...your eyes and ears for the next two years Volume 2 www.obamabidenwatch.org Issue 11 December 2010 www.citizensunited.org Obama’s “Unprecedented” Transparency About To Face First Test To this day, President Obama has the fol- Not only did President Obama enjoy a non- lowing statement posted prominently on inquisitive Congress, but he continues to be mired www.whitehouse.gov: “My Administration is in a love affair with wide swaths of the main- committed to creating an unprecedented level of stream media. When there was a question worth openness in Government. We will work together asking, chances are The New York Times, The to ensure the public trust and establish a system of Washington Post, Time, Newsweek, NBC, ABC, transparency, public participation, and collabora- and CBS all obediently dropped the ball. Let’s tion. Openness will strengthen our democracy and be honest, it’s easy to be for unprecedented trans- promote efficiency and effectiveness in Govern- parency when no one is asking you about any- ment.” thing politically inconvenient. And that’s the Being a Washington politician, he talks a point: can the true measure of a politician’s devo- good game, but President Obama’s promise to run tion to government openness be judged before it’s his administration with unprecedented transpar- put to a legitimate test? By most accounts, it’s ency is about to face its first true test. In early about to be put to the test in a big way. For January 2011, more than 20 committees in the Obama and congressional Democrats, being in U.S. House of Representatives will change hands. total control of Washington for the past two years Republican chairman will now have the power to has turned out to be a double-edged sword - all conduct the first oversight of the President and his the questions that went unanswered over that du- administration. How Mr. Obama will handle this ration will be asked again - this time with sub- new dynamic is anyone’s guess. From the outset, poena and deposition authority. Obama & Co. have been subject to no congres- Which path will President Obama take? sional scrutiny whatsoever. Outgoing-Speaker Either you cooperate or you drag your feet. Ei- Pelosi and Senator Reid and their liberal lieuten- ther you are forthright with Congress or you pick ants made the conscious decision to let the ad- a fight. There are several issues that the President ministration do as it pleased for two years, essen- needs to consider. Many of these congressional tially putting a hold on any meaningful oversight investigations and public hearings will play out so they could concentrate on passing their anti- during his re-election campaign. If he cooperates growth agenda. To the detriment of most Ameri- with Congress and releases all the requested in- cans, Democrats were largely successful in doing formation for public inspection, it could adversely this. affect him in the polls. Continued on the next page... © Citizens United ~ 1006 Pennsylvania Ave SE ~ Washington D.C. 20003 Page 2 If he decides to stonewall Congress instead, it also could hurt him in the polls. Picking fights with Congress conjure up memories of the In this Issue Clinton years - not exactly evidence that you tried to change Wash- ington. Obama’s “Unprecedented” Transparency About To Face First Test Pg. 1 Government Motors Pg. 3 What Are the Democrats Giving You this Holiday Season? Pg. 5 Citizens United Productions Presents Pg. 7 U.S. House of Representatives Hearing Room Final Thoughts There are no easy answers for the president. If Mr. Obama Pg. 8 thought his first two years were a challenge, he hasn’t seen anything __________________________ yet. The Obama Administration being arrogant is a narrative that’s Published By already in the works. How he interfaces with Congress in a divided Citizens United government will be a big chapter in that narrative one way or the other. Here are just a few of the contentious issues Congress will Editor almost certainly be asking questions about: David N. Bossie Wikileaks Managing Editor The executive order to close GITMO J.T. Mastranadi Civilian terror trials Contributors Terrorists given Miranda rights Chris Berg Investigating the CIA Jeff Marschner Stimulus fraud Alexa Moutevelis Health care bill deliberations Health care law constitutionality Publication Design Missile defense Kirk Risinger Iran policy Julie Drinkard Climate change evidence Joe Sestak’s job offer Copyright © 2010 by Taxpayer funded bailouts Citizens United The federal budget deficit © Citizens United ~ 1006 Pennsylvania Ave SE ~ Washington D.C. 20003 Page 3 Government Motors eral government effectively purchased General Motors. Americans have a unique relationship with The restrictions of the past are too numer- their cars. From the days that the first Model T ous to