Division over Defense Budget Cuts – Blue Dog Democrats and Barney Frank

From Politico, the Defense budget is undergoing a few cuts, with Barney Frank (D-MA) leading the charge to eliminate most of the nation’s defense capabilities, including reducing U.S. submarines, decimating the budget for Iraq and Afghanistan, and eliminating the missile defense shield programs. Several moderate Democrats, or so-called “Blue Dog” Democrats, are wavering – seeking compromises that will appeal to their districts (heavy military and veteran), while towing the Party line.

Take, for example, Levin’s rhetoric on missile defense. Unlike hard-line missile defense opponents within the Democratic Party, he advocates the more nuanced approach that would perhaps slow development of futuristic but unproven systems while increasing efforts to test them.

Levin (D-MI), is the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and is seen as a moderate. With North Korean launching rockets and the UN giving Kim Jong Il a virtual pass, now might not be the time to cut certain areas of defense, specifically our nuclear and missile defense programs.

Which Senators and Congress members should be most nervous? Those whose States are within reach of any device lobbed this way by North Korea – including California, Hawaii and Alaska. Should Alaska come under fire, it becomes more of a threat than say, a hit on Beverly Hills, due to the fact that Alaska has a bit of natural gas, and oil under the surface. One would consider this a no-brainer, considering that “Stability” is not generally associated with Kim Jong Il. (Or the current administration, for that matter, including the President (Utopian idea of nuclear disarmament), Barney Frank (clueless on all levels) and a host of other characters.

With the recent, although harmless, theft of a plain by a Canadian Turkish Immigrant, flown into US airspace via the Michigan border, and landing in Missouri, one can anticipate that the next “depressed” pilot stealing a plan and flying it into US airspace, may not necessarily have the best of intentions. The fact that the U.S. is back to its status of “Paper Tiger”, only servers to embolden those that would plan and execute attacks on U.S. soil, with the expectation that, given the stance on defense of the current Party in Charge (Democrats), there would be no retaliation.

Barney Frank and his ilk, are too busy planning the next business takeover, , and pushing for legislation to legalize Marijuana. (They see tax revenues, however, one has to ask wonder – so that’s what he’s smoking!) to deal with funding defense. Not for nothing, but the military is one of the nation’s largest employers, any cuts to defense will only serve to increase the growing unemployment numbers, (shades of Jimmy Carter, once again), and add to the misery currently enjoyed by the American Working Class.

Bailout Transparency Not Necessary? Barney “Rubble” Frank: “Trust Us”

Photo Courtesy of Online.CasinoCity.com

Taxpayers weren’t necessarily sold on the “emergency bailout”, but some may have rested a bit easier knowing that there would be transparency and oversight of the millions of dollars that are being thrown at the likes of Fannie and Freddie and AIG. This week, the Federal Reserve refused to indentify who received close to 2 trillion dollars in tax payer funded loans, let alone the questionable assets that the Fed is accepting as collateral! Enter Barney Frank, the pride of Massachusetts – the same Barney Frank who had his paws on Freddie and Fannie in the first case, assuring the public that all was well with the institutions – right before the big collapse. Barney, in a conversation with Timothy Geithner, a possible pick for Treasury Secretary and current executive officer of the Fed’s New York Branch, feels that the Feds failure to disclose is just fine and dandy.

“``I talk to Geithner and he was pretty sure that they're OK,'' said Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat. ``If the risk is that the Fed takes a little bit of a haircut, well that's regrettable.'' Such losses would be acceptable, he said if the program helps revive the economy.
`Unclog the Market'
Frank said the Fed shouldn't reveal the assets it holds or how it values them because of ``delicacy with respect to pricing.'' He said such disclosure would ``give people clues to what your pricing is and what they might be able to sell us and what your estimates are.'' He wouldn't say why he thought that information would be problematic. “

To recap, the Fed is not disclosing who is getting the 2 trillion dollars, nor the types of risks being assumed, and Frank is ok with this because Geithner is “pretty sure that they’re ok”, and would not say why disclosing this information would be problematic. Barney Frank’s advanced degree in Economics doesn’t appear to be serving the tax payers – perhaps because he doesn’t have one. Barney is also bringing the Massachusetts model of decriminalizing Marijuana to the national stage. Barney might not be the crackpot many in his district believe (granted he was re-elected handily due to weak opposition), but this move may answer the question: “What’s he smoking?”