European nations begin seizing private pensions - CSMonitor.com:
Could this ever happen in the USA?
"People’s retirement savings are a convenient source of revenue for governments that don’t want to reduce spending or make privatizations. As most pension schemes in Europe are organised by the state, European ministers of finance have a facilitated access to the savings accumulated there, and it is only logical that they try to get a hold of this money for their own ends. In recent weeks I have noted five such attempts: Three situations concern private personal savings; two others refer to national funds.
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Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Showing posts with label Bobby Jindal for President. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bobby Jindal for President. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Hey, Congress: Keep Your Day Jobs : NPR
Hey, Congress: Keep Your Day Jobs : NPR: "Next week, hordes of conservative Republican lawmakers will descend on Washington to take their seats in the freshman class of the 112th Congress. But some prominent conservatives suggest the best thing lawmakers can do to fix Capitol Hill is to stay the heck away from it.
'We used to pay farmers not to grow crops. Let's pay congressmen to stay out of Washington, D.C.,' Louisiana Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal recently told Human Events. In a new book, Jindal makes a serious case for a return to a part-time Congress, among other things. He argues that once elected, lawmakers who once promised to change Washington 'become part of the problem' and turn into a 'permanent governing political class.'
His solution? 'Make them part-time, give them term limits. Don't let them become lobbyists. When they have to live under the same rules and laws they pass for the rest of us, maybe you'd see some more common sense coming out of Washington, D.C.'
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'We used to pay farmers not to grow crops. Let's pay congressmen to stay out of Washington, D.C.,' Louisiana Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal recently told Human Events. In a new book, Jindal makes a serious case for a return to a part-time Congress, among other things. He argues that once elected, lawmakers who once promised to change Washington 'become part of the problem' and turn into a 'permanent governing political class.'
His solution? 'Make them part-time, give them term limits. Don't let them become lobbyists. When they have to live under the same rules and laws they pass for the rest of us, maybe you'd see some more common sense coming out of Washington, D.C.'
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Jindal, Markell tops in popularity - David Catanese - POLITICO.com
Jindal, Markell tops in popularity - David Catanese - POLITICO.com: "Navigate:
Jindal, Markell tops in popularity
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Delaware Gov. Jack Markell are the most popular governors set to stand for reelection over the next two years, according to Public Policy Polling's end-of-the-year rankings.
Jindal, who plans to run for a second term in 2011, has the approval of 58 percent of his state's voters; Markell, the outgoing chairman of the Democratic Governors Association, earns a 50 percent approval rating.
The governor with the lowest approval rating who could face voters again: Washington's Christine Gregoire.
Gregoire is mulling a third term in the Evergreen State, but right now just 40 percent of voters approve of her job performance, according to PPP.
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Jindal, Markell tops in popularity
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Delaware Gov. Jack Markell are the most popular governors set to stand for reelection over the next two years, according to Public Policy Polling's end-of-the-year rankings.
Jindal, who plans to run for a second term in 2011, has the approval of 58 percent of his state's voters; Markell, the outgoing chairman of the Democratic Governors Association, earns a 50 percent approval rating.
The governor with the lowest approval rating who could face voters again: Washington's Christine Gregoire.
Gregoire is mulling a third term in the Evergreen State, but right now just 40 percent of voters approve of her job performance, according to PPP.
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Where are the jobs? For many companies, overseas
Where are the jobs? For many companies, overseas: "Corporate profits are up. Stock prices are up. So why isn't anyone hiring?
Actually, many American companies are—just maybe not in your town. They're hiring overseas, where sales are surging and the pipeline of orders is fat.
More than half of the 15,000 people that Caterpillar Inc. has hired this year were outside the U.S. UPS is also hiring at a faster clip overseas. For both companies, sales in international markets are growing at least twice as fast as domestically.
The trend helps explain why unemployment remains high in the United States, edging up to 9.8 percent last month, even though companies are performing well: All but 4 percent of the top 500 U.S. corporations reported profits this year, and the stock market is close to its highest point since the 2008 financial meltdown.
But the jobs are going elsewhere. The Economic Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, says American companies have created 1.4 million jobs overseas this year, compared with less than 1 million in the U.S. The additional 1.4 million jobs would have lowered the U.S. unemployment rate to 8.9 percent, says Robert Scott, the institute's senior international economist.
'There's a huge difference between what is good for American companies versus what is good for the American economy,' says Scott.
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Actually, many American companies are—just maybe not in your town. They're hiring overseas, where sales are surging and the pipeline of orders is fat.
More than half of the 15,000 people that Caterpillar Inc. has hired this year were outside the U.S. UPS is also hiring at a faster clip overseas. For both companies, sales in international markets are growing at least twice as fast as domestically.
The trend helps explain why unemployment remains high in the United States, edging up to 9.8 percent last month, even though companies are performing well: All but 4 percent of the top 500 U.S. corporations reported profits this year, and the stock market is close to its highest point since the 2008 financial meltdown.
But the jobs are going elsewhere. The Economic Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, says American companies have created 1.4 million jobs overseas this year, compared with less than 1 million in the U.S. The additional 1.4 million jobs would have lowered the U.S. unemployment rate to 8.9 percent, says Robert Scott, the institute's senior international economist.
'There's a huge difference between what is good for American companies versus what is good for the American economy,' says Scott.
