 |
| |
|
| |
Obama orders new plan to diversify federal
workers
August 18, 2011
President Barack Obama signed an executive order Thursday
directing federal officials to design a government-wide strategy for
making the federal workforce more diverse.
The three-page
order directs the head of the Office of Personnel Management, a
deputy director at the Office of Management and Budget, the
President's Management Council and the chairman of the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission to develop the strategy within 90
days. Agencies then have 120 days to work the plan into their hiring
and recruiting.
An Office of Personnel Management report says
that in fiscal year 2010, the federal workforce was 66.2 percent
white, 17.7 percent black, 8 percent Hispanic, 5.6 percent
Asian/Pacific Islander and 1.8 percent Native American. It was 56.1
percent male.
Obama is planning to unveil job creation
proposals next month. Some black lawmakers and leaders have
criticized him for not directly addressing unemployment among
blacks.
Blacks and Hispanics have been hit hard by the
recession and are suffering unemployment rates of 15.6 percent and
11.3 percent respectively, higher than the 9.1 percent national
average.
Ben Jealous, president of the NAACP, said fighting
job discrimination is as important for minorities as job creation.
"We are a country where it's easier for a white male with a
felony record to find a job than a black man that has never
committed a crime, and that in itself is a crime," Jealous said.
By SUZANNE GAMBOA - Associated Press | AP – Thu, Aug 18, 2011
 |
| |
No End in Sight? Health Care Bill
to Go Back to the House for Another Vote
Senate
Parliamentarian Ruled Against Parts of the Reconciliation Bill
March 25, 2010
The battle for health
care overhaul isn't over yet.
Senate Republicans force
proposed changes to the legislation back to the House.The Democrats
suffered a setback as Senate Parliamentarian Alan Frumin sided with
the GOP and ruled against parts of the reconciliation bill, which
includes the important "fix-its" to the law signed this week.
Even though President Obama signed the bill into law Tuesday,
the Senate still has to pass the fixes made to the health care bill
by members of the House.
The parliamentarian's decision
means members of the House will have to vote again on the
reconciliation bill after the Senate passes it, a move that
Democrats had hoped to avoid and that could delay the process
further.
The Democratic leadership, however, is still
confident the votes will be there to pass the amended bill.
"The parliamentarian struck two minor provisions tonight from the
Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, but this bill's
passage in the Senate is still a big win for the American people," a
spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said.
"These changes do not impact the reforms to the student loan
programs and the important investments in education. We are
confident the House will quickly pass the bill with these minor
changes."
Reid's spokesman Jim Manley would not say
which point was struck down by the parliamentarian. Manley
characterized the rulings as minor, but did not elaborate on them.
He told reporters Frumin did not strike the tax on high-cost
insurance plans, an important piece of the overhaul puzzle for
Democrats, but changes to it were considered vulnerable to a
parliamentary ruling.
Democrats could overrule the
parliamentarian with 60 votes, which they don't have, or Vice
President Joe Biden could overrule him from the chair, which is
unlikely.
The debate over Republican amendments raged
through the night as senators voted from 5:30 p.m. Wednesday until
about 2:45 a.m.
Democrats rejected 29 amendments offered by
Republicans, ranging from prohibiting sex offenders from getting
drugs like Viagra to treat erectile dysfunction under the new system
to another taking out special deals for individual states, including
Louisiana and Connecticut.
"There's no attempt to improve
the bill," a frustrated Reid said. "There's an attempt to destroy
this bill."
Republicans argue their amendments are
legitimate.
"The majority leader may not think we're serious
about changing the bill, but we'd like to change the bill, and with
a little help from our friends on the other side, we could improve
the bill significantly," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell,
R-Ky., said.
The Senate has scheduled the final vote on the
health bill for this afternoon. Both chambers are hoping to begin a
spring recess by the weekend.
The White House is preparing
to continue the momentum around the health care law. Obama will
travel today to Iowa City, Iowa, where, as a presidential candidate
in 2007, he first introduced his ideas for health care overhaul.
By JONATHAN KARL, Z. BYRON WOLF and HUMA KHAN
|
|
| |
Senators seek to block Stimulus
Money
March 3, 2010
WASHINGTON — A group of Democratic senators is urging the Obama
administration to suspend an economic stimulus program aimed at
financing renewable energy, complaining that money is going to
projects that are creating jobs in foreign countries.
The
four senators, led by Chuck Schumer of New York, wrote to Treasury
Secretary Timothy Geithner on Tuesday to request a moratorium on the
Recovery Act program. They asked that the moratorium remain in place
until they can pass legislation mandating stimulus aid flow only to
projects which preserve and create U.S. jobs.
