George Wenschhof
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calf.) feels confident she has the votes to pass health care reform - appearing on CNN "State of The Union" this morning, Pelosi said that even though Republicans are unlikely to vote in support, the bill will have bipartisan language and will be absent of the "public option" desired by many liberal Democrats.
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Republicans oppose Financial Regulatory Reform - once again, Republicans in the senate are blocking legislation aimed at needed financial regulatory reform and the creation of a public consumer financial protection agency. TheHill.com has more here.
Senator Chris Dodd the chair of the senate banking committee offered a compromise which would have created a consumer bureau within the Treasury Department and Republicans said "no" - sound familiar?
It is a travesty that after the Republican laizze faire approach to the U.S. financial system resulted in a near catastrophic meltdown, Republicans oppose reform and the creation of agencies aimed at protecting the average American.
Continuing an obstructionist approach in Congress will put a dent in the mid term gains in Congress Republicans are expected to achieve. The average gain of 28 House seats the political party not in the White House wins in mid term elections may not be reached this fall by the Republican Party.
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Al Gore talks about the need to create energy related Jobs - in an op-ed in the NY Times today, the former Vice President talks about how global warming can not be ignored. He also dismisses the silliness of some in the Republican Party who point to the recent record snow storms to hit the east coast as reasons to not believe in global warming. You can read his op-ed here.
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A Kennedy back in the running for a political seat? - seems Joe Kennedy's II son Joe Kennedy III may run for the U.S. House seat in Massachusetts if William Delahut (D-Ma.) decides not to run for reelection. He is the grandson of Robert F. Kennedy and, if elected, would continue the Kennedy family representation in American politics for over 50 years. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Sunday, February 28, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-28-2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-27-2010
George Wenschhof
President Barack Obama will announce next week his plans to move forward on health care reform - according to White House Press Secretary Roberts Gibbs. There are few options available at this point in regard to moving forward to finalize the passed health care bills in Congress. TheHill.com has more here.
The president could make one last ditch effort at bipartisan cooperation and offer that incorporates some areas he feels there is agreement on such as medical malpractice reform and health insurance companies being able to do business across state lines. However, any such proposal would have to come with a deadline for agreement as the approval of the passed health care bills has been stalled for too long by Republicans.
The other and more obvious method is to say the House will be taking up voting on the passed Senate version of the Health Care Reform bill. Following passage by the House, the House would be sending amendments to the Senate via the "budget reconciliation" process. Again, effort would be made to include in these amendments some of the aforementioned areas where there is bipartisan agreement.
Expect a new timetable for the bill to be on the president's desk for approval to be established and for it to be by the end of April.
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White House Social Secretary Desiree Rogers to Resign - a friend of the President and First Lady who is also from Chicago will be replaced by Julian Smoot who is currently the Chief of Staff for U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk. Politico.com has more here.
The social secretary is actually a very busy position and has the responsibility of planning all White House events which seemingly occur every day.
Unfortunately for Ms. Rogers who did a overall good job at opening up the White House, her claim to fame will go down as the one who planned the state dinner attended by party crashers Tareq and Michele Salalvi.
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Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) tells Justice Department to find missing emails - from the lawyers who provided justification to the George W. Bush administration for the use of harsh interrogation techniques. Lawyers John Yoo and his boss Jay Bybee recently had the Justice Department issue a ruling in their favor saying they could not find evidence the two former Justice department employees has acted improperly. However, missing email were referenced and could alter that finding if they are found. MSNBNC.com has more here.
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-calf.) will appear on two of the Sunday morning "talking Heads" shows - she will appear on ABC "This Week' and CNN "State of The Union". Expect her to discuss how close they are to a bill for health care reform and to defend the use of "budget reconciliation' in the Senate to get an up or down vote.
Senator John McCain will be on NBC "Meet the Press" and look to see him trash the use of "budget reconciliation" in the Senate to pass health care reform. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) will appear on CBS "Face The Nation".
For a complete rundown of the Sunday morning "Talking Heads" and their guests click here.
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Obama Weekly Address 2-27-2010
George Wenschhof
Today, President Obama talks about the Winter Olympics and praises the American athletes. He discusses the pride and unity Americans feel toward their athletes as they root for them and his hopes for bipartisanship in Washington. He goes on to say he was pleased with the recent bipartisan meeting on health care reform and that the time to move forward is now.
