Slo Joe Biden: "Obama Has A Big Stick;" Most Jobs Added Overseas; GDP Numbers Disappointing; Home Ownership Lowest in Decade; Immigrants Give Americans A Lesson in Civics; Happy Birthday Israel!

"I promise you...Obama has a big stick." Joe Biden's campaign speech on foreign policy this week.

• Most of my readers know, I like to start off my post with some type of late night joke or a headline from The Onion. However, I couldn't pass up Slo Joe Biden's statement regarding Pres. Obama's "big stick." Biden has so many gaffs; it's getting to the point that he should really consider his own reality TV show. I also have a title for the show in mind: "Joe Biden: The Nation's Leading Knucklehead." Yeh, that works for me.
• On more tidbit on Slo Joe. He actually said of Sen. Al Franken, formerally of SNL, that Franken is "one of the leading legal scholars."  Just one slight problem. Fifty-five U.S. senators are attorneys (and that's bad enough), but Al---he's not one of them.
• Biden reminds me of a quote attributed to Plato: "Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber."
• Pew is also reporting that only 33% like the federal government---the lowest favorability polling in 15 years. And only 27% of independents view the feds favorably. Not good news for Obama and company. Personally, I'd like to see a poll on how Americans view the government's competence or lack of. It appears Plato had a point.

• GDP (Gross Domestic Product*) numbers are in and they are not that good. The economy grew at 2.2%. Expectations were the economy would have grown by at least 2.5% (still a sluggish number). The good news is that consumer spending did increase at the fastest pace since the fourth quarter of 2010. This was largely due to better automobile sales.  Inventories also increased. But it was business spending that tanked. It was the first time business spending decreased since 2009. Growth was also held back by less government spending on defense.* For those who need a lesson on what the GDP is---here's a cliff note version. It's EVERYTHING produced by people and businesses, including salaries of workers. CNBC
• Oh, regarding the poor jobs report yesterday, one other minor caveat: While we added a some jobs over the last two years, nearly 75% of those jobs have been added overseas. Coincidentally, that happens to be in line with last week's report that GM is opening about 600 more dealerships---in China.  WSJ
• Gallup also reported that home ownership is the lowest in a decade at 62%. Highest home ownership during this same period was from 2005-2008 when 70 to 73% of Americans owned homes.
• While the immigration debate continues to rage across the country, one fact is clear. Immigrants applying for U.S. citizenship do better on civics test than most native-born Americans. In fact, immigrants clean their clocks. On a typical 10 question test, immigrants pass with about 93% while native-born Americans get about a 65% or basically flunk.

Obama vs. Romney or Cool vs. Competence; The "Cool Factor;" Employment Picture Still Not A Good One; Marine Who Dissed Obama To Be Kicked Out of Corps; What Do You Really Know About George Zimmerman?

"Obama's Approval Rating Down After Photos Surface Of Him Eating Big Sandwich All Alone" Headline on The Onion accompanied by Pres. Obama sitting on a park bench eating a sandwich all alone.

• I was listening to an interesting debate this morning on a local radio talk show out of Philadelphia. The topic was about "cool" vs. "competence."  In this debate, Pres. Obama was identified as being cooler than Romney. However,  Romney was portrayed as being more competent than Obama. The question thrown out to the listeners was straightforward: Do  you think most Americans prefer a president who is considered "cool" or a president who is considered "competent?" If I had the opportunity to answer that question, I would have  simply said most of the really stupid people in America would prefer a president who appears to be cool rather than one who appears to be competent. In other words, those people always become infatuated with style over substance. That, quite frankly, is how Pres. Obama became president in the first place You can add Bill Clinton to this list too.  So what conclusion does one arrive at when it comes down to those two factors. I contend it's this simple:  If more stupids turn out to vote, Obama will be re-elected. If not, Romney will be our next president.

• By the way, I've always contended: if you try hard being cool---you're not. The guy above was cool because he never worked at it---he was it. You know it when you see it.
• First time unemployment claims were at 388,000. In addition, employers only added 120,000 jobs in March, the least since October. Both numbers are miserable. Add to this data the fact that consumer confidence fell, March new home sales fell and durable good orders fell---why are they trying to convince us the economy is improving? The economy will REALLY start improving when home sales start improving.
• Anyone who follows me knows how much I support the military. In fact, I regularly publish a blog dedicated to the military, law enforcement and firefighters (http://dedicatedtoheroes.blogspot.com/). I've also been clear that I do not support this current administration. Having said that, Marine Sergeant Gary Stein was wrong when he wrote on his Facebook page, "I say screw Obama and I will not follow orders from him. I will not salute him." With that statement, he crossed the line in my opinion. However, I do not support his getting an "other than honorable discharge" for using bad judgement. This means he will probably lose all of his benefits. He's been in the Marines for 9 years. He's an Iraq veteran. Give him an "honorable discharge," and let him go on with his life. I think he deserves that much because he's earned it.

• By all accounts, the first day of deliberation by the Supreme Court regarding Arizona's illegal immigration law did NOT go well for the administration. Even Justice Sotomayor, a liberal justice, said to the government's attorney: "You can see it's not selling very well...Why don't you try to come up with something else?" USA TODAY. And as I and others have said over and over again, the only reason these states are coming up with their own legislation regarding immigration is because Congress has failed to do so. Even USA TODAY in their editorial wrote, "Washington ignored a rising tide of illegal immigration..."

