YES-NO - Gun manufacturers responsible for gun violence?

Most of you know me and are well aware that I am an avid, passionate supporter of responsible gun control. I go to the extent that I would take all the cowboy vigilantes off the street and make them keep their guns at home. Don't worry guys, your girlfriend or spouse will still think you are a man...probably. But I don't agree with the parents of the Sandy Hook victim that exclaims Bernie Sanders is wrong about gun manufacturer responsibility for gun deaths.

What these folks are implying is that the morons in Congress have done the right thing by not addressing the real problem of gun violence...too many guns on the street in the wrong hands. The gun manufacturer, in fact, is not wrong selling an AR-15 rifle because it is legal and that is because Congressional idiots let the assault weapons ban expire in 2004. Sure, gun manufacturers are guilty of having absolutely no common sense at times selling them, knowing how dangerous they are.

It's not legally wrong. It is logically wrong. Mark and Jackie Barden should go after the bottom-feeders in Washington that take millions from the National Rifle Assn. (NRA) every year and then vote the way they are told on gun issues. It's sickening to see the way gun violence has taken over this country and the American public doesn't appear to give a shit. I want you to take a look at a report from the Gun Violence Archive 2016.

Total number of incidents              10,590
Number of deaths                             2,677
Number of injuries                           5,424
Number of children (0-11)
  killed/injured                                     613
Mass shootings                                      51
Accidental shooting                             534

And folks, this is only since January 1, 2016. But have you heard one member of Congress lamenting over the fact that these individuals died, especially the children? If so, it was not within earshot of the NRA. If you want to lay blame, put it squarely where it belongs, on Wayne LaPierre and his National Rifle Assn. Add to that those gun dealers who recklessly want to sell guns with little concern over who they are selling them to. One such case is straw purchase sales.

I totally agree with the end result the Bardens are fighting for and have great sympathy for their cause. It is just misdirected and infers that our dysfunctional Congress is not to blame for gun violence in America. The people of this country must stand up now and tell Washington that we want responsible gun control

As usual Mitch McConnell lies through his teeth

The meaning of "lied though his teeth" is to tell someone something that you know is completely false. And that is precisely what Senate leader Mitch McConnell did when he used the "Biden Rule" as the reason he would not consider President Obama's nomination to fill Justice Scalia's seat on the Supreme Court. I watched him speak on the Senate floor and observed a U.S. Senator intentionally lying to make his point.

Because he hates Barack Obama.

How does this kind of bottom feeder make it into the U.S. Senate? How does this kind of bottom feeder stay in the U.S. Senate?

The "Biden Rule" is an "...observation to the effect that if an outgoing president nominates someone before the summer of his last term in office, that person typically receives the Senate’s approval, but that if he or she is nominated during the summer, that person does not — meaning that McConnell even gets what could be called the “Biden Observation” wrong.), as reported by Salon. This was in 1992 when Joe Biden was chairman of the Judiciary Committee.

In another Salon comment, "The Senate Majority Leader said that the august body 'will continue to honor the Biden rule,' which doesn't exist." Continued proof that Mitch McConnell will go to any length to block anything that Barack Obama proposes. Just because it comes from Barack Obama. There are many reasons to get Republicans out of Congress but Mitch McConnell is the epitome of those efforts.

If Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic nomination it will be one of the biggest losses ever for this country #sanders

I'll say it again, 'If Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic nomination it will be one of the biggest losses ever for this country.' Why? Because the U.S. needs a Bernie Sanders revolution to get our business back in order. Look at where we are today with a dysfunctional Congress and the leader of the Senate, Mitch McConnell, saying he won't even look at an Obama nomination to fill Scalia's place on the Supreme Court. Simply because this moron hates the President.

We're talking Republicans, the reason for all of the problems of the last thirteen years. It all started with Ronald Reagan; yes the man revered by the GOP and some Democrats. He handed the mantle to George H.W. Bush who did nothing terrible because he did nothing at all. And then came the clincher, his son, George W. Bush who almost brought this country to its knees. And in the recent primaries his brother, Jeb, finally found out America is sick of the Bushes.

Come on, folks, the U.S. has been shifting toward progressive politics with grassroots movements like Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter. And along with this Vice points out there is "...a new crop of unapologetically liberal politicians like Elizabeth Warren, Bill De Blasio and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. The time is here and we mustn't pass it up. Bernie Sanders has shown amazing staying power with upset after upset so we mustn't let him down now.

Bernie Sanders Sayings #sanders

As Vermont's senator and a member of the Budget Committee, I will not support a plan to reduce the deficit that does not call for shared sacrifice.