count, but those of the Obama Administra- rolled off Henry Ford’s assembly line, to the clas- tion are poised to make them seem trivial. The sics of the 1950s and 1960s, our cars have served Obama Administration has gone far beyond their as a symbol of our freedom and independ- predecessors in attempting to reinvent the driving ence. We all remember the first time we were en- experience. The Department of Transportation, trusted with the keys to our parents’ automobile led by Obama’s token Republican Cabinet Secre- and were able to set off on the open road. tary Ray LaHood, is at the forefront of the Today that freedom is being encroached Obama Administration’s attempts to define your upon. The Obama Administration is seizing on ride. its perceived regulatory authority to restrict every aspect of our driving experience. Long ago the federal government sought to regulate how fast we could drive by offering fed- eral funds for highway repair to states that would cap speed limits. In 1974, when the Emergency Highway Conservation Act was signed into law, the new “national speed limit” was set at 55 miles per hour. This was done in an attempt to reduce oil consumption. It wasn’t until 1987 that the federal government saw fit to raise the “national Ray LaHood accepting President Obama’s nomination as Secretary of the Department of Transporation. speed limit” to 65 miles per hour. The Federal government should not be in the business of setting state speed limits. Con- Secretary LaHood and his team of bureau- gress finally acknowledged this in 1995, when crats feel that too many drivers are driving they repealed the law and completely returned the “distracted.” You may wonder what exactly is power to set speed limits to the states. “distracted driving” and what can the government Along with the ability to set speed limits do to stop it? The Department of Transportation the federal government has long exercised control seems to think that a public relations campaign over new automobile gas mileage and emissions will help explain the problem and prevent it -- as standards. Rarely does a year go by where we do a result, they launched the website distrac- not see the federal government propose more on- tion.gov. From this public relations campaign, featured on Oprah, we learn that: erous restrictions on the automobile industry, thus increasing the cost to purchase a new car. Sadly “Distracted driving is any non-driving ac- we’ve all come to accept the federal govern- tivity a person engages in while operating a mo- ment’s ability to dominate private industry and tor vehicle. Such activities have the potential to private activity in this fashion. We’ve been so distract the person from the primary task of driv- complicit, no one batted an eyelash when the fed- ing and increase the Continued on the next page... © Citizens United ~ 1006 Pennsylvania Ave SE ~ Washington D.C. 20003 Page 4 risk of crashing.” “I think the technology is there and I think you’re going to see the technology become adaptable in So in short, distracted driving is anything automobiles to disable these cell phones. We need one does in a car other than drive. Does that in- to do a lot more if we’re going to save lives.” clude trying to calm screaming children? What about listening to the radio? Maybe listening is This ludicrous effort caused Michelle Mal- allowed, but singing along is problematic. kin to dub LaHood “Obama’s Power-Mad Cell The real target of Secretary LaHood’s war Phone Czar.” If regulation can really prevent dis- against distraction is cellular telephones. At dis- tracted driving accidents, why is LaHood stop- traction.gov it is promised that they “will not rest ping with disabling cellular phones? Perhaps he until [they] stop” distracted driving. Many states should ban radios and CD players, or prohibit have passed “hands-free” laws and restricted children under the age of 12 from riding in a vehi- one’s ability to legally send text messages while cle, because they may fuss and distract the driving in an effort to reduce accidents and inci- driver. Such efforts would be met with significant dents stemming from the use of cellular tele- opposition. The real truth is that all driving is dis- phones. Secretary LaHood does not believe these tracted driving. The federal government cannot eliminate risk in our lives and it should not at- state efforts go far enough. tempt to by taking away our personal choices and In the days preceding Thanksgiving, Secre- freedoms. tary LaHood sought to further promote his public relations campaign against “distracted driv- ing.” During the course of an interview on MSNBC he explained that “there’s a lot of tech- nology out there now that can disable phones and we’re looking at that.” LaHood wants to prevent your cell phone from working in your car.