Democratic Chatter 2-27-2009

George Wenschhof Bio

President Barack Obama's FY 2010 Budget to receive plenty of scrutiny - the summary for the fiscal year which begins October 1, 2009 was released yesterday. Full details of the budget will not be available until April. The total may reach 3.55 Trillion with the deficit near 1.75 Trillion. CNN.com has more here.

--------------------

President Obama proposes 1 Trillion in tax increases over the next decade on the wealthiest of Americans and companies - set to begin in 2011, this will reverse the Bush administration's policy and revert back to rates present during the Clinton administration. The highest rates of 33% and 35% would be increased to 36% and 39.6%. Capital gains tax would be increased from 15% to 20%. It is estimated this will affect 2.6 million taxpayers. The Republican trickle down theory has never proven to work. Bloomberg.com has more here.

--------------------

Vice president Joe Biden will be in Philadelphia today to chair the first meeting of the Middle Class Task Force - the meeting will include many members of the Cabinet from Labor, Energy, Agriculture, HUD, Education and Transportation. The meeting will be held at the William B. Irwin Auditorium at the University of Pennsylvania. WhiteHouse.gov has more here.

--------------------

Washington D.C. close to receiving vote in Congress - the only city without a vote in Congress moved a little closer yesterday when the Senate voted 61-37 to add a floor vote to their Representative. Currently, their Representative could serve on House committees, but have no vote on the floor. The bill still needs to pass the House and is expected to do so easily. The strange part is a amendment attached to the senate bill repealing all of the gun control laws in the district. Expect this to be removed as the bill is reconciled. The Washington Post has more here.

--------------------

CPAC set to hold straw poll for Republican Presidential candidates tomorrow - The Conservative Political Action Conference will conclude their three day meeting with the announcement of the results of who won the straw poll. The contenders for the dubious honor are all former or current Governors. The usual suspects include Jindal, Palin, Huckabee, Romney, Sanford, and Pawlenty. First, I wonder who will win and second, I wonder if the winner will flaunt the honor - egaad! MSNBC.com has more here.

--------------------

Democratic Party Leaders not happy with Obama plan for withdrawal from Iraq - the issue is not the extension from 16 to 19 months but rather the change from all troops to two-thirds of the troops. The 50,000 Troops planned to remain in Iraq has angered House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calf.), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.), and Senator Charles Schumer (NY). Stay Tuned. Politico.com has more here.

--------------------

Special envoy George Mitchell in Israel for talk with Leaders - Israel's recent election was extremely close resulting in the more hard liner Benjamin Netanyahu, who does not believe in Palestinian statehood, being designated as Prime Minister. The moderate Tzipi Livni who lost the close election has not agreed to work as part of the Netanyahu government. This is the second trip in the last month for Mitchell who met with both Livni and Netanyahu yesterday. You can read more here.

--------------------

To receive "Daily Email Updates" from Air-it-Out with George Wenschhof, click on "Subscribe to this feed" below.

Democratic Chatter 2-25-2009

George Wenschhof Bio

President Barack Obama delivers powerful speech to Congress - Last night, in a "State of the Union" type speech, the President clearly outlined the economic problems facing Americans. He said as always Americans are up to the challenge and it was time for America to lead again. He explained the need for the recently passed 787 billion Stimulus bill and that the reduction of the deficit inherited from the previous administration would be reduced over the next four years.

A CNN/Opinion Research poll conducted after the speech showed 68% of Americans had a very positive reaction, 24% somewhat positive and only 8% had a negative reaction to the president's speech. CNN.com has more here.

In a wide ranging speech, he spoke of initiatives regarding health care, energy, education and foreign policy. Whether it was his statement saying education begins at home and the responsibility parents have, or his statement that the U.S. does not torture, he had members of Congress from both sides of the aisle standing and applauding. Even when Obama spoke of withdrawing from Iraq, Senator John McCain (R-AZ) was standing and clapping. ThePage.time.com has the full text of his speech here.

The Republican response was delivered by Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. While Obama hit a home run with his speech, Jindal clearly struck out. He delivered his speech in a monotone manner and it was obvious he was reading from a teleprompter. It is hard to find anything of substance to write about pertaining to what he said. If you want to read his prepared remarks, ThePage.time.com has them here.

The three current stars of the Republican party are Governors Jindal and Sarah Palin from Alaska along with Michael Steele as the chair of the Republican National Committee. With these three leading the way, the Republicans can count on being the minority party for some time to come.

--------------------

President Obama will announce withdrawal plan from Iraq on Friday - yesterday, it was leaked prior to his speech to congress and the nation, the president will be announcing his plan. It is said to cover a period of 19 months and involve a reduction of two-thirds of the present troops in Iraq. After discussing with military advisers this plan differs somewhat from his campaign commitment of a complete withdraw from Iraq within 16 months of when he took office. The NY Times has more here.

--------------------

Hilda Solis confirmed as Labor Secretary - finally, after a lengthy delay by some Republicans who did not like her pro labor positions. When the President's Cabinet was introduced last night, she was present. The vote yesterday was 80-17 and came after Republicans dropped a demand for a procedural vote which would have required 60 votes, thus ending a filibuster. A big issue for Republicans is the Employees Free Choice Act which allows employees to join unions easier. The bill is expected to be taken up this summer. TheCaucus has more here.

--------------------

Today, Gary Locke will be announced as Commerce Secretary - as we reported yesterday, the president has to be hoping the third time is the charm. The former two term Governor of Washington has extensive experience with China and has promoted expanding trade. The NY Times has more here.

--------------------

Stevie Wonder to receive award tonight from President Obama at the White House - the award is the Gershwin prize for popular song. Tomorrow, PBS will show the concