House reps to Obama: About that UN arms trade treaty? Just say no.

◼ Hours after U.S. President Barack Obama was re-elected, the United States backed a U.N. committee’s call on Wednesday to renew debate over a draft international treaty to regulate the $70 billion global conventional arms trade. - HotAir

A bipartisan group of almost eighty House representatives are not pleased with the idea of the United Nations gaining authority to stick its nose into the gun trade in rule-of-law-abidin’ bastions of tail-kicking freedom like the United States, and have introduced a resolution that calls on President Obama to decline on signing the Arms trade Treaty (ATT)

◼ House resolution calls on Obama to reject UN arms trade treaty - The Hill

Benjamin Netanyahu: Leader of the Free World

◼ Israel defends herself. Israel defends the free world. - Matt Barber/Townhall

More commonly known as “following,” President Obama’s follow-the-leader strategy in the Middle East represents, in my view, either inherent weakness on his part, sympathy toward the Islamic cause or both.

I suspect both.

Indeed, during his first term, Mr. Obama betrayed both weakness personified and sympathy toward the goals of Islamic fundamentalism with his ongoing embrace of the Muslim Brotherhood.

This extremist group, with Obama’s help, now controls much of the Arab world. It has sworn, in its own words, to “destroy” our “Western civilization from within … so that it is eliminated and God’s religion (Islam) is made victorious over all other religions.”

Not surprisingly, today the Brotherhood rushes to the aid of both the terrorist group Hamas and Holocaust denier Mahmoud Abbas, head of the Palestinian Authority. This, as terrorists ramp-up decades-long rocket attacks and suicide bombings against innocent Israeli women and children.

Nonetheless – and clearly stemming from a cynical political calculus – Mr. Obama persists in paying shallow lip service to support for Israel. All the while he continues to play footsie with the Muslim Brotherhood....

Whether due to naiveté, foolishness or pure dishonesty, President Obama’s bungling of the Middle East crisis – let alone his unprecedented attacks on our constitutional freedoms stateside – has disqualified him to lead the free world.

And so, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stepped forward to answer the call. He has become de facto leader of the free world – chief defender of Western civilization.

As America’s light fades under the Obama regime, Israel has become – for now at least – “the shining city on the hill.”

Twinkies likely to survive, become a foreign import...

◼ The Twinkie: Will it return as a Mexican expat? - Patrik Jonsson/Christian Science Monitor

Who knew there were so many Twinkie diehards?

The announcement that Hostess Brands would shutter and liquidate its 33 bakeries – including its Twinkie-making plant in Illinois – sparked a fevered Boomer nostalgia ironically belied by the fact that it’s been years since most people have bit into that impossibly long-lasting and sticky-sweet miracle of artificial confectionery. (Today, about 12 percent of US households buy Twinkies, down from 15 percent in 2004.)

But news that Twinkie bars are now selling at gold bar prices on eBay hints at opportunity: In fact, global firms are already lining up to bid on the iconic brand names – Ding Dongs, Ho Ho’s, Wonder Bread, Drake’s – in order to prepare many, if not all, for reissue.

The brands “most likely will be purchased by a competitor that will bolt the additional sales to a more efficient delivery system,” David Pauker, a food industry restructuring specialist, tells Reuters. “The company itself won't survive.”

...For now, the future of 18,500 Hostess jobs are up in the air, and many may never return. As for the Twinkie? It looks like it actually is indestructible.

◼ Hostess Bankruptcy: What Role Did Policy Play? - Chris Edwards/Townhall

The demise of Hostess and Twinkies is not a national emergency, but it is certainly sad when a major business goes under and thousands of people lose their jobs.

If federal and state policymakers want to play a useful role here, they should study why Hostess couldn’t make a go of it. Were there tax or regulatory factors that stood in the way of the company earning a decent rate of return?

Unions were an important factor that pushed up the firm’s costs and reduced its operational efficiency. The policy reform here is obvious for people who appreciate market economics: repeal America’s coercive union laws. If policymakers don’t kill so-called collective bargaining, these rules will keep on killing companies....

◼ Who killed Hostess? - Thomas Lifson/AMERICAN THINKER

The left is madly spinning (aka, lying about) the impending demise of Hostess, trying to blame the free enterprise system, and even Mitt Romney's former firm, Bain Capital. This is a lie. It was inside job of the left, with a prominent Democrat helping himself to consulting fees and a hundred thousand dollars a year sinecure for his son.

Richard Trumka of the AFL-CIO is in the lead on the disinformation campaign...

While the unions and their media allies like to cite executive salaries and consulting fees paid to executives as outrageous, they are ignoring left winger Dick Gephardt cashing in for himself, and more outrageously, for his son, who was appointed to the Hostess Board and paid one hundred thousand dollars a year.

Hostess has failed to reach agreement with the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, which, unlike the Teamsters Union, is unwilling to agree to givebacks in order to keep the company alive, triggering its liquidation and the loss of over 18,000 jobs. The Teamsters, notably, are not affiliated with the AFL-CIO , while the Bakers are part of the labor federation headed by Richard Trumka.

Trumka has a long and sordid history of selling out union workers for his personal political power and career advancement. Clarice Feldman described for our readers his sell-out of the mine workers when he headed the United Mine Workers of America, allying with President Obama, who has made clear his intent to close down coal mines and destroy mining jobs, sacrificing his members' livelihood, while his political sway earned him a promotion from his own union to head up the entire AFL-CIO and emerge as one of Obama's key allies.

It is time for conservatives to start employing some of the tactics of the left, and hound Trumka and Gephardt for their disgraceful roles in selling out the workers. Allowing the media and labor bosses to spin Hostess as the fault of Mitt Romney is simply ridiculous.

◼ Bitter end for Hostess OK’d in bankruptcy court - Market Watch

Over the last four days, militants in Gaza have fired more than 840 rockets at Israel.

◼ The Escalating Conflict Between Hamas and Israel - James Phillips/heritage Foundation

Hamas rockets have reached the outskirts of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv for the first time, thanks to the smuggling of Iranian rockets into Gaza. The increasing range and sophistication of Palestinian rockets has expanded the reach of terrorists, who now can threaten up to half of Israel’s population.

Israel has intercepted 302 of those rockets with its Iron Dome missile defense system, according to the Israel Defense Forces. Iron Dome, on which the U.S. has collaborated, has proven its worth and underscored the importance of missile defense in future U.S. military budgets.

Meanwhile, Iran is seeking—successfully—to keep the pot boiling at Israel’s expense to distract international attention from its nuclear program. A leaked International Atomic Energy Agency report indicates that Iran could soon double the number of centrifuges at its Fordo facility from 700 to 1,400.

President Obama spoke out on the fighting yesterday, saying Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas’s missile attacks from Gaza. But he urged Israel not to launch a ground assault in Gaza, saying it would put Israeli soldiers, as well as Palestinian citizens, at greater risk and hamper an already vexing peace process.

“If we see a further escalation of the situation in Gaza, the likelihood of us getting back on any kind of peace track that leads to a two-state solution is going to be pushed off way into the future,” Obama said.

This public statement will only strengthen Hamas’s determination to continue its rocket terrorism and reap the propaganda benefits from Israeli retaliatory air strikes, because the President’s statement lowers the perceived risks of an Israeli ground intervention. Moreover, it is continued Palestinian terrorism that is the chief barrier to peace, not Israel’s legitimate efforts to protect its own citizens from indiscriminate Palestinian terrorist attacks.

Egypt, Turkey, and the Arab League have heavily criticized Israel and called for a halt of air strikes. Hamas is an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood and hopes to pull in Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood-dominated regime to tilt the balance against Israel. Egypt’s government will seek to have its cake and eat it, too, in the sense that it will use the crisis to denounce Israel, support Hamas, and play to anti-Israeli sentiments at home while trying to mediate a ceasefire behind the scenes that enhances its influence and justifies continued U.S. and Western aid.

If they genuinely wanted to stop the bloodshed, then these leaders should pressure Hamas to stop the bombardment, which triggered the crisis.

Obama, too, should aim primarily at restraining Hamas, not Israel.... More, at the link.

REPUBLICAN HQ CLOSED FOR THANKSGIVING WEEK

Enjoy the Holiday.

CFRW Capitol Update

Supermajority in CA

This week at the capitol, Democrats captured their 54th seat in the State Assembly, meaning they successfully gained enough seats to gain the supermajority in both houses. The Democrats have not held this much power in the State Legislature for more than one hundred years, giving them power is something our generation has never seen. This position of the supermajority comes at a critical time in California Politics. State legislators are battling the state deficit, increased spending, tax hikes, a decline in the quality of California’s education, increases in education costs, and businesses leaving the state. As many have noted, California is at a tipping point. Facing these and a number of other important issues, Democratic legislators now have the power to pass bills requiring a two-thirds majority (most importantly taxes) and bypass gubernatorial vetoes. Ultimately, the Democrats in the State Legislature now have the power to do anything they choose.

As conservatives, the fight for our state is now important as ever. While the Democrats may have unyielding power, as Republicans we must remind the Democrats that their power is not unlimited and that they must continue to serve the interests of the California taxpayers and citizens. Election night may have passed, but this does not mean we should abandon our efforts to restore California. We must work harder than ever and continue to show the Democrats in the state legislature that there are still Republicans in California and that we are committed to fiscal responsibility.

Back on the Horse!

I am sure many of you have been disheartened by the outcome of last Tuesday’s election. However, we must remember that although it is easy to be disheartened, we must not be discouraged. We must renew our commitments to moving California forward towards stability and fiscal responsibility. To do this, we must come together as Republicans and reframe the message of the Republican Party. We can rebound from the losses we suffered this election and continue to remind Democrats that they must serve the interests of the citizens. It is imperative, therefore, for all of you to come to the CFRW’s annual conference in San Diego February 8th, 9th, and 10th. There we can come together as Republican women and strengthen our dedication to renewing conservatism in California. We must remind citizens and the electorate that the Republican Party is not a party of fear, but a party of individual and fiscal responsibility. The CFRW is a formidable force, and with the supermajority now held by both houses, we must continue in our efforts to make our Republican voices heard. Join us in San Diego in February and let’s get back on that horse and ride!

Republican Women Victories!

We are excited to congratulate even more Republican Women who won their elections across the state. If you have any more Republican Women election victories to report, please email their name, office, and local RWF club to advocate@cfrw.org

Local Races:
Pat Woods, Laguna Nigel Board of Directors
Laurie Davies, Laguna Nigel City Council

President’s Message

Dear CFRW Members,

As we look forward towards next week and reflecting on the things we are thankful for, take a few minutes to let those closest to you know how thankful you are for them. We need to gain some peace in our lives, especially now that the elections are over. We need to think of the peace we need to have in our lives as we prepare for 2013 "CFRW Year of the Woman". This peace will equate into more compassion towards all those we know and hope to know. If we genuinely do this women will gravitate towards our wonderful organization. Once we have compassion it will teach us humility towards ourselves and others, looking more for our common traits and less to finding fault. Gratitude for those around us and thanking them for being in our lives, and most of all it will give you a clear conscience

We have spent too much time condemning people who are not like us, either by race, nationality, religious thinking, looks, and a multitude of other thoughts often traversing through our minds. We need to appreciate all of Our Heavenly Father's Children. It is time to be thankful we live in this beautiful country.

I cannot begin to thank each and every member of this wonderful Federation, but I can thank my Father in Heaven for you each day. During this Thanksgiving week I can and will appreciate all the goodness you have brought and continue to bring into my life. I am always and ever proud to let everyone know that I belong to the CFRW, which has the finest women in this world. We pull together when one stumbles; many are there to pick them up. You truly are the best of the best.

Thank you for enriching my life, thank you for your prayers and blessings and every thank you for the times I may disappoint you, or you feel I am wrong. Thank you for being you.

God bless you and your families. Thank you for this great country , that you give of your time so freely to protect our freedoms. Keep the faith it will get better.

Much love and blessings,

Your Humble President,
Carol Hadley

From a Student’s Perspective: CFRW Volunteer Jilian Plank

It’s been almost two weeks since election night, but this does not mean that the wounds the Republican Party suffered that night are not still fresh. Coming from the standpoint of a college student studying Political Science at UC Davis, election night was very disheartening. Across the country Republicans lost ground, but in California it seems as if nothing went our way. As a student at a liberal arts college, however, it was easier for me to understand the outcomes of the election. Thousands of college students across California learn from an early age to appreciate and take from a society of entitlement. They are not taught to appreciate hard work, but rather expect that their destiny will be provided for them. Talking to many of my liberal friends on campus, very few of them knew the consequences of Proposition 30 and did not realize how much its passage would negatively impact the state’s economy. Instead they are taught to demonize the wealthy and expect those that have worked immensely hard to fork over even more than they already do. Therefore, it is easy for me to understand why conservatives lost so much ground on Election Night. It is because our education system slants the issues, meaning most young adults who come out of universities are biased in the most liberal of fashions. The society of entitlement comes therefore, not only from continued handouts but also from the way in which are youth are educated. As a conservative student, it is hard to fight back against the liberal bias, but doing so is vital to our country’s success.