• If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know I want George Zimmerman to stand trial. But something was always bothering me. We heard a lot about Trayvon's past but nothing about Zimmerman's past. So let's look at him now.  Zimmerman was raised in a racially ethnic household. In fact, his roots are black on his paternal side.  His father, a Vietnam vet, met his Peruvian wife in 1974.  His mother would include George in many Catholic activities including home visits to the poor. For several years, his family cared for two African-American girls who ate their meals in the Zimmerman household. The girls went back and forth to school with the Zimmerman children. George is bilingual and was often asked by his school principal to help translate between the administration and immigrant parents. George was in ROTC after school and he also worked 3 part-time jobs starting when he was 15. At 18, he began selling insurance.  In mid-2000's, he ran into some problems with his business failing. He did have a restraining order from a woman he had been engaged too. Does all of this excuse what he did last February in killing Trayvon Martin? No, it does not. But it certainly gives me the clear impression we're not dealing with some kind of racist as the media and others have tried to portray him. And it's why I want all the facts to come out at trial. Reuters and NY Post
• Oh, yes, one more item. The photos of George Zimmerman above? That's him as a kid too. Just wanted to add that considering the media has been obsessed with using only photos of Trayvon as a 10 to 12 year old youngster.

States Tougher Illegal Immigration Laws Working; Ron Artest: World Dick Head; Medicare & Social Security Unsustainable; Corzine Still Raising Money for Obama; This Week's Numbers Suggest Economy Still Sluggish; Did You Know The War on Terror is Over?; Did You Ever Hear of Mathew Owens?; Lovitiz Smacks Down Obama; McKinney: The Dummy is Back

Earth Day was yesterday. Don't worry. I forgot it too.  Jimmy Kimmel

• While the Obama administration and Congress putz around unable to pass any comprehensive laws against illegal immigration, it appears the laws passed by states to tackle the problem are working. USA TODAY reported illegal immigration from Mexico has decreased. Although the recession and lack of jobs available in the U.S. has played a part, it's also clear the laws like those in Arizona, Alabama, Indiana, Texas and Utah are having a positive impact on reversing migration.  According to the Pew Hispanic Center, from 2005-2010, 1.4 million Mexicans came to the United States. This was down by more than half from the 3 million that came here from 1995-2000. In addition, from 2005 to 2010, the number of Mexicans who moved from the United States back to Mexico rose by 1.4 million.
• Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will be considering Arizona's tough illegal immigration law. We should have a decision by early June.
• Ron Artest, now known as Metta World Peace of the LA Lakers, said he accidentally elbowed James Harden of Oklahoma City. This is the same knucklehead who has a history of brawling (he was suspended for 77 games in 2004 because he also punched out a spectator). I have a suggestion for Artest. Change your name to World Dick Head.

• Medicare and Social Security trust funds are broke. If that's not bad enough, the government reported yesterday, both will even be "broker" by 2024 and 2033 respectfully. Yet, Congress and the Obama administration still refuse to tackle this impending problem. In fact, the government reported both are on  "unsustainable paths." I believe the president said the same thing about the debt (now approaching $16 trillion). That's why it's imperative that we also need change in Congress as well as in the Oval Office.

• Almost everyone knows that the former governor of New Jersey, Jon Corzine, not only left New Jersey broke, but he also appears to have left his former company, MF Global, broke.  Corzine has been a major fundraiser for the Obama campaign in the past. Well, he's still raising money for the Obama campaign---to the tune of $500 grand.  Although the Obama administration has been trying to distance itself from Corzine, it appears they still like the money he raises for it.  By the way, this fake, phony and fraud was once considered for the treasury secretary position---now held by another tax dodger. NY Post
• President Obama is visiting university campuses pushing for Congress extend the student loan bill. Politico reported today---when he was a senator---he missed the voting to extend the student loan bill.
• "Recession is Over News": US house prices FELL in February. The eighth straight month. Sales of new homes also fell last month. Output of U.S. factories declined in March. All of these and more (including last week's jobs report) suggest the economy continues to be very sluggish.

Knee-Pad Media Spins New Normal; 1 in 2 College Graduates Are Jobless; GM To Expand in CHINA!; "Reign of Terror"

From The Onion's Political Page: Every Potential 2040 President Already Unelectable Due To Facebook.

• If you been watching and listening to the pundits as close as I have, you've noticed a conspicuous trend and it's this: the knee-pad media and the Obama campaign are trying to spin a dreadful economy into something it is not. For example, when the unemployment rate dropped down from 8.3% to 8.2%, many in the lame stream media were giddy from excitement. As I believe I wrote that day, that would be like having a party after you paid $4.25 for a gallon of fuel instead of $4.27. But the conspiracy is even more obvious because the Obama campaign and their enablers in the media are trying to spin all of the bad news into a "new normal." In other words, 8.2% unemployment is really not that bad considering we're into a new economy. Or more people on food stamps is really not that bad either. Or poverty rates higher than we've ever experienced---is really not that bad. Don't let the spin fool you.

• Latest Dept. of Labor stats regarding unemployment in NYC including all boroughs: the overall rate is 10.2% with Bronx leading at 14.1%.
• And the AP is now reporting that 1 in 2 recent college graduates are jobless. So when Pres. Obama keeps visiting the college campuses, I wonder if he reminds them of this disturbing statistic. As one observer wrote recently, "The 'Hope and Change'  that Obama promised hasn't produced much more than college loans that will be hard to pay off and a health-car law that let's them stay on Mommy and Daddy's health insurance till they're 26." Michael Barone
• And how much in college debt are graduate facing? How does $1 trillion sound?

• Speaking of the knee-pad media. Guess who appeared on pundit TV yesterday? None other than the disgraced Herr Keith Olberman.  He was on ABC's This Week hosted by George Stephanopolos. It's truly disturbing how low many of these "journalistic" themed shows have fallen. All one has to do is look at MSNBC. Any network that gives that fake, phony and fraud---Sharpie Sharpton---his own show, has no credibility in my book.