Media Readies for Inevitable – GOP control of Both Houses of Congress – the back end of Lack of Trust in Government.

A recent AP/GFKpoll suggests that American’s, in general, do not trust the government to keep them “safe”, and or help them out in a crisis. (AP). In reading the polling data, it crosses all party lines, and is pretty damming to the theory that Big Government is better government.

Which leads one to the mid-terms and beyond – the Washington Post (not unlike the New York Times and other media outlets this morning, is suggesting that the Republicans will surely take both Houses of Congress – citing 2006 as an example – the year when the Democrats took control of both house due to Bush unfavorability. (Washington Post)

Yet, somehow that does not cover the magnitude of what may take place this November, even with a lower turnout than expected, one might see what the word Tsunami cannot convey. Noting that the President’s policies are on the board in this election (paraphrasing form one of the many articles on the latest gift from the President to the GOP), the most unimaginable has taken place – the rank and file of the party has gone missing, leaving only the 27-29% of diehard Progressives to carry the banner forward.

Somehow, the two short years between 2014 and 2016 are looking more and more interesting, in that perhaps, for the first time in recent history, the GPO might put forth a candidate that has some actual credibility with their multifaceted base – and should that happen, and it is quite possible given those named (with glaring exceptions – Bush, Romney, and Christie), this would bring the planets of the Congress into alignment for decades. According to Gallup Polling a shocking 76% of the nation believes we are on the wrong track. Given the mix of polling data and reality, the time has come for a revival – especially with the newer, younger GOP who are more concerned with the Constitutional Liberties of all citizens, than the usual Party Lines. One sees a Phoenix rising from the ashes of the past few general elections and the propensity of Candidates trying to blend in with - not differentiate from the other party.

Grab the popcorn, and pop the Champaign should the House gain seats on the GOP side, and the Senate bring in more than the 6 measly seats predicted. That said, should the President start to play ball with the Senate and the House, one might see a different sort of 2016 – one in which both parties become competitive. A man who is not without common sense, would see that a legacy is on the table, and possibly move to the center – in order to get things moving. However, that’s a stretch at this point.

2014 – Balance of Power in the Senate Hangs on Mistake of Democrats End to Minority Filibusters, and the Affordable Health Care Act, formerly known as Obamacare.

One does not even know the players in the 2016 Presidential stakes, however, there are the “maybes” that are being touted, yet it is a long way off. What is of import, perhaps more so than the 2016 elections, are the 2014 midterms, which will determine what power the political parties wield, and the power of the President. There have been a few errors recently that have set in motion the possibility for a serious route for the Democrats in 2014, and it is of their own doing.

The first was the disastrous rollout of Obamacare, the website dysfunction alone was not that big of a deal, it was the cancelled policies (with more to come) and the President insisting, time and again, individuals could keep their plans, he finally offered half an apology, and suggested that those who lost their plans, were paying more, or could no longer afford insurance, were getting better plans in the long run. What this did was assure the American people that trust in Obama was akin to trusting the wind – he’s lost much in the polls.

This, of course, with a less popular and floundering President, an angry and annoyed opposition party (over the Reid use of the Nuclear option to end all debates in the senate), will not necessarily affect the President (other than his legacy) but it will affect those Democrats running for reelection in 2014. The die has been cast, and it is only up to Republican’s or Independents to lose, rather than win those seats that a child could steal at this point.

An article in the Boston Globe suggests that donors to the Democrats, and specifically the fundraiser in Chief Obama, are starting to have grave doubts about investing in campaigns that stand no chance of winning. That, coming from one of the media cheerleaders, is telling. This is regardless of the fact that a “Hail Mary’ of delaying the enrollment until 2015 put into place this weekend and designed to “save” Democrats in Danger of losing the house, in all probability won’t matter a bit.

Those who have had any experience with the program at all are not thrilled and the majority of the public wants the mandate gone. – Delay or not wont’ help. The bigger problem is the Reid end of the 225 year Senate Filibuster in order to place more power in the hands of the controlling party. Of course, that’s a short term move. When the Republican’s suggested that they might opt to do the same in 2005, the Democrats were mightily opposed, as the editorial in the Dallas Morning News suggests that move will come back to haunt them – sooner than later.

An interesting take on the move by Reid can be found at Bloomberg news, written by Megan McArdle , who writes that Reid invoked the Nuclear Option out of desperation, in other words, Reid knew that in 2014 there would be a turn in fortunes for the Republican’s and/or Independents, and that the Democrats would most certainly loose the Senate, and at present it appears the House will remain in the hands of the Republicans. The reasoning is simple, Reid, in making this move, was helping the President get as much as he could in the remaining time – such as judicial appointments.

Either that or Reid is well aware of what has taken place in the special elections, and in the smaller local races across the nation – Democrats are poison, and more lost than won, down to the City Council. When that occurs, and the distrusts in Washington, especially for incumbents are as toxic as it is now, those in power should be as non-toxic as possible. One might also suggest that those Republicans’ who are feeling rather confident should rethink their positions, as they also could become a former Senator or Congressional Representative on the turn of a dime. That is not to suggest someone would choose a Democrat over a Republican, rather “other” than the standard Party.

What should be most interesting in the coming months will be Gallup’s Presidential approval by State, should it drop to more dangerous levels, mimicking his overall drop in approve (under 40), then those Democrats up for reelection might want to distance themselves from the President, in much the same way that the Republicans did with Bush in 2006 – although, one might recall, that did little good whatsoever.

Sequestration – the Day After Deadline - The Sky Has Not Fallen – Yet (Is the warning) – Dem. Controlled Senate failed to pass bill? Government Employees bemoan Loss of Bonuses! The Pain! The Drama!