"A critical
Recovery Act priority is investment in the domestic renewable and
clean energy industry, not investment in foreign manufacturers," the
senators wrote in the letter, obtained Tuesday by The Associated
Press. The letter, which will be disclosed at a news conference
Wednesday, was also signed by Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Robert
Casey of Pennsylvania and Jon Tester of Montana.
The
lawmakers cited a report by the Investigative Reporting Workshop
which found that a majority of the program's grants went to
foreign-owned companies, and that a majority of the turbines
purchased with the money were built by foreign manufacturers.
"This is not the intended use of Recovery Act funds," they
wrote.
A Treasury Department spokesman declined to comment
Tuesday.
Dan Leistikow, a spokesman at the Energy Department,
which was copied in on the letter, said the program has helped put
Americans to work, and said it funds only projects built in the U.S.
He added that the Recovery Act has helped attract more than $10
billion of foreign investment into this country's wind industry,
including new manufacturing plants.
"It's the opposite of
outsourcing, and we should encourage — not discourage — those kinds
of investments," Leistikow said.
While some of the grants go
to foreign-owned companies, the administration argues that more than
half the components, measured by their value, are built in this
country and all the energy projects are installed in this country.
Last fall, a joint venture was announced involving China's
Shenyang Power Group, Cielo Wind Power LP of Austin, Texas, and a
private equity firm, U.S. Renewable Energy Group, to build a $1.5
billion Texas wind energy project. Because the wind turbines are to
be manufactured in China, Schumer wrote to Energy Secretary Steven
Chu last November urging him to reject federal funding for the
project.
"The idea that stimulus funds would be used to
create jobs overseas is quite troubling," Schumer wrote, "and,
therefore, I urge you to reject any request for stimulus money
unless the high-value components, including the wind turbines, are
manufactured in the United States."
In response, Chu wrote
that the program in question is "available to all qualifying
entities; it is not a discretionary grant program administered by
the Department of Energy." He also said all the money awarded from
the program helps put Americans to work.
"All of the wind
turbine installation jobs are created here in America," Chu said.
On Tuesday, Walt Hornaday, president of Cielo Wind Power, said
the company has not yet applied for federal money. He said it is
looking at several federal grant programs, including one that would
provide 30 percent of approved costs, or around $450 million.
He took issue with Schumer's characterization of jobs, saying a
majority of those created for the project would be in the United
States.
FREDERIC J. FROMMER (AP)
|
|
|
Bottom Line on Health Care Summit
February 26, 2010
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama strongly signaled that
Democrats will move forward on a health care overhaul with or
without Republicans, preparing his party for a fight whose political
outcome will rest with voters in November.
Delivering his
closing argument at a 7-1/2-hour televised policy marathon Thursday,
Obama told Republicans he welcomes their ideas — even ones Democrats
don't like — but they must fit into his framework for a broad health
care remake that would cover tens of millions of uninsured
Americans.
That's the deal.
It's a gamble for Obama
and his party, and it's far from certain that Democratic
congressional leaders can rally their members to muscle a bill
through on their own. At stake are Democrats' political fortunes in
the midterm elections and the fate of Obama's domestic agenda pitted
against emboldened Republicans.
"The truth of the matter is
that politically speaking, there may not be any reason for
Republicans to want to do anything," Obama said, summing up. "I
don't need a poll to know that most Republican voters are opposed to
this bill and might be opposed to the kind of compromise we could
craft.
"And if we can't," he added, "I think we've got to go
ahead and some make decisions, and then that's what elections are
for. "
To the nearly 40 lawmakers in the room with him, the
message was unmistakable.
"Frankly, I was discouraged by the
outcome," said Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
"I do not believe there will be any Republican support for this
2,700-page bill."
Democratic leaders — who preside over
majorities in both chambers_ were having none of that.
"It's
time to do something, and we're going to do it," said Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.
Still, no participant
publicly called the daylong exercise a waste of time. Despite
flare-ups now and then, they had a remarkably civil debate on an
issue that has divided Americans and polarized political partisans.
Sen. John McCain said Friday that Republicans are still willing
to negotiate changes in the health care system with Obama, but only
on a "step-by-step" basis.
McCain said on ABC's "Good Morning
America" he believes the White House summit on the medical care
system was beneficial and many people learned a lot from it.
But he also said it is time "to start over. What we're saying is,
let's start out on the areas we agree upon." The Arizona Republican
said the GOP would be "seriously interested" in negotiating a less
complex, less sweeping health care bill with the Obama
administration.
