Brightest Lights of 2008
Examiner Editorial
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December 28, 2008
First ever for African Americans
1| Barack Obama elected 44th president
The Details: After running a nearly flawless campaign that raised $639 million and left Senators Hillary Clinton and John McCain in the dust, the junior senator from Illinois was elected president of the United States in a landslide, thus becoming the first African American Chief Executive. Obama, who promised "change we can believe in," will have huge Democratic majorities in Congress when he takes the oath of office on January 20th.
Sometimes doing nothing is best
2| Congressional inaction lets drilling ban expire
The Details: Members of Congress demonstrated the validity of the principal that the less they do, the better when they collectively sat on their hands and let the congressional ban on offshore drilling expire. Just by doing nothing, Congress helped reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil producers, lessen the long-term price of oil, and paved the way for states and the federal government to collect an estimated $1 trillion in royalties from offshore oil and gas leases.
General assistance
3| Petraeus gets a promotion
The Details: Gen. David Petraeus, architect of the successful "surge" strategy in Iraq that turned the tide against al-Qaeda, was promoted as commander of the U.S. Central Command – where he is overseeing military operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Previously attacked by MoveOn.org in a scurrilous ad that refered to him as "General Betray Us," Petraeus confounded critics and secured an historic victory for the U.S.
Sanford in the vanguard
4| South Carolina governor rejects bailout
The Details: Instead of standing in line for a federal bailout, Gov. Mark Sanford wants to completely eliminate his state's corporate income tax and substitute a lower, flat income tax for individuals as a time-tested way to boost South Carolina's economy.
Colombo strikes
5| Michigan judge throws out fake testimony
The Details: Wayne County, Michigan Circuit Court Judge Robert Colombo rejected fraudulent plaintiffs' claims by throwing out the testimony of one Dr. R. Michael Kelly, who allegedly "diagnosed" asbestosis in thousands of patients even though he's not a radiologist and is not certified to read x-rays. The doctor was paid $500 per head by a plaintiff's law firm hoping to cash in.
No more pants suit
6| Court finally ends legal travesty
The Details: The D.C. Court of Appeals wisely rejected the appeal of former Judge Roy Pearson, who sued a District dry cleaner for $54 million over a lost pair of pants. The case made national headlines and was a staple in late-night comics' monologues before the appellate court finally threw it out – and put embarrassed District residents out of their misery.
Legal presence
7| Last to tighten drivers' license requirements
The Details: Gov. Martin O'Malley is reportedly rethinking his sanctuary state's decision not to require applicants to provide proof of legal residency before being issued a Maryland driver's license. O'Malley's state, which has been flooded with more than 300,000 out-of-country applications, is not surprisingly experiencing escalating examples of fraud.
Switching back to paper ballots
8| States give up on e-voting machines
The Details: Virginia and Maryland will start phasing out electronic voting machines in favor of auditable paper ballots. Many jurisdictions around the country have gone back to optically scanned paper ballots after numerous studies found the electronic voting machines were susceptible to tampering.
Negotiating down
9 |Union, school chief agree: no raises
The Details: Montgomery County Superintendent Jerry Weast told his staff that the county couldn't afford a scheduled 5.3 pay raise for teachers while facing a $250 million budget shortfall. Weast warned of imminent layoffs if the union contract was not renegotiated. So, the county's teachers – who average $70,000 per year - agreed to forgo their annual salary hike.
Winning after 34 years
10| Bethesda man finally prevails
The Details: After more than three decades of trying, anti-tax activist Robin Ficker finally convinced Montgomery County homeowners, whose property taxes just increased13 percent, to require a unanimous vote by the nine-member County Council before their taxes are raised beyond a routinely ignored cap in the county charter. To reward him for his perseverance, the national Libertarian Party named Ficker "Free Market Hero" of the week.
