payroll because their deferred payment date for pensions expires at the end of the fiscal year.
War On Terror Is Over?
Every couple of days, it seems, some department under Obama's leadership fully embraces liberalism, exposing Obama's agenda and embarrassing us. For example, the General Services Administration is supposed to help save the taxpayers' money by implementing cost-saving policies for the massive federal bureaucracy. Then the GSA bureaucrats go wild at an $800,000 Las Vegas convention complete with clowns, bicycle building lessons and mind readers.
For decades, the left has bombarded our culture with licentiousness and the message, "If it feels good, do it." Everywhere you turn there are sex scandals -- from Bill and Monica to Anthony Weiner and even the Secret Service. Hugh Hefner may be proud, but most Americans are disgusted.
Now comes the news that some official at the State Department has declared the war on terror to be over. Here is the full quote: "The war on terror is over. Now that we have killed most of al Qaida, now that people have come to see legitimate means of expression, people who once might have gone into al Qaida see an opportunity for a legitimate Islamism."
This official sounds like someone from Code Pink or some other far-left group. The use of the term "war on terror" again suggests that our leaders and policy makers still don't get it. World War II was not a "war on blitzkriegs" or a "war on kamikazes."
Not only is the term wrong, but so is the mindset. If this official really believes that the "war on terror is over," then I assume we'll soon see an end to airport TSA pat downs, right? Al Qaeda has taken a beating, but I think it is premature to suggest that militant Islam has been defeated.
And what exactly is "legitimate Islamism" anyway? It seems that the administration is attempting to make a separate peace with radical Islam. Religious persecution, treating women like cattle -- that's all okay so long as there's a street protest or vote along the way. Really? It seems like 1938 all over again. (Gary Bauer)
The Good News Corner:
Arizona Governor Signs More Pro-Family Legislation
Family advocates had a lot to celebrate on Tuesday, when Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law three pieces of legislation protecting life, religious freedom and taxpayer funding of arts programs.
Under an amendment attached to HB 2265, no state dollars will go toward funding obscene art. HB 2627 decrees that abortion providers cannot qualify for a tax credit given to the working poor, and SB 1359 bans anyone in the state from filing a "wrongful cause of life" lawsuit against doctors who fail to diagnose birth defects in preborn children that might lead parents to have abortions. Brewer also signed a bill allowing schools to offer an elective course on the Bible as literature.
The Center for Arizona Policy was directly involved with the first three, and supportive of the fourth.
"These are very important bills, and we're excited that they were signed into law," said Legal Counsel Deborah Sheasby. "The most important one is the 1359. Wrongful cause-of-life actions send a terrible message-saying that children with birth defects aren't as valuable as others."
Meanwhile, the tax-credit program is meant to provide food, shelter and other basic needs for the working poor. "Abortion is not a basic need," Sheasby said.
And while "there's a lot of debate about whether the state should be subsidizing art at all, if it does, we want to make sure it doesn't fund art that's obscene or religiously offensive," she added. "We use the same language that National Endowment for the Arts used that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court." (CitizenLink; April 18, 2012) Read more.
Worship with Us Today!
March On! - Robert Stearns
March On O King of the universe - we are Yours, we are Yours!
In our hearts and our homes, cities and towns, O come down, Lord come down
Tear darkness apart, conquer every heart. For You are God alone!
Jesus, our King, March On! Jesus, our King, March On!
Worship here:
• The Middle East in Focus
• The Daily Jot!
• Soros's hands in public coffer
• Obama's Catholic Problem
• Today's Legislative Focus
• Important Legislative Dates
• War On Terror Is Over?
• The Good News Corner
• Worship with Us Today!
Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
"Partners in Prayer for Our Nation"
P.O. Box 5152
Herndon, VA 20172-1970
chpp@patriot.net
The Daily Brief - Friday, April 24, 2012
O LORD, You are our God; let not man prevail against You. (2 Chronicles 14:11)
The Daily Brief
1. Power is top prize in Arizona immigration battle - Washington Times
The Supreme Court's health care showdown last month was all about Constitution theory and prerogatives. Wednesday's arguments between Arizona and the Obama administration over the state's tough immigration law looks to be all about power.
- Lord, we continue to pray for our Supreme Court justices to make right judgments. We pray especially this week that the arguments presented this week regarding Arizona's attempt to protect itself through its immigration law be presented with clarity. We pray that truth will come forth in the presentation of both cases. We pray for Your truth and justice to prevail in the Supreme Court decision. In the name of Jesus, our righteous judge, we pray. Amen.