Obama's plan would require most Americans to
get health insurance, while providing subsidies for many in the form
of a new tax credit. It would set up a competitive insurance market
for small businesses and people buying coverage on their own. Other
changes include addressing a coverage gap in the Medicare
prescription benefit and setting up a new long-term-care insurance
program. The plan would be funded through Medicare cuts and tax
increases.
At the summit, there were some areas of agreement,
including barring insurers from dropping policyholders who become
sick, ending annual and lifetime monetary limits on health insurance
benefits and letting young adults stay on their parents' health
policies into their mid-20s or so.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.,
who has a track record of working across the political aisle, said
he would try to broaden common ground. Obama said he was willing to
incorporate medical malpractice changes into his plan.
Yet on
the core issues of how to expand coverage and pay for it, the divide
was as wide as ever. Democrats argue a stronger government role is
essential, and with it higher taxes and new rules for private
companies.
"We have a very difficult gap to bridge here,"
said Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the No. 2 House Republican. "We
just can't afford this. That's the ultimate problem."
A
Democrats-only strategy is no slam-dunk. The House would have to
pass a Senate bill that many House Democrats find unacceptable.
Indeed, House Democrats appear to hold the key to the success of
Obama's gambit.
To make the Senate bill more palatable to
the House, both chambers would pass a package of changes. In the
Senate, that would be done under special budget rules allowing
majority Democrats to get around the requirement for 60 votes to
shut off bill-killing filibusters. Democrats are one vote shy.
Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., asked Democrats to swear off the
tactic, known as "reconciliation." Reid defended it.
Obama
said Americans want a decision on health care, and most think "a
majority vote makes sense."
Yet a USA Today/Gallup survey
released Thursday found Americans tilt 49-42 percent against
Congress passing a health care bill similar to the ones proposed by
Obama and Democrats in the House and Senate. Opposition was even
stronger to the idea of Senate Democrats using the special budget
rules, with 52 percent opposed and 39 percent in favor.
Congressional aides said top Democrats will take a few days to gauge
the summit's impact on the public and, perhaps more importantly, on
moderate House members who will likely determine whether any health
care bill will pass.
If the effort fails, Democrats may try
a scaled-back plan to insure about 15 million more Americans, rather
than the 30 million covered under the congressional bills. Among
other things, the fallback plan would require insurance companies to
let people up to age 26 stay on their parents' health plans.
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR and JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press
|
|
On the Passing of Congressman John Murtha
February 8, 2010 |
|
This afternoon, Congressman John Murtha (D-PA) passed away at age 77. First
elected in 1974, Congressman Murtha was Pennsylvania's longest-serving
representative and the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress.
On his passing today, President Obama said that following Murtha's career in
the Marines, "Jack’s tough-as-nails reputation carried over to Congress, where
he became a respected voice on issues of national security. Our thoughts and
prayers are with his wife of nearly 55 years, Joyce, their three children, and
the entire Murtha family."
Chairman Tim Kaine issued the following statement:
|
 |
|
Today we mourn the loss of a great American figure who dedicated his life
to serving his country both in the military and in the halls of Congress.
Congressman Murtha had a storied 37-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps and
in 1974 he became the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress.
“Just the other day, Congressman Murtha became the longest serving
Pennsylvanian in the history of the House of Representatives. During his
career, he worked hard to bring hundreds of government jobs to western
Pennsylvania. His legacy as a fighter for government causes and labor unions
will be remembered long after his passing.
“Our thoughts and prayers today are with the Congressman’s wife, his
children and his grandchildren.”
President Obama
Speaks to the Democratic Party:
"This is who we are"
The President closed by reminding
the audience of the Democratic
Party's rich history and it's past
accomplishments, many of which came
in the midst of equally tough times:
"I know we've gone through a
tough year. But we've gone through
tougher years. We're the party of
Thomas Jefferson, who declared that
all men are created equal, and we
had to work long and hard to ensure
that those words meant something.
we're the party of Franklin
Roosevelt who in the midst of
depression said all we had to fear
was fear itself, to save freedom and
democracy from being extinguished
here on earth. and that was hard
because the natural impulse was to
fear. but we as a party helped to
lead the country out of that fear.
We're the party of John F. Kennedy,
who summoned us to serve, who called
us to pay any price and bear any
burden. And we're the party of
Edward M. Kennedy, whose cause
endures, who said that here in the
United States of America the promise
of health care should not be a
privilege but a fundamental right.
That is who we are, Democrats.
