Why Stocks Love Scott Walker

You didn’t see it in the mainstream financial media Wednesday morning. But stocks loved Governor Scott Walker’s spanking of public-sector unions and Democrats in Wisconsin. The Dow jumped about 165 points right at the opening on Wednesday, and was up over 200 points later in the day. There really was no other news. There was some speculation about central bank stimulus in Europe and the United States. Blah, blah, blah. But there was nothing specific or concrete.

So it’s an easy point to make: Markets love the Scott Walker landslide. - Larry Kudlow - National Review - Click To Read More...

HEY MOM … THE DEMOCRATS ARE LYING AGAIN!!!

Donald Pleasants

It is informative to compare how the Republicans and Democrats deal with the basic moral issue of honesty and dishonesty.   When Herman Cain appears to have covered up the truth Republican support for his candidacy waned and he was voted off the island.   When Bill Clinton was forced to admit his outright whoppers and cover-up the Democrats celebrated his ability to mislead and made him into an elder statesman.    Joan Rivers had it right:  no matter how cynical you get, you can’t keep up.

            A more recent example of Democrats disregard for truth is Vice President Biden’s recent assertion that, due to local government budget cuts “the result…has been…murder rates are up, robberies are up, rapes are up,” Even the Washington Post calls this statement “absurd.”   The facts are quite the opposite of Biden’s claim.  Violent crime has actually fallen by 47% since 1992.    In the early 1990s the nation’s crime rate reached new highs at 758 violent crimes for every 100,000 Americans.   After 1992 and continuing on through 2008, the Department of Justice Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies reports that stated and local governments actually increased the numbers of law enforcement personnel by one-third to more than 1.1 million.

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Popularity Contests and The State Of The Union

"We're going to see if we've got some straight-shooters in Congress. You say you're the party of tax cuts. Prove you'll fight as hard for tax cuts for working families as for oil companies and most affluent Americans." A combative Obama gearing up for his impromptu Sate of The Union Address

 Mr. Obama told a crowd estimated at 12,000 people, mostly union workers from Detroit," that Congress needed to put people back to work and extend his payroll tax cuts". The president continues on his tact of stepping aside and blaming congress for the county's unemployment problems. How this will ultimately play out is anyone guess, but banking on the breath of his popularity may not be a good ploy for the Democratic party.

The president's popularity, easy going, smart and well spoken, is wearing thin with his base as well as voters on the margins of Mr. Obama's influence. Union voters, once the backbone of his base, have begun to drift away. Among blue collar workers his disapproval reached 56% last month and with women voters his ratings are worse. Some 56% of women voters supported Mr. Obama in the 2008 election, now 43% back his election. Two-thirds of Hispanics voted for Obama in 2008 and now barely a majority of 51% say they will vote for him. Obama voters among whites has dropped from 43% to 31% and his independent base has all but collapsed.

Blaming congress this late in the game may not be the best idea to base a reelection campaign on. If the president can show solid ideas, leadership and drop the divisive rhetoric, his reelection chances might improve but betting the farm on a popularity contest is not a good idea.

"The Country" Has No Rights To Boeing's Business

"At this moment especially, deep in debt, we cannot afford to let another company like Boeing self-destruct. Boeing is not a product of the free market—it's an extension of the U.S. government. Over the years, our taxpayers have paid to create a Boeing work force with exceptionally high skills. That work force is not just an asset for Boeing—it's an asset for the country. Why should the country let Boeing take it apart? Every American should be rooting for the NLRB's general counsel, as the board itself has not yet found a violation."  Tomas Geoghegan Chicago union lawyer

Mr. Geoghegan, in his argument for Boeing to stay in union hands, points out as a given, that Boeing and the government are one. Like GM and General Electric before it, Boeing's fate is cast, a victim of ever encroaching government, where the lines become blurred if taxpayer money is involved.

The crux of the argument for the NLRB is Section 7 of the Wagner Act, passed in 1937. The Wagner Act states that all union workers can engage in concerted activities without reprisal, simply meaning that unions, on a whim, can strike and engage in any activity that holds the employer for ransom translating into lost man hours of work and diminished production.

When labor becomes so empowered that it threatens what can be said and what cannot, in this case by the CEO of Boeing in its reason to move its shop to South Carolina, it has crossed the line. Boeing cannot be called in by the NLRB borgata.

The argument that a higher paid union workforce produces a better product has long been shown to be flawed by union manpower that work short hours, smoke dope and drink beer in their cars at lunch and grumble about union hierarchy and worker's rights. The U.S. landscape is littered with the remains of union cities and states that can no longer compete in Mr. Geoghhegan's idea of a global union utopia.

