Government Spending nearly a Half a Million Dollars to find out Why Men Don't Like Condoms

The federal government is spending $423,500 to find out why men don't like to wear condoms, a project government watchdogs say is a nearly-half-a-million-dollar waste of taxpayer money.

Researchers at Indiana University's Kinsey Institute, with funding from the National Institutes of Health, are investigating why "young, heterosexual adult men" have problems using condoms. The study will include "skill-based intervention" to teach grown men how to use protection.

The first phase of the two-year study will be a simple Q&A, but doctors say the second phase will plumb uncharted territory.

"The second phase involves a laboratory study, and focuses on penile erection and sensitivity during condom application," reads the abstract from Drs. Erick Janssen and Stephanie Sanders, both of the Kinsey Institute.

"The project aims to understand the relationship between condom application and loss of erections and decreased sensation, including the role of condom skills and performance anxiety, and to find new ways to improve condom use among those who experience such problems."

The study, which was first reported by UWire, is one of many being funded by the NIH's National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

But it has government watchdogs rolling their eyes at what they say is a clear waste of taxpayer money. - FOX News Story

Recession Causing Cut Backs Everywhere except Capitol Hill

While businesses across the country are cutting back, members of the House saw their own office budgets increase by an average of 7 percent between 2008 and 2009.

House officials say the increase is because of — not in spite of — the nation’s economic woes.

“The demands on member offices have increased dramatically during our nation’s current financial crisis, and staff have been called on to work harder and smarter to ensure that we are meeting those growing needs,” Rep. Robert Brady (D-Pa.), chairman of the Committee on House Administration, said in a statement provided to POLITICO.

An office’s budget — called the Member’s Representational Allowance — is meant to cover the day-to-day costs of running a congressional office: staff payroll, travel expenses, rent for district offices and the like. The average MRA for 2009 is nearly $1.5 million, up almost $100,000 over 2008.

While House members have given up the automatic pay raise they would have gotten for 2010, they haven’t turned down the 7 percent hike in their 2009 MRAs — an increase that outstrips the inflation rate, the consumer price index and the 5.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment for recipients of Social Security.

There appears to be no organized movement to freeze the MRAs. - Politico Story

Obama has another Inspector General Issue

As the Obama administration faces questions about the president's firing of the Corporation for National and Community Service Inspector General last week, and about the Treasury Department challenging the independence of the Special Inspector General dedicated to federal bailout dollars for the financial bailout money, a third inspector general controversy has emerged.

This week Judith Gwynn, the Inspector General for the International Trade Commission, was told that her contract would not be renewed.

The news was delivered to Gwynn within three hours of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, sending the chair of the ITC a letter asking about a March 5 incident when, according to Gwynn's April 2009 Semiannual Report to Congress, "in the course of conducting an investigation regarding contractor activities, certain procurement files were removed forcibly from the possession of the Inspector General by a Commission employee.”

Grassley was outraged to learn that the ITC environment was one where the Inspector General could be treated so disdainfully.

"I was disappointed to learn that, according to the report, despite being notified of this situation the ITC failed to ensure that the files were immediately returned intact and unaltered," Grassley wrote to ITC Chair Shara L. Aranoff, according to a copy of the letter obtained by ABC News. "The ability of Inspectors General to secure agency records subject to audit or investigation is essential to ensure the integrity and reliability of their work on behalf of Congress and the American People." - ABC News Story

More Unhappy Obama Supporters

The Obama administration's decision to file a controversial brief on behalf of the Defense Of Marriage Act appears to have been the last straw for many gay and lesbians who were once enthusiastic supporters of the administration as well as the Democratic party.

Politico reports that the National Stonewall Democrats is the latest group to pull out of a June 25 Democratic National Committee fundraiser because of the Obama administration’s defense of DOMA and lack of action on gay issues.

The group said is "incredibly disappointed" in the party for a variety of reasons, including a perceived lack of support.

"The DNC has traditionally provided materials for the many Pride parades and festivals around the country to help educate the LGBT community about why the Democratic Party is the Party for full LGBT equality," National Stonewall wrote in an e-mail, according to Politico. "This year, we were informed that we would not be receiving any materials or support for producing materials for the various nationwide Pride activities. These decisions were very disappointing."

The e-mail also cited the DOMA brief as a reason to pull out of the fundraiser.

"The members of the Board and our membership put our hopes, our dollars and our time into ensuring the election of Barack Obama because we believed that he supported us. To now have his Administration refer to our relationships in the same terms used by our long time enemies such as Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and James Dobson hurts on so many levels," National Stonewall wrote. - CBS News Story

USS John McCain ready to Stop North Korean Vessel

The U.S. military is planning to intercept a flagged North Korean ship suspected of proliferating weapons material in violation of a U.N. Security Council resolution passed last Friday, FOX News has learned.

The USS John McCain, a navy destroyer, will intercept the ship Kang Nam as soon as it leaves the vicinity off the coast of China, according to a senior U.S. defense official. The order to inderdict has not been given yet, but the ship is getting into position.

The ship left a port in North Korea Wednesday and appears to be heading toward Singapore, according to a senior U.S. military source. The vessel, which the military has been tracking since its departure, could be carrying weaponry, missile parts or nuclear materials, a violation of U.N. Resolution 1874, which put sanctions in place against Pyongyang.

The USS McCain was involved in an incident with a Chinese sub last Friday - near Subic Bay off the Philippines.

The Chinese sub was shadowing the destroyer when it hit the underwater sonar array that the USS McCain was towing behind it.

That same navy destroyer that was being shadowed by the Chinese is now positioning itself for a possible interdiction of the North Korean vessel.

This is the first suspected "proliferator" that the U.S. and its allies have tracked from North Korea since the United Nations authorized the world's navies to enforce compliance with a variety of U.N. sanctions aimed at punishing North Korea for its recent nuclear test.

The ship is currently along the coast of China and being monitored around-the-clock by air.

The apparent violation raises the question of how the United States and its allies will respond, particularly since the U.N. resolution does not have a lot of teeth to it.

The resolution would not allow the United States to board the ship forcibly. Rather, U.S. military would have to request permission to board -- a request North Korea is unlikely to grant.

North Korea has said that any attempt to board its ships would be viewed as an act of war and promised "100- or 1,000-fold" retaliation if provoked. - FOX News Story

Senator Upset after General Calls her Ma'am

In case you forgot, Barbara Boxer is a senator.

The feisty California lawmaker felt the need to remind an Army brigadier general of that fact Tuesday during a hearing before her Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, where the military officer testifying had the apparent gall to call Boxer "ma'am."

Brig. Gen. Michael Walsh, with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, was testifying on the Louisiana coastal restoration process in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. He began to answer one of Boxer's questions with "ma'am" when Boxer immediately cut him off.

"You know, do me a favor," an irritated Boxer said. "Could say 'senator' instead of 'ma'am?'"

"Yes, ma'am," Walsh interjected.

"It's just a thing, I worked so hard to get that title, so I'd appreciate it, yes, thank you," she said.

"Yes, senator," he responded.

However, Walsh surely meant no disrespect, as military protocol advises that officers may use "sir" or "ma'am" when addressing anybody higher than them on the chain of command.

"We would call them 'sir' or 'ma'am' or 'senator such-and-such'," Army spokesman Lt. Col. Nathan Banks said. Banks said any of those terms would be "appropriate" when addressing a senator.

According to one guide, the Navy and Coast Guard typically use "mister" or "miss" to address officers below the rank of commander, and "sir" or "ma'am," or a specific title, to address anyone at that rank or higher. - FOX News Story

Give me a break. First of all, GET OVER IT! With the way America is now it is just nice to see people who properly address one another with Sir and Ma'am or Mr. and Mrs. Although I agree that she earned the right to be called Senator, isn't a littly bit of a power play to make such a big deal out of it?

Tornado Video from Austin, MN 6/17/09

Iran unrest could lead to Military Coup

The Iranian regime is currently facing one of the greatest challenges of its 30-year history. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei--whose rule has been absolute and whose words have been the law of the land--is facing the most public challenge to his authority. His two decades since succeeding Ayatollah Khomeini have been defined by a tendency to keep his options open, a verbal dexterity that allowed him to skirt tough political positions, and an appearance of impartiality in Iran's fierce factional feuds. His caution has been the key to his success and survival.