After all the promises we've made,
this is our best chance to deliver
change that the American people
need. And if we do that, if we speak
to the hopes of the American people
instead of their fears, if we
inspire them instead of divide them,
if we respond to their challenges
with the same sense of urgency they
feel in their own lives, we're not
just going to win elections,
elections will take care of
themselves. We will once again be
the party that turns around the
economy and moves this country
forward and secures the American
dream for another generation."
|
| |
DNC Chairman Tim Kaine on Senate
Health Reform Vote: "Historic...
victory for the American People"
December 24, 2009
This morning, the Senate voted 60-39
to pass the Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act, after
overcoming a series of procedural
hurdles and delay tactics by
Republicans that were designed to
stop the bill from ever reaching the
Senate floor for a vote on final
passage. DNC Chairman Tim Kaine
issued the following statement after
the vote:
"Years from now, when
historians look back on 2009,
they will recall a Christmas Eve
vote in the Senate that took us
one giant step closer to finally
delivering health reform to the
American people.
"The Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act is landmark
legislation. It is the most
significant piece of domestic
policy since Social Security,
the single largest expansion of
health care coverage since
Medicare and the largest deficit
reduction package in more than a
decade.
"This bill will help more
than 30 million Americans access
quality affordable insurance. It
will outlaw the insurance
industry's worst practices,
prohibiting insurance companies
from denying coverage because of
a pre-existing condition or
retroactively canceling coverage
when someone gets sick. It will
lower premiums for individuals,
families and businesses. And it
will actually reduce our deficit
by more than $130 billion over
the next 10 years.
"This bill accomplishes the
goals President Obama
articulated at the beginning of
this debate: more stable and
secure coverage for the insured,
more quality affordable choices
for the uninsured, and reducing
the skyrocketing costs of care
for everyone, including our
government.
"For Senate Democrats - who
stand united in the belief that
health care is a right not a
privilege - this bill represents
hard fought common ground.
Thanks to President Obama's
extraordinary leadership and the
legislative acumen of Majority
Leader Harry Reid (NV),
Committee Chairmen Max Baucus
(MT), Chris Dodd (CT), Tom
Harkin (IA) and the inspiration
of the late Senator Ted Kennedy,
Democrats are now closer than
ever to achieving what no
president in the past 100 years
has been able to do. While there
is still more work to do in the
weeks ahead, comprehensive
health reform is finally within
our grasp.
"This victory for the
American people comes despite
the incessant and virulent
obstructionism of Senate
Republicans. Not one voted in a
favor of reform - a crippling
commentary on their failure to
fulfill the responsibilities of
leadership. As we move forward,
the onus is on the GOP to
explain why they sided with
their insurance industry friends
instead of American families -
why they turned their backs on
workers and small businesses who
are struggling to stay afloat
under the status quo.
"Democrats will continue to
move forward; we will continue
to make progress; and as the New
Year dawns, President Obama and
Congressional Democrats will
deliver the critical changes to
our health care system that have
been nearly a century in the
making."
|
| |
Weekly Presidential Address
December 21, 2009
In this week's address,
President Obama recounts the lessons
and history of past attempts to pass
a Patients Bill of Rights. We are
now closer than ever to passing
health reform legislation, and the
protections provided by both the
House bill and the Senate bill under
consideration will be the toughest
actions taken yet to hold the
insurance industry accountable. And
reforms in this legislation will
make this the largest deficit
reduction plan in over a decade.
While opponents to reform are
working hard to prevent the passage
of these bills, the President asks
members of the Senate to not block
an up or down vote. |
| |
DNC Chairman Tim Kaine on Historic
Senate Vote: "Fundamental
change...is finally within reach"
December 21, 2009
Shortly after 1:00 A.M. this
morning, the Senate voted 60-40 to
suspend debate and move towards a
vote on final passage of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act:
Following the vote, Democratic
National Committee Chairman Tim
Kaine issued the following
statement:
Tonight the Senate took
another major step on the road
to finally delivering health
insurance reform to the American
people.
Thanks to the leadership of
Majority Leader Harry Reid (NV),
Majority Whip Dick Durbin (IL),
Committee Chairmen Max Baucus
(MT) and Chris Dodd (CT) and
countless others, we are now
closer than ever to achieving
historic reform that will
provide more stability and
security to people who have
insurance and more quality
affordable options to those who
don’t, while lowering the high
costs of care for families,
businesses and entire country.
The Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act, if it, or
health reform legislation passed
by the House of Representatives
were to become law, would
represent the most significant
piece of social and economic
legislation since Social
Security, and would be the
largest expansion of health care
coverage since Medicare passed
in 1965.