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Friday, February 26, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-26-2010
George Wenschhof
Due to a power outage caused by high winds this post is delayed. Check back here later today as updates are added.
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New York Governor David Paterson to end his campaign for election - the announcement is expected this afternoon. Top Democratic Leaders and also the White House had worked to persuade Paterson to not run but he had not heeded the advise and had announced his intention to run for Governor last week. following his announcement the NY Times ran a story about how he had used his influence in regard to a domestic abuse situation involving a top aide. The top aide has now resigned, but too late to stop the damage done to the Paterson campaign. the expected Democratic candidate for Governor will now be favorite; State Attorney Andrew Cuomo. The NY Times City Room Blog has more here.
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President Obama performed well at Health Care Reform Summit - as a political wonk, I watched almost all of the seven hour meeting and once again came away impressed with the President's knowledge of the intricacies of the health care bill and his ability to deftly handle adversarial positions from Republicans.
The Republican "talking points" were clear; the bill was too big, incremental steps should be taken for health care reform, and finally the bill should be scrapped and Congress should start over.
Numerous attempts were made by Republicans present at the meeting to get the President to agree not to use the "budget reconciliation" process (only 51 votes in Senate needed for amendments prepared by the House) after the House passes the bill the Senate passed on XMAS Eve.
The President appropriately did not agree and instead made it clear he intended to move forward on passing health care reform.
Democratic "talking points" were basically "we are closer on so many items than we realize" and numerous statements were made referencing the inclusion of Republican positions in the bill.
There is no question in my mind that if Republicans do not move forward with indication of bipartisan support for passage, the House will move to pass the Senate bill and then use "budget reconciliation' to pass amendments to it in the Senate.
It is also increasingly clear the health care summit has proven to be a rallying cry and a unifying force for Democrats. The biggest difference highlighted in the summit is that Democrats believe government has the responsibility to provide insurance to the 40+ million uninsured Americans today where Republicans do not feel this is the responsibility of government. It is a policy difference that can not be overcome.
So, it is time for our Democratic Representatives to do what is right and move forward to pass the health care reform bill.
And, before you start buying all the crap from Republicans about how "budget reconciliation is a rarely used procedural option in Congress, take note: "Budget Reconciliation" has been used 22 times in Congress since 1981 and 16 of those times it was used by the Republican Party.
Below, in his closing statement yesterday, President Obama said "people don't want us to wait" and I agree.
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President Obama to announce four more appointments to "Debt Reduction" Commission - the President was forced to create this committee by executive action after the Republican Party of No, voted against establishing the committee after many of those same Republicans co-sponsored the bill. The silliness by Republican Representatives will backfire as the voters are not looking for obstructionists in Congress, especially when it comes to reducing the deficit.
Last week, Obama named former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles and former Republican Senator Alan Simpson (Wy.) as co-chairs. Today, he will announce Ann Fudge, former CEO of Young and Rubicam Brands, Andy Stern, President of SEIU, Alice Rivlin, former Federal Reserve Vice Chair and David Coate, CEO Honeywell International.
Republican and Democratic Leaders in Congress will be able to appoint 6 each to the committee. MSNBC.com has more here.
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House Ethics Committee finds Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY) improperly received travel expenses - in a finding that amounts to a slap on the writs, the committee found he had received payed travel to conferences in St. Maarten in 2007 and 2008 from a corporation that employed lobbyists which is a violation of a House rule. You can read more here.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stands by Rangel, who is chair of the powerful Ways and Means Commission, saying the commission did not take any action against him. TheHill.com has more here.
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DNC runs video on the Internet targeting Florida Republican Senate candidate Marco Rubio - the video pokes fun at the far right wing conservative, highlighting what was reported recently in regard to his alleged use of a GOP issued credit card for personal use.
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Thursday, February 25, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-25-2010
George Wenschhof
Health Care Reform Summit set to begin - Let's hope for meaningful discussion and a positive outcome. For six hours between 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM ET, Republicans and Democrats will meet at the Blair House, televised for all to see. Here is a list of the final attendees.
Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) was invited by the White House a few days ago but declined as she had not been included by Republican leadership. Snowe is a Republican on the fence in regard to health care reform so this was a good move by the White House and a stupid move by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Republicans should be fearful for several things. One; if they continue to be obstructionists and the "Party of No", voters will be turned off and it will hurt Republican hope for big gains in the mid term elections.
Second, a failure to offer meaningful input and show a willingness to compromise will serve to bring together Democrats who had not previously been in agreement on various aspects of the bill. Expect the House to then move to pass the existing Senate version of the health care reform bill and budget reconciliation to be used in the Senate to amend the bill.
Americans want health care reform and Republicans blocking it will only serve to further weaken and fracture them as a political party.
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Unemployment claims up 22,000 for the week ending February 20 - initial filings stood at 496,000, up 22,000 from the previous week. Bloomberg.com has more here. This is an example of how huge the unemployment problem is in the country. The 15 billion Jobs bill passed yesterday by the Senate is estimated to create 250,000 to 1.2 million jobs which is not enough to combat the slow growth in the U.S. at the present time.
On top of this report, yesterday Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke, testifying before the House Financial Services Committee said the job market remains grim. Politico.com has more here.
I would like to see a large chunk of the remaining money from the 800 billion Stimulus bill be used to fund public service employment programs to put people back to work.
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Conservative darling Mark Rubio spent thousands with GOP credit card - the silliness continues as the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Florida was using an American Express card issued to him when he was Florida Speaker of the House to but groceries, repairs for his minivan and purchases from a wine store. The St. Petersville Times has more here.
Rubio is in a close race with Republican Governor Charlie Crist in the Florida Republican Senate primary.
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Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Follow the Health Summit Live
George Wenschhof
Organizing For America (OFA), the campaign arm for President Obama has sent out an email inviting all to watch the event streamed live at BarackObama.com.
You can RSVP to watch here and receive a reminder with information as to how to tune in to watch. Included throughout the day will be live updates from OFA.
The email had the following as to what will be discussed tomorrow beginning at 10:00 Am ET:
During tomorrow's meeting, the President will moderate a discussion on four critical goals:
-- Reining in the cost of care;
-- Putting affordable, high-quality coverage within reach of every American; and
-- Reducing our unsustainable national deficit.
Tomorrow, the bottom line is simple: This issue is more important than any partisan divide. It's time to put all real solutions on the table, and it's time to move forward.
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Daily Democratic Wire 2-24-2010
George Wenschhof
Health Summit nears with no signs of compromise from Republicans - Republican leaders are still saying the existing health care bills passed in the House and Senate should be scrapped and Democrats are refusing to comply with that demand.
Instead, President Obama has taken parts of both bills and included them in his health care proposal. Tomorrow, the health care summit will be televised and will last from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM ET. CSPAN and many of the cable stations will cover the event. AP has more here.
Some of the preparations for this summit borderline on the absurd - Republicans insisted upon no podium for the President, questions were raised if they have to eat their lunch while on camera or if they can retire to another room during the lunch break. Read more here.
One thing to note is that the much ballyhooed budget reconciliation process be used by Democrats to pass health care reform, the process has been used 21 times since 1981 and mostly by Republicans. Including, during the President George W. Bush administration when they passed the tax cuts for the wealthy.
If this process is used, the House would first pass the Senate version of the health care bill and then piece mill amendments to it which would only require a simple 51 vote majority in the Senate.
However, before anyone believes this will be what happens, all you need to do is look back to the House health care bill vote which was only 220-215. 39 Democrats voted against the bill so going forward with budget reconciliation will not be an easy task. By the way, 51 votes in the Senate will not be easy to get for passage of the bill through this process.
Let's hope there is compromise at work tomorrow and our elected Representatives can find solutions to our current health care system and provide coverage for the 40+ million Americans without it.
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New CNN/Opinion Research poll shows 67% say Republicans not doing enough to cooperate with President Obama - hardly a startling revelation. CNN.com has more here.
An even more depressing statistic is there are 290 bills which have been passed by the House that are languishing in the Senate. The Republican Party of "No" is causing zero action by Congress with their unprecedented use of the filibuster in the Senate. TheHill.com has more here.
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Jobs bill expected to pass today - it will now be closer to 35 billion instead of 15 billion with the addition of 20 billion for highway use funds. The economist Mark Zandi of Moody'sEconomy.com has estimated the bill will create 250,000 jobs. AP has more here.
This is a good move in the right direction. However, 250,000 is a drop in the bucket compared to the job growth that is needed to reduce the high unemployment. Money is needed to fund public service employment programs to put the unemployed back to work.
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Pew study of 18-29 year olds - "Millenials" shows their support of President Obama dropped in his first year in office - In February of 2009 73% supported Obama and by the end of 2009 the support registered at 57%. In February of 2009 the number who identified as Democrats was 60% and Republicans 40%. This had changed to 54% Democrats and 40% Republicans by the end of 2009.
