Congress At 10% Approval Rating

Pelosi Demonstrates Why Voters Hate Congress

This broad is just freaking delusional. No two ways about it.

Obama "I am not a Socialist"

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire!

Yesterday Barack Hussein Obama complained to his willing co-conspirators in the lamestream media that he was not a Socialist and rejected that as a label.  Obama then went on to claim he "embraces free market principles."

Really?

What else do you call someone who advocates Government control over the Banking, Automobile and Health Care Industries?

I call them Liberals, which are the same thing as the 1930's Progressives, which are the same thing as the 1950's Communists which are the same thing as a modern day European SOCIALIST!

As in all things, it matters not what someone says, watch what they DO.  Obama's own actions label him a SOCIALIST, of this there is no doubt.

A Polling Question You’ll Never See

Who Do American’s Trust More?

Knowing that the Federal Government has a controlling interest in two of our Nation’s three automakers, dragging Toyota in front of Congress to testify about their manufacturing and recall practices seems sort of hypocritical to me.  After all, why wouldn’t the U.S. Government (who again, has a controlling interest in GM and Chrysler Corporations) use Toyota’s current recall woes to drive up American car sales?

Seems the trick isn’t working though as consumers are moving towards Ford, Honda and Hyundai as alternatives to Toyota rather than Government Motors (GM) or Chrysler Corporation.

So that got me to thinking about a polling question.

Who does America trust more: Toyota, to correct their mistakes, restore consumer confidence and build a quality, affordable product again OR the Federal Government to “fix” our Health Care system and deliver quality, affordable care?

Bet you won’t see that as a polling question because you and I just know the Obama Administration doesn’t want to see the answer to that question!

If Socialized Medicine Was So Good …

Why Did A Canadian Premier Fly to Florida for Heart Surgery?

Source: Canadian Press (via Google)

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams faced a tough choice: succumb to Canada’s failed socialized medicine model and have a painful, highly intrusive operation to repair a heart valve, or fly to the United States of America for a minimally invasive, high-tech procedure that was not available in Canada.

Williams flew to Sarasota, Florida for the operation.

"I did not sign away my right to get the best possible health care for myself when I entered politics” Williams said in seeking the best care available in the United States. 

"This was my heart, my choice and my health," Williams said late Monday from his condominium in Sarasota, Fla.  Yet Williams and politicians like him in both Canada and the United States seek to restrict care for ordinary citizens through socialized medicine.

While stating that his decision was not a reflection on the Canadian health care system, Williams added “(But) this is not a unique phenomenon to me. This is something that happens with lots of families throughout this country, so I make no apologies for that."

Right, quality healthcare for thee, but not for me.

You arrogant smug bastard!

 

Media Bias in the Headlines

Misleading Titles, Lack of Facts, Drive-By Journalism Run Amok

Today on Yahoo Finance a headline caught my eye, so I decided to read the article to see what facts were presented to back up the article’s title “Glee for the GOP, Trouble for Obama: The Politics of Falling Consumer Confidence".

Sure enough, Aaron Task who writes for Yahoo Finance used a quote by  The Atlantic’s eft-wing writer Megan McArdle as the title of his article, rather than actually seeking out facts (or Republicans who were “gleeful” of the country’s economic woes.)

Quoting McArdle in the article:

But not everyone is upset by the data. Republicans will view the much-worse-than-expected confidence report "with glee," says McArdle, who believes there's not much Obama and the Democrats can do to stem the momentum before the November mid-term elections.

I’m not a “Republican” and haven’t called myself one since 1990 when George Herbert Walker Bush broke his promise of “read my lips, no new taxes”  but I do know plenty of Republicans and let me tell you – not a single one has any “glee” over the current economy.  Especially those Republicans outside the DC beltway that suffer the same unemployment as Democrats outside the beltway.

Here in America’s heartland, being unemployed isn’t about one’s political affiliation – it’s about this Administration’s complete inability to recognize the fact that spending money we do not have, creating Government jobs that produce nothing but more bureaucracy and require more taxes from the few producers left in this country is NOT the way out of the Great Recession.  There are no “winners” here, we’re all losing.

The reality is this: until this Administration shifts positions to generating growth in the private sector through deep tax cuts and research and development incentives, stops threatening business’ of all size with new taxes and regulations, stops the largest expansion of the Federal Government since FDR and actively works to cut spending and balance the budget, there will be no end to this, the Great Recession.