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Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Obama's mystery proposal to regulate the Internet | Washington Examiner
Obama's mystery proposal to regulate the Internet | Washington Examiner: "If President Obama wants his executive branch to resemble the opaque, power-hungry political machinations in Chicago, he seems to be succeeding in the area of Internet regulation. Last April, a federal court told the Federal Communications Commission that it has no business regulating the Internet. Unfortunately, judicial rejection of the commission's first swing at the 'net neutrality' ball -- the idea the FCC must regulate the Internet to insure everybody has equal access -- didn't deter Obama's FCC chairman, Julius Genachowski, from taking another whack. He's bringing a new set of proposed net neutrality regulations to the five-member panel Tuesday. Unfortunately, nobody knows any details of the new proposal because Genachowski has kept them secret until the last possible minute even as he rushed them forward for a vote. How ironic that the Internet, the great and empowering liberator of information that 'wants to be free,' is being chopped up behind closed doors by an unelected panel. Note, too, that this is being considered by the FCC on the winter solstice, the darkest day of the year.
In their net neutrality quest, Genachowski and two of his fellow Democratic appointees are working to expand government power into an area where the commission has no jurisdiction, under the guise of solving a problem that does not exist. Meredith Baker, a Republican FCC appointee, summarized the situation well: 'We have two branches of government -- Congress and the courts -- expressing grave concerns with our agency becoming increasingly unmoored from our statutory authority. By seeking to regulate the Internet now, we exceed the authority Congress has given us and justify those concerns.' Incoming House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., has called on the FCC to 'cease and desist.'
This exercise in government opacity and overreach is already damaging the economy. As major telecommunications and Internet service companies prepare to roll out new fourth generation (4G) wireless service for millions of customers, these unelected bureaucratic commissars are recklessly creating doubt about the future value and profitability of those companies' investments. They are also discouraging future investments that need to be made for the Internet to continue its phenomenal growth.
Federal courts will almost certainly strike down anything the FCC adopts Tuesday, just as they did earlier this year. Congress will also have its chance to undo Genachowski's handiwork through the Congressional Review Act. But why should we have to go this far to rein in a government agency supposedly run by people who took an oath to 'support and defend' our Constitution? Is Obama unable to make his own appointees obey the law? Either way, the new Congress should hold Obama accountable for what the FCC is now doing in his name.
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In their net neutrality quest, Genachowski and two of his fellow Democratic appointees are working to expand government power into an area where the commission has no jurisdiction, under the guise of solving a problem that does not exist. Meredith Baker, a Republican FCC appointee, summarized the situation well: 'We have two branches of government -- Congress and the courts -- expressing grave concerns with our agency becoming increasingly unmoored from our statutory authority. By seeking to regulate the Internet now, we exceed the authority Congress has given us and justify those concerns.' Incoming House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., has called on the FCC to 'cease and desist.'
This exercise in government opacity and overreach is already damaging the economy. As major telecommunications and Internet service companies prepare to roll out new fourth generation (4G) wireless service for millions of customers, these unelected bureaucratic commissars are recklessly creating doubt about the future value and profitability of those companies' investments. They are also discouraging future investments that need to be made for the Internet to continue its phenomenal growth.
Federal courts will almost certainly strike down anything the FCC adopts Tuesday, just as they did earlier this year. Congress will also have its chance to undo Genachowski's handiwork through the Congressional Review Act. But why should we have to go this far to rein in a government agency supposedly run by people who took an oath to 'support and defend' our Constitution? Is Obama unable to make his own appointees obey the law? Either way, the new Congress should hold Obama accountable for what the FCC is now doing in his name.
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Gaping holes at the Mexico border are exposed | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle
Gaping holes at the Mexico border are exposed | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "More than 18 months after U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspectors were supposed to start enforcing stringent ID requirements at the nation's land borders, millions of travelers are still being admitted without passports or other secure IDs, a new government audit shows.
An Office of Inspector General report released Monday found that CBP remains unprepared to fully implement the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which officially took effect in June 2009 and requires all travelers, including U.S. citizens, to carry passports or one of a handful of other forms of secure ID.
In the first eight months after the requirements took effect, 2.3 million travelers failed to provide proper paperwork at U.S. land ports of entry.
CBP internal policy, issued shortly before the implementation deadline, only required travelers who provided improper paperwork multiple times to undergo added inspection, resulting in additional screening for about 9,000 people based only on their lack of documentation, according to the report.
Auditors singled out Texas for having the lowest compliance rate in the country, with nearly 1-in-10 travelers — 1.1 million people — arriving at Texas land borders without proper identification during the period of the review.
Critics warned that the failure to fully implement the more stringent ID requirements, mandated by Congress as part of its response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, amounts to a security vulnerability.
Until the new travel document requirement is fully enforced, OIG's auditors wrote, the agency 'continues to incur risk' that it will admit travelers falsely claiming to be citizens of the U.S., Canada, Bermuda and Mexico.
'This report highlights why our nation's border security must be our first priority,' said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in response to the OIG's findings. 'The WHTI requirements have been in place for over a year, and it is unacceptable that the administration failed to ask for adequate resources needed to fully comply with the mandate.'
Improvements seen
While identifying problems preventing full compliance, auditors noted significant recent improvements by CBP in technology and manpower. The auditors also reported CBP had a high overall compliance rate with document requirements — 96 percent nationwide — driven in part by a robust public outreach and media campaign.