- "Does God subvert judgment? Or does the Almighty pervert justice?" (Job 8:3)
2. Shift on executive power lets Obama bypass rivals - MSNBC
One Saturday last fall, President Obama interrupted a White House strategy meeting to raise an issue not on the agenda. He declared, aides recalled, that the administration needed to more aggressively use executive power to govern in the face of Congressional obstructionism.
- Lord, we intercede on behalf of our President and ask that he come under Your wisdom, Your dominion and Your power. Lord, we pray that our leaders become united under Your authority and that we may become "One nation under God". May ungodly division come into unity under Your authority and Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus. Amen.
- "To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power." (Jude 25)
3. Obama announces new Iran, Syria technology sanctions - Ha'aretz
United States President Barack Obama on Monday announced new sanctions on people and entities in Iran and Syria who have deemed to use technology to target citizens and erode their human rights.
- Lord, we pray for clarity for leaders and all those dealing with the situation in Iran and Syria. May the planks be removed from eyes to see clearly for decisions. Open the eyes, Lord. We pray for clarity and discernment of truth in the name of Jesus. Amen.
- "First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." (Matthew 7:5)
4. "The War on Terror Is Over" - Weekly Standard
In the wake of the Arab Spring, the Obama administration is grappling with how to handle Islamists, radical adherents to Islam. Particularly, the issue has come to the fore in regards to Egypt, which, as Reuel Marc Gerecht notes, "is now certain" to elect "an Islamist" as its leaders the next time the Egyptian people go to the polls.
- Lord, we pray that the spirit of truth would arise about Islam and all that is happening in relation to it. May those who would, including those from Islam, start looking to You and seeking You on how to report and handle the Islamic situations. In the name of Jesus, the Way the Truth and the Life, we pray. Amen.
- "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." (Matthew 7:7-8)
5. Losing the jihadists' war on America - Jewish World Review
lslamist propaganda is slowly blinding us to the enemy within
(Frank J. Gaffney Jr.)
In addition to the threat of violent jihad, America faces another, even more toxic danger - a stealthy and pre-violent form of warfare aimed at destroying our constitutional form of democratic government and free society. The Muslim Brotherhood is the prime mover behind this seditious campaign, which it calls "civilization jihad." (Read more)
- Lord, we cry out to You to awaken our people to the danger that is now at the door. We cry for mercy, Lord. Let us never lose sight of our inheritance as a nation, and our identity, through Christ, as American people. Let the evil agenda of the Moslem Brotherhood be clearly exposed by the media, and let us not be afraid in this dark hour. In Jesus' Name, amen.
- "And he said to the human race, "The fear of the Lord-that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding." (Job 28:28)
6. Bishops call for 'aggressive attack' on Obama policies - Newsmax
Roman Catholic leaders are calling for two weeks of public protests against President Obama's policies as they intensify their argument that the administration is engaged in a war on religion.
- Offer praise for the bold actions of the Catholic church in defending the faith. A war is on. Only by walking in unity will we win this battle.Praise God!
- "How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity! . . . For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore." (Psalm 133:1,3)
The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime. (2 Samuel 7:10)
1. Top Palestinian leaders Abbas, Fayyad reportedly cut all contact with each other - Ha'aretz
Communication channels between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad are completely cut off, Al Quds Al Arabi reported on Sunday in London.
According to the report, the two top Palestinian officials cut all forms of communication, after Fayyad refused to head a delegation to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week.
2. Netanyahu was briefed on efforts to stop '60 Minutes' report on Israel's Christians - Ha'aretz
PM was fully updated by Israeli ambassador to U.S. Michael Oren on his attempts to halt an investigative report on Israel's treatment of its Christian community which he thought would harm Israel's interests.
3. Hamas to publicly execute 'collaborators' - Jerusalem Post
Hamas will soon start publicly executing Palestinians who are found guilty of "collaboration" with Israel, Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad announced Monday.
4. Israel ministers to ask Supreme Court to postpone eviction of West Bank outpost - Ha'aretz
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a panel of ministers decided on Monday night to instruct the State Prosecution to ask the High Court of Justice for another extension for the eviction of the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El, after a previous attempt to delay the evacuation of five buildings in a West Bank settlement failed.