Some have said the turnout and support of this age group helped elect Obama in 2008.
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White House Schedule
From: http://thepage.time.com/
The Political Schedule
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Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-23-2010
George Wenschhof
President Obama's health care proposal well received - while nut cases like Republican Eric Cantor (R-Va.) continue to rail against the proposed thousands of pages bill, others have taken the time to read the 11 page proposal posted online by the President and feel it should be moved forward.
Providing health insurance for 30 million Americans currently without it, reining in excessive rate increases by insurance companies, helping the elderly pay for their medicine and doing away with preexisting conditions exemptions for coverage are but a few of the positive steps taken. The NY Times has a good read here.
By the way, do the Republicans have a health care reform proposal?
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Some cracks appearing in the "Party of No"? - yesterday, 5 Republicans joined 57 senate Democrats in voting to move the 15 Billion Jobs bill to a vote. Republicans continue to be obstructionists and require 60 votes to move any bill forward for a vote. Newly elected Scott Brown (Mass.) was one of the five Republican senators to vote with the Democrats. TheHill.com has more here.
Maybe Brown realizes he wasn't elected to just say "no".
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RNC Chair Michael Steele's spending spree belies Republican Party platform of less spending - Steele has managed to upset the very donors who contribute to the Republican Party with his free wheeling spending. According to Politico.com compared to the fiscal year 2005 spending by the Republican National Committee, a year before the last mid term elections. Steele has used two times as many charted flights, three times the number of sedan contractors and meal expenses has risen from $306,000 to $599,000. You can read the article here.
So much for fiscal restraint by the Republican Party.
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Ohio Governor Ted Strickland (D-Ohio) hangs tough in reelection bid - a Quinnipiac poll shows him with a five point lead over Republican challenger John Kasich. Strickland is ahead 44% to 39%. Ohio is a swing state which voted for Obama in 2008. You can read more on the poll results here.
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Monday, February 22, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-22-2010
George Wenschhof
Today, at 10:00 AM ET, President Obama will release his plan for health care reform - you can read his plan here. This is in advance of the bipartisan health care summit planned for Thursday. One of the areas the President will be urging oversight on is the rate of increases by insurance companies. Anthem Blue Cross in California is raising rates by 39%, even though financial reports of the company show billions in profit. The NY Times has more here. Obama is also eliminating the many special deals made to get various democratic senators support such as the ridiculous Nebraska (no Medicaid payments) deal with Senator Ben Nelson.
Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (Calf.) is scheduled to meet with President Obama today. He is one of the honest Republican Governors who has come out and expressed his thanks for the Stimulus bill and talking about how it created hundreds of thousands of jobs in his state.
The rest of the Republican Party of "No" have publicly stated their opposition to the Stimulus bill while at the same time showing up at ribbon cuttings in their states for projects creating jobs in their state funded by the Stimulus bill - what hypocrites! Bloomberg.com has more here.
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Jobs bill scheduled for vote today - will Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) get the 60 votes needed to end a filibuster to allow the 15 Billion Jobs bill to come to a vote? Republicans have been angry ever since Reid pulled the bloated 85 billion jobs bill co-sponsored by Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.). The Washington Post has more here.
One of the bizarre parts of this bill is that it allows companies to not pay social security for employees hired for one year if they had been unemployed at least 60 days. Not sure I buy this one when the social security fund is broke.
I also believe we still need to fund public service employment jobs which would put unemployed to work immediately in areas that are needed around the country. I am amazed this has been left out of any legislation passed since Obama took office.
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White House Chief Technology Officer Andrew McLaughlin challenges Tea Party activists to push GOP toward more transparency in government - the Obama administration has moved toward more transparency including open-government directive aimed at agencies and by launching data.gov. Republicans have been reluctant to follow suit. TheHill.com has more here.
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Sunday, February 21, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-21-2010
George Wenschhof
Tonight, President Obama and the first Lady will host the Governors ball at the White House - At their meeting this week, Governors have been discussing the need for health care reform. The bipartisan Health Care Summit is scheduled for Thursday and will be televised by at least CSPAN. MSNBC.com has more here.
If the Republicans who show up at the summit only act as obstructionists and continue to spout "no", the voters will see them for what they are; a political party that has lost connection with the voters and are desperately trying what ever means possible for political opportunism to rejuvenate a failing political party.