This is not to say the Republican Party is perfect, it is not and again I do not call myself a “Republican.”  The reality is however that Obama’s “policies” have been proven a failure in one short year, and the proof is in one simple question: “Are you better off now than you were a year ago?”  Overwhelmingly by more than 80%, American’s say NO!

The evidence against Obama builds daily as more and more American’s awaken to the reality that this President simply does not have a clue.  The “anger” in the electorate is felt by all of us across all socio-economic barriers.  The “post racial” President may not have been able to “unite” Washington DC and move beyond party politics but I’ll tell you this: He’s sure united Democrats and Republican’s in the Heartland against his policies, and that’s going to make this year’s mid-term elections a veritable blood-bath for the Democrats.

 

Where’s The Economic Recovery?

Claims of 2 Million Jobs Created Doesn’t Hold Water

I wrote about this almost 5 months ago now that any economic recovery’s leading indicator is an uptick in State tax revenues as a result of increased economic activity.

That’s just Economics 101.

Last Friday, Obama made the wild-assed statement that the $787 Billion dollar “stimulus package” had created 2,000,000 jobs “and counting.”

Today the Rockefeller Institute of Government (not exactly a ‘right leaning organization’) reported that in 46 states tax collections including all sales tax, income taxes, fees and other taxes collected by State Governments fell again for a record fifth quarter.

What’s causing State Revenues to drop at record levels for the fifth quarter in a row?  Higher taxes stifling economic activity!

The old saying is absolutely true: If the government wants less of something produced, they simply tax it more.

Clearly the Obama Administration is aiming for less economic activity with all their proposed increased taxes.

Glen Beck at CPAC: A Masters Course in American History

Progressivism, The Disease That Ails America

Typically, I think Glen Beck's a nut, a loose cannon, an emotional roller-coaster waiting to careen off my TV screen crashing into a pile of blubber in my living room whenever his show is on.  Really, sometimes I think the guy is just the other side of being able to hold himself together long enough to make a salient point.

But last night at CPAC, he put on a Masters Course in American History.  It was nothing short of a brilliantly articulated tour of the history of America's19th and 20th centuries and our political system.  Don't think for a second he blamed our country's ills on just the Democrats, rather some of his harshest criticism he left for the Republican Party.  Why?  Because a Progressive (or "Liberal", "Communist", "Socialist", "Marxist" or "Redistributionist") by any other name is still a PROGRESSIVE.

Progressives have called themselves all these different things over the last 100 years or so, yet their mission has remained steadfastly the same: to whittle away at the Constitution of the United States of America, and "re-make" it into something else.

For the rest, you'll need to watch the video and we promise you won't be disappointed.

Obama To Ram Through Health Care Bill

Approval Rating At All Time Low

Picture says a thousand words.  Obama’s approval hits an all-time low days after announcing the Democrats would force through health care using a seldom used reconciliation amendment to have the House of Represenatives vote on the Senate’s health care reform bill, in a last, fatal attempt to force all American’s into Socialized medicine.

Can Obama go lower?  YES HE CAN!

The Day American Politics Changed

Rick Santelli’s “Rant” Gave Birth To A Movement

On this day in 2009, Rick Santelli gave voice to millions of us who are frustrated and angry at the way this Government has been spending and wasting our money.

To Mr. Santelli, we say “Thank You!” for being the spark that started this new American Revolution, and organizations such as the Tea Party and GOOH.

We’re also mindful that Santelli’s rant had much to do with Obama’s re-distributionist policies, taking away from those who work to give to those who sit on their fat, lazy, government cheese eating behinds all day complaining they don’t have enough – and demand more.

Which is why it’s particularly insulting that yesterday the Obama Administration announced they were going to ram-rod through “Health Care Reform” despite losing three major elections (Virginia, New Jersey, Massachusetts) to Republican Conservatives, and polling data that shows more than 70% against “ObamaCare.”

 

Worlds Largest Coal Company Sues U.S. Government Over Climate Fraud

How Long Until AlGore Is Forced To Return Nobel Prize?

The world’s largest private sector coal business, the Peabody Energy Company (PEC) has filed a mammoth 240-page “Petition for Reconsideration,” a full-blown legal challenge against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The petition must be answered and covers the entire body of leaked emails from ‘Climategate’ as well as those other ‘gate’ revelations including the frauds allegedly perpetrated under such sub-headings as ‘Himalayan Glaciers,’ ‘African Agricultural Production,’ ‘Amazon Rain Forests,’ ‘Melting Mountain Ice,’ ‘Netherlands Below Sea Level’ as well as those much-publicized abuses of the peer-review literature and so called ‘gray literature.’ These powerful litigants also draw attention to the proven criminal conduct by climate scientists in refusing to honor Freedom of Information law (FOIA) requests.

Read more at ClimateGate.Com ...

Related Links

CEI: CEI, Science Groups Petition EPA to Reconsider Increasingly Dubious Global Warming “Endangerment” Finding

CEI: New Lawsuit, Petition Challenge EPA Global Warming Regulations

PEC: World’s biggest coal company brings U.S. government to court in climate fraud

“Miss Me Yet?” Billboard Sponsors Revealed

They Weren’t All Republican’s!

David Horwitz’s blog NewsReal reveals two of the seven donors that sponsored the now infamous “Miss Me Yet?” billboards that featured a picture of a smiling, waving George W. Bush.

Excerpt:

Tuesday the mystery was solved. A political blog, Minessota Democrats Exposed, revealed the names of two of the mystery billboard’s seven sponsors, Mike Rivard and Randy Nugent. Guess what? They weren’t all Republicans. But not a single one would call themselves Democrats, choosing instead Independents.

It looks like that hope and change is beginning to hurt. According to the sponsors, the photo of Bush waving and the “Miss me yet?” text originated as part of a chain e-mail sent among friends. When asked why they chose to post the image, Rivard and Nugent said, “We’re sick of the blame game and (Bush) isn’t so bad compared with what we have now.”

Well, can someone explain this one then?  This seems to be a mood that’s spreading throughout the country, what with 75% of the population angry at Washington DC and all:

Or how about this one along I-41 near Oshkosh Wisconsin?  I drove by this one just last week:

The magic’s definitely rubbed off of Obama.  Wisconsin went big for Obama in 2008, my how the mighty have fallen!

 

Obama Signs Law Raising Debt Limit – Again!

Democrats Rush To Raise Ceiling For Second Time In Less Than One Year

They hope you’ll forget about it come November, those sneaky Democrats.  Once again, they’ve raised the debt limit for the second time in less than a year, and far ahead of the time that they would’ve been required to do it which not so coincidentally would’ve happened right before the November mid-term elections!

Obama and the Democrats had previously raised the debt limit from $11 trillion to $12.394 trillion, but now they’ve raised it by another nearly $2 trillion dollars to $14.294 trillion dollars, or a grand total of 4 trillion dollars in less than a year!

To put it in perspective, that’s more than George W. Bush added to the national debt in his 8 years in office!

What’s causing all this massive debt?  Among other things, Federal Employee Pensions and Benefits, which are higher than that in the private sector.  We now have more Federal Employees that are Union members than exist in the Private Sector.  And these bastards keep giving themselves more and more at our expense!

Your share as a taxpayer is $113,000 (or roughly 40,000 per citizen.)

Remember that come November!

Polls Show Voters Abandoning Obama in Droves

Independent Voters Fleeing Democrat Party

In a new poll conducted by Marist – that’s right, the left-leaning Marist, Obama’s approval rating has plummeted to 29%.

It’s not just Rasmussen, Fox News, AP, Reuters anymore.  The left leaning Marist Poll has “turned'” on Obama now too.

Obama has now nearly totally lost Independent voters which will spell complete devastation for the Democrats come the November mid-term elections.

The proof is in the pudding as the saying goes, so we remind you that Obama and the Democrats are 0-3 counting losses in Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts – all states in which Obama campaigned for Democrats – only to have them lose two Governor’s mansions and one Senate Seat held by Teddy “The Swimmer” Kennedy for more than 40 years.

"The independents have become a problem," said Lee Miringoff, who conducted the poll. "They were his ticket to Washington, and now they're a problem."

Independents don't just disapprove of the job Obama is doing, they're tiring of him personally. His favorability rating among them is down to 39 percent, with a 59 percent unfavorable rating.

Last December, Obama's favorability rating among independents was just under 50 percent.

Read more:

The New York Post

Ladies & Gentelmen, Sarah Palin

The Next President of The United States (?)

As I watched Palin’s speech to the National Tea Party Convention last night in Nashville Tennessee, two thoughts crossed my mind.