Sequestration and the drama – more boring that Housework! – Image and Insulting Article from the New York Times: What Housework has to do with Waistlines” - Ladies, grab your aprons! (This article should bother more than half of the population more than the orchestrated chaos of Washington.)

For all the fear and partisan finger pointing taking place the past few months, as the latest in a series of “sky is falling” crises, came to an abrupt end – and the result – the nation yawned. There are those still beating the drum however, the Boston Globe reports: Budget Cuts Long Term Effects Still Unclear, offers the following as to what took place:

Democrats and Republicans did offer alternatives to the cuts in the Senate on Thursday. But neither had the needed 60 votes to break a filibuster. The Democrats’ proposal, replacing the across-the-board cuts with targeted reductions and closing tax loopholes for the wealthy, was defeated 51-49. The GOP’s legislation offered Obama greater flexibility in slashing the budget, but that plan was defeated 38-62, amid concerns among some about giving too much power to the White House over spending.

Understanding that when the words “Republicans in Congress” is used as a rallying cry for all that is wrong in Washington by certain others in Washington, the nation does not connect Congress with the Senate, which is a Democrat controlled body. Apparently, both had offered solutions, and those solutions did not appear to be solid enough to drag over a few Republicans or Democrats to either side, and the timing of the Senate, not the Congress, also appears to be somewhat last minute – considering the “danger” of lost police, teachers, closed daycares, and longer unemployment lines looming.

Meanwhile, BET reports, the President has begun to “back peddle” and soften his tone:

What happened to the shock and devastation that was supposed to ensue right away? Where is the hyperbole and saber-rattling that flooded the airwaves until now? Visions of starving children running the streets and military men and women without ammunition had, until this point, danced in some people's heads as the administration made the case for why Congress needed to act now.

You're likely wondering, "Why the shift in tone? Why is it that the sky is apparently not going to fall after all?"

Conservatives believe that the president's warnings amounted to no more than hyped-up hysterics. But there may be a number of reasons why Obama changed his tune. Perhaps he was concerned that he had overplayed his hand in the hard press to put pressure on Congress. At the risk of appearing to be the boy who cried wolf, the administration cut off criticism at the pass by "clarifying" its message before the pending deadline arrived.

So it appears that the sky will not be falling tomorrow after all, or next week or next month for that matter. And whether we're facing a jump off of a cliff or simply a steady tumble downward, the end result is something that our lawmakers should work to avoid.

The sarcasm in journalism award this week goes to BET.

Next up at the Voice of America, the blame game continues:

.S. President Barack Obama is due to meet at the White House Friday with top Republican and Democratic lawmakers to discuss a last-ditch effort to avoid across-the-board budget cuts scheduled to take effect before the day is over.

The meeting is largely viewed as symbolic, after dueling bills to avoid the cuts were defeated in the Senate Thursday, making $85 billion in automatic spending cuts appear inevitable once the Friday deadline passes.

President Obama has said the effects of the cuts on federal agencies - most notably defense, infrastructure spending, public schools and preschool care - will not be felt immediately, but instead will have what he calls a "tumble downward" effect. That means, the longer the cuts remain in place, the worse the damage they will cause.

Defense employees are expected to be forced to take unpaid time off work, while funding for big infrastructure projects will eventually halt.

States also would feel the effects, with fewer federal dollars coming in.

President Obama is blaming Republicans for the impasse, saying they voted to put the entire burden of deficit reduction on the middle class. Obama and many Democrats want to eliminate certain tax breaks for the wealthy to raise revenue along with spending cuts as a way to reduce the budget deficit.

Darn those Republican’s (and the Democrat Controlled Senate under the watchful eyes of Harry Reid), for not bucking up and saving the nation! – Yet they are meeting today to come up with some “last-ditch-effort” that barely anyone knows or cares about.

Unless one is Bob Woodward, and now that he’s dared to shed some light on the entire subject of an Obama Sequestration Plan gone wrong, his colleagues are beginning to turn on him. (Poltico) of course, if one were Woodward, calling those crying “foul, old man, who’s a liar,” colleges would be a stretch, to say the least – Wish they were Woodward’s’, more like it, but a moot point. (A side note: Lanny Davis, of Clinton White House fame, who is now a pundit on several cable news networks – is backing up the “White House threatened me not to write about..” Woodward claim, noting the Obama administration has done the same to him.)

The entire non-crisis appears to be much ado about nothing, as the deadline passed to “save jobs, babies, and the seas from rising” there appears to be a :”Last ditch effort!!”a day later.

Bets are still on the Republican Speaker of the House, John Boehner, to do an about face, and cozy up to tax hikes and no cuts whatsoever (which amounted to a slight increase in already inflated and increased spending levels that, without a budget, are somewhat fluid. Therefore, what’s all the drama about? One knows that the Congress (which holds the nations checkbook) has passed, along with the Senate, band aids from time to time, raising debt ceilings, ad raising spending, adding amendments to bills that have nothing to do with budgets. In other words, it’s all smoke,, mirrors and the never ending campaign trail that is DC, on both sides of the aisle. One might be tempted to blame the President for the phenomena, however, anyone with a pulse should understand – it’s the whole lot of them. Of course, those government employees who won’t be seeing bonuses as a result of this crisis, are clearly upset! (Washington Times). Government employee bonuses? Just let that sink in and attach the word crisis to understand the ridiculous idiots who are running our nation, are doing so on our dime and passing laws that pertain to our health, welfare and of course, any wealth we have left.