A novel approach would be for Republicans to work with Democrats to pass a bill that will help to insure the 40+ million without it. The components are many in the bill but let's start with eliminating a insurance company being able to deny coverage due to preexisting conditions, regulate insurance premium increases so the ridiculous 39% increase by Anthem Blue Cross in California can not happen, and let's see some reasonable tort reform when it comes to medical malpractice.
Instead of saying "no", how about Republicans negotiating and reaching consensus on a bill that will benefit all Americans.
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Representative Ron Paul (R-Tex.) wins CPAC straw poll - seems the attendees of the Conservative Political Conference Committee are just as fractured as the Republican Party.
After several days of listening to presidential wannabees take turns at bashing the Obama administration and trying to show how conservative they are, the best they could come up with as a candidate was Ron Paul, who is known for his libertarian principles. TheHill.com has more here.
Paul only garnered 31% of the vote and was followed by perennial CPAC winner; former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney who received 22% of the vote. Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin only received 7% and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty with 6%.
Hardly a group of candidates for Democrats to be concerned with in the 2012 election.
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CNN/Opinion research poll shows 86% believe government is broken - however, 86% of the 81% believe it can be fixed. CNN.com has more here.
The Republican Party can help change this public perception by stopping the record number of times a filibuster has been used in the Senate in the history of our country and allowing the majority to rule.
Speaking of rules, that is what the filibuster is; a Senate "rule" which can be and has been changed in the past. You can read more here. It was 67 and was changed to 60 back in 1975. In addition to changing the required number of votes needed, the senate should also define what items' which come before the senate for a vote, would be subject to the filibuster rule. For example, the appointment by the President of a Department Head should not be subject to a filibuster, but instead, a simple majority vote.
The filibuster was not designed and put in place for the benefit of a minority party to stop all legislation and to create political gridlock.
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Roslyn Brock elected chair; NAACP Board of Directors - she will be replacing the well known and long active in the civil rights movement chair; Julian Bond. Ms. Brock is the youngest and the fourth woman to serve as chair of the NAACP. NAACP.org has more here.
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Saturday, February 20, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-20-2010
George Wenschhof
Republicans criticize Democrats for efforts to use reconciliation to approve health care reform - the left is urging Democratic Senators to not only use reconciliation to reinsert the "public option" in health care reform but to also approve the bill.
Republicans are saying this is hardly bipartisanship and question the need for the health care summit planned for Thursday. TheHill.com has more here.
Democrats reaching 51 Senators to approve the "public option" is a long shot and the reality is that procedural rules will still require some 60 vote measures before a 51 vote reconciliation could occur. So, most of this is bluster and being used for posturing purposes to nudge Republicans into acting somewhat reasonable at the health care summit so a true bipartisan health care bill can be passed. Let's hope it works.
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Justice Department releases report on torture memos - TalkingPointsMemo.com has a good read today on this issue. Seems the Office of Professional Responsibility found that attorneys; John Yoo and Jay Bybee engaged in professional misconduct only to have Associate Deputy Attorney General David Margolis overrule the decision in a 69 page memo to Attorney General Eric Holder. This also blocks any state disciplinary action against the two attorneys. TPM.com has the complete report and more here. Stay tuned...
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Governors, Senators and a couple of Generals on the Sunday "Talking Heads" - General Petraeas and former Secretary of State Colin Powell will most likely discuss their assessment of the u.s. efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan and also discuss the controversial "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in the military toward gays.
Also appearing will be Governors Tim Pawlenty (R-Mn.), Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Calf.), Ed Rendell (D-Pa.) and Jennifer Granholm (D-Mich.). Senators Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Evan Bayh (D-Ind.). Bayh recently announced he would not seek reelection and is unhappy with the lack of partisanship in Congress today. Also appearing will be Representative Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) who is the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Expect Van Hollen to be asked how he feels Democrats are positioned in the fall election and if he feels they can retain the majority in the House.
Politico.com has a rundown of the guests and the "Talking Heads" shows they will be on this Sunday here.
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Representative Joe Sestak (D-Pa.) says he was offered job by White House if he did not run against Senator Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) - Specter was a long term serving Republican Senator who switched to Democrat following his vote in support of the stimulus bill angered many Republicans. Democrats wooed his switch by saying among other things, he would not face a contested primary. Specter gave the Democrats a short lived super majority and filibuster proof 60 in the Senate. MSNBC.com has more here.