CBP spokeswoman Yolanda Choates declined comment on the report Monday. In a written response to OIG, a top CBP official said that 'despite OIG's characterization, all travelers have to satisfy, and will continue to have to satisfy, the inspecting officer of their identity, citizenship and admissibility prior to their admission to the United States.'
Even travelers that fail to comply with the WHTI requirements are queried against terrorist watch databases, CBP wrote.
According to the report, the agency does not yet have a date to fully implement the WHTI requirements.
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An Office of Inspector General report released Monday found that CBP remains unprepared to fully implement the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which officially took effect in June 2009 and requires all travelers, including U.S. citizens, to carry passports or one of a handful of other forms of secure ID.
In the first eight months after the requirements took effect, 2.3 million travelers failed to provide proper paperwork at U.S. land ports of entry.
CBP internal policy, issued shortly before the implementation deadline, only required travelers who provided improper paperwork multiple times to undergo added inspection, resulting in additional screening for about 9,000 people based only on their lack of documentation, according to the report.
Auditors singled out Texas for having the lowest compliance rate in the country, with nearly 1-in-10 travelers — 1.1 million people — arriving at Texas land borders without proper identification during the period of the review.
Critics warned that the failure to fully implement the more stringent ID requirements, mandated by Congress as part of its response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, amounts to a security vulnerability.
Until the new travel document requirement is fully enforced, OIG's auditors wrote, the agency 'continues to incur risk' that it will admit travelers falsely claiming to be citizens of the U.S., Canada, Bermuda and Mexico.
'This report highlights why our nation's border security must be our first priority,' said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, in response to the OIG's findings. 'The WHTI requirements have been in place for over a year, and it is unacceptable that the administration failed to ask for adequate resources needed to fully comply with the mandate.'
Improvements seen
While identifying problems preventing full compliance, auditors noted significant recent improvements by CBP in technology and manpower. The auditors also reported CBP had a high overall compliance rate with document requirements — 96 percent nationwide — driven in part by a robust public outreach and media campaign.
CBP spokeswoman Yolanda Choates declined comment on the report Monday. In a written response to OIG, a top CBP official said that 'despite OIG's characterization, all travelers have to satisfy, and will continue to have to satisfy, the inspecting officer of their identity, citizenship and admissibility prior to their admission to the United States.'
Even travelers that fail to comply with the WHTI requirements are queried against terrorist watch databases, CBP wrote.
According to the report, the agency does not yet have a date to fully implement the WHTI requirements.
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FCC Gives Government Power to Regulate Web Traffic - WSJ.com
FCC Gives Government Power to Regulate Web Traffic - WSJ.com: "WASHINGTON—Federal telecommunications regulators approved new rules Tuesday that would for the first time give the federal government formal authority to regulate Internet traffic, although how much or for how long remained unclear.
The FCC has approved rules that would give the federal government authority to regulate Internet traffic and prevent broadband providers from selectively blocking web traffic.
WSJ's Amy Schatz explains what the new rules really mean.
A divided Federal Communications Commission approved a proposal by Chairman Julius Genachowski to give the FCC power to prevent broadband providers from selectively blocking web traffic.
The rules will go into effect early next year, but legal challenges or action by Congress could block the FCC's action. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) on Tuesday called the FCC's action 'flawed' and said lawmakers would 'have an opportunity in the new Congress to push back against new rules and regulations.'
The new FCC rules, for example, would prevent a broadband provider, such as Comcast Corp., AT&T, Inc. or Verizon Communications Inc., from hobbling access to an online video service, such as Netflix, that competes with its own video services.
The rules would also require Internet providers to give subscribers more information on Internet speeds and service. Broadly, the rules would prohibit Internet providers from 'unreasonably discriminating' against rivals' Internet traffic or services on wired or wireless networks.
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The FCC has approved rules that would give the federal government authority to regulate Internet traffic and prevent broadband providers from selectively blocking web traffic.
WSJ's Amy Schatz explains what the new rules really mean.
A divided Federal Communications Commission approved a proposal by Chairman Julius Genachowski to give the FCC power to prevent broadband providers from selectively blocking web traffic.
The rules will go into effect early next year, but legal challenges or action by Congress could block the FCC's action. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) on Tuesday called the FCC's action 'flawed' and said lawmakers would 'have an opportunity in the new Congress to push back against new rules and regulations.'
The new FCC rules, for example, would prevent a broadband provider, such as Comcast Corp., AT&T, Inc. or Verizon Communications Inc., from hobbling access to an online video service, such as Netflix, that competes with its own video services.
The rules would also require Internet providers to give subscribers more information on Internet speeds and service. Broadly, the rules would prohibit Internet providers from 'unreasonably discriminating' against rivals' Internet traffic or services on wired or wireless networks.
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111th Congress - Spendthrifts without Equal!
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Books | Obama reads his children's book to 2nd graders | Seattle Times Newspaper
Books | Obama reads his children's book to 2nd graders | Seattle Times Newspaper: "ARLINGTON, Va. —
Usually, big-name authors plug their books on a nationwide book tour. President Barack Obama took a lower-key approach Friday, reading selections from his new children's book to a group of delighted second-graders in suburban Virginia.
