Democratic News Chatter 4-23-2009

George Wenschhof Bio

Today, President Barack Obama will meet with executives in the credit card industry - the president is seeking more protections for Americans who use credit cards. Most of the discussion will focus on deceptive higher fees and interest rates passed on to credit card users. Interestingly, the average family credit card debt was $10,679 at the end of 2008. Both the House and the Senate have "credit card bill of rights" bills being considered which focus on credit card use. Time.com has more here.

Tonight, President Obama and Michelle will host a White House dinner for Congressional members and their spouses.

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More Americans say country is headed in the right direction - in more good news for the Obama administration, for the first time since January 2004 more Americans say the country is moving in the right direction than say it is not. An AP/Gfk poll shows 48% of Americans feel the country is moving in the right direction. You can read more here.

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Democratic Leaders considering the use of budget reconciliation as a way to fast track approval of health care legislation - this legislative procedure has been used by Republicans as well in the past as they sought approval of their budget blueprint. If used, it would bypass any possible Republican filibuster and the need for 60 votes in the Senate. Instead, only a 51 vote majority would be needed in the Senate which would easily be obtained by Democrats. MSNBC.com has more here.

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Will Attorney General Eric Holder begin Torture Probe? - as more and more information has come forward, it appears certain an investigation will take place concerning actions taken by individuals in the former George W. Bush administration in regard to the approval of harsh interrogation techniques. Now, it has been released that both Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and Vice President Dick Cheney approved the use of waterboarding as early as 2002 contingent on Justice Department approval. The attorney general, a week later, indicated the proposed interrogation techniques were legal. CNN.com has more here.

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On the foreign policy front, the rise of Islamic militants and the Taliban in Pakistan is extremely worrisome - Yesterday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testified to the House Foreign Affairs committee on the impending danger in Pakistan. As she was providing her testimony, the Taliban seized control of the Buner district which is only 60-70 miles from the capitol of Islamabad. Pakistan is a nuclear armed nation whose government has been in a state of flux since the removal of President Musharraf. The NY Times has more here. Stay tuned as this is a major development in the region.

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Democrat Scott Murphy Increases lead to 365 votes in NY district 20 special election- this comes as some previously challenged ballots are being added to the totals by the NY board of elections. It appears it it will very difficult for Republican Jim Tedisco to make up the difference from the remaining challenged ballots. So much for the Republicans trying to make a big deal out of this election in a district where Republicans have the majority of registered voters. Politico.com has more here.

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