First, is former Ambassador John Bolton advising Palin on foreign relations?  The similarities between Bolton and Palin’s views and the way in which they express them are too striking for Bolton not to be influencing Palin.  By the way, I’d view that as a good thing and certainly a smart move on Palin’s part if it were true.  Of course, that’s just speculation on my part.

The second thought I had as Palin ripped the Obama administration to shreds was “I wonder who’s office Obama, Biden, Emmanuel, Axelrod, Gibbs, Pelosi and Reid were curled up in a fetal position in?”

“Despite what the pundits say, contested primaries are not civil wars, they are Democracy at work, and that’s beautiful.”

-- Sarah Palin, National Tea Party Convention, Nashville Tennessee

Obama Administration Cooking The Books

Real Unemployment Rate: 10.6%

Obfuscate:

–verb (used with object), -cat⋅ed, -cat⋅ing.

1. to confuse, bewilder, or stupefy.
2. to make obscure or unclear: to obfuscate a problem with extraneous information.
3. to darken.

If like me you’re left wondering just how it is the Federal Government  can report that unemployment dropped from 10% to 9.7% while at the same time adding another 20,000 people to the unemployment rolls in January while also adding another 900,000 people to the rolls from 2009 that were previously undrecorded then we have a word for you.

OBFUSCATION.

We need look no further than the above facts to know that the Obama Administration is LYING about the unemployment figures in this country.

Here are the facts as they are known. 

• On January 10th, the unemployment rate stood at 10% with 14.8 million people out of work.
• Just last Friday on January 29th, the Federal Government announced at an additional 890,000 that had previously been unrecorded, were unemployed in 2009. 
• To determine the percentage impact of those 890,000 on the overall unemployment figure, simply divide 890,000 by the 14.8 million that are unemployed to determine the “under-count” on the unemployment figure.
• Once we determine the under-count, we must add back in under-count to get an accurate picture of the real unemployment rate.

If you do the math properly, you should come up with a base unemployment rate of 10.604%, which does not count those who’ve given up or fallen off the rolls. 

Is the Obama Administration cooking the books?  YOU BETCHA!!

Source for the above numbers: Bureau of Labor & Statistics, February 2010

 

Harry Reid Losing To All 4 Republican Opponents

Rasmussen Reports has an interesting poll showing Harry Reid (D. NV) the Senate Majority Leader in big trouble in his home state.

All four potential Republican opponents in November’s General Election beat Harry Reid:

The polling breakdown looks even worse, with male voters preferring someone other than Reid by more than 10 percentage points.  He’s mud with Women too, garnering less than 30% of their votes.

The Republican Primary in Nevada is June 8th.  The bloodbath is on November 2nd.  Time to send dirty Harry Reid packing.

Chicago Way Politics

Pictures Say A Thousand Words Sometimes ..

Our special report coming the end of this week.

Tony Rezko is “singing like a bird” to the Feds.  Bank Examiners are getting ready to close down Alexi Giannoulias’ “Broadway bank” amidst charges of malfeasance, money laundering, and ties to the mob.

So where does Barack Obama fit in?

Details coming soon …

Illinois Primary Results

** Updated As Results Come In **

10:30PM

With 95% of the vote counted, the battle for the Democrat and Republican nominations for Governor of Illinois continues to be a dead heat.

Kirk Dillard and Bill Brady are tied at 20%, less than 600 votes separating them. Andy McKenna (milquetoast RINO) is trailing by more than 7,000 votes and fading. 

Democrats Pat Quinn and Dan Hynes are less than 1% point apart, with Quinn leading by just over 5,000 votes.

Areas remaining to be counted should tend to favor Hynes on the Democrats side, and Dillard on the Republican side.  Counting has slowed, 5% of the vote remains to be counted.

10:20PM

Giannoulis is the winner in the Democrat Senate primaries, managing to buy another election.  This pits him against Congressman Mark Kirk, the winner of the Republican Primaries.  Kirk will mop the floor with Giannoulias come November.  Giannoulias’ “know nothing” cavalier attitude will make him an easy mark for Kirk.

Election results are stuck at 93% waiting for several downstate counties and western DuPage county (Chicago’s far western suburbs) to report final totals.  Until that happens here are the impacts:

IL Governor’s races for both Democrats and Republican’s are in virtual dead heats.  On the Republican side, Dillard and Brady are less than 1% point apart.  On the Democrat side, incumbent Pat Quinn and Dan Hynes are in a dead heat as well. 

Media beginning to question why results have been stuck at 93% for more than 30 minutes now …..

Update 10:10PM

Republican Governor’s primaries have Dillard and Brady duking it out for first place, less than 2,000 votes separate them. McKenna’s run is over, falling to third place by more than a 6,000 vote difference.  With 91% reporting, it looks like McKenna’s out – thankfully – with the race shaping up between Dillard and Brady.  Our pick is Brady to win, but remains to be seen.

Giannoulias is the predicted winner in the Democrat Senate Primaries.  Congratulations Democrats, you nominated a know-nothing nobody who’s about to be indicted by the Fed’s.  See you in November!

Democrat Governor’s race is too close to call, less than 2,000 votes separate Quinn and Hynes with 91% reporting.

Mark Kirk is the superstar of the evening.  He took 60% of the vote “out of the gate” and never had to look back over his shoulder.  We called the race for Kirk early on.  Kirk wins with 56% of the vote and 91% counted.  His closest competitor received 19% of the vote.

Update 10:00PM

Alexi Giannoulias is expected to win the Democrat nomination for U.S. Senate with 86% of the vote in, he’s maintained a 4 point lead the entire night.  Yep, he’s bought himself another election.

On the Republican side, the Governor’s race is in a three way dead heat between Brady, Dillard and McKenna. Brady has taken the lead!! There are less than 3,000 votes separating Brady, Dillard and McKenna, who’s fallen to third place.  Too bad Andy, you milquetoast!

On the Democrat side, the Governor’s race is a statistical dead heat between incumbent Pat Quinn and challenger Dan Hynes.  Expect Hynes to pull the race off now that Chicago votes are being counted, and downstate appears to be finished.

More at 10:15PM

Update 9:40PM

IL Democrat primary for U.S. Senate shows Giannoulias holding to a 4% lead, or approximately 30,000 votes with 78% counted.  Still too close to call.

IL Republican Governor’s race is a three way tie between McKenna, Brady and Dillard, less than 3,000 votes separate them.

IL Democrat Governor’s race is a tie between Quinn and Hynes.

Reminder: Mark Kirk was declared the winner in the Republican U.S. Senate primaries.

 

Update 9:20PM

Three-way tie in the Republican primary for Governor between McKenna, Dillard and Brady.  70% counted, less than 5,000 votes separate the three.

Giammoulias is holding onto a 4% lead in the Democrat Senate primary with 72% reporting.

Pat Quinn and Dan Hynes are tied in the Democrat primary for Governor, race has tightened to a tie with 70% reporting ….

Update 9:00PM

Democrat Senate Race looks to be going to Giannoulias.  With 63% counted, he leads with 38% of the vote compared to Hoffman’s 34%.

Republican Senate Race is locked for Mark Kirk,his lead has been insurmountable all night.

Republican Governor’s race is too close to call.  With 62% of the vote counted, it’s a three way race between Andy McKenna (21%) Kirk Dillard (19%) and Bill Brady (17%).  This is going to be a long night.

Illinois Democrat Governor’s race is now too close to call.  Quinn leads 51% to 49% with 62% in, the race has tightened since our last update. 

Update: 8:45PM

Democrat Primary for U.S. Senate has Giannoulias in the lead with 37% vs. Hoffman’s 33%.  With just about 44% counted, still too close to call.

Mark Kirk remains our projected winner in the Republican Primary for U.S. Senate.

Republican Governor’s primary has tightened up, McKenna losing ground to Kirk Dillard.  With 41% counted, McKenna leads 22% to Dillard’s 19%.  Former DuPage County Prosecutor Jim Ryan is at 17%, can’t count him out yet.

Democrat Governor’s primary shows Quinn maintaining his 52% – 47% lead over Dan Hines.  With 43% counted in that race it’s still too close to call, race expected to tighten when downstate votes come in.  Hines is also the son of a Chicago Democrat machine politician, so this race could swing to Hines when the North Side of Chicago is counted..

Update 8:20PM

IL Senate primary Race between Democrats Alexi Giannoulias and Hoffman tightens to within 3%, with 30% of precincts reporting.  Race still too close to call.

In the IL Senate primary race, Mark Kirk expands his lead to 62% vs. all other competitors, this primary race is over, Kirk’s lead and breadth of voters he’s reached is insurmountable. 

IL Republican Governor’s primary race, Andy McKenna (milquetoast, RINO) leads with 26% of the vote with 30% counted. Closest competitor, Jim Ryan, Kirk Dillard and Adam Andrzejewski are at 19%.

IL Democrat Governor primary, Pat Quinn holds a 6% lead at 53%, with 30% counted.  Race technically still too close to call as downstate votes will determine the race.  Hines may catch up downstate.

Update 8:10PM

Mark Kirk running away with the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate with  63% of the vote and 25% counted.  Prediction: Mark Kirk wins Illinois Republican Primary for U.S. Senate.

Andy McKenna, Jim Ryan and Adam Andrzejewski are bunched up in a 3-way race for Governor.  Go Adam Go!

Incumbent (D) Governor Pat Quinn is leading with 53% vs. Dan Hines with just 25% vote counted.

In the Democrat race for US Senate, Alexi Giannoulias has 36% to Doug HOffman’s 32% with just 25% counted.  This looks like a horse race. 

More as results come in ..

7:37pm Record LOW Turnout today in Illinois Gubernatorial and Senate primary races.  Predictions are 20% – 22% turnout today, hampered somewhat by weather in downstate Illinois and the “lakefront liberals” who don’t vote when it’s cold or wet outside

Most watched races:

Illinois Republican Primary, US Senate.  Five candidates ran, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk from the liberal 10th Congressional District on Chicago’s near North Side is expected to win. 

Illinois Republican Primary, Governor.  No fewer than 6 candidates ran, three “professional politicians” and three “exotics” (the new word for “those without previous experience, looking to take advantage of the anti-Washington or anti-Springfield mentality here in Illinois.)  Andy McKenna, former head of the Illinois Republican Party has been the media front-runner, but don’t be surprised if Dan Proft or Adam Andrezjewski, two outsiders that have criss-crossed the state the last year building their name recognition manage to pull this one out.

Illinois Democrat Primary, US Senate.  Alexi Giannoulius the current State Treasurer will be the run-away winner in the Democrat primaries.  The Giannoulius’ family bank,  “Broadway Bank” is also under investigation by the Fed’s, indictments are expected soon.

Illinois Democrat Primary, Governor.  Current Governor Pat Quinn took over once Rod Blagojevich (now a national JOKE) was impeached by the Illinois House and then indicted by Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald.  Quinn’s opponent, Dan Hines is a life-long, family bred politician who stepped into his father’s shoes 20 years ago.  Both Democrats have a sense of “entitlement” for the Governor’s mansion and both have promised to raise the state income tax by 50% should they win. 

Updates as they come, polls closed in Illinois 45 minutes go, no projected winners yet.

Is Tiny Timmy Geithner On The Outs?

Plan To Fix Wall Street Does Not Include Treasury Secretary


For those of you who may have missed it over the weekend, Paul Volcker announced his plan to fix the troubled financial system in a New York Times op-ed this past weekend.  Nowhere in that plan or announcement was there any mention of Tim Geithner or a continuing role for the controversial tax-cheating Treasury Secretary.

Here are some of the elements of Volcker's plan:

-- Prevent banks from owning hedge funds and other proprietary trading vehicles (a semi-reincarnation of the Glass Steagall Act that separated commercial banking and investment banking from the 1930s to the 1990s.)  This would prevent banks from making risky investments with account and shareholder money.

-- Give the government resolution authority to step in, liquidate, or sell any firm it deems to be in trouble (including mortgage lenders, investment banks, and insurance companies) or more simply stated, a re-incarnation of the successful Resolution Trust Corporation of the 1980's which managed the orderly liquidation of banks that failed, minimizing the cost to taxpayers.

-- Make shareholders, management, and, yes, bondholders pay for any costs associated with the bank's failure, preventing Taxpayers from shouldering the burden of failed banks.  

If we do only these things, we will have eliminated the most insidious and problematic part of the status quo: Too Big To Fail.   Under Volcker's plan, big firms would be allowed to fail--in an orderly fashion, with their owners and lenders taking the hit.  In good times, they will also remain competitive in a global economy without arbitrary size constraints that put them at a disadvantage versus international banks that face no such restrictions.
 
One question for those concerned with the fate of Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is why Paul Volcker is selling this plan.  Shouldn't the Treasury Secretary be doing that?

Let the Geithner Watch begin!  It's only a matter of time before the financial midget is out.