The Senate’s bill will extend
coverage to more than 30 million
Americans; end abusive insurance
industry practices, like denying
coverage because of a
pre-existing condition or
canceling someone’s coverage
when they get sick; strengthen
Medicare and extend the life of
the Medicare trust fund; help
small businesses provide their
employees affordable insurance;
and it will reduce our deficit
by 132 billion in the first 10
years, and hundreds of billions
more in the years after that.
Seven presidents have tried
and failed to reform our broken
health care system. But today,
thanks to Democratic senators
who worked hard to find common
ground and the extraordinary
leadership and vision of
President Obama, the fundamental
change that has eluded this
country for decades, is finally
within reach.
Unfortunately, not one
Republican senator voted to
allow this legislation to come
to a vote on the Senate floor.
Throughout this debate,
Republicans have done everything
in their power to delay and
obstruct progress. Instead of
fighting for the American
people, they are advocating
passionately for the status quo
– a scenario in which 14,000
people lose their insurance
every day, small businesses
struggle to stay open and
families live with the constant
worry of being one injury or
illness away from financial
ruin. While it is shocking
enough that not a single
Republican Senator supports this
important bill, the fact that
they have all stood firm to even
deny any opportunity for the
bill to be voted on at all
demonstrates how badly they
misread the responsibilities of
leadership.
Democrats will not rest until
we deliver health insurance
reform to the American people.
The vote on Monday night was the
first of three cloture votes (which
must achieve a 60 vote threshold)
before health insurance reform
legislation can be brought to the
floor for a final up or down vote.
No Republicans voted in favor.
|
| |
Vice President Joe Biden: Why the
Senate Should Vote Yes on Health
Care
December 20, 2009In
an op-ed in the
New
York Times today,
Vice President Joe Biden explains
why, if he were still a senator
today, he would vote "yes" on the
current health reform bill:
While it does not contain
every measure President Obama
and I wanted, I would vote yes
for this bill certain that it
includes the fundamental,
essential change that opponents
of reform have resisted for
generations.
We have been
here before. In the past, as the
moment of decision drew nearer,
criticism from both the left and
the right grew louder.
Compromises were derided. The
perfect became the enemy of the
good.
Most recently, in
1993, Democrats had a chance to
forge a compromise with Senator
John Chafee, Republican of Rhode
Island, on a health care reform
bill. Congress’s failure to pass
health care reform that year led
to 16 years of inaction — and 16
years of exploding health care
costs and rising numbers of
uninsured Americans.
We
can’t let that happen again.
While it is not perfect, the
bill pending in the Senate today
is not just good enough — it is
very good. Insurance companies
will no longer be able to deny
coverage to those with
pre-existing conditions or drop
coverage when people get sick.
Charging exorbitant premiums
based on sex, age or health
status will be outlawed. Annual
and lifetime caps on benefits
will be history. Those who
already have insurance will be
able to keep it, and will gain
peace of mind knowing they won’t
be priced out of the market by
skyrocketing premiums. And more
than 30 million uninsured
Americans will gain access to
affordable health care coverage.
The Vice President also addressed
the disappointment that many feel
over the removal of a public option
from the Senate bill, but warned
that there would be no second chance
to vote yes for reform:
I share the frustration of
other progressives that the
Senate bill does not include a
public option. But I’ve been
around a long time, and I know
that in Washington big changes
never emerge in perfect form.
Those in our own party who
would scuttle this bill because
of what it doesn’t do seem not
to appreciate the magnitude of
what it has the potential to
accomplish.
...Is
America better off today because
a chance at a compromise health
bill was missed in 1993? For my
friends on the left, the rising
toll of the uninsured provides
an emphatic no. For my friends
on the right, the soaring share
of federal spending on health
care likewise provides a no.
Let’s not make the same mistake
again.
If the bill passes
the Senate this week, there will
be more chances to make changes
to it before it becomes law. But
if the bill dies this week,
there is no second chance to
vote yes. What those who care
about health insurance reform
need to realize is that unless
we get 60 votes now, there will
be no health care reform at all.
Not this year, not in this
Congress — and maybe not for
another generation.
|
| |
Former President Bill Clinton Calls
on the Senate to Pass Reform
December 18, 2009
Yesterday, former President Bill
Clinton called on the Senate to pass
health insurance reform, saying
abandoning health care reform now
would be a "colossal blunder."
Here’s his full statement, posted
on the Nation’s
blog:
"America stands at a historic
crossroads. At last, we are
close to making real health
insurance reform a reality. We
face one critical, final choice,
between action and inaction. We
know where the path of inaction
leads to: more uninsured
Americans, more families
struggling to keep up with
skyrocketing premiums, higher
federal budget deficits, and
health costs so much higher than
any other country's they will
cripple us economically.