5. Hamas Leader to Jewish Paper: No Peace With Israel - AP
A Hamas leader said that if his militant group came to power in a future Palestinian state, it would not abide by any previous Palestinian peace deals with Israel.
6. Palestinian Sentenced to Death for Selling a Home to Jews - Weekly Standard
Former Palestinian intelligence official Muhammad Abu Shahala has reportedly been sentenced to death by the Palestinian Authority for selling a Hebron home to Jews. In response, Jewish officials from the community in Hebron are calling for international officials now to get involved -- in order to save Abu Shahala's life.
The Daily Jot!
Americans dangerously close to living in dictatorship
On Sunday, April 22, The New York Times published a story about how the man who occupies the Oval Office and his staff have set course on a strategy to use Executive Orders and "executive power" to do what it wants without the consent of Congress. The plan, as former White House Chief of Staff William M. Daily put it, was to "push the envelope in finding things we can do on our own." The president, himself, had publicly said on September 15, 2011, "There are times where -- until Nancy Pelosi is speaker again--I'd like to work my way around Congress." According to the Times story, it was on "a Saturday last fall" that this dictatorial strategy was discussed among the White House staff and actually implemented.
On January 4, the president defied the Senate by the recess appointment of leftist Richard Cordray as the director of a new consumer protection agency and by filling three labor board vacancies. The Times reported that standing beneath a "We Can't Wait" banner, he declared, "I refuse to take 'no' for an answer. When Congress refuses to act, and--as a result--hurts our economy and puts people at risk, I have an obligation as president to do what I can without them." Several such actions prompted the Senate's watchdog member, Iowa Republican Charles Grassley, to accuse the president of behaving "more and more like a king that the Constitution was designed to replace."
For the liberal leaning New York Times to devote a Sunday story about the president's deliberate strategy to ignore the checks and balances decreed by the Constitution says a lot. For Congress to allow him to get away with it with little or no challenge says a lot more. And it speaks volumes for the American people to stand by as mere observers while the president issues executive order after executive order taking away personal liberties and firmly establishing government control over habeas corpus, the food and water supply, property ownership, and more. The lack of political will of the elected combined with the apparent apathy of the citizenry brings America dangerously close to becoming a dictatorship.
Christians were the driving force behind the American Revolution. If not for brave pastors and brave patriots, this nation would not have survived. They knew what the apostle Peter meant in Acts 5:29 when he said, "We ought to obey YHVH rather than men." Under the battle cry "No King, but Jesus," the Christian farmers and merchants, pastors and congregants took on the most powerful military in the world that they might worship and live free from tyranny. Obviously, the gospel at that time was not watered down by a self-indulgent generation of false teachers and ear-tickled disciples. Somewhere along the line here, Christians are going to have to decide if they want to live free or be slaves to the wicked.
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com
Report: Soros's hands in public coffer
A new report reveals that billionaire George Soros has tapped into Obama stimulus money to advance his left-wing agenda.
The report -- called "Obama Stimulus Dollars Funded Soros Empire" -- has been released by America's Survival, which published it on the website SorosFiles.com. The report's author, Dr. Tina Trent, uses recently released tax documents to state her case that Soros used seed money to form numerous state-based, non-profit organizations, which then lobbied for funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 -- a.k.a. the "Obama stimulus."
According to Trent, Soros can do more social engineering at the state level.
"You can get a couple of activists on the ground and they can really affect state legislation and they can make their way into state government," she explains. "And the Recovery Act was an enormous transfer of funds from the American taxpayer to state and local government entities. And we saw that Soros had groups on the ground that were positioning themselves to take advantage of that money."
READ MORE:
- Father, we intercede over these maneuvers by Soros. We pray You block his schemes to take control of the government and advance his agenda.
- Therefore I have poured out my indignation upon them. I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath. I have returned their way upon their heads, declares the Lord God." (Ezekiel 22:31)
Obama's Catholic Problem
Responding to the Obama Administration's repeated assaults on faith, the nation's Catholic bishops are calling for the faithful to engage in a series of public protests in defense of our First Amendment freedoms. Dubbed the "Fortnight for Freedom," from June 21st to July 4th, the bishops are promising to "focus all the energies the Catholic community can muster" in defense of religious liberty. And they are calling on all men and women of faith to join them.
