George Wenschhof
Today, President Obama is in Columbus, Ohio - where he will meet with a family in their home and also meet with families in a roundtable discussion. Later, he will speak at a fundraiser for Democratic Governor Ted Strickland. The president then travels to Florida where he will speak at a fundraiser for the state Democratic Party.
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Blagojevich found guilty on only one of 24 charges - after two weeks of deliberations, the jury could only agree on guilt relating to one charge of lying to the FBI by the former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. The prosecutor has vowed to retry the case and Blagojevich's attorneys have said they will appeal the guilty verdict on the single charge. The Washington Post has more here.
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Gore Shows frustrations with lack of action on Climate/Energy bill - in a recent Blog post, the former Vice President spoke of how activists need to protest and take to the streets. he was speaking in regard to the lack of action by the senate on a comprehensive Climate/Energy bill. TheHill.com has more here.
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Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.) calls for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to be abolished - the chair of the House Financial Services Committee says they should be replaced by a single mechanism to help subsidize housing.
The two huge mortgage corporations were private with government assistance until taken over entirely by the government toward the end of the George W. Bush administration. Together, the two companies have receive 150 billion in bail out funds. Reuters.com has more here.
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Robert Murdoch's News Corporation donates 1 million to Republican Governors Association - among the news outlets owned by Murdoch are Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.
So much for "Fair and Balanced" reporting. MediaMatters.com has more here.
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Murray to face Rossi for U.S. Senate in Washington - the open primary held yesterday had the two top moving on to the general election. No surprises as Democratic candidate Patty Murray was the top vote getter with 46%, followed by Republican Dino Rossi with 34%. Clint Didier, a former tight end with the Washington Redskins who also received an endorsement by Sarah Palin, received on 12% of the vote and will not move on to the general election in November. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Daily Political Wire 8-18-2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Daily Political Wire 5-4-2010
George Wenschhof
President Obama will deliver speech to Business Council today - the President will talk about his administration's approach to job creation and ways in which the business community can help.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and White House Budget Director Peter Orzag will also address the conference of corporate executives over the next two days. Reuters.com has more here.
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Times Square Bomber arrested at JFK Airport - Suspect Pakistani-American Faisal Shahzad was apprehended just prior to the plane taking off for Dubai, with a final destination of Pakistan. Attorney General Eric Holder made the announcement of the quick arrest of the man suspected of trying to detonate explosives in a van located in busy Times Square. The Washington Post has more here.
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Three states hold primaries today - voters in North Carolina, Indiana and Ohio go to the pols today. No big surprises expected in any of the races. For some inside scoop on some of the intrigue, TheFix.com has more here.
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Speaking of Intrigue, Specter losing ground to Sestak in Pennsylvania Primary - Senator Arlen Specter the long time Republican turned Democrat, finds himself in the middle of a closely contested race, he had not counted on with only two weeks to go to the May 18 election.
Specter changed political parties after his support of the Stimulus bill ensured him the wrath of the Republican Party and a contested primary. In spite of support from the Obama administration and Democratic leadership, Representative Joe Sestak challenged Specter in the Democratic primary.
Sestak is closing when the time is right, with a new Quinnapiac poll showing him only down 47-39. Stay Tuned....
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Climate/Energy bill faces new hurdles - the bill backed by former Vice President Al Gore and sponsored by Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) seems almost destined to continuously fall behind other legislation. TheHill.com has more here.
Over a year ago, it originally had to overcome negative reaction to what was considered a onerous cap-and trade provision designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The latest effort was a tri-partisan approach to the bill included off-shore oil drilling in an attempt to woe business and conservative votes. Oops, that was before the BP Oil Rig disaster in the Gulf coast which threatens to be the largest oil spill in history. Environmental groups will now fight any provision which allows for off-shore oil drilling.
Prior to the oil disaster transpiring, Senator Lindsey Graham, withdrew his support of the bill because senate majority leader Harry Reid was considering moving immigration reform legislation ahead of the climate/energy bill.
Almost seems like a dark cloud is over this proposed bill.... Stay Tuned...
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Thursday, February 19, 2009
Democratic Chatter 2-19-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
President Barack Obama to visit Canada today - he is expected to arrive mid-morning and meet with Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the afternoon. ThePage.time.com has more here.