In the library of Long Branch Elementary School, some four dozen youngsters giggled and squirmed as Obama gave voice to passages from 'Of Thee I Sing,' an illustrated volume in the form of a letter to his daughters describing the lives of 13 great Americans. It was written in 2008 but just came out this fall, with proceeds going to a scholarship fund for the children of fallen and disabled soldiers.
'I wanted to borrow you guys, and read to you,' Obama explained, sitting down on a wooden chair as the children sat cross-legged on the carpet.
He began with entries on Albert Einstein - 'he was one of the smartest men ever' - and Jackie Robinson - 'he was the first African-American to play in major league baseball' - before skipping to the end, and the entry on Abraham Lincoln.
'Everybody know who Abraham Lincoln is?' Obama asked, to a chorus of 'Yes!' from the youngsters. 'He helped to end slavery in the United States.'
Obama left behind a signed copy for the school library. 'You can read about all these other different people who are brave and imaginative and creative and smart, just like you guys are,' he said. 'I hope you enjoy it.'
Obama also read the Christmas poem ''Twas the Night Before Christmas' by Clement Moore, pausing so the kids could jump in at key points and making side comments on things like the couple of inches of snow Washington was dusted with Thursday. 'I'm surprised you guys are in school 'cause a lot of times in Washington people don't go to school when there's even an inch of snow,' he said.
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Usually, big-name authors plug their books on a nationwide book tour. President Barack Obama took a lower-key approach Friday, reading selections from his new children's book to a group of delighted second-graders in suburban Virginia.
In the library of Long Branch Elementary School, some four dozen youngsters giggled and squirmed as Obama gave voice to passages from 'Of Thee I Sing,' an illustrated volume in the form of a letter to his daughters describing the lives of 13 great Americans. It was written in 2008 but just came out this fall, with proceeds going to a scholarship fund for the children of fallen and disabled soldiers.
'I wanted to borrow you guys, and read to you,' Obama explained, sitting down on a wooden chair as the children sat cross-legged on the carpet.
He began with entries on Albert Einstein - 'he was one of the smartest men ever' - and Jackie Robinson - 'he was the first African-American to play in major league baseball' - before skipping to the end, and the entry on Abraham Lincoln.
'Everybody know who Abraham Lincoln is?' Obama asked, to a chorus of 'Yes!' from the youngsters. 'He helped to end slavery in the United States.'
Obama left behind a signed copy for the school library. 'You can read about all these other different people who are brave and imaginative and creative and smart, just like you guys are,' he said. 'I hope you enjoy it.'
Obama also read the Christmas poem ''Twas the Night Before Christmas' by Clement Moore, pausing so the kids could jump in at key points and making side comments on things like the couple of inches of snow Washington was dusted with Thursday. 'I'm surprised you guys are in school 'cause a lot of times in Washington people don't go to school when there's even an inch of snow,' he said.
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Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Airport Security: Loaded Gun Slips Past TSA Screeners - ABC News
Airport Security: Loaded Gun Slips Past TSA Screeners - ABC News: "Last fall, as he had done hundreds of times, Iranian-American businessman Farid Seif passed through security at a Houston airport and boarded an international flight.
He didn't realize he had forgotten to remove the loaded snub nose 'baby' Glock pistol from his computer bag. But TSA officers never noticed as his bag glided along the belt and was x-rayed. When he got to his hotel after the three-hour flight, he was shocked to discover the gun traveled unnoticed from Houston.
'It's just impossible to miss it, you know. I mean, this is not a small gun,' Seif told ABC News. 'How can you miss it? You cannot miss it.'
But the TSA did miss it, and despite what most people believe about the painstaking effort to screen airline passengers and their luggage before they enter the terminal, it was not that unusual.
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He didn't realize he had forgotten to remove the loaded snub nose 'baby' Glock pistol from his computer bag. But TSA officers never noticed as his bag glided along the belt and was x-rayed. When he got to his hotel after the three-hour flight, he was shocked to discover the gun traveled unnoticed from Houston.
'It's just impossible to miss it, you know. I mean, this is not a small gun,' Seif told ABC News. 'How can you miss it? You cannot miss it.'
But the TSA did miss it, and despite what most people believe about the painstaking effort to screen airline passengers and their luggage before they enter the terminal, it was not that unusual.
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Payrolls Drop in 28 U.S. States, Joblessness Rises in 21 in Labor Setback - Bloomberg
Payrolls Drop in 28 U.S. States, Joblessness Rises in 21 in Labor Setback - Bloomberg: "Payrolls decreased in 28 U.S. states and the unemployment rate climbed in 21, showing most parts of the world’s largest economy took part in the November labor- market setback.
North Carolina led the nation with 12,500 job cuts last month, followed by Massachusetts with 8,600 dismissals, and Ohio with 7,800, figures from the Labor Department showed today in Washington. Joblessness increased most in Georgia and Idaho, while workers in Nevada faced the highest rate in the country at 14.3 percent.
The report is consistent with figures on Dec. 3 that showed unemployment increased last month for the first time since August. The Federal Reserve’s pledge to buy an additional $600 billion of Treasuries by June and the $858 billion bill passed by Congress extending all Bush-era tax cuts for two years may help boost growth and cut unemployment.
