Jasper Journal

Last evening I was driving home from Ft Carson in Alice’s car. For some reason the AM part of the radio was out so I was forced to find something on FM. As I was scanning stations I heard something that shocked me.  It was Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn spewing  pacifistic, anti NATO, and anti capitalist venom.  For some reason I thought they were anathema these days.  Discredited 60′s radicals, involved in terrorist activities decades ago.  But then I realized I was listening to NPR!  Not only aren’t they discredited, they are allowed 23 minutes to spew lies, invective,  and propaganda for their cause.

I was beyond livid; I was infuriated.  The show was ironically called  “Democracy Now.” I have come to find out this is a nightly “progressive” news program on NPR stations.  Friends, it is a disgrace. I have put in the segment with Dohrn and Ayers below. If you have a chance this weekend, please listen. Your tax money is helping pay for this.

I know some will not be happy with what I am about to say, but it is time for NPR to be cut off from public money. It is not impartial in any sense; it is unnecessary with all the choices out there today;  and it serves as a propaganda tool for the left in this country.  If people want it, let it compete with every other commercial station in the country.

I am extremely proud of our Congressman, Doug Lamborn, who is leading the charge to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and NPR.  In this age of extremely tight budgets why are we supporting a radio station anyway? They claim that federal funding is only two percent of their direct budget.  However that is misleading. Member stations get 15% of their budgets from taxpayer money. From that,  they pay programming fees to NPR which account for 45% of the NPR budget.

The new request for money for CBP and NPR is $445 million dollars. To me that is real money.  The two previous directors of NPR received  $603,000 and $479,000 when they left.  Where was the outcry from liberals about the one percent there?

I have also attached a draft  letter Congressman Lamborn will send to the Appropriations  Sub-Committee requesting the defunding of NPR.  He has doggedly pursued this issue for several years. Today I spoke with one of his staff in Washington who is directly involved in this effort to get an update.  Please watch this video and contact your representatives. Fast forward to the 15:35 mark if you want to eliminate the overview. This propaganda at our expense has to stop. I think you will be as angry as I was. The Congressman’s draft letter follows.

Have a great weekend in spite of NPR. See you Monday!

Rep. Denny Rehberg
Chairman
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and
Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
H-307 Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
Rep. Rosa DeLauro
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and
Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
1016 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
May 9, 2012
Dear Chairman Rehberg and Ranking Member DeLauro,

It has come to my attention that the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is requesting a $445 million advance appropriation for FY2015. This is an enormous sum of money, especially considering that President Obama’s 2010 bipartisan deficit reduction commission recommended funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting be eliminated completely.
CPB’s requested appropriation represents no reduction from its prior year appropriation level. While so many Americans are making sacrifices around the country to make ends meet, CPB appears unwilling to do the same. Even though media and information have become more accessible than ever, funding for CPB has exploded. Between 2001 and 2012, the CPB’s appropriated funding increased by nearly 31 percent, from $340 million to $444.1 million.

As you know, the country is more than $15 trillion in debt, and at the end of this year the government is expected to reach its legal borrowing limit once again.

We simply cannot afford to continue funding all of the programs that we have in the past. Significant spending cuts must be made in order to put the government on a path towards balancing its budget.

We face many hard choices ahead, but defunding the Corporation for Public Broadcasting should be one of the easier decisions to make. The FY 2013 appropriations bill that funds CPB has not yet been completed and I urge you to join me in working to permanently defund CPB.

As you know, last year’s appropriation bill instructed CPB to report to Congress about alternative sources of funding for public media by June 20, 2012. I look forward to that date and learning about how public media can use private sources of funding in the near future, as the overwhelming majority of their competitors in the media marketplace already do. No one is advocating that CPB stop operating, just that it stand on its own two feet when it comes to funding.

We are fortunate that in today’s media landscape, consumers have many news and entertainment choices, unlike when the 1967 Public Broadcasting Act to create and fund CPB was passed. And, public media outlets are thriving.

Federal funding for CPB’s highest-profile grant recipients, National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Service, represent only a small portion of their overall budgets. NPR receives about 2 percent of its operating funds from CPB and federal funding for the Public Broadcasting Service represents about 15 percent of its system’s revenue.

According to its most recently available tax filings, Director and President Paula Kerger received $603,403 in reportable compensation in 2010. Former NPR CEO Vivian Schiller, who was forced to resign after the controversial firing of longtime analyst Juan Williams, was received $479,011in compensation in 2011. Certainly, thriving media entities that can afford to pay their executives such generous salaries should not be asking taxpayers to subsidize them.
A vibrant, free, and independent press is essential to this country’s freedom. We are fortunate that Americans now have thousands of news, entertainment, and educational programs to choose from that are widely available on countless television, web, and radio outlets.

Now is the appropriate and necessary time for the government to end taxpayer subsidies for CPB.

Respectfully,

Rep. Doug Lamborn
Member of Congress

I love it when Democrat’s go apoplectic. It is so refreshing to see the veins bulge in their necks when their self righteous issues  get shot down. That happened today in the great state of Missouri.

OK, what do these people have in common: Walt Disney, Mark Twain,  Sacajawea, Scott Joplin, Walter Cronkite,  Harry Truman, Laura Ingalls, Bob Barker,  and Rush Limbaugh? They are all members of the Missouri Hall of fame. Along with about two dozen others, each is a native son or daughter of the “Show Me State.” Today, Rush Limbaugh joined the list.

These people  are known for their celebrity in many diverse areas: politics, entertainment, the arts,  science etc. But the Democrats in Missouri will not acknowledge the celebrity and influence of a Rush Limbaugh, from Cape Girardeau.  Whether you agree with him or not, he is beyond a doubt one of the most influential talk radio personalities ever. He probably revived AM radio with his talk format, and has become the most listened to radio personality in the country. Doesn’t that deserve some attention?

Sadly, the Missouri legislature had to present this honor in a closed session with Highway Patrol backup because of the  fear of violence by womens groups and others. How truly sad. There can be no difference of opinion to these people. Everyone must tow the party line.  Honest disagreements are not allowed on college campuses,  in the media, or in politics without being deemed hateful.

We see this daily regarding very sensitive issues like gay marriage, abortion, Obamacare,  and hate crimes legislation just to name a few.  It is a fact that several women’s groups are attempting to drive Limbaugh off the air because of his comments to a 30 year old political activist, or as they like to call her,  ”young female  college student. ”

I enjoy the sarcasm, snarkiness and biting humor of his program.  I also like South Park and Mad Magazine.  Limbaugh is not for everyone; but until he went nationwide  in 1987 , there was no outlet for conservatives in the media. He has spawned many imitators on the right, but interestingly, no one can achieve lasting  success on the left.  I wonder why that is?

In any case, congrats to the State of Missouri for having the political courage to recognize someone who has achieved success in his field. This will be a monumental election year  and we need a variety of inputs. If the Democrat’s  had their  way, we would all be listening to NPR for our news and entertainment. Fresh Air;  Diane Rehm; Afro Pop;   Click and Clack? Wait wait don’t tell me? Now that is cruel and unusual punishment…don’t you think? And we are paying for it…. ARGGGH

I watched the attached video and could not believe how lucky we are. NPR has committed ritual suicide with the outrageous comments made by one of their senior executives.

The video shows how biased, arrogant and condescending these people are. They truly think they are better and  smarter than average Americans.  It is so sad they couldn’t just stick to airing unbiased programming. I have long argued against public funding for NPR and PBS.  This is the icing on the cake.  After firing Juan Williams for being on Fox News, and disparaging huge segments of the country, there can be no doubt that this organization is out of control. Pull the funding NOW.