In his visit to Manchester, N.H., Biden said the program already had retrofitted 200,000 homes and would meet its ambitious goals of nearly 600,000 homes by March 2012.
He called it "one of our signature programs" under the stimulus law, saying that "thousands of construction workers across the country are now on the job making energy-saving home improvements that will save working families hundreds of dollars a year on their utility bills."
What Biden failed to mention:
_In Alaska, the program has yet to retrofit one home.
_In Texas, auditors found the private contractor earning the most in stimulus money did shoddy work on 60 percent of the houses it was hired to weatherize.
_In California, a contracting company paid nearly $3 million to caulk low-income residents' homes didn't train two dozen of its employees, the state's inspector general found last week.
Just months ago, at the one-year anniversary of the stimulus law, the Energy Department's inspector general complained in a report about "little progress" weatherizing homes and said the government's best efforts "appeared not to have significantly increased the tempo of actual units weatherized across the nation." And it goes on and on and on
Biden touted the program's successes at the home of Lynn Dumont, a single mother of two who said she looks forward to seeing her heating bills lowered. But, in an awkward moment, he didn't exactly win her ringing endorsement.
While she said she was thrilled to have the vice president over, when asked whether she voted for him, there was a long pause.
"Did I vote for him?" she said. "I'd rather not say."
#3
That's less than 200,000 homes a year. Assuming we need to "retrofit" 50M homes, it will take 250 years. By then, I'd say the majority of these houses will be bulldozed and replaced or underwater given gerbil worming.
There are a lot of cars out there that run A/C or heating. There are a lot of businesses that need to be heated, cooled, and lit. About half of the oil we use goes to making plastics. Much of the remainder goes to transporting goods from point A to point B, either for manufacturing or distribution or whatever. There is a lot of waste in transmission lines for electrically heated homes. Almost all homes need electricity to cool them. I would guess that people with less money are going to be calling for their homes to be "retrofitted" more than wealthier, but I don't know, and people with less money are going to have their thermostats set to use less electricity anyway. I don't know what effect heating assistance for lower incomes would have on this equation.
My bottom line: Boondoggle. Done for show. We should only distribute fliers with recommendations on how to "retrofit" a home, pay for the caulk and let the homeowners take care of the work. Maybe hire one person at a reasonable wage who knows what they are doing to come in and work beside able-bodied homeowners for a couple of hours to make sure they are doing it right.
Gov. Chris Christie explain how the Obama administration disqualified the state of New Jersey from hundreds of millions in education funds because some clerk in Trenton turned in the wrong excel spreadsheet:
Democrats in Washington have already shown a willingness to withhold federal education dollars from states that dont follow their preferred tactic for navigating the recession: giving teachers raises like its the Gay 90s. I wouldnt be surprised if this is more punishment for a state that committed the crime of balancing its budget.
But the Obama administration has made a serious mistake here: theyve given Chris Christie an opening, a reason to take them on directly. And how does the old saying go? Never go up against a Sicilian, when political credibility is on the line?
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
08/27/2010 12:25 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11132 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
"Vindictive? This Administration? Against Gov Christie?"
Yew betcha. What was your first clue?
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
08/27/2010 20:15 Comments ||
Top||
#2
And Christie had to fire Schundler, so he's starting out doubly unhappy. Should be some good Christie Tubes coming up.
#3
It's GOOD to piss off a swing state that normally spins Donk? Right mr prez?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
08/27/2010 21:17 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Sound like the press could only think of firing whomever accidentally put in the wrong years data rather than look at the process. I'm glad Christie's got a brain and didn't just hang it up when he became governor.
The NRSC (National Republican Senatorial Committee) has sent at least one attorney to help incumbent Lisa Murkowski (RINO-AK) who is trailing in the Alaska primary. Yes, folks, we've gotten to the point where the national Republican party is trying to steal elections from other Republicans.
Speaking with Fox Business Network, Miller referred to reports that Murkowski had sought legal counsel from the national committee as the state prepares to count thousands of absentee ballots that could decide the race. Absentee ballots — should they be abandoned? They are becoming more and more, the choice for "padding the numbers."
#3
Procoplus2k -- true -- but we've got to find some better way for our finest to vote. Already, this year 10 states are saying they won't be getting ballots to our service people in time for them to vote.
With the technology our military now uses -- heck -- let them video conference their vote! Email it -- the list goes on and on.
My comment was meant about folks living in their precincts.
#4
I kinda like Heinlein's idea that ONLY Military(and ex military) Can vote.
Not to be confused with the movie "Starship Troopers" which distorted some of the Book's Ideas.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
08/27/2010 14:44 Comments ||
Top||
#5
The military should be handled a different way. They should vote normally at their station (if possible) and the tallies submitted to the appropriate election officials. Since most military folk. There is no reason the hardcopy of the ballots needs to be sent long distance.
Either that or allow them to vote electronically. I don't really like the idea of electronic voting because it's so easy to tamper with, but this would seem to be a decent case for the matter.
#6
With Service Comes Citizenship - Want to Know More?
Heinein's system is not limited to military service, in the sense that anyone, disabled or even a pacifist might serve. All may sign up if they wish, they cannot in fact be refused. Not everyone serves as a starship trooper. Perhaps H would consider a Peacecorp tour to fit the bill in our present age.
The primary idea is that citizens must have real stake in in their government. Service forms this link.
#7
Here in Alaska we don't take nicely to voting shenanigans. Polling place workers take their duties seriously.
There are procedures for a recount if it is too close. State picks up the tab. You want a battle, mess with the votes up here. Al Franken types better stay away. We have had people misrepresent themselves, and they got outed.
Posted by: Alaska Paul in Hooper Bay, Alaska ||
08/27/2010 17:49 Comments ||
Top||
#8
FWIW...Anymouse and wife voted Joe Miller absentee on Tuesday.
#9
In Estonia here, we've been e-voting for several years. Heck, you can vote through YOUR MOBILE PHONE with encryption.
Good to see the old home soil is keeping up.
#12
I kinda like Heinlein's idea that ONLY Military(and ex military) Can vote.
Actually it pretty well started out that way. One of the first acts of the new United States under the present Constitution was the Militia Act of 1792 which stipulated that the militia was composed of all free white males between 18 and 45
That each and every free able-bodied white male citizen of the respective States, resident therein, who is or shall be of age of eighteen years, and under the age of forty-five years (except as is herein after excepted) shall severally and respectively be enrolled in the militia,
That was just as much a description of the entire franchised electorate of the time.
The Act would be modified in 1862 to include -
And be it further enacted, That the President be, and he is hereby, authorized to receive into the service of the United States, for the purpose of constructing entrenchments, or performing camp service or any other labor, or any military or naval service for which they may be found competent, persons of African descent, and such persons shall be enrolled and organized under such regulations, not inconsistent with the Constitution and laws, as the President may prescribe.
which would be followed by the 15th Amendment ratified by 1870. Service and the franchise remained linked.
The break occurs with the 19th Amendment when responsibility of service and the franchise were disconnected. Males 17 to 45 are still members of the federal militia as either part of the organized or unorganized militia IAW Title X, USC which is the implementation of authority of Congress under Article I, Section 8.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
In his visit to Manchester, N.H., Biden said the program already had retrofitted 200,000 homes and would meet its ambitious goals of nearly 600,000 homes by March 2012.