This news is giving the Obama campaign heartburn. Obama won 54% of Catholic voters in 2008. But today his numbers are terrible. A February Rasmussen poll found that 59% of likely Catholic voters disapproved of Obama's job performance. And against Mitt Romney, Obama was losing Catholic voters 35%-to-52%.
Religious liberty in America is truly at a tipping point. Catholic charities are no longer permitted to assist with adoptions in some states because the church believes marriage is between a man and a woman. Christian business owners are being fined for their faith. Now Obama wants to force religious institutions to pay for services and products that violate their values.
If the government can force a church to pay for services that violate its values, it won't be long before it tries to force churches to perform services that violate their values. It was a lesson learned the hard way by Methodists in New Jersey, and a local ordinance in Kansas appears to be pushing the envelope.
If Barack Obama gets four more years to pack the courts, including the Supreme Court, with left-wing activists, the battle for faith and family may be lost for generations. (Gary Bauer)
Today's Legislative Focus
From The Madison Project
www.madisonproject.com
Fellow conservative patriots,
This will be a very busy week for both chambers of Congress. With all the talk of balanced budgets in Washington, Congress plans to begin work on appropriations bills that will ensure that the budget will never balance. There are also some other important social and fiscal issues that we must watch carefully. Let's get to work.
For Liberty,
The Honorable Jim Ryun
Chairman of the Madison Project
Postal Bailout - In recent years, it has become clear that the United States Postal Service (USPS) can no longer generate enough revenue to operate in this age of electronic communications. The Postal Service lost $25.4 billion between FY 2007 and FY 2011, and would have lost another $9.5 billion if not for the bailout in 2006. They're projecting a $14.6 billion net loss for FY 2012. Additionally, the fact that they are heavily regulated by Congress (due to their monopoly on first class mail) makes it impossible for them to innovate by cutting costs, eliminating their mandate to provide universal service, and restructure their operations.
They also have a massive unfunded liability problem due to their pension and healthcare promises for retirees. As a pre-condition to their 2006 bailout, the Postal Service was required to prefund its future retirees' health benefits with $5.6 billion per year to the Treasury for 10 years. Yet, Postal Service revenue has declined so precipitously over the past few years that Congress granted them a deferment from paying those prefunded obligations in 2009 and 2011. Now, liberals in Congress want to defer those payments even further and grant them money from the Treasury, claiming that the USPS overpaid on their retirement payments. Without a bailout, the USPS will not be able to make payroll later this fall. To that end, Democrats have introduced a bailout bill (S. 1789) that leaves taxpayers on the hook, without reforming the USPS with structural changes that the Postmaster General himself supports!
Last week, the Senate voted 74-22 to proceed with debate on this bill. Sadly, it was supported by 27 Republicans. The Senate planned to vote on 40 amendments today before invoking cloture on the underlying bill. As always, the Senate amendment process will provide us an opportunity to support good and bad amendments that are often non-germane to the underlying bill.
Conservative concerns on underlying bill
1. Bailout: This bill will offer a backhanded channel to grant the USPS $41 billion from the Treasury. This is accomplished in two ways. First, the bill would rebate $11.1 billion in "overpayments" to the Treasury. The problem is that these are not overpayments. Last year, the GAO ruled that the Postal Service was wrong in their assertion that they overpaid for employee retirement benefits. After all, like anyone who pays a fixed amount into a pension fund with a variable rate of interest, there are ups and downs depending on the market. As such, any money recouped from the Treasury would engender more taxpayer funding. Second, this bill would re-amortize the entire prefunded payment structure, denying the Treasury of nearly $30 billion. Supporters of the bill refer to it as an intra-governmental transfer. In reality, it is a backhanded bailout.
2. No Reforms: Even the Postmaster General, Patrick Donahoe, wants to reform the Post Office and cut $22 billion in costs by closing offices and ending Saturday delivery. This bill precludes those reforms and ensures that the USPS will remain insolvent, exposing taxpayers to future bailouts.
Punchline: This is another seminal vote for free-markets and limited government. Every Republican must oppose S.1789, sponsored by Joe Lieberman. Republicans should support John McCain's substitute amendment (S. 1625), which would create a new postal oversight board (similar to BRAC) to close $3 billion worth of facilities over a two-year period and seize financial authority over the Postal Service if it defaults with more than a $2 billion deficit for more than two years. It would also allow them to make reforms, such as ending Saturday delivery. This will ensure that the USPS either succeeds on its own merits or becomes a private entity - free of government regulations, but also free of its government-sponsored monopoly on first class mail.
