Daily Democratic Wire 7-2-2009

George Wenschhof

President Barack Obama will head to Russia next week - He will visit with Russian President Dimitry Medvedev in Moscow. Dimitry has said it is time to set aside differences and work together on global problems. Reuters.com has more here.

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Today, the President will meet with leaders of small and large businesses at the White House - afterward, the president will make some remarks concerning jobs and innovation. Politico.com has more here.

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Meanwhile, unemployment jumps to 9.5% with 467,000 jobs lost in June - this is the highest unemployment has been since 1983. Bloomberg.com has more here.

This is troubling as unemployment traditionally drops over the summer months due to seasonal job opportunities. The Stimulus Bill will come under increased scrutiny as jobs are not being created fast enough. My early career was as a employment and training director and their is currently the need for public service employment programs. In the late 70's, when unemployment was this high, I was writing grants and administering programs totaling 4 million annually in Frederick County, Maryland. The quickest way to put people back to work is through public service types of programs.

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Revised Health Care Plan submitted by Senators Kennedy and Dodd - in a joint letter from Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), the new plan is estimated to cost 611.4 Billion over ten years by the Congressional Budget Office. This is down from the 1 Trillion estimated by the CBO on the original plan. It still includes a government run insurance option and adds a $750 fee per worker to companies that do not provide coverage. Time.com has more here.

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Maloney to run against Hillibrand in NY Democratic Primary - this continues the saga surrounding the replacement of Hillary Clinton's Senate seat. Kirsten Hillibrand with backing from the Clintons secured the appointment from NY Governor David Paterson. However, this was after many public bumblings from the Governor in regards to interest of the seat from Carolyn Kennedy and NY States Attorney Andrew Cuomo. Many democrats view Hillibrand as way too conservative and are excited to see NY Representative Carolyn Maloney will be entering the race. Maloney is expected to make a formal announcement in two weeks. MSNBC.com has more here.

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John Sununu says he won't run for Senate in 2010 - it had been rumored he would seek a return to the Senate when Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH) announced he would not seek reelection. Gregg's appointment to Obama's cabinet was short lived and he decided against running for reelection. Speculation is state attorney general Kelly Ayotte will be the favorite to win the Republican nomination for the seat. Representative Paul Hodes is presently the only Democrat running for this Senate seat. TheHill.com has more here.

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