Fanny, Freddie and Newt

We’ve all been told that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac hold at least 50% of America’s home mortgages. And we also know that the taxpayers are on the hook for more than $170 billion in federal bailouts as a result of the mortgage meltdown.

Today we found out two more troubling pieces of information. 1). Fannie and Freddie’s executives have received millions in bonuses since the federal bailout occurred. 2). Both of these entities paid millions to Newt Gingrich for consulting.

The former speaker consulted both Fannie and Freddie before the mortgage meltdown which precipitated the economic crisis America’s trying to rescue itself from.

Gingrich is the latest Romney alternative in the GOP presidential sweepstakes. He’s the guy who took a cruise to Greek Islands a few months ago when most of his staff deserted him. But fortuitous circumstances have propelled him back to second place in some Republican primary polls. Translate: Bachman, Perry and Cain are flaming out.

Just what advice did Newt give that was worth all that money? And how could such a learned man not have prevented the mortgage meltdown and its ensuing economic catastrophe the GOP is now trying to lay at President Obama’s feet?

What’s even more puzzling is the testimony from Freddie and Fannie’s top execs who defend the millions of dollars in bonuses as a way to recruit top talent in the financial services industry. What top talent would that be?

Congress is trying to limit the compensation of executives of both firms.

But why not tie compensation to performance? Ah, but that, in the words of the late John Houseman, would be, “making money the old fashioned way.”

Morning walk at North Beach – Hampton, New Hampshire 11/12/11

It’s Crunch Time for GOP

Rick Perry wants to eliminate three federal agencies but can’t remember the third one. He has to ask for a lifeline from Ron Paul in a televised debate.

Ron Paul comes across as the crazy uncle at the family picnic.

Herman Cain, even without the sexual harassment allegations, doesn’t seem to know anything about foreign policy or economics.

Michelle Bachman doesn’t exactly know where the Revolutionary War Battle of Concord actually took place (hint: Concord, Mass.). She’s a harsh critic of government but worked as an IRS attorney. No kidding. She also said Governor Rick Perry’s program to inoculate Texas teens against sexually transmitted disease caused brain damage to young girls even though there is absolutely no evidence of the kind.

Mitt Romney should have been a lawyer because he can (and has) represented both sides of every major political issue of our time.

I’d like to comment on the rest of the herd (of GOP presidential candidates) but their names escape me.

If you add all this up with the actions of the House GOP members this spring who would rather have the United States of America go off a cliff rather than compromise on a debt reduction plan, I think you have a recipe for defeat in November, 2012.

Being Mormon, no reason to vote against Romney

There are plenty of reasons to vote against Mitt Romney for president. That all depends on which side of the issues you’re on. If you are on both sides of the issues, you have twice as many reasons to vote against him.

The polls indicate there are a significant number of Republicans who will not vote for Romney because he is a Mormon.

Most of these voters, it appears, are Evangelical Christians. Really?

Look, I grew up Catholic. And even in my most fervent days, I had doubts about angels in human form, with wings, playing harps on top of clouds. Call me crazy.

Mitt, like other Mormons, doesn’t smoke or drink. He lives a healthy life. He’s dedicated to his wife and children. He devoutly believes in the United States of America.

Will I vote for him in the general election? No. But I’m voting against him for a host of public policy reasons, not because of his religion.

Tell Me It Ain’t So, Penn State Joe

I was watching the Sugar Bowl between Penn State and Georgia. Herschel Walker and company denied Penn State a perfect season and a national championship. That was New Year’s Day, 1980.

I told my friends it was too bad that my four month old son would not grow up to see Joe Paterno coach Penn State. Harry Reasoner of 60 Minutes had done a great story about Joe Paterno and Penn State’s football program, on the verge of what was expected to be their first national championship.

Penn State lost the game but not the admiration of many Americans who never attended the school.

My son ended up at Yale. But that never stopped our family from admiring Penn State and Joe Paterno.

And now Penn State faces a sexual assault scandal. Several officials have been indicted. The problem, allegedly, existed for quite some time.

How university officials handled the matter is disgusting.

Sugar Cain

Presidential candidate Herman Cain has some issues this past week with allegations of sexual harassment. It’s amazing that charges this explosive have not surfaced earlier in the campaign. And what’s even more surprising is that, in today’s environment of heightened sensitivity toward accusations of sexual harassment, Cain’s poll numbers are dead even with Mitt Romney’s.

The Republican establishment will not allow this scandal to reach its nominating convention. I think.

The Herminator hasn’t exactly helped himself with some of the answers he’s provided.

Nevertheless, there are other troubling aspects to his candidacy. For example, Cain didn’t realize the Chinese have had nuclear weapons since the 1960s.

And all of the jokes about “9-9-9″ seem to expose Cain’s lack of economic sophistication.

Cain is a hard-charging businessman who has enjoyed success in some ventures.

But even if he weathers the sexual harassment allegations, he is not qualified to be President of the United States.

Next week, when he contemplates his withdrawal from the race, he should take the advice of the gangster in the old Godfather’s Pizza commercials: “Do it.”

New Hampshire, the Tax Haven

Has it really come down to this? The future of New Hampshire is in the hands of empty nesters who’ve migrated from Tax-achussetts?

Apparently, yes. The “I don’t have kids in school, so why should I vote for a school budget?” crowd is overtaking our state.

People are moving here for the wrong reasons and they’re going to wreck New Hampshire.

If you want to move to a tax haven, then move to Monaco. It’s the size of Disneyland’s Magic Kingdom. You can’t really hurt the environment or infrastructure. I don’t even think they have kids there (outside of the Grimaldi family).

But New Hampshire’s different. We’ve got beaches, mountains, streams, rivers.

And yes, we have kids and schools – at least for the time being. And they need help. So do our public safety agencies.

We have to keep all options on the table to fund the important public services we need.

New Hampshire was built on community and a sense that we have to help each other, not on personal greed.

Move here because you love what you see and not necessarily what you’ll save.

Gadhafi Dies; Spelling of His Name a Mystery

Here is a guy who spews imponderable phrases, wears crazy hats, shoots guns in the air for no real reason. He’s a guy who makes all businesses treat him as a god.

No, I’m not talking about Texas Governor Rick Perry. I’m talking about Moahmar Gadhafi.

This villain met his demise short of the AP Stylebook and many other media reference guides coming together on the correct spelling of his last name.

Time to get our forces out of Japan

World War II ended 66 years ago. We’ve overstayed our welcome. The Japanese don’t want us there anymore and we don’t pose a credible invasion threat to China from there.

It’s time to leave. We can still maintain a military presence in Guam and some other places but we need to leave the defense of Japan to the Japanese.

Making a Run for the Border

Why is it that every few months or so, it seems, we’re confronted with another news story involving American “hikers” who get captured at the borders of Iran or North Korea?

I’ve always thought these people can’t be that stupid. Don’t they see the Wizard of Oz-like signs: “Surrender Dorothy,” “I’d turn back if I were you?”

And who says, “Honey, I think we’re going to give up that Alaskan cruise this year so we can hike the border of North Korea?”

That’s what led me to think that this was all an elaborate ruse to sneak in some U.S. spies. But after a couple of seconds of analysis, I decided the U.S. intelligence community wouldn’t be involved – I hope.

I’m glad all of these captives have been released but one last question plagues me.

Why can’t we seem to find the foreign “hikers” on our borders?