But Khamenei has thrown this caution to the wind by unabashedly favoring Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Four years ago, his support was instrumental in getting the little-known Ahmadinejad elected president. Even as criticism of the president has been on the rise in the country over the past year, Khamenei reportedly promised Ahmadinejad and his cabinet four more years at the helm.

The ayatollah failed to recognize the mounting tension over this month's presidential election--what former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani described in a pre-election letter to him as a seething "volcano" of discontent. Even Sobhe-Sadeq, the political organ of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned in a lead editorial that the opposition's use of the color green had become dangerously similar to the kind of "color revolution" that dethroned governments in Ukraine, Lebanon, and Georgia. (Khamenei had even commissioned a group of scholars three years ago to investigate the evolution of these "color revolutions.")

Only hours after the polls closed, Khamenei issued a statement urging everyone to support the supposedly reelected president. Khamenei seems to have underestimated Ahmadinejad's opponent, Mir Hossein Mousavi, who has proved willing to defy, if not challenge, Khamenei's dictates. Following Mousavi's lead, angry demonstrators swiftly took to the streets, with protests erupting in major cities and universities across the country. On Monday, June 15, hundreds of thousands of Iranians flooded the streets of Tehran to protest the election results. - CBS News Story

Opposition Blasts ABC for Obama Infomercial

Opponents of President Obama's proposed health care reform are blasting ABC News for refusing to air opposing ads during a prime time special next Wednesday, just as a new study finds ABC News coverage of the president's health care plan is favorable by a ratio of 3 to 1.

The prime time special -- called "Questions for the President: Prescription for America" -- will be a nationally televised event during which Obama will answer questions presented by audience members selected by ABC News. The network has refused to accept advocacy ads during the hourlong show.

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele accused ABC News and anchor Charles Gibson of making Obama's case for "nationalized" health care "without any opportunity for opposing views to be aired.

In a fundraising e-mail aimed at raising nearly $100,000 to buy air time for a counterprogram, Steele said the RNC's request to add its views to the debate during the special was "flatly rejected" by ABC News.

"What are the Democrats and their media allies afraid of? The truth?" he asked in a fundraising letter to supporters. "That is outrageous! And we will not take it!"

But ABC News spokesman Jeffrey Schneider told FOXNews.com that it has been a "longstanding" policy not to accept "advocacy" ads. - ABC News Story

Tornadoes Rip through the Midwest

Nearly two dozen tornadoes ripped through the Midwest last night, flipping cars, knocking out power for thousands and injuring one person severely.

In Austin, Minn., one possible tornado tore through the northern side of the town, causing damage estimates in the millions and injuring several horses.

"I started running down the road, ran, looked up in the sky and saw a bunch of debris up in the sky, circling around like crazy," one eye witness said.

Tim Sherno, from ABC News' Minneapolis affiliate KSTP, visited Austin to survey the damage. - ABC News Story

Tornado Hits Austin, MN

AUSTIN, MINN. — Daylight Thursday revealed a path of destruction left by an apparent tornado in Austin where vehicles were tossed about, homes were heavily damaged and power lines were knocked down.

No serious injuries were reported, but one man who was inside a shed suffered scrapes and bruises when it overturned.

Austin Police Chief Paul Philipp surveyed the damage by helicopter early Thursday.

The National Weather Service said a tornado appeared to touch down in Austin about 8 p.m., sending debris flying. The storm flipped cars on their sides and sent trees through roofs. It also flipped a semi on its side. A dispatcher in the Mower County Sheriff's Office said there was a report of a car blown into a house.

Highway 218 north of Austin was closed due to a fallen power line.

Click here to watch video.

Dawn Butler, manager of Windrift Lounge and restaurant, said one man inside a shed was injured when it was flipped by high wind. Butler said the man went to the hospital as a precaution.

National Weather Service meteorologist Todd Shea said evidence points to a tornado, but officials wouldn't know for sure until they surveyed the damage Thursday. - FOX News Story

Bush Defends Policies

Former President George W. Bush fired a salvo at President Obama on Wednesday, asserting his administration's interrogation policies were within the law, declaring the private sector, not government, will fix the economy and rejecting the nationalization of health care, the Washington Times reported.

"I know it's going to be the private sector that leads this country out of the current economic times we're in," the former president said to applause in Erie, Pa. "You can spend your money better than the government can spend your money."

Repeatedly in his hourlong speech and question-and-answer session, Bush said he would not directly criticize the new president, who has moved to take over financial institutions and several large corporations, the paper reported. Several times, however, he took direct aim at Obama policies as he defended his own during eight years in office.

Continue reading at the Washington Times

"Government does not create wealth. The major role for the government is to create an environment where people take risks to expand the job rate in the United States," the Times quoted him as saying to huge cheers. - FOX News Story

North Korea Targeting Hawaii?

TOKYO — North Korea may fire a long-range ballistic missile toward Hawaii in early July, a Japanese news report said Thursday, as Russia and China urged the regime to return to international disarmament talks on its rogue nuclear program.

The missile, believed to be a Taepodong-2 with a range of up to 4,000 miles, would be launched from North Korea's Dongchang-ni site on the northwestern coast, said the Yomiuri daily, Japan's top-selling newspaper. It cited an analysis by the Japanese Defense Ministry and intelligence gathered by U.S. reconnaissance satellites.

The missile launch could come between July 4 and 8, given the North's propensity to launch on U.S. holidays. July 8 is also the anniversary of former leader's Kim Il Sung's death.

As of late Wednesday night, however, there was no satellite imagery suggesting North Korea had yet stacked or staged a Taepodong-2 missile at either the Dongchang-ni site on its northwest coast or at its Musudan-ni facility on its northeast coast.

Trains are regularly running from North Korea's Tongnim missile factory to both the northwest and northeast launch pads, but there is speculation by South Korean officials that some may be empty and designed to confuse foreign intelligence agencies which the North knows are watching from the skies. - FOX News Story

Severe Weather Outbreak Today, Thursday and Friday

As extreme heat expands northward and eastward, so will the threat of severe weather riding the rim of the heat.

Severe thunderstorms will press into the Carolinas and the eastern Ohio Valley early Thursday morning. Dangerous and life-threatening storms will also target parts of Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, southern Minnesota and Missouri early Thursday morning. This includes the cities of Denver, Des Moines, Kansas City, St. Joseph, Kirksville and St. Louis.

At times play through Friday at the College World Series in Omaha could be greatly impacted by rain and nasty storms. - AccuWeather.com

Tornado Hits Austin, MN

Around 8:00 PM CDT A Large Tornado reportedly hit parts of Austin, MN. Damage was reported as extensive on the North Side and Injuries have been reported.

Elsewhere Strong and Severe Thunderstorms, some with Tornadoes, have been occurring in Iowa, SE Minnesota, Nebraska and South Dakota.

Interesting Information about IG Firing

A top Republican senator is asking whether First Lady Michelle Obama's office played any role in last week's firing of former service program Inspector General Gerald Walpin.

The concern, one of several surrounding Walpin's sudden dismissal, stems from the timing of a staff switch in the first lady's office. Just days before Walpin got the boot, the White House announced Michelle Obama's chief of staff would be appointed senior adviser to the agency Walpin was responsible for monitoring. Michelle Obama said at the time she and her outgoing staffer, Jackie Norris, would work closely going forward.

With accusations now flying that the Walpin firing was politically motivated, the personnel change only adds to the list of questions Republicans have for the president. - FOX News

Grassley's questions go far beyond that issue. He is among several Republican lawmakers who have sounded alarms about the firing and suggested President Obama canned Walpin in retaliation for investigating one of his supporters, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson. Johnson was accused of misusing federal funds for an academy he founded. He eventually reached a settlement with the U.S. attorney's office. - FOX News

Obama Fires IG now in line of Fire Himself

The government watchdog President Obama canned for allegedly being "confused" and "disoriented" fired back sharply Wednesday, saying the White House explanation for removing him was "insufficient," "baseless" and "absolutely wild."