Our only responsible choice
is the path of action. Does this
bill read exactly how I would
write it? No. Does it contain
everything everyone wants? Of
course not. But America can't
afford to let the perfect be the
enemy of the good.
And this is a good bill: it
increases the security of those
who already have insurance and
gives every American access to
affordable coverage; and
contains comprehensive efforts
to control costs and improve
quality, with more information
on best practices, and
comparative costs and results.
The bill will shift the power
away from the insurance
companies and into the hands of
consumers.
Take it from someone who
knows: these chances don't come
around every day. Allowing this
effort to fall short now would
be a colossal blunder -- both
politically for our party and,
far more important, for the
physical, fiscal, and economic
health of our country."
Congress last tried (but failed)
to pass comprehensive health care
reform legislation in 1994. Since
that time, millions of Americans
have lost their insurance, premiums
for individuals and families have
more than doubled and national
health expenditures have nearly
tripled.
|
| |
|
Republicans
Filibuster Defense Spending to To Delay
Health Reform
December 18, 2009Last
night at 1:00 A.M., the Senate was narrowly
able to overcome a Republican filibuster of
a key defense spending bill. On Saturday at
midnight, money for the Department of
Defense is set to run out – including the
money that funds our troops overseas.
Republicans had sought to use filibustering
of defense funding as a way to delay further
debate on health reform.
The
New York Times
reported:
With Democrats trying to inch toward
a final vote on the health care plan
before Christmas, Republicans are using
every tactic at their disposal to try to
thwart progress. Delaying a final vote
on the Pentagon measure was just the
latest and probably not the last.
Republicans acknowledged their
resistance to the Pentagon measure was
due to their desire to prolong the
debate over the Democratic health care
overhaul.
... Asked if he would
vote for the defense bill, which
Republicans routinely support, Senator
Sam Brownback Republican of Kansas,
replied bluntly: “No. I don’t want
health care.”
The defense spending measure also
includes a two-month extension of
unemployment benefits and health insurance
for out-of-work Americans.
This morning, White House Communications
Director Dan Pfeiffer
wrote that
"This is not a controversial bill – nearly
400 house members supported it and the vast
majority of Republicans are expected to vote
for it. It’s political gamesmanship at its
worst."
The depth of the hypocrisy involved
is stunning. Back in 2007, when
Congress was debating how to bring the
war in Iraq to a responsible close, many
of these same folks launched blistering
accusations about Democrats' commitment
to our troops. Here are just a few
of the things they said:
"Playing politics with the critical
funding that our troops need now is
political theater of the worst kind." –
Sen. John Cornyn,
[Press Release, 4/26/07]
"We have plenty of time and plenty of
opportunity to have political debates...
but it’s just unconscionable to me to
tie the hands of the very troops that we
all say we support." – Sen. John
Cornyn, [Transcript, Senate
Republican News Briefing, 4/10/07]
"Every day we don’t fund our troops
is a day their ability to fight this war
is weakened." – Sen. Mitch
McConnell, [Press Release,
3/31/07]
"No way to treat the troops, and it
is entirely inconsistent with
[Senators’] expressions of support for
the troops." – Sen. Mitch
McConnell, [Congressional
Record, 10/4/07]
"I don't understand this attitude of,
‘We can play with; we can risk the lives
of these troops by waiting until the
last possible minute to get the funding
to them." – Sen. Jon Kyl,
[FOX News Transcript, 4/10/07]
"Our obligation to those troops must
transcend politics." – Sen. Jon
Kyl, [Press Release, 11/8/07]
Now though, as we debate not foreign
policy but health care, the Department
of Defense funding can wait? Incredible.
The Senate is expected to resume debate
on health reform tomorrow morning.
|
| |
Bush Era
Policies Responsible for Record Budget
Deficits
December 16, 2009Republicans
have been railing against President Obama
and Congressional Democrats for months,
falsely claiming that our federal deficits
are a result of the policies Democrats have
pursued. Today, a new analysis by the
Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities determined that
the nation’s current budget deficits are
largely a consequence of Bush-era policies.
According to the Center, the Bush-era tax
cuts, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and
the economic downturn account for almost the
entire deficit over the next 10 years:
"…If not for the tax cuts enacted
during the Presidency of George W. Bush
that Congress did not pay for, the cost
of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that
began during that period, and the
effects of the worst economic slump
since the Great Depression (including
the cost of steps necessary to combat
it), we would not be facing these huge
deficits in the near term…"
The Center concluded that the Bush tax
cuts and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
accounted for “$500 billion of the deficit
in 2009 and $7.1 trillion in 2009 through
2019…” Absent the current economic downturn
and the fiscal policies of the Bush
Administration, the budget would have
balanced over the next decade.