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Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke downgrades economic outlook for 2009 - in what should be no surprise by now, it appears the recession will continue throughout the year. Unemployment projections are as high as 8.8%. The concern remains falling prices and lack of spending. Reuters.com has more here.
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Last month's housing starts lowest on record - more economic bad news as town homes and multifamily starts dropped by 28%. The Northeast was particularly hard hit with a drop of 43%. The Midwest region experienced a drop of 29%. January has never been a big month for house starts, but a 28% drop was not expected. Bloomberg.com has more here.
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AP/Gfk poll shows 47% of Americans worry about losing their jobs - yikes! This is up from 28% in February 2008. Another 65% worry about paying their bills. 62% agree with what President Obama is doing to work with Republicans to aid the economy. The poll was conducted from February 12-17. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Clean Energy Summit to be held in D.C. next week - the invited guests will include former President Bill Clinton, former Vice President Al Gore and T. Boone Pickens. Although the just passed Stimulus bill included funding for clean energy, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Az.) intends to pass another energy bill within the next several weeks. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) who is chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee has been tasked with writing the legislation. Reid also says the Senate will be introducing by summer, legislation pertaining to climate control. The Washington Post has more here.
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Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius in line for Secretary of Health and Human services - this Cabinet position has been without a nominee since Tom Daschle withdrew due to tax issues. Sebelius was an early supporter of President Obama and at one time rumored as a candidate for Vice President. The HHS Secretary is very important in the Obama administration as they will be responsible for developing and shepherding through Congress his healthcare program for Americans. The vetting process is expected to continue for another week. The NY Times has more here.
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Attorney General addresses race during speech at Justice Department - during a celebration of Black history month, Eric Holder spoke of how race issues need to be openly discussed among Americans. Holder's use of the phrase we are "a nation of cowards" when referring to the need to discuss these issues will be debated by the pundits. CNN.com has more here.
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Thursday, January 29, 2009
Gore Presses for Passage of Stimulus Bill
George Wenschhof Bio
In an email sent to supporters, former Vice President Al Gore continues to work hard for passage of President Obama's Stimulus bill which includes clean energy investments. 40,000 members of "RepowerAmerica.org" wrote to their Congressmen supporting passage of the bill.
Gore recently testified in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the importance of the climate crisis facing the world today and now is asking supporters to contact their Senators to express their support of the American Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Plan. To contact your Senator, just click here. Below is a short video of his message to you. Click on his picture to watch.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Democratic Chatter 1-28-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
President Barack Obama will meet with business leaders this morning - He is expected to give a press announcement after the meeting around 11:00 AM ET. Later today he and the Vice President will meet with Robert Gates and the Joint Chiefs at the Pentagon to discuss withdrawal plan for Iraq. Time.com has more here.
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House to vote on 825 Billion Stimulus bill today - the vote comes after the President went to the Hill yesterday to meet with Republicans. The 825 Billion is made up of 275 Billion in tax cuts and 550 Billion in spending. In spite of the conversation, many Republicans were still questioning the many inclusions in the bill. Expect the bill to pass easily in the House where the Democrats have a 257 to 178 advantage. However, with the added scrutiny the bill will receive, expect changes in the Senate version. The Washington Post has more here.
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Former Vice President Al Gore presses Congress to pass Stimulus bill - one of the many components in the bill includes many "green" jobs and technology. Gore is also expected to urge Congress today to take additional measures in regard to climate control. I received a email from him last night urging supporters to contact their Congressmen in support of the bill. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Holder confirmation expected soon - after a short delay with some Republican Senators who are members of the Judiciary Committee expressing concern in regard to prosecution of those in the previous administration who may have been involved in the harsh interrogation techniques that were authorized. Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) publicly announced his support of Eric Holder for Attorney General yesterday. CNN.com has more here.
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"Blago watch" update - the Illinois state senate is expected to vote on the impeachment of Governor Rod Blagojevich by tomorrow. Yesterday, the governor continued the circus atmosphere surrounding his impeachment by boycotting the trial and appearing on as many television shows as possible. Meanwhile, Illinois Lt. Governor Quinn prepares to be sworn in as Governor. The Chicago Sun-Times has more here.
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