White House Aims to Tap Power of Government Data

White House Aims to Tap Power of Government Data Josh Smith National Journal March 29, 2012 The White House announced a plan on Thursday to pour millions of dollars into harnessing the huge amounts of data collected by a range of government agencies.

The "Big Data Research and Development Initiative� will provide more than $200 million "to greatly improve the tools and techniques needed to access, organize, and glean discoveries from huge volumes of digital data," the Office of Science and Technology Policy said in a statement.

The effort will span half a dozen agencies, from the Defense and Energy departments to the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health. “In the same way that past federal investments in information-technology R&D led to dramatic advances in supercomputing and the creation of the Internet, the initiative we are launching today promises to transform our ability to use Big Data for scientific discovery, environmental and biomedical research, education, and national security,� office Director John Holdren said in the statement.

An event is planned for Thursday afternoon to highlight the program's specifics.

Tea Party Members: Are you a Sheep in Wolf’s clothing? The GOP hopes so Alex Snitker, Adrian Wyllie and Andrew Nappi 1787network.com March 29, 2012 You have been hearing these words relentlessly during this election cycle and you will continue to hear them through Election Day, and beyond.

This is the election that we decide if we stand on Constitutional principles or support the politicians who continually destroy the fabric of our way of life, our Constitution, our Bill of Rights and our representative republic.

Wait, didn’t we hear that somewhere before?

Wasn’t 2010 supposed to be “the most important election of our lifetimes?” The 2010 election was touted as the return of a constitutionally limited federal government. During that campaign, you heard a cacophony from Constitutionally born-again politicians about the return to the founding principles that made our country great.

Why this radical change-of-heart from the average American politician? Because you decided you were going to stop being sheep. You bared your teeth, you became the wolf, and you started howling for political blood.

The politicians heard you, loud and clear. And, they were frightened…at least for a little while.

They started telling you what you demanded to hear.

These politicians told you they were going to stand up to President Obama and any of his attempts to violate our Constitution.

And, these politicians said they understood the proper role of government, and would reduce the size of government.

And, of course, these politicians said they were going to Washington to challenge the political class.

But then, it came time for them to actually sit in the hallowed chambers of Congress and begin making law. We saw that their Constitutional revelation was insincere and short lived.

We saw that they their definition of freedom meant slightly less enslavement than the other guys.

We saw that their definition of capitalism meant slightly less socialism than the other guys. We saw that their definition of spending cuts meant slightly less spending increases than the other guys.

Now, two years later, they’re back.

These crafty politicians think they have appeased the wolves. They think they’ve reduced your sharp teeth into nubs with their lofty promises and rhetoric. They think they’ve tamed you with like a circus beast, and that you will now perform on command. They think that the one or two small scraps they’ve thrown you have turned you back into the obedient sheep they want you to be.

So, have they succeeded? Are you a sheep in wolf’s clothing?

If so, it’s not your fault. Many people only started paying attention to politics after Obama’s election. Not everyone understood then, or even understands now, the depth of corruption in Washington D.C. Many of you are only now beginning to understand that there is no difference in the leadership of the Republican and Democrat parties. Party leaders care nothing about the Constitution; nor the proper role of government; nor that without Liberty, we have nothing.

The RepubliCrat duopoly cares only about influence, power and greed. In their eyes, the Constitution is simply a propaganda tool for their party agenda. Their idea of Liberty is your obedience as they legislate away our freedom, inflate away our savings, and negotiate away our sovereignty.

And now, they are focused on turning the once powerful and independent patriot movement into an unthinking heard of GOP sheep.

Sadly, many leaders of grassroots liberty organizations continue to be infiltrated by Republican party operatives posing as patriots. These infiltrators continue to distract and redirect our efforts to restore liberty into efforts to advance the GOP agenda, assuring us that they are always one in the same.

These people have purposefully, and in some cases, quite masterfully led many a concerned patriot astray. Do you really want to believe and depend on the direction

of these people again?

It would be nice to to believe these people are motivated by freedom and prosperity for all. But, the truth is that they actually want to corral you into the establishment herd. The irony is that they are misdirecting you back to the very same establishment they claim to oppose.

They told you to vote principle before party, but then ensured only one party — and only certain members of that party — would be heard. Your leaders told you to ignore those Libertarians, Constitutionalists, and independents.

They told you they are fringe. They told you they are extremists. They played then, and play now, upon your fears.

They whispered like a serpent in your ear, “Don’t listen to that person, they just want to split the vote.” They hissed, “These people will do anything to keep the Republicans out of office.”

This did not happen without warning. There have been, and continue to be, those warning that the enemy is within our gates. The only question is: Who among us will choose to hear it?

Now we see that those who warned of that our ranks had been infiltrated and compromised were correct. The actions of the very men and women that we elected to Congress have proven it.

Instead of cutting the debt, the Republican controlled congress has raised the debt ceiling.

They have allowed for the continuation of the print and borrow spending spree in Washington. Would you have allowed the President the ability to keep stealing money from future generations?

The Tea Party class of 2010 did.

The Republican controlled House of Representatives passed the NDAA which gave the president the power to use the military to arrest and indefinitely detain American citizens without due process of law. Only three Florida Congressman voted no. Would you have given President Obama that kind of illegal power over our Bill of Rights?

The Tea Party class of 2010 did.

The Republican controlled House of Representatives gave new power to the President with the passage of HR347 which places the wishes of the government above our right to assemble, protest and redress grievances. Would you have given President Obama that kind of illegal power over our Bill of Rights?

The Tea Party class of 2010 did.

The Republican controlled House of Representatives did nothing when President Obama went to war in Libya. Once again, Florida provided zero leadership in opposition to this president’s unconstitutional actions. Would you have allowed this or any president to send our armed forces into war not by a Congressional Declaration of War, but by instruction from a supra-regional unaccountable entity such as NATO? The Tea Party class of 2010 did.

When a plan was being voted on that would have balanced the budget in 10 years the Republican leadership in congress made sure to sabotage this plan before it could be fairly vetted. Would you have allowed this?

The Tea Party class of 2010 did.

And the best plan the Republicans can agree on does not even balance the budget for 30 years. It increases federal spending by $1.26 trillion per year, and increases the national debt by a minimum of $4.2 trillion over 10 years.

The Tea Party class of 2010 just proposed it.

How much more of your kids and grandkids’ money are you willing to let these politicians spend?

This is but a small portion of the violations of the Constitution perpetrated by the Republican controlled House, by the Democrat controlled senate, and by President Obama. Time and time again, they erode our Liberty and the weaken our legal protections, while praising the bipartisan nature of their betrayal.

Tallahassee of course is a different story completely. There is a Republican Governor and a super majority, veto proof Republican legislature. This must good, right?

Rick Scott and the Republican legislature bowed to the President and met all the demands placed on them by the Federal “Race to the Top” program to get $700 million from President Obama. They told you it was to reign in the teachers unions and eliminate underperforming teachers. Would you have bowed to Obama?

The Republican Super Majority in Tallahassee did.

Rick Scott is the Chief Executive of a State that has taken the Federal Government to court over the Patient Care Affordability Act, or Obamacare. Governor Scott says Obamacare is not the law of the land. Yet the Legislative Budget Commission approved a request by Gov. Rick Scott’s administration to accept a $3.4-million grant under the federal Affordable Care Act. Would you accept money from a law you say is no law at all and that your own AG is arguing against in the Supreme Court?

Rick Scott did.

Instead of using their super majority to employ Jefferson and Madison’s “Rightful Remedy” and nullify Obamacare in our state, our politicians are wasting time and resources with a constitutional amendment proposition that does nothing but give the State “standing” in a law suit as admitted by the bill’s own authors. Would you have nullified this law in Tallahassee or looked the other way?

The Legislature chose to look the other way.

When given the opportunity to correct the error made by allowing red light cameras that infringe on the rights of the citizens, the Florida legislature failed to pass a law banning the devices. Would you have allowed the continued use of these unconstitutional devices, while the camera companies spread hundreds of thousands of lobbying and campaign funding dollars around Tallahassee?

The Florida Republican Super Majority took the money and let the law stand.

The Florida legislature has given CSX a “sweetheart deal” putting the liability on the taxpayers of Florida. This year’s Transportation Bill will also relieve Amtrak of liability under certain circumstances on the Jax to Miami route. The State is paying two million dollars a year for a two hundred million dollar insurance policy to which they are adding Amtrak at no cost to Amtrak. Would you have given in to the special interests?

The Republican Super Majority in Tallahassee did.

The truth is that the politicians that WE elected into office are the same ones who created the problems they claim they can solve.

The truth is that in 2010 you did not have many choices. You felt your only defense was the lesser of two evils. You hoped against reality that they would really be trustworthy public servants.

So the real question is this: Have you had enough yet?

Have you had enough of the lesser of the two evils?

Have you had enough of people who just tell you what you want to hear?

Have you had enough of supporting candidates and organizations who want nothing to do with a return to a Constitutionally limited federal government?

There are meetings across Florida sponsored by groups such as Americans for Prosperity and Freedomworks. They claim to be principled grassroots organizations and lately those groups have been actively coming to tea party groups offering something called a “Blueprint”. Some of these meetings are not open to the public. The leaders of these events have been busy looking through the list of attendees and excluding those who take a principled stand against the establishment.

If you are invited to “secret” meetings, hosted by these so-called grassroots organizations, I urge you to attend and listen to what these people have to say. You’ll probably hear talking points such as “We have to band together by supporting Republicans,” and “We need a comprehensive blueprint to assure victory in November.”

Victory for whom?

Victory for the same politicians who voted to raise the debt ceiling.

Victory for the same politicians who voted for NDAA and gave the President the authority to detain Americans without due process.

Victory for the same politicians who votes to kill your First Amendment right to peaceably protest?

You will be told that change doesn’t happen overnight, and we have to give them more time.

Well, you can see by their actions in Tallahassee and Washington their behavior has not changed; and now we know their loyalty to power and greed has not either.

You will hear people who are considered grassroots activists explain the actions of the politicians in Washington and Tallahassee and sound just like the politicians who you are trying to remove from power.

You will be told to support a presidential candidate who instituted a government healthcare in his own state and supported the bailouts simply because he is not Barrack Obama.

REMEMBER WHY YOU GOT INVOLVED IN THE FIRST PLACE. Did you really get involved to be just a pawn in the GOP establishment game? Did you sacrifice just to become a player in Red team vs. Blue team politics? Will you trade your sacred honor to become a useful pawn of the lesser evil?

Please go to these “Blueprint” events and listen to what they have to say. Then, take a serious look at the people in your organization and ask yourself these questions: Who are the GOP establishment wolves?

Who are the true, patriotic wolves?

Who are the sheep who believe themselves to be wolves?

And finally, which are you?