Specter presently has a 20 point lead over Sestak. However, I look to see Sestak pick up support and this primary race to be close at the end.
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Obama Weekly Address 2-20-2010
George Wenschhof
Today in his weekly address, President Obama talks about the recent huge premium increases by health insurance companies and the need for reform. He urges bipartisan cooperation in the upcoming health care reform summit on February 25, 2010 to be held at the Blair House.
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Friday, February 19, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-19-2010
George Wenschhof
Today, President Obama is in Nevada stumping for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid - seems the polls show everyone who is running against Harry Reid in the lead at the moment. the President and Harry Reid will appear together at a town hall meeting in Henderson. Obama will later attend a Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce meeting where he will discuss a new 1.5 billion program to help states hit hardest with Housing problems. It will be funded through the TARP (bailout) bill and yes, Nevada is one of five states to receive funding. TPM.com has more here.
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Next week Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) to release Senate version of bill to regulate finance industry - In what should have been one of the first bills passed after the financial collapse in 2008, it has been held up by intense lobbying by Wall Street and the Banking industry. The House already has passed legislation which includes a Consumer Financial Protection Agency, championed by the Obama administration. let's see if this is a watered down bill or if it still has some teeth in it. TheHill.com has more here.
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Democracy for America leads push for "Public Option" - they have been urging their membership to call their Senators and have them pledge to support the public option as part of any health care reform bill. Their strategy would be to then use reconciliation (51 votes needed instead of 60) as a means to pass in the Senate. So far 17 of the Democrat Senators have signed on. Democrats have 59 votes in the Senate when Independents Sanders (Vt.) and Lieberman (Conn.) vote with them. Lieberman is a no on "public option and Sanders is a yes so 50 of the remaining 57 Democrat Senators would have to agree. So, don't count on it, even though the far left is getting excited. You can read more here.
You also have to wonder about the timing of this action as the much ballyhooed bipartisan health care summit pushed by President Obama is scheduled for February 25, 2010.
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Senator Evan Bayh replacement process made even more difficult for Democrats - the lateness of the date of Evan Bayh's decision to not seek reelection ensured no other candidate could meet the required signatures to make it on the primary ballot. That leaves the selection to the Indiana state Democratic Party - just one problem, they can not make the selection until after the May 4, 2010 primary.
Further complicating the selection process are two Democratic Representatives currently on the ballot for reelection; Brad Ellsworth and Baron Hill. They are both considered leading contenders to be picked by the state Democratic Party, but they can not appear on the ballot as a Representative if they want to be considered for the Senate seat. The Indianapolis Star has more here.
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Democratic and Republican Senate Campaign Committees report record donations for January - and their is a major recession going on? The Democratic Senate Campaign Committee (DSCC) reported 5.1 million in contributions with 13 million cash on hand and 833,000 debt. The National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) reported taking in 5 million in January and 10.65 million cash on hand. Politico.com has more here.
Campaign Finance Reform, anyone?
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Thursday, February 18, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-18-2010
George Wenschhof
President Obama has a very busy day (see White House Schedule in below post) - after signing an executive order establishing the Deficit Commission I reported yesterday, he will meet with the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet, the Dali Lama at the White House. This is one of the highlights of the day. Sure to anger the Chinese, it is still a positive move by the president. You can read more here.
Later in the day, Obama will travel to Colorado to help raise funds for Senator Michael Bennet before traveling to Las Vegas to help raise funds for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Seems the mayor of Las Vegas is unhappy with some comments made by the president. Chris Cillizza's "The Fix" has more here.
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Six more states in addition to California set to face dramatic increases in health care premiums - Health Care Reform Anyone? - Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announces six more states who are facing huge premium increases. She is already investigating the 39% increase by Anthem Blue Cross in California. TPM.com has more here.
It is way past time for Congress to pass Health Care Reform.
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Will "Republican Party of No" block 15 Billion Jobs Bill? - it is becoming increasingly likely the 60 votes needed for cloture will not be there on Monday when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid introduces the legislation. TheHill.com has more here.
Reid scuttled a bloated 85 billion Jobs bill co-sponsored by Senators Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) so look to see Republicans be obstructionists once again and instead of following their own mantra of less spending, insist on the 85 billion version of the bill.