Bernie Sanders roars into March 15 Primaries #sanders

Here are the latest Democratic Primary polls by state from late Monday afternoon:

Quinnipiac - Ohio

     Sanders-46%
     Clinton-51%

Quinnipiac - Florida

     Sanders-34%
     Clinton-60%

CBS -Illinois

     Sanders-48%
     Clinton-46%

Public Policy Polling - Missouri

     Sanders-47%
     Clinton-46%

Huff Post - No. Carolina

     Sanders 34.6%
     Clinton-54.8%

Bernie Sanders leads in Illinois (Clinton's home state-does that tell you something?) and Missouri, not a big one but a lead is a lead. He is close in Ohio (5 points) but still has work to do in Florida and No. Carolina. From here we are on to Arizona, Idaho and Utah for March 22. More on that later.

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Bernie Sanders Sayings #sanders

There must be a major economic recovery package which puts Americans to work at decent wages.

David Axelrod chides Hillary Clinton on misleading comment in Flint, Michigan debate #sanders

David Axelrod was a senior adviser to President Barack Obama when Bernie Sanders supposedly voted against the "auto bailout bill," according to Hillary Clinton. Not so says Axelrod. To begin with it wasn't an auto bailout bill, rather an extremely unpopular Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) -- the emergency funding requested by the Bush administration to help stabilize reeling banks and financial institutions.

Bernie was against this as he has said repeatedly during his candidacy.

Axelrod continued, "It was true that the TARP funding financed small bridge loans to help Chrysler and General Motors survive temporarily and give the new administration a few months to decide if and how the iconic companies could be saved." Clinton purposely turned this into a Sanders "vote against the auto industry bailout." She later qualified her statement, sorta, but continued to confuse the two programs with no real clarification.

Obama's former adviser says he understands why Clinton would be reluctant to identify the bill she supported and Sanders was against because TARP was and is one of the most rejected bills to ever come out of the Congress. Apparently Axelrod pissed off some Clinton supporters doing this because in actuality TARP did eventually provide the much needed funds to save the auto industry.

It's just the way she went about the whole thing in the implication that made Bernie Sanders look like the bad guy and Hillary Clinton the good girl. But apparently it didn't work. The Bern came from a 20-point deficit to win the Michigan primary. He plans to do the same thing in Ohio and Illinois.

FLASH: Bernie Sanders surges in Illinois polls #sanders

Just heard from the Bern and the forces are rallying around him again providing new poll results in Illinois whose primary is next Tuesday:

NBC News - Illinois - 3/13

Hillary Clinton: 51%

Bernie Sanders: 45%

Only just recently his campaign was down 19, 42, and 37 points. Join the momentum now...donate to Bernie Sanders today.

  

Is Hillary Clinton flustered over Bernie Sanders continued campaign success? #sanders

Bernie Sanders feels that his opponent, Hillary Clinton, is upset over his ability to keep winning primaries...like coming from behind in Michigan (20 points) for a solid win. He doesn't say but implies that momentum in the campaign has always been on his side. As a matter of fact it seems that most of the strategy of Clinton's candidacy has been to stop the Bern's momentum. In other words, one would have to say that much of the time she is fighting back from behind.

Surprises like Michigan, if played over in states like Ohio, Florida and Illinois, or any one of the three, could throw Hillary Clinton's campaign completely off balance. She started with the notion that Bernie Sanders was only a flash in the pan but quickly learned that he could become a formidable opponent. He did. Many asked even then if he could continue his early successes. He did. So Hillary has every reason to be nervous going into next Tuesday's primaries.

Hillary Clinton steps up BS on Bernie Sanders record #sanders

I just got an email from Bernie Sanders that points out the stepped up distortions Hillary Clinton is making on his past record. Read the following quote taken from a Washington Post article:

"But it's striking that, as Clinton has doubled down on the attacks, she has with some regularity played pretty fast and loose with the facts.

"She'll take a vote Sanders has made during his 25 years in Congress and gloss over most, if not all, of the details about it. The result is a carefully worded insinuation or even outright accusation that Sanders has voted against his base on everything from immigration to the auto bailout to fossil fuels."

This is a mark of a running-scared campaign that has been completely diverted from the issues to attempt to stave off the recent surges in the Bern's campaign...like his coming from behind (20 points) and winning Michigan. Something he plans to do again in Ohio and Illinois.

Coming tomorrow, David Axelrod faults Hillary Clinton for doing the very same thing as above in the Michigan debate, this time re. Bernie's vote on the TARP bill/Auto Bail Out.

FLASH: Bernie Sanders wins right to 17-year-old vote in Ohio #sanders

If you're 18 on election day Nov. 8, 17-year-olds are eligible to vote in the Ohio primary on March 15. "Franklin County Judge Richard Frye determined that Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted, a Republican, erred when he ordered that Ohioans who are currently 17 but will be 18 on Election Day in November not be allowed to vote in the presidential primaries," according to CNN. The decision was legally challenged by Bernie Sanders and overturned.