Why is this important? Commentary from
the
Washington Monthly:
"...It's important for the public to
realize who's responsible, in large part
because it's important for the public to
weigh policymakers' credibility. If GOP
lawmakers embraced policies that are
almost entirely responsible for the
deficit those same lawmakers are now
complaining about, it's a relevant
detail."
Food for thought.
|
| |
House
Passes Financial Regulatory Reform
December 11, 2009
This afternoon the House passed its version
of financial regulatory reform - the Wall
Street and Consumer Protection Act - by a
vote of 223 to 220. No Republicans voted in
favor of the bill. The New York Times
called it “the most significant legislative
act to confront the financial crisis that
exploded last year...”
According to the
Times,
key provisions included in the bill include:
The bill’s principal provisions
establish a process for dismantling
large, failing financial institutions;
set up a council to identify and
regulate firms that are so big,
interconnected or risky that they need
heightened supervision to keep them from
bringing down the whole financial
system; create a new consumer
financial-protection agency to squelch
unfair and abusive practices; and for
the first time, regulate
over-the-counter derivatives markets.
The bill also contains provisions on
executive pay, investor protection,
credit ratings, hedge funds and
insurance.
DNC Chairman Tim Kaine issued the
statement below after the vote:
“Today, thanks to the leadership of
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Chairman
Barney Frank (D-MA) and other leading
Democrats, the House took an important
step towards creating a more stable
financial system by passing the Wall
Street Reform and Consumer Protection
Act of 2009. The Act will reform the way
we regulate our financial sector by
creating new rules that will make our
system more stable, while reining in the
irresponsible practices that nearly led
to the collapse of the global financial
system. The legislation would also
create a new consumer
financial-protection agency that would
stop unfair and abusive practices that
harmed consumers.
“Unfortunately, not one Republican
voted for the bill. Not one.
“Last fall, the excessive greed and
risk taking of Wall Street brought Main
Street to its knees. Now, instead of
standing up to the special interests and
supporting action that would ensure a
regulatory framework that puts an end to
unrestrained risk-taking, Republicans
have once again sided with their banking
industry friends instead of helping
working Americans who are already
shouldering the tab for Wall Street’s
reckless decisions. Republicans are once
again on the sidelines - defending their
special interest friends and failing to
offer any new solutions.
“Democrats will continue to work with
President Obama to craft final financial
regulatory reform legislation that makes
sure our financial system works for the
American people.”
|
| |
President
Obama Signs Hate Crimes Prevention Act Into
Law
October
28, 2009Today President Obama
signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd,
Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law,
legislation that will extend new federal
protections to people who are victims of
violent crime because of their gender,
sexual orientation or identity, or
disability.
DNC Chairman Tim Kaine issued a statement
after President Obama signed the bill into
law:
“Today, President Obama signed into law
legislation that was first championed by
the late Senator Ted Kennedy and has
been more than a decade in the making.
“The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd,
Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act will help
state and local officials prosecute hate
crimes by providing them with additional
tools and resources. President Obama and
his Administration are committed to
equal rights and fairness for women,
LGBT Americans, persons with
disabilities -- indeed, all Americans.
"There is still much work ahead, but
today, 11 years after the tragic deaths
of Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr.,
President Obama has delivered on his
promise to sign an inclusive hate crimes
bill into law.”
|
| |
Grab a Mop
October 17, 2009To
listen to some Republicans in Congress,
you’d think they had nothing whatsoever to
do with our current economic mess and now
they have no responsibility to help the
country clean it up. If you believed what
folks like John Boehner and Mitch McConnell
and Jon Kyl said, you’d think they’d been
sounding warning bells all along about the
dangerous and irresponsible policies of the
previous administration.
Ummm, not so much. Those guys were right
there, in the mix, supporting more tax cuts
for the wealthiest one percent, as they
whacked away at help for the middle class
and turned a blind eye to the fat cats
getting rich off the lax regulation of our
financial system.
And now they offer nothing but more of
the same and shouts of "NO" to any of the
President's ideas to clean up the mess we're
in.
The President has often spoken of our
mutual responsibility to one another. And he
has worked tirelessly to set right what went
wrong the previous eight years. While he's
rolled up his sleeves, he's called on all of
us to pitch in and work together.
But the GOP has eschewed that
responsibility. Instead they have rooted for
failure and said NO to needed reform of
financial regulation, the health insurance
system and how we use and produce energy.
To them we say three simple words: Grab a
Mop.
What I reject is when some folks say
we should go back to the past policies
when it was those very same policies
that got us into this mess in the first
place.
