Sound Bite – Oct. 3, 2008

Published October 2, 2008 4:00am ET



There are people who are upset that we are making the deficit worse as we try to stabilize the economy.”

— House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., saying he was “personally disappointed” by add-ons to the Senate-passed bailout bill.

Dim Bulb


Who: Virginia Education Association

What: Union officials’ outrageously partisan email urging public school teachers in Virginia to celebrate “Obama Blue Day” by wearing blue shirts to school and registering new voters – including those “you teach” – as part of its “Barack the Vote!” effort.

Why it’s dim: VEA is an affiliate of the National Education Association, which voted to endorse Barack Obama in June. NEA’s New York affiliate also came under fire for distributing thousands of Obama campaign buttons to teachers to be worn at school.

Cure: No campaigning in the classroom.

Daily Outrage


What financial crisis?

Who: Environmental Protection Agency

What: Congress gave the Environmental Protection Agency $1 million to reopen five little-used libraries that have been closed for more than two years. The reopened libraries in Chicago, Dallas, Kansas City and Washington, D.C. will be staffed by professional librarians who will also be available by phone and email. But the agency’s online catalogue and website already provide public access to most of EPA’s documents, and those that cannot be electronically formatted are available though the agency’s interlibrary loan service.

Where to vent: Call EPA administrator Stephen L. Johnson at 202-564-4700.