Obama Uses Crony Capitalism as Presidential Platform

"It was another example of crony capitalism. If you're a big business or bailout business and you've got buddies in big government, big unions, you get the special deal. But if you run the hardware store, run the butcher shop or run the bicycle-repair shop, then you're out of luck." Tim Pawlenty former governor of Minnesota and 2012 Rebublician presidential contender.

Tim Pawlenty is not letting Obama have bragging rights as the president continues to use the auto industry as a staging ground for the Democrats 2012 presidential bid. Pawlenty blasted the GM bailout as a "sweetheart" deal that favored union workers at the expense of the shareholders and creditors.

President Obama also holds out the success of Chrysler Corporation, LLC. as an example of American ingenuity and continues to show up and speak to crowds of union workers in the midwest plants who support his presidential bid. The success of Chrysler, and we use this term loosely, comes to a state with a 10.2% unemployment rate. The car maker's bailout came at the expense of shareholders and product liability claims that were not honored as the government decided who would be taken care of and who would not.

To date, $3.3 billion in claims have been asserted against Motors Liquidation Co. the formal name for GM's bankruptcy estate. Profitable General Motors auto dealerships across the country were closed as part of the restructuring and in retrospect along party lines.

Where Is Norma Rae?

Between 2000 and 2008, 4.8 million Americans moved from forced-union states to right-to-work states-that's one person every minute of every day. - Arthur Laffer

The job flight from union held states has been happening for years. In Laffer and Moore's great op-ed article in the Wall Street journal today they point out that, "liberals have denied it's happening-until now." Nothing, in our opinion, gets pass the liberals and their "denial" was served up in the election of Barack Obama. What we are seeing now, is the last great gasp of union muscle. The real question is will Obama stick with the NLRB's shocking move on Boeing or will he abandon his union base, show some real leadership, and stand up for national prosperity?

Laffer and Moore point out right-to-work sates grew faster than forced-union shop sates in gross product 54.6% to 40.6%, personal income 53.3% versus 40.6% and population base increases of 11.9% versus a stagnant 6.1% in union states. Right-to-work states are getting richer with a 23% higher per capita income growth rate that translates to $2,760  per person increase over the union shop. Wages have been shown to rise faster in states that do not require mandatory union membership and employers are not faced with burdensome and arcane union regulations and work stoppages.

The American worker no longer needs Norma Rae's "Union Boss." Like so many things, it once served a purpose, but we have moved on and the NLRB's fight is a lost cause and will become a bitter footnote in forced-union history.

Obama Stokes the Union Heart

Obama has moved to block Boeing from building their planes in South Carolina, a right to work state. The National Labor Relation Board wants them in Washington, a labor state. Ms. Haley and the country cannot let this happen.

Read the article appearing below about Nikki Haley and her battle with the unions.  Nikki is taking a step to win another important battle - the battle of language.  Conservatives are not against unions - they are against mandatory or compulsory union membership.  They are all for voluntary union membership.  We must win the battle of labels!  Our freedom is at stake. - DSMW

Obama and Labor Forcing Boeing Out Of South Carolina

South Carolina is a right to work state. Workers cannot be required to join a union as a condition of employment. Because of this, Boeing chose South Carolina to open a state of the art facility that employes thousands of Boeing workers. Boeing and South Carolina are proud of their accomplishments and the business climate that is flourishing there. But wait. The Labor Relations Board and President Obama are intimidating Boeing to leave South Carolina and build their Dreamliners in Washington State, a union state.

The actions by the NLRB are nothing less than a direct assault on the 22 right-to-work states across America. They are also an unprecedented attack on an iconic American company that is being told by the federal government—which seems to regard its authority as endless—where and how to build airplanes. Nikki Haley, Governor South Carolina

Ms. Haley has more to say;

South Carolina is a right-to-work state, and we're proud that within our borders workers cannot be required to join a labor union as a condition of employment. We don't need unions playing middlemen between our companies and our employees. We don't want them forcefully inserted into our promising business climate. And we will not stand for them intimidating South Carolinians.

The NLRB has intervened and asked the courts to force Boeing to stop production in South Carolina and Obama is silent.

 If you are new to all of this do not miss Atlas Shrugged at a theater near you.

Have you seen Atlas Shrugged?

We just went to see Atlas Shrugged. Things are a little hectic here at DSMW headquarters, so our review will have to wait. Not to be too much of a tease, but we liked it and think it is not getting a fair shake. Have you seen it? Tell us what you think of it.

Ohio's Governor Moves Against Unions

For weeks, the nation's attention has been drawn to the storm in Madison over Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's proposal to limit the power of government unions. Yet 500 miles to the southeast, in Columbus, Ohio, Gov. John Kasich is on the verge of passing a more extensive reform.

Under the Ohio bill, government workers can only bargain for pay increases based on merit and performance, not years of service. Wisconsin's law allows workers to negotiate wage increases on seniority, but it limits increases to inflation. Anything more would require voter approval. Karl Rove - Click To Read More...