Another way of putting it is when,
you know, I'm busy and Nancy busy with
our mop cleaning up somebody else’s mess
–- we don’t want somebody sitting back
saying, you're not holding the mop the
right way. Why don’t you grab a mop, why
don’t you help clean up. You're not
mopping fast enough. That's a socialist
mop. Grab a mop –- let’s get to work.
-- President Barack Obama, October
15, 2009
|
| |
Bob
McDonnell’s Far Right Social Agenda Would
Cost Virginians Jobs and Hurt Virginia’s
Economy
October 14, 2009By now, anyone
who’s paid even a little attention to the
Governor’s race in Virginia has heard about
Republican Bob McDonnell’s
thesis. The
paper – which McDonnell authored just two
years before winning elected office for the
first time – articulates a right-wing social
agenda. It argues that working women are a
“detriment to the family” and denounces
“equal pay for equal work.”
Bob McDonnell says this election is all
about the economy and creating jobs. He says
his ideas about social issues won’t affect
the way he handles Virginia’s economy.
But he’s wrong. His far right-wing views
would directly threaten Virginians ability
to get a job and make a living.
From 1996 to 2004 McDonnell served on the
Board of Trustees of
Regent University,
which has a long-held practice of giving
hiring preferences to men over women. In
effect, the school’s policy says
distinctions based on sex are sometimes
legally permissible and regularly denies
otherwise qualified women jobs – a hiring
policy McDonnell repeatedly approved of
during his decade-long tenure on the Board.
McDonnell has also promised to
revoke a
Virginia law – an executive order signed by
Virginia’s last two governors – that
prohibits discrimination against LGBT
Virginians in hiring decisions.
McDonnell’s thesis wasn’t the result of
misguided youth (he was 34 years old when he
wrote the thesis), and it’s clear his far
right wing ideas haven't stayed in academia
(he also pursued a socially conservative
agenda
during his 14 years in the Virginia
Assembly).
Denying otherwise qualified women jobs
and denying LGBT Virginians protection from
discrimination in the workplace (a law
thats been on the books for 8 years)
can be directly traced back to the radical
ideas laid out in his
blueprint
for governing thesis. McDonnell isn't only
denying Virginians basic civil rights – he’s
also denying them basic economic security.
|
| |
President
Obama Speaks to the Veterans of Foreign Wars
August 17, 2009
Speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars on
August 17th in Phoenix Arizona, President
Obama honored every generation of Veterans
from those who served valiantly in World War
II to those who have served nobly in Iraq
and Afghanistan. The President once again
reaffirmed his administration's commitment
to our Veterans and discussed a number of
important issues relating to the military
and veterans. |
| |
Health Care
Town Hall in Montana
August 14, 2009President
Obama is in Montana today, holding his
second health insurance reform town hall
this week. At the event this afternoon
(which is set to begin at 2:55PM EDT) he is
expected to emphasize rescission, a common
insurance industry practice of retroactively
canceling an insurance policy after a policy
holder becomes sick.
You can listen to a live audio feed from
Montana over at OFA’s
blog. We’ll
have a round up of the event once it’s over.
Tomorrow President Obama will hold a
health insurance reform town hall in Grand
Junction, CO. The focus of discussion?
Exorbitant out-of-pocket expenses, co-pays
and deductibles.
|
| |
President
Obama signs a Memorandum on Federal Benefits
and Non-Discrimination
June 17, 2009Earlier
this evening President Obama signed a
Presidential Memorandum that will provide
steps towards equality for Federal
employees. The memorandum extends many
benefits to same-sex partners of Federal
employees that are already granted to
partners of heterosexual Federal employees.
After outlining the details of his
Memorandum the President went further by
calling on Congress to repeal the Defense of
Marriage Act;
But this Presidential Memorandum is just
a start. Unfortunately, my
Administration is not authorized by
existing Federal law to provide same-sex
couples with the full range of benefits
enjoyed by heterosexual married couples.
That's why I stand by my long-standing
commitment to work with Congress to
repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage
Act. It's discriminatory, it interferes
with States' rights, and it's time we
overturned it.
Surrounded by Representatives Tammy
Baldwin and Barney Frank as well as Senators
Joseph Lieberman and Susan Collins he
declared his support for the Domestic
Partners Benefits and Obligations Act of
2009.
The President then closed his
remarks with this statement;
As Americans, we are all affected when
our promises of equality go unfulfilled.
Through measures like the Presidential
Memorandum I am issuing today and the
Domestic Partners Benefits and
Obligations Act of 2009, we will advance
the principles upon which our Nation was
founded and continue to perfect our
Union.
|
| |