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Financial Regulatory reform moves closer to passage - Senate Leaders and the Obama administration are nearing agreement to establish an financial oversight council headed by the Treasury. The aim is to ensure the monumental problems that hit the financial sector and led to the economic recession would be identified early, thereby reducing the risks to the economy. Still to be worked out are the all important wording that creates the powers of the oversight council. The NY Times has more here.
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CPAC Conference begins today in D.C. - a good time to leave the capitol for the weekend. The Conservative Political Action Conference will highlight such conservative speakers as Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-Mn.), Dick Armey, former Republican Rep. from Texas and founder of "Freedom Works", Senator Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and former Majority Leader Newt Gingrich. On Saturday, they will conduct their straw poll for Republican presidential candidate for 2012. Politico.com has more here.
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Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-17-2010
George Wenschhof
Yesterday, President Obama touted 8 billion in federal loan guarantees to help build two new nuclear reactors in Burke county, Georgia - referring this to "clean energy" and job creation. MSNBC.com has more here.
Unfortunately, in spite of improved construction techniques, there has been no solution as to what to do with the spent nuclear waste which hardly qualifies nuclear reactors as a "clean energy" option. Disposal in the Yucca Mountains has also led to political turmoil and Obama when campaigning for president, took the side of opposing future disposal of nuclear waste at Yucca.
It has been three decades since a nuclear reactor has been built in America and the lack of a means to dispose of the nuclear waste is one of the main reasons along with safety concerns after the "Three Mile Island" incident.
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Tomorrow, President Obama by use of executive order, will establish a Deficit Commission - he will name former White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles and former Republican senate whip Alan Simpson as co-chairs. The official title for the commission will be the "National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform".
The use of an executive order was made necessary when seven of the senate republicans who co-sponsored a bipartisan bill to create such a commission, changed their minds and voted against the bill. politico.com has more here.
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Vice President Joe Biden touts benefits of the Stimulus bill - in an interviewed taped yesterday and aired this morning by CBS News Harry Smith and "The Early Show", Biden says job creation will begin to kick in now as a result of the Stimulus bill and argued Americans had gotten their money's worth.
Watch CBS News Videos Online
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This is the one year anniversary of the Stimulus bill - Organizing for America (OFA), the campaign arm of Barack Obama, sent out a email today to supporters from David Plouffe which has a cool bar graph that clearly shows the decrease in job losses from one year ago. You can view it here.
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80% oppose recent Citizens United Campaign Finance 5-4 ruling by Supreme Court - the narrow majority of the court took the view that corporations were individuals and using "freedom of speech" ruled no limits could be put on financial contributions to political campaigns from corporations.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted February 4-8 also showed 72% want Congress to take action to counteract the Supreme court decision. The Washington Post has more here.
Presently, Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Representative Chris Van Hollen (D.Md.) are drafting legislation which will limit corporation's political contributions by denying contributions from foreign controlled corporations and corporations who received bail out money or have any contracts with government. In addition, corporations would be required to informed shareholders of political contributions.
This is a start on reversing the effects of a horrible Supreme Court decision. What is desperately needed is true campaign reform to take money out of politics. In the 2008 presidential campaign, over 2 billion was spent just by the candidates and their political parties.
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Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Daily Democratic Wire 2-16-2010
George Wenschhof
This morning, President Barack Obama will tour a Jobs Training Center in Lanham, Maryland - as he continues to emphasize job creation and assistance.
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Senator Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) shocks Democrats by announcing he will not run again - He said in a press conference the bitter partisanship exhibited in Congress today has led him to leave the Senate. Polling had Bayh 20 points ahead of his Republican opponents; former Senator Dan Coates and Representative John Hostettler.
The lateness of his announcement almost guarantees the Democratic candidate for this senate seat will be picked by the Indiana State Democratic Party. Thousands of required signatures due today from a candidate will just not happen. The state party has until June to name a candidate who will now not face a primary contest. Chris Cillizza, who broke the story yesterday, and "The Fix" has more here.
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Top Taliban Commander captured in Pakistan - several days ago, in a joint raid involving the CIA and Pakistan intelligence forces, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar was captured in Karachi, Pakistan. The NY Times was asked by the White house to not report on the capture for several days as they were in the process of acting on valuable information obtained. The NY Times has more here.
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Vice President Joe Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden to travel to the Middle East to encourage the peace process - during the week of march 8, 2010, they will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Palestinian Authority President Abbas, Egyptian President Mubarak and Jordanian King Abdullah. You can read more here.
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