The report shows “an uneven distribution of improvement with some disappointing results,” said Russell Price, a senior economist at Ameriprise Financial Inc. in Detroit. “We’ve seen pretty clear evidence that demand is starting to improve and with the tax program that was passed last night it should further accelerate. That increased demand is going to pull forward further improvements in employment.”
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North Carolina led the nation with 12,500 job cuts last month, followed by Massachusetts with 8,600 dismissals, and Ohio with 7,800, figures from the Labor Department showed today in Washington. Joblessness increased most in Georgia and Idaho, while workers in Nevada faced the highest rate in the country at 14.3 percent.
The report is consistent with figures on Dec. 3 that showed unemployment increased last month for the first time since August. The Federal Reserve’s pledge to buy an additional $600 billion of Treasuries by June and the $858 billion bill passed by Congress extending all Bush-era tax cuts for two years may help boost growth and cut unemployment.
The report shows “an uneven distribution of improvement with some disappointing results,” said Russell Price, a senior economist at Ameriprise Financial Inc. in Detroit. “We’ve seen pretty clear evidence that demand is starting to improve and with the tax program that was passed last night it should further accelerate. That increased demand is going to pull forward further improvements in employment.”
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Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Senate Dems unveil $1.1T spending bill - TheHill.com
Senate Dems unveil $1.1T spending bill - TheHill.com: "Senate Democrats have filed a $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill that would fund the government through fiscal year 2011, according to Senate GOP sources.
The 1,924-page bill includes funding to implement the sweeping healthcare reform bill Congress passed earlier this year as well as additional funds for Internal Revenue Service agents, according to a senior GOP aide familiar with the legislation.
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The 1,924-page bill includes funding to implement the sweeping healthcare reform bill Congress passed earlier this year as well as additional funds for Internal Revenue Service agents, according to a senior GOP aide familiar with the legislation.
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Saturday, December 11, 2010
Gas up $1 a gallon on Obama's watch - Washington Times
Gas up $1 a gallon on Obama's watch - Washington Times: "Gas prices have risen $1 since just after President Obama took office in January 2009 and are now closing in on the $3 mark, prompting an evaluation of the administration's energy record and calls for the White House to open more U.S. land for oil exploration.
The average price per gallon across the U.S. hit $2.81 this week, according to the Energy Information Administration. That was up from $1.81 the week of Jan. 26, 2009, just after the inauguration, and marks the highest price since Oct. 20, 2008.
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The average price per gallon across the U.S. hit $2.81 this week, according to the Energy Information Administration. That was up from $1.81 the week of Jan. 26, 2009, just after the inauguration, and marks the highest price since Oct. 20, 2008.
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Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
U.S. Posts $150.4 Billion November Budget Deficit - WSJ.com
U.S. Posts $150.4 Billion November Budget Deficit - WSJ.com: "WASHINGTON—The U.S. government ran its 26th straight monthly budget deficit in November amid wrangling over a package that would extend big tax cuts to Americans trying to recover from recession.
The Treasury Department, in its regular budget monthly statement, said the government spent $150.4 billion than it collected in the second month of fiscal 2011.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a shortfall of $126.5 billion. November is traditionally a month for deficits.
The Treasury report, detailing the government's spending programs, prompted an economic research firm, Macroeconomic Advisers, to lift its forecast for economic growth from October through December by four-tenths of a percentage point, to 2.7%.
Last month's red ink pushes up the deficit to $290.8 billion for the fiscal year, which began Oct. 1. That figure is a little smaller than the deficit during the same period last year. But President Barack Obama's administration expects the deficit to top $1 trillion in this fiscal year.
Washington has spent in excess of $1 trillion during each of the last two fiscal years, as revenues were reduced by the deep recession. At the same time, the economic slump and Wall Street bailout raised the government's expenses.
The November deficit marked the government's 26th shortfall in a row. As the deficit continues growing, Washington is in the midst of working out key tax legislation. The Senate unveiled final details of a broad tax bill—and its 10-year price tag of $858 billion—and began debate Thursday night on the package. Earlier in the week, Mr. Obama struck a deal with Republicans in Congress to extend for two years tax cuts enacted under former President George W. Bush.
The budget statement Friday said federal spending totaled $585.7 billion so far this fiscal year, with revenues at $294.9 billion. In the last two months, the federal government spent $128.3 billion on defense, $36.8 billion in interest payments on its debt, and $20.0 billion for unemployment benefits.
The U.S. budget deficit in fiscal 2010, at $1.294 trillion, was the second-highest ever, behind the record 2009 deficit of $1.416 trillion.
The administration last July said it was projecting a 2011 budget deficit of $1.416 trillion. But Michael Feroli, an analyst at J.P. Morgan Chase, said Friday he expects the budget gap to set a new record in fiscal 2011, reaching $1.5 trillion as the government pays for the extension of tax cuts.
The tax package prompted Mr. Feroli to raise his forecast of 2011 economic growth by half of a percentage point. This also came after the Fed, to spur the weak economy, announced a decision last month to buy $600 billion in U.S. Treasury notes.
'Because the added growth from the package should be concentrated in the first half of next year, we now believe the Fed will not seek to increase asset purchases beyond the currently scheduled $600 billion amount when it reviews the program next June,' he said in a research note.
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The Treasury Department, in its regular budget monthly statement, said the government spent $150.4 billion than it collected in the second month of fiscal 2011.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a shortfall of $126.5 billion. November is traditionally a month for deficits.