Important Legislative Dates
Over the remaining months of this legislative session there will be some important dates to remember. There are several major government programs that are set to expire and will require a reauthorization bill to continue their functions. These expiration dates will provide conservatives with important leverage to end big-government programs and agencies. We will be providing comprehensive coverage of these issues throughout the rest of the session:
April 30: Pursuant to the Ryan budget, six committees (Financial Services, Ways & Means, Energy & Commerce, Judiciary, Agriculture, Oversight & Government Reform) must report their reconciliation savings packages. This will be an important opportunity to force major non-defense discretionary cuts.
May 31- Both the Export-Import Bank and the Flood Insurance program expire
September 30 - The end of the fiscal year; Congress must pass a budget. Also, the 2008 Farm Bill expires. Additionally, the Post Office will likely fail to meet payroll because their deferred payment date for pensions expires at the end of the fiscal year.
War On Terror Is Over?
Every couple of days, it seems, some department under Obama's leadership fully embraces liberalism, exposing Obama's agenda and embarrassing us. For example, the General Services Administration is supposed to help save the taxpayers' money by implementing cost-saving policies for the massive federal bureaucracy. Then the GSA bureaucrats go wild at an $800,000 Las Vegas convention complete with clowns, bicycle building lessons and mind readers.
For decades, the left has bombarded our culture with licentiousness and the message, "If it feels good, do it." Everywhere you turn there are sex scandals -- from Bill and Monica to Anthony Weiner and even the Secret Service. Hugh Hefner may be proud, but most Americans are disgusted.
Now comes the news that some official at the State Department has declared the war on terror to be over. Here is the full quote: "The war on terror is over. Now that we have killed most of al Qaida, now that people have come to see legitimate means of expression, people who once might have gone into al Qaida see an opportunity for a legitimate Islamism."
This official sounds like someone from Code Pink or some other far-left group. The use of the term "war on terror" again suggests that our leaders and policy makers still don't get it. World War II was not a "war on blitzkriegs" or a "war on kamikazes."
Not only is the term wrong, but so is the mindset. If this official really believes that the "war on terror is over," then I assume we'll soon see an end to airport TSA pat downs, right? Al Qaeda has taken a beating, but I think it is premature to suggest that militant Islam has been defeated.
And what exactly is "legitimate Islamism" anyway? It seems that the administration is attempting to make a separate peace with radical Islam. Religious persecution, treating women like cattle -- that's all okay so long as there's a street protest or vote along the way. Really? It seems like 1938 all over again. (Gary Bauer)
The Good News Corner:
Arizona Governor Signs More Pro-Family Legislation
Family advocates had a lot to celebrate on Tuesday, when Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law three pieces of legislation protecting life, religious freedom and taxpayer funding of arts programs.
Under an amendment attached to HB 2265, no state dollars will go toward funding obscene art. HB 2627 decrees that abortion providers cannot qualify for a tax credit given to the working poor, and SB 1359 bans anyone in the state from filing a "wrongful cause of life" lawsuit against doctors who fail to diagnose birth defects in preborn children that might lead parents to have abortions. Brewer also signed a bill allowing schools to offer an elective course on the Bible as literature.
The Center for Arizona Policy was directly involved with the first three, and supportive of the fourth.
"These are very important bills, and we're excited that they were signed into law," said Legal Counsel Deborah Sheasby. "The most important one is the 1359. Wrongful cause-of-life actions send a terrible message-saying that children with birth defects aren't as valuable as others."
Meanwhile, the tax-credit program is meant to provide food, shelter and other basic needs for the working poor. "Abortion is not a basic need," Sheasby said.
And while "there's a lot of debate about whether the state should be subsidizing art at all, if it does, we want to make sure it doesn't fund art that's obscene or religiously offensive," she added. "We use the same language that National Endowment for the Arts used that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court." (CitizenLink; April 18, 2012) Read more.
Worship with Us Today!
March On! - Robert Stearns
March On O King of the universe - we are Yours, we are Yours!
In our hearts and our homes, cities and towns, O come down, Lord come down
Tear darkness apart, conquer every heart. For You are God alone!
Jesus, our King, March On! Jesus, our King, March On!
Worship here:
