PureBunkum

Bill Clinton would have us believe that Paul Kanjorski is an army of one, and we all know that that’s Rush Limbaugh.

The former president came to Nanticoke last Tuesday and professed his deep admiration for our very own Kanjo.

“I’m just crazy about Paul Kanjorski,” Bill  Clinton told the 600 or so people who gathered in the Greater Nanticoke Area  High School gym.  We had no idea they were such great buds.

Clinton credited Kanjorski with, among things, sparing our region from billions of dollars in damages for his role in strengthening our levee system.

The Democratic Party’s chief cheerleader then reiterated the party line, telling angry Americans not to be angry.  Clinton wants us to forget on Tuesday that the Obama group, including Kanjorski, spent over $800 billion of our tax money to stimulate an economy that’s still sputtering, and bulldozed through a health care overhaul bill that about two-thirds of the country didn’t want.  Well, we choose not to forget.

We know that Nancy Pelosi said that once the Democrats in Congress passed the bill, we would learn what was in it.  But, we still don’t .  And now, we’re supposed to trust the gang that can’t shoot straight.

Clinton warned us to think twice before throwing out Paul Kanjorski.

“People hire Democrats to fix things,” he said – with a straight face too.  “When Republicans say it was a failure, they’re just wrong.”

They were wrong for not supporting the stimulus package and all those shovel-ready jobs that Barack Obama himself was forced to admit never existed after all?

Clinton also scoffed that Democrats are not big spenders.  This guy is simply delusional.

“Give us two more years,” he implored.  “Give us half the time you gave Republicans to dig  the hole.

Sorry, Mr. Clinton.  Maybe you have on the blinders, but we saw what happened in the past two years.  And the country seems afraid, terrified actually, to give your crowd two more years to cause further damage.

- PureBunkum

The American people should be furious.

The Democrats in Congress last year bulldozed through a massive health care overhaul package without knowing what was in it.  They didn’t need to know because it doesn’t affect them, only us.  Their leader,  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in one of her more outrageous statements, said they had to pass the bill to learn what was in it.  This devious woman said this with a smile.

Obama and his army demanded that it pass.  He was staking part of his presidency on it.  Deals were made.  Lawmakers were threatened and enough subsequently caved.  This was the best thing since sliced bread.  Historic. 

So where’s the pride?

“Few Dems dare to tout health care,” was the headline on a Tuesday Associated Press article.  “Most are trying to distance themselves from the controversial health care reform law,” the article said.

Well, isn’t that just dandy?

The Democrats, with no support whatsoever from Republicans, pushed through a big-government bill that  two-thirds of the American people did not want, in the wee hours of the morning, and now they don’t want to identify with it.

Those lawmakers include Paul Kanjorski, Chris Carney and Joe Sestak, who wants a promotion to U.S. senator.

The three ignored us before the vote, and now they want our votes to keep them in office.  They have nerve.

They were more concerned with handing Obama a victory than they were about their constituents.

At least Carney met with voters to hear their concerns.  Kanjorski did not.

Well now we’re in the driver’s seat.  The Democrats are running scared, knowing that their actions, including passage of the ineffective $800-billion stimulus package, are coming back to haunt them.

They are hoping we forget.  Don’t.

- PureBunkum

CALL ME

Now we know … the rest of the story.

Besides the occasional nut with a camera who may post him on YouTube, U.S. Rep. Paul  Kanjorski elaborated Thursday on why he won’t hold any public town hall meetings.

 ”People would scream and yell and stomp,” when he used to host them, Kanjo told The Times Leader, which is deciding whether to endorse him or his opponent, Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta.  Kanjo apparently still has nightmares of  those past town halls.

It’s unclear whether the newspaper was being sarcastic or just plain funny with its Friday headline, “Kanjorski touts his accessibility.”

Further explaining his inaccessibility, the congressman said that previous town hall attendees who screamed, yelled and stomped ”were people who weren’t well informed.”  The congressman obviously has a low tolerance not only for YouTube, but also for ignorance.

That was an interesting remark he made, though, because he told the newspaper that his opponent, Barletta, doesn’t know what a congressman does.  “I inform people, and I listen to their concerns.”  But if you remember - because we do - we were concerned last year about plans to overhaul the health care system, and Kanjo went into hiding.

Kanjorski still insists that he has “meetings all the time.  I meet with more constituents than anybody.” Yes, he has visited a few senior citizens’ centers and spoke at The Woodlands to some chambers of commerce members  And, through automated recordings, he has invited constituents to participate in group telephone chats.

But with all due respect, a town hall meeting is when you actually get out there in person and meet with your constituents in person and face the music – in person.

The incumbent congressman offered yet another explanation for refusing to meet with voters.  He said that when he did, the meetings would only attract 20 people or less and required extensive travel time.

Nice try, Kanjo.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi allowed you to go  home early in order to campaign, even before taking action on continuing our tax cuts.  So you’re home now, no extensive travel time required.

And, readers, in case you don’t subscribe to The Times Leader, we’d be remiss if we didn’t share with you Kanjo’s assessment of the state of the union.

“We’re in remarkably good shape compared to where we could have been.”

Who’s not well-informed now?

We have a record level deficit of $1.3 trillion, according to news reports, and an unemployment rate of 9.6-percent.  Then there’s those 41.8 million people on food stamps.  

Congressman Kanjorski did tell the newspaper board that the $700 billion economic rescue package “actually cost U.S. taxpayers $29 billion.”

“We have not been able to properly explain the situation to the American people,” he said.  That’s probably because the Washington crowd considers us eggheads like those who stomped and screamed at Kanjorski’s long ago public town hall meetings.

So because we’re incapable of grasping realities, they explain our current economic climate as,  ”in remarkably good shape compared to where we could have been.” 

And Kanjorski has the nerve to say that his opponent “has a line for everything.”

Needless to say, Kanjo took the opportunity to once again tout his clout.

“How do yo think the energy institute came about?  He was referring to a local joint project to study the impact of Marcellus Shale drilling.

“I met with President Obama and Vice-President Biden, and I told them we had a problem.” Problem solved!

And in turn, Obama and Biden met with him and told him we must pass ObamaCare no matter what the cost.  Done!

Then, once again displaying his characteristic humility, Kanjo admitted he’s “not perfect,” but that he is ”in a position to speak out and be heard.”

Lucky him.  He makes us call in to be heard.

- PureBunkum