Gerald Walpin, who until last week was the inspector general for the Corporation for National and Community Service, told FOXNews.com that part of Obama's explanation was a "total lie" and that he feels he's got a target on his back for political reasons.

"I am now the target of the most powerful man in this country, with an army of aides whose major responsibility today seems to be to attack me and get rid of me," Walpin said.

Facing bipartisan criticism for the firing, Obama sought to allay congressional concerns with a letter to Senate leaders Tuesday evening explaining his decision. In the letter, White House Special Counsel Norman Eisen wrote that Walpin was "confused" and "disoriented" at a May board meeting, was "unduly disruptive," and exhibited a "lack of candor" in providing information to decision makers.

"That's a total lie," Walpin said of the latter charge. And he said the accusation that he was dazed and confused at one meeting out of many was not only false, but poor rationale for his ouster.

"It appears to suggest that I was removed because I was disabled -- based on one occasion out of hundreds," he said.

"I would never say President Obama doesn't have the capacity to continue to serve because of his (statement) that there are 56 states," Walpin said, adding that the same holds for Vice President Biden and his "many express confusions that have been highlighted by the media." Obama mistakenly said once on the campaign trail that he had traveled to 57 states. - FOX News Story

I have to agree with the man. Obama and Biden have made some really stupid comments and haven't been held to the same standard.

You gotta love this guy. He isn't going away quietly and Obama the Bully is finding someone standing up to him.

The sad part is that he will lose in the end and his life and reputation will be destroyed by the army of people surrounding the President. It really is sad that if you disagree with this President you are destroyed not only politically, but personally.

More Violence in Iran

Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi issued a direct challenge Wednesday to the country's supreme leader and cleric-led system, calling for a mass rally to protest disputed election results and violence against his followers.

A crackdown on dissent continued, with more arrests of opposition figures reported, and the country's most powerful military force — the Revolutionary Guard — saying that Iranian Web sites and bloggers must remove any materials that "create tension" or face legal action.

Meanwhile, Iran accused the U.S. of "intolerable" meddling in its internal affairs, state television reported.

In one high-profile display of apparent opposition support, several Iranian soccer players wore green wrist bands — the color of Mousavi's campaign — during a World Cup qualifying match in South Korea that was televised in Iran. - Fox News Story

Rural Democrats unhappy With Obama

Angered by White House decisions on everything from greenhouse gases to car dealerships, congressional Democrats from rural districts are threatening to revolt against parts of President Barack Obama’s ambitious first-year agenda.

“They don’t get rural America,” said Rep. Dennis Cardoza, a Democrat who represents California’s agriculture-rich Central Valley. “They form their views of the world in large cities.”

Cardoza’s critique was aimed at Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency, but it echoes complaints rural-district Democrats have about a number of Obama administration decisions.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a complete strikeout, but they’ve just got a few more bases to it when it comes to the rural community,” said Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu.

A rural revolt could hamper the administration’s ability to pass climate change and health care legislation before the August recess. - Politico News Story

Obama Chooses Secrecy over Transparency

President Barack Obama’s administration is adhering, at least for now, to a Bush administration policy that White House visitor logs are presidential records that the public has no right to see.

A liberal government watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, filed suit Tuesday after the group’s request for information on White House visits by coal industry executives was refused by the Secret Service.

“The Obama administration, by continuing the Bush administration’s position that the public has no right to know who visits the White House, is now siding with secrecy, not transparency, and is further deepening the gap between its rhetoric and its actual practices,” said Anne Weismann, an attorney for CREW.

At a briefing for reporters on Tuesday, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama’s advisers are still considering how to deal with the issue of public access to the names of those who visit the president or other top officials, an issue which has spawned several previous court fights. “The White House is reviewing that policy, based on some of that litigation,” Gibbs said.

Gibbs also defended the president’s right to hold secret meetings. -Politico Story

Racist Email Causes Stir in Tennessee

(CNN) -- The chairman of Tennessee's Democratic Party wants a Republican legislative aide fired for sending out a "reprehensible" e-mail depicting President Obama as two cartoonish white eyes peering from a black background.

Obama's image is in the last square of a collage containing portraits of the previous 43 U.S. presidents. Copies of the e-mail were posted on the Internet on Monday.