This age is an important demographic for the Bern improving his chances of pulling off a Michigan upset here. Along with the fact that Clinton's black support dropped before the Motor City election, the Sander's team hopes for more of the same. Demographics in the two states are very similar, and Bernie bases his new-found success on the fact that the black community, formerly in Clinton's court, are learning more about him and changing their minds.

Bernie Sanders Sayings

American democracy is not about billionaires being able to buy candidates and elections. It is one person, one vote - with every citizen having an equal say - and no voter suppression.

Voter ignorance explains an impotent Congress

First, let's establish the fact that election spending by candidates is completely out of hand. According to an opinion piece in U.S. News by Anthony Gaughan, "The 2012 election set an all-time record of $7 billion in campaign spending, and the 2016 election is projected to far surpass that figure." 2000 was $3 billion+, 2008 cost over $5 billion with the 2004 election $4 billion. So you can see it's not all the fault of Citizens United.

But it isn't all this money that causes the problem, muses Gaughan, "...It's what too many Americans don't know and won't bother to learn." The last part, "won't bother to learn," really bothers me. The fact is pathetic but true and is the primary reason morons like Donald Trump lead the GOP slate of presidential candidates. I have talked to people who admit they aren't up on the issues and my gut tells me they are just waiting for someone to tell them who to vote for.

This ignorance carries over to things like not even knowing who the Vice president is, which puts that individual in the third grade, or less, as far as their political education goes. Gaughan reasons there are two major reasons for this onslaught of ignorance. First, interest in the news has dwindled. Two, because of the enormous cut back in education spending throughout the U.S., less attention is paid to civics, history and world affairs.

Ask an average American who won the Academy Awards and they can probably tell you. Ask them who their local Congress person is and they are stumped for an answer. So when they are told by some Super Pac to vote for XYZ because ABC is a fraud, they do it. Or some blow-hard gets in front of them espousing hate and fear, they believe him or her. Ignorance of politics should be a crime like ignorance of the law is. 

Bernie Sanders Sayings

You go to Scandinavia, and you will find that people have a much higher standard of living, in terms of education, health care and decent paying jobs.

The Super Delegates will be there

Bernie Sanders said today his lack of super delegates to date didn't worry him because the states involved heavily favored Hillary Clinton. He was more concerned about those states to come in the West like California, Oregon and Washington. Through a little research I found that coming down the home stretch Hillary began to lose super delegates to Barack Obama in 2008, eventually losing the nomination to the current President.

It's a matter of choice, says Nate Silver in his FiveThirtyEight blog, commenting, "Superdelegates were created in part to give Democratic party elites the opportunity to put their finger on the scale..." Isn't this a part of Bernie Sander's promise to balance the inequality in the U.S.? As Silver also remarked, "If you’re a Sanders supporter, you might think this seems profoundly unfair. And you’d be right: It’s profoundly unfair."

Not being a Democrat, the Bern has no control over this process, but something tells me that somewhere in the future the Party will re-think this maneuver.

Bernie Sanders Sayings

The history of American democracy, to say the least, has been checkered. Our nation was founded at a time when people of African descent were held in bondage. After slavery was abolished, they were forced to endure legal discrimination for another 100 years.

Bernie Sanders winning in Michigan

Hillary Clinton won Mississippi but it does look very good for Bernie Sanders in Michigan, a much more important state. The Bern didn't expect to win much of the South and thankfully we have those states out of the way now. At this writing, Bernie led Hillary in Michigan 51% to 47%, 81% reporting. This will be a key win for Sanders for Michigan is a diverse state and the Detroit population, its largest city, is heavily black. 

Bernie S

Bernie Sanders Sayings

At its worst, Washington is a place where name-calling partisan politics too often trumps policy.

Bernie Sanders one-issue candidate...Don't think so

Hillary Clinton continues to call Bernie Sanders a one-issue candidate because of his focus on inequality. Just that one word alone suggests so many branches which include racism, poverty, education, medical care, and many others. It is possible that the Bern hasn't made the above clear, that all these other matters are covered under his umbrella issue of inequality. These categories occurred to me at the beginning of his campaign so it is possible Sanders took this for granted.

But Bernie went further in Ypsilanti, Michigan, broadening his reach beyond what appears to be on economics only by listing 20 issues during an hour-long speech to a crowd of 9,400 supporters proving his campaign is much more diverse than is painted by Clinton. Things like universal health care, minimum wage, the jail population, same-sex marriage, trade policy and more. You can see all twenty in the Washington Post article.