The Treasury report, detailing the government's spending programs, prompted an economic research firm, Macroeconomic Advisers, to lift its forecast for economic growth from October through December by four-tenths of a percentage point, to 2.7%.
Last month's red ink pushes up the deficit to $290.8 billion for the fiscal year, which began Oct. 1. That figure is a little smaller than the deficit during the same period last year. But President Barack Obama's administration expects the deficit to top $1 trillion in this fiscal year.
Washington has spent in excess of $1 trillion during each of the last two fiscal years, as revenues were reduced by the deep recession. At the same time, the economic slump and Wall Street bailout raised the government's expenses.
The November deficit marked the government's 26th shortfall in a row. As the deficit continues growing, Washington is in the midst of working out key tax legislation. The Senate unveiled final details of a broad tax bill—and its 10-year price tag of $858 billion—and began debate Thursday night on the package. Earlier in the week, Mr. Obama struck a deal with Republicans in Congress to extend for two years tax cuts enacted under former President George W. Bush.
The budget statement Friday said federal spending totaled $585.7 billion so far this fiscal year, with revenues at $294.9 billion. In the last two months, the federal government spent $128.3 billion on defense, $36.8 billion in interest payments on its debt, and $20.0 billion for unemployment benefits.
The U.S. budget deficit in fiscal 2010, at $1.294 trillion, was the second-highest ever, behind the record 2009 deficit of $1.416 trillion.
The administration last July said it was projecting a 2011 budget deficit of $1.416 trillion. But Michael Feroli, an analyst at J.P. Morgan Chase, said Friday he expects the budget gap to set a new record in fiscal 2011, reaching $1.5 trillion as the government pays for the extension of tax cuts.
The tax package prompted Mr. Feroli to raise his forecast of 2011 economic growth by half of a percentage point. This also came after the Fed, to spur the weak economy, announced a decision last month to buy $600 billion in U.S. Treasury notes.
'Because the added growth from the package should be concentrated in the first half of next year, we now believe the Fed will not seek to increase asset purchases beyond the currently scheduled $600 billion amount when it reviews the program next June,' he said in a research note.
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Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Friday, December 10, 2010
Democrats: What can you say?
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Obama honors Nobel winner with statement about himself | Washington Examiner
Obama honors Nobel winner with statement about himself | Washington Examiner: "There was an extraordinary scene at the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo Friday morning. The prize went to imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, who was barred by the Chinese government from attending the ceremony. It was the first time since 1935 -- when the prize went to a winner imprisoned in one of Adolf Hitler's concentration camps -- that the Peace Prize winner did not appear personally to accept the award.
So on this notable occasion, the White House released a statement from President Obama on the awarding of the prize to Liu in absentia. And this is how Obama's statement began:
One year ago, I was humbled to receive the Nobel Peace Prize -- an award that speaks to our highest aspirations, and that has been claimed by giants of history and courageous advocates who have sacrificed for freedom and justice.
Critics have often said of Obama that 'it's all about him,' that he has a tendency to reference himself no matter what subject he is discussing. Could he do any more to prove them right? But just to show that he is, in fact, humble, the president followed his opening sentence with this:
Mr. Liu Xiaobo is far more deserving of this award than I was.
In the rest of his statement, Obama writes that 'We respect China's extraordinary accomplishment in lifting millions out of poverty, and believe that human rights include the dignity that comes with freedom from want.' But of course, Liu wasn't at the Nobel ceremony in Oslo because of the Chinese government, so Obama adds, 'Mr. Liu reminds us that human dignity also depends upon the advance of democracy, open society, and the rule of law. The values he espouses are universal, his struggle is peaceful, and he should be released as soon as possible.' And then, before closing, the president makes one more reference to himself:
I regret that Mr. Liu and his wife were denied the opportunity to attend the ceremony that Michelle and I attended last year.
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Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
So on this notable occasion, the White House released a statement from President Obama on the awarding of the prize to Liu in absentia. And this is how Obama's statement began:
One year ago, I was humbled to receive the Nobel Peace Prize -- an award that speaks to our highest aspirations, and that has been claimed by giants of history and courageous advocates who have sacrificed for freedom and justice.
Critics have often said of Obama that 'it's all about him,' that he has a tendency to reference himself no matter what subject he is discussing. Could he do any more to prove them right? But just to show that he is, in fact, humble, the president followed his opening sentence with this:
Mr. Liu Xiaobo is far more deserving of this award than I was.
In the rest of his statement, Obama writes that 'We respect China's extraordinary accomplishment in lifting millions out of poverty, and believe that human rights include the dignity that comes with freedom from want.' But of course, Liu wasn't at the Nobel ceremony in Oslo because of the Chinese government, so Obama adds, 'Mr. Liu reminds us that human dignity also depends upon the advance of democracy, open society, and the rule of law. The values he espouses are universal, his struggle is peaceful, and he should be released as soon as possible.' And then, before closing, the president makes one more reference to himself:
I regret that Mr. Liu and his wife were denied the opportunity to attend the ceremony that Michelle and I attended last year.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Monday, December 06, 2010
Obama Made ‘Big Mistake’ on Climate Bill, Turner Says - Bloomberg
Obama Made ‘Big Mistake’ on Climate Bill, Turner Says - Bloomberg: "U.S. President Barack Obama made a “big mistake” in pushing health-care legislation before climate change, billionaire Ted Turner said today.