Sherri Goforth, an administrative assistant to state Sen. Diane Black, R-Gallatin, has admitted she sent the e-mail May 28 with the title "Historical Keepsake Photo." She said, without elaborating, that she mistakenly sent it "to the wrong list of people."

According to The Tennessean, a Nashville newspaper, a note on the e-mail said it was paid for by the Tennessee Republican Party, but GOP officials denied that they produced it. Black chairs the Senate Republican Caucus.

"I want people to know that the communication was sent without my knowledge, and that ... this does not reflect my beliefs or my values or my opinions, and I won't tolerate those kind of communications coming from my office," Black told CNN affiliate WKRN-TV in Nashville.

Black rebuked Goforth but didn't dismiss her.

CNN left phone messages Tuesday for Goforth and Black.

"Is this indicative of what Senate Republicans think about our commander in chief?" asked state Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester in a statement posted on the party's Web site.

"I am calling on Senator Black to reject this racist smear and fire this staffer who, on state government time, on state government computers, using a state government e-mail account, launched this bigoted attack on our president," Forrester said. "Keeping her on the staff would send the message that this type of behavior is condoned by the Senate Republican Caucus."

"This e-mail is reprehensible, insults the office of the president, and is embarrassing to all Tennesseans regardless of political party," Forrester said. - CNN News Story

Not that I condone this behavior nor do I support the person that sent the email. But lets take the politics out of it for a moment and talk strictly about the merits.

This was improper for her to send a racist picture. She needs to be disciplined with a punishment that fits the crime. If it wasn't a Republican and it wasn't about Obama there would be little conversation about it at all. It is just politics.

The sad part is where was all the outrage when Letterman made improper comments about Governor Palin's family? Sure didn't hear the Democrats standing up then.

Scrap the Health Care Bill and Start Over

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz, called on President Obama and Democrats in Congress to "scrap the current [healthcare] bill and start over."

McCain pointed to a nonpartisan cost estimate of $1 trillion over ten years for the major portion of healthcare reform suggested in a bill floated by Sen. Edward Kennedy's Health Committee and said the cost was too high for American taxpayers, especially since the nonpartisan review foresaw 23 million would lose their current insurance plans under the proposal.

"How we going to pay for that, Mr. President.," asked McCain on the senate floor. "How are we going to pay for that?"

The cost estimate for the Kennedy committee bill was prepared by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which is also preparing a separate cost estimate for a different healthcare reform proposal being prepared by the Senate Finance Committee.

"The CBO letter should be a wakeup call for all of us to scrap the current bill and start over," said McCain. "Start over in a true bipartisan fashion," said McCain, although his idea for healthcare reform would not find much support among Democrats.

McCain also addressed Jake Tapper's report that stiff cost estimate – which McCain thinks is low-ball – has the White House distancing itself from Kennedy's health committee plan.

"Well where is the administration's bill?" asked a frustrated McCain. "We're supposed to be enacting legislation before the end of July. Where is the administration's bill?" - ABC News Story

Little is being made in the media over the CBO projection on this Health Care Bill. Why not?

They have said that it will cost over $1 Trillion to get it up and running. Where is all of that money going to come from? Don't believe the BS we are hearing from Obama when he says he found it in savings elsewhere. That is FUZZY MATH.

They also said that some 23 million currently insured would lose their coverage due to this bill. OOOPS! The law of unintended consequences.

Why isn't all of this front page news? Obama isn't telling you. Why not?

Obama Talks Tough on North Korea - Little Action

WASHINGTON -- President Obama said Tuesday that a nuclear-armed North Korea poses a "grave threat" to the world, and he vowed to end a cycle of allowing Pyongyang to create crises and then be rewarded with incentives to back down.

"This is a pattern they've come to expect," Obama said. "We are going to break that pattern."

Standing alongside South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in the White House Rose Garden, Obama said they agreed that a new U.N. resolution seeking to halt North Korea's development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles must be fully enforced. The U.N. did not authorize military force to enforce the measures.

Lee said he and Obama agreed that "under no circumstance are we going to allow North Korea to possess nuclear weapons." The communist government already has tested two underground nuclear devices and is believed by U.S. intelligence to possess enough material to make several nuclear bombs.

