Daily Political Wire 4-17-2010

George Wenschhof

Today, President Obama travels to Poland to attend funeral of the late Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his wife - Kaczynski, his wife and 94 other military and government leaders perished in a horrific plane crash in Russia. CNN.com has more here.

The volcanic ash cloud resulting from the eruption in Iceland is causing some world leaders to cancel their trip to Poland to attend the funeral due to unsafe flying conditions.

---

Sunday morning "Talking Heads" lineup - NBC "Meet the Press" will have Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Governor Ed Rendell (D-Pa.) and Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.).

ABC "This Week" will have former President Bill Clinton. Clinton just spoke at the 15th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing and warned of the parallels coming from the current right wing extremists. Politico.com has more here.

CBS "Face The Nation" will have Senator Scott Brown (R-Mass.) who has already broken with the Republican Party and voted to end filibusters on unemployment benefit extensions.

CNN "State of The Union" will have Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell who once again is using the filibuster rule to stop legislation from moving forward - only this time it is Financial Reform.

Will Republican misinformation used once again as it was in the case of health care reform succeed in watering down the bill is the question. Or, will this strategy backfire on the Republican Party?

Democrats are touting the lawsuit the SEC has brought against Goldman Sachs Group Inc.on derivatives based fraud as another clear reason for the need for financial reform. Bloomberg.com has more here. Also appearing will be Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.).

Fox News Sunday will have Senator John McCain (R-Az.) and General Ray Ordierno.

---

Questions remain as to whether Immigration Reform will be addressed by Congress this year - Senate Majority Leader has indicated he will move a bill forward this summer in the Senate. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Charles Schumer (D-NY) have proposed a bipartisan bill and have had discussions with President Obama.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) has indicated the house would take up discussion after the Senate passed a bill. TheHill.com has more here.

This issue continues to be a hot potato and the passage of a Immigration Reform bill would surely equal, if not surpass, the political drama resulting from the passage of health care reform and the current discussion surrounding financial reform.

A pathway to citizenship for the 11+ million undocumented workers, strengthening the U.S. borders, and needed revisions to current immigration procedures is way past due.

For the major political parties to avoid addressing this issue based upon concern for the upcoming mid term elections would be simply irresponsible.

---

To receive "Daily Email Updates" from Air-it-Out with George Wenschhof, click on "Subscribe to this feed" below or use the sign up box located in the upper right hand margin.