“We would have an energy climate change bill in the United States if President Obama had made that his top priority and brought that to the American people and Congress first rather than the health-care bill,” Turner, founder of Time Warner Inc.’s CNN, said today at a conference in Cancun, Mexico. “But he didn’t, and I think it was a big mistake.”
Obama, who campaigned on a promise to fight climate change, made the economy, health care, energy and education his top priorities after taking office. Health-care legislation was signed into law earlier this year after contentious debate while a “cap-and-trade” bill to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions stalled in the Senate. Obama now says he doubts such a measure can win passage until 2013 at the earliest.
“The climate bill is much more important than health care because the climate situation is about life and death whereas the health-care bill was much more limited,” Turner, 72, said.
A bill creating a cap-and-trade program to reduce emissions and establish a market in pollution allowances passed the House of Representatives last year. The Senate dropped the measure earlier this year amid claims that an emissions-trading system would boost energy prices and hurt the economy.
Skepticism Rises
U.S. skepticism about whether humans are causing climate change has increased, polls show. Congressional elections in November will bring into office in January almost four dozen new lawmakers who question global warming, according to ThinkProgress, an arm of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, a Washington research group allied with Democrats.
Turner, who also spoke in Cancun yesterday, said more needs to be done to raise public awareness of the threat.
“We have to convince the majority of people in the world that we are right and get them motivated,” he said. “That’s a big job, but hopefully we can do it.”
Turned noted humans only began burning the fossil fuels linked to climate change about 200 years ago. “Now we are being asked to completely change our energy system in a quick period of time,” he said. “It’s hard for us. It’s something we really have to do if we want to survive.”
Climate Summit
Turner spoke this weekend at the World Climate Summit, a conference focused on how businesses can help combat climate change. The gathering is timed to coincide with United Nations- led climate change treaty talks in Cancun.
Negotiators from about 190 countries are debating the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and terms for a new accord that includes all major polluters. The U.S., the second-biggest greenhouse-gas emitter after China, is the only industrialized nation not bound by the Kyoto treaty.
Japan, Russia and Canada have refused to sign up for a second round of emissions reductions once the current ones written into Kyoto expire in 2012.
Emerging economies, such as China, India and Brazil, are pushing for the developed countries to agree on a new commitment period. Discord over Kyoto threatens to take attention away from talks for a new global climate agreement that includes the U.S., UN climate chief Christiana Figueres said yesterday.
The Obama administration is limited in what it can commit to in the talks because the U.S. doesn’t have a national law capping emissions by a certain percentage. Obama’s lead climate negotiator, Todd Stern, says the U.S. will stick to its pledge of cutting greenhouse gases about 17 percent by 2020.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to start regulating carbon from power plants and oil refiners starting in January.
To contact the reporter on this story: Kim Chipman in Washington at kchipman@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Reed Landberg at landberg@bloomberg.net.
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Last update: 3:15 PM ET, Dec 5
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
“We would have an energy climate change bill in the United States if President Obama had made that his top priority and brought that to the American people and Congress first rather than the health-care bill,” Turner, founder of Time Warner Inc.’s CNN, said today at a conference in Cancun, Mexico. “But he didn’t, and I think it was a big mistake.”
Obama, who campaigned on a promise to fight climate change, made the economy, health care, energy and education his top priorities after taking office. Health-care legislation was signed into law earlier this year after contentious debate while a “cap-and-trade” bill to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions stalled in the Senate. Obama now says he doubts such a measure can win passage until 2013 at the earliest.
“The climate bill is much more important than health care because the climate situation is about life and death whereas the health-care bill was much more limited,” Turner, 72, said.
A bill creating a cap-and-trade program to reduce emissions and establish a market in pollution allowances passed the House of Representatives last year. The Senate dropped the measure earlier this year amid claims that an emissions-trading system would boost energy prices and hurt the economy.
Skepticism Rises
U.S. skepticism about whether humans are causing climate change has increased, polls show. Congressional elections in November will bring into office in January almost four dozen new lawmakers who question global warming, according to ThinkProgress, an arm of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, a Washington research group allied with Democrats.
Turner, who also spoke in Cancun yesterday, said more needs to be done to raise public awareness of the threat.
“We have to convince the majority of people in the world that we are right and get them motivated,” he said. “That’s a big job, but hopefully we can do it.”
Turned noted humans only began burning the fossil fuels linked to climate change about 200 years ago. “Now we are being asked to completely change our energy system in a quick period of time,” he said. “It’s hard for us. It’s something we really have to do if we want to survive.”
Climate Summit
Turner spoke this weekend at the World Climate Summit, a conference focused on how businesses can help combat climate change. The gathering is timed to coincide with United Nations- led climate change treaty talks in Cancun.
Negotiators from about 190 countries are debating the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and terms for a new accord that includes all major polluters. The U.S., the second-biggest greenhouse-gas emitter after China, is the only industrialized nation not bound by the Kyoto treaty.
Japan, Russia and Canada have refused to sign up for a second round of emissions reductions once the current ones written into Kyoto expire in 2012.
Emerging economies, such as China, India and Brazil, are pushing for the developed countries to agree on a new commitment period. Discord over Kyoto threatens to take attention away from talks for a new global climate agreement that includes the U.S., UN climate chief Christiana Figueres said yesterday.