On Capitol Hill on Tuesday, Pentagon officials told a Senate committee that North Korea's missiles could hit the United States in as few as three years if the North continues progress on its weapons system. - FOX News Story

Talk is cheap. This President has done an awful lot of talking to Countries like North Korea and Iran, however his actions have not met the expectations of his talk.

He has left it up to the UN to take action and their action has been little more than a slap on the wrist.

Back it up and show them that you are serious, if not, we are in a world of hurt.

Obama White House Hides Visitors - Not Transparent Government

In a move that puts a cloud over transparency, White House officials are blocking access to the lists of the names of visitors to the White House.

The practice, carried over from the Bush administration, argues the public does not need to know who comes calling at the Executive Mansion, even for policy purposes.

"We are deeply disappointed," said Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington spokeswoman Anne Weismann, whose group is suing to get the records.

"The president, who has committed his administration to transparency and accountability, now takes the position of the Bush administration that the public is not entitled to know who visits the White House. These are not the actions of a pro-transparency administration," she said.

CREW requested the records through the Freedom of Information Act. The U.S. Secret Service denied the request, citing the presidential communications privilege.

CREW was requesting a list with logs of executives from coal companies. MSNBC was also denied a FOIA request asking for a list of every visitor to the White House since Inauguration Day, Jan. 20.

CREW received a letter from the Secret Service saying it was unable to provide the records due to pending litigation in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that CREW already filed.

The letter goes on to say, "It is the government's position that the vast majority, if not all, of the records that would have to be searched to determine whether any records responsive to your request exist are not agency records subject to FOIA." - FOX News Story

McCain Wants Obama to React on Iran

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Monday called the recent reelection of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a “sham” and criticized President Barack Obama’s administration for not voicing strong opposition to the election’s result.

“The reaction of the Iranian people shows their discontent with this regime,” McCain said during an interview on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends.”

“It’s really a sham that they've pulled off and I hope that we will act,” he said.

Iranian citizens continued to protest the election results Monday, which showed Ahmadinejad winning by a nearly 2-1 ratio. Ahmadinejad’s chief opponent, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has claimed that the Iranian president’s win was the result of election fraud.

On Saturday, the White House released a short statement on the election from press secretary Robert Gibbs, but Obama himself has yet to speak about the election. - Politico Story

Obama Weak on North Korea

Most Americans -- including majorities of Democrats, Republicans and independents -- say President Obama has not been tough enough on North Korea and Iran.

A FOX News poll released Monday finds more than two-thirds of Americans say Obama has not been tough enough on North Korea (69 percent), while some 15 percent think his actions have been "about right" and 3 percent think he has been too tough.

Sizable majorities of Democrats (65 percent), Republicans (78 percent) and independents (61 percent) agree Obama should be tougher on North Korea. Among those voters who backed Obama in the 2008 presidential election, 59 percent say he has not been tough enough. - FOX News Story

Letterman Apoligizes to Palin Family

David Letterman took his biggest step to put the furor surrounding his jokes about Sarah Palin's daughters behind him during the taping of his show Monday.

In remarks set to air Monday night obtained by FOXNews.com from a 'Late Show' rep, Letterman directly apologized to the Palin family for the coarse jokes he made last Monday.

"I would like to apologize, especially to the two daughters involved, Bristol and Willow, and also to the governor and her family and everybody else who was outraged by the joke. I’m sorry about it and I’ll try to do better in the future," Letterman told the studio audience. - FOX News Story

Protests in Iran over Election turn Deadly

Pro-government militia members fired on Iranian protesters during a massive demonstration over the country's hotly-disputed election, killing at least one person and wounding several others.

An Associated Press photographer saw one person shot dead and several others who appeared seriously wounded in Tehran's Azadi, or freedom, Square. The shooting came from a compound for volunteer militia linked to Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard.

Residents reported hearing gunfire in three districts of northern Tehran, Reuters reported.

Tens of thousands of Iranians took to the streets of Tehran Monday, defying a country-wide crackdown with protests against the of last week's presidential election, which declared Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner. - FOX News Story

Without Health Care Reform America may go Broke

(CNN) -- President Obama said Monday that limits on medical malpractice lawsuits could be a necessary part of overhauling the nation's ailing health care system.

The AMA agrees with Obama on the need for health care reform but not how to go about it.

In a speech to the 158th annual meeting of the American Medical Association, Obama cited the need for doctors to cut health care costs by reducing the number of unnecessary tests and procedures that are performed to reduce the risk of malpractice claims. Such reductions might require restrictions on malpractice liability to protect doctors, the president said.

"I'm not advocating caps on malpractice awards, which I personally believe can be unfair to people who've been wrongfully harmed, but I do think we need to explore a range of ideas about how to put patient safety first, how to let doctors focus on practicing medicine, how to encourage broader use of evidence-based guidelines," he said.

Obama also told the AMA that rising health care costs could force the United States to follow in the footsteps of a bankrupt automaker.

"If we do not fix our health care system, America may go the way of GM -- paying more, getting less and going broke," he said. - CNN Story

America may go broke? Well, I finally agree with the President. Mark that down. I most definitely will be revisiting this agreement repeatedly. If we keep going the way we are America will go broke.

The only problem with the statement that he made was, it has little to do with Health Care. Obama says that this plan will cost some $1 Trillion Dollars. He also says that he has found the savings to pay for it.

What about the $1 Trillion PLUS that he has spent in the first 100 days? What about the $3 Trillion plus massive spending budget? We are going BROKE, but not do to Health Care, it is due to OBAMA and the Democrats in Congress.

Does Cheney Want a Terrorist Attack?

CIA Director Leon Panetta says former Vice President Dick Cheney's criticism of the Obama administration's approach to terrorism almost suggests "he's wishing that this country would be attacked again, in order to make his point."

Panetta told The New Yorker for an article in its June 22 issue that Cheney "smells some blood in the water" on the issue of national security.

Cheney has said in several interviews that he thinks Obama is making the U.S. less safe. He has been critical of Obama for ordering the closure of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, halting enhanced interrogations of suspected terrorists and reversing other Bush administration initiatives he says helped to prevent attacks on the U.S. - ABC News Story

I think that this is ridiculous to think that the man who faught for eight years to keep this Country safe would want an attack against it.

The only thing going on right now is Obama wanted to bully around the former Bush Administration and he didn't count on Cheney coming right back at him. Obama spent the majority of his time blaming them for everything and telling everyone how much better he was than them, now Cheney is calling him out and his supporters don't like.

Well, Mr. Obama, you and your team will just have to sit in the big uncomfortable seat where every move you make is questioned, analyzed and second guessed forever. and Yes, if there is another attack and it happens on your watch, then you will have been wrong.

Obama's Help for Families facing Foreclosure is Failing

(CBS) California today imposed a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures. The state has the nation's second-highest foreclosure rate.

The development is good news for those running into a stone wall at the bank despite the Obama administration's plan to help homeowners rewrite their mortgages. CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker heard one family's story.

The De La Torre family had their American dream within their grasp: a house of their own and bright, beautiful children.

But when mom Angelica lost her housekeeping job and dad Angel's hours at a granite company were cut, the family could no longer afford their mortgage at 6.5 percent interest.

The family realized it was facing foreclosure - its dream slipping away.

"My dad always comes back stressed out. He's trying to do a lot of things right now so we can stay with the house," Angel De La Torre, Jr. said.

Losing their house to changing financial circumstances, the De La Torres are exactly the sort of Americans that President Barack Obama promised to help with his "Making Home Affordable" program.

But when Angel asked his bank to modify his loan, they told him he had to default on the loan to qualify. Not true. The program is made for homeowners like the De La Torres whose payments exceed 31 percent of their monthly income. The De La Torres' payments were already 54 percent of income. - CBS News Story

I don't necessarily agree with the program at all. If you can't afford the house you are in then you should find something that you can afford, not get a free ride to buy things you can not afford.

That being said, can you imagine if this was a Republican plan not working? The Democrats would be out screaming that the Republicans are only looking out for the rich. Well, is Obama only looking out for the rich?