The Obama administration is limited in what it can commit to in the talks because the U.S. doesn’t have a national law capping emissions by a certain percentage. Obama’s lead climate negotiator, Todd Stern, says the U.S. will stick to its pledge of cutting greenhouse gases about 17 percent by 2020.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to start regulating carbon from power plants and oil refiners starting in January.
To contact the reporter on this story: Kim Chipman in Washington at kchipman@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Reed Landberg at landberg@bloomberg.net.
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Ticker Price Price Delta
Dow 11356.50 -25.62 (-0.23%)
S&P 500 1221.21 -3.50 (-0.29%)
Nasdaq 2587.55 -3.91 (-0.15%)
Ticker Price Price Delta
STOXX 50 2774.93 -7.46 (-0.27%)
FTSE 100 5774.14 +28.82 (0.50%)
DAX 6960.25 +12.53 (0.18%)
Ticker Price Price Delta
Nikkei 10167.20 -11.09 (-0.11%)
TOPIX 881.41 +2.19 (0.25%)
Hang Seng 23237.70 -82.83 (-0.36%)
Stocks on the Move
Most Popular Stories
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Groupon Prankster Mason Not Joking in Spurning Google's $6 Billion Offer
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Bernanke Says Fed May Take More Action to Curb Joblessness
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European Officials Split Over Bailout Fund Increase, EU Bond Updated 1 hour ago
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Last update: 3:15 PM ET, Dec 5
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
What Obama Needs to Make a Comeback: Nothing Short of Luck - TIME
What Obama Needs to Make a Comeback: Nothing Short of Luck - TIME: "A survey of the political landscape shows that many groups who were part of the 2008-09 Obama coalition have turned on him. Liberals believe he is an overcompromising wimp. (See blistering recent columns by progressive icons Paul Krugman and Frank Rich of the New York Times for a taste of what the left thinks of 'their' President now.) The business community considers Obama ignorant about markets at best, a socialist at worst (O.K., some business people entertain an even harsher assessment). The media, after aiding and abetting his ride to the White House, now see the President as incompetent and overwhelmed. The independents and Republicans who backed him for office currently feel he is too liberal and too weak to do the job. These trends are all worse in Washington and among opinion leaders than they are in the country at large, but the views of elites are clearly shaping how the President is perceived by the nation in general. (See 'Judging Obama's First Year, Issue by Issue.')
With unemployment high and promising to stay there, it is nearly impossible in the short term for Obama to shift opinion and be seen as a successful President. But he can't achieve anything in 2011 and 2012, or get re-elected, unless he can win back support from some of his core groups.
The already tiresome debate about what Obama should do to launch a comeback tells only part of the story. Yes, he needs to show people what he stands for, fight for what he believes, compromise with Republicans when it's sensible, reshape his circle of advisers and focus on job growth and deficit reduction. But those are all tall orders, and they run counter to Obama's instincts, the political realities of American politics for the last generation, or both.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
With unemployment high and promising to stay there, it is nearly impossible in the short term for Obama to shift opinion and be seen as a successful President. But he can't achieve anything in 2011 and 2012, or get re-elected, unless he can win back support from some of his core groups.
The already tiresome debate about what Obama should do to launch a comeback tells only part of the story. Yes, he needs to show people what he stands for, fight for what he believes, compromise with Republicans when it's sensible, reshape his circle of advisers and focus on job growth and deficit reduction. But those are all tall orders, and they run counter to Obama's instincts, the political realities of American politics for the last generation, or both.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Sunday, December 05, 2010
Gingrich: Leaks show Obama administration 'shallow,' 'amateurish' - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room
Gingrich: Leaks show Obama administration 'shallow,' 'amateurish' - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room: "Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Sunday that President Obama and the White House deserve a large share of the blame for the massive amounts of classified information revealed through WikiLeaks.
Gingrich said the leaks are 'a scandal of the first order' and that they demonstrate the Obama administration is 'shallow' and 'amateurish' when it comes to national security.
'You have a private first class who downloads a quarter million documents, and the system doesn't say, 'Oh, you may be over extended?' I mean, this is a system so stupid that it ought to be a scandal of the first order,' Gingrich said. 'This administration is so shallow and so amateurish about national security that it is painful and dangerous.'
He also said the U.S needs to act fast in shutting down WikiLeaks and finding Julian Assange.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Gingrich said the leaks are 'a scandal of the first order' and that they demonstrate the Obama administration is 'shallow' and 'amateurish' when it comes to national security.
'You have a private first class who downloads a quarter million documents, and the system doesn't say, 'Oh, you may be over extended?' I mean, this is a system so stupid that it ought to be a scandal of the first order,' Gingrich said. 'This administration is so shallow and so amateurish about national security that it is painful and dangerous.'
He also said the U.S needs to act fast in shutting down WikiLeaks and finding Julian Assange.
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
Saturday, December 04, 2010
CNN Reporter Put On Watch List After Criticizing TSA
CNN Reporter Put On Watch List After Criticizing TSA: "In light of new reports alleging that the TSA is creating a watch list of individuals who criticized the agency as a form of collective punishment, it’s revealing to note that CNN journalist Drew Griffin was also put on a TSA watch list immediately after he filed reports critical of the organization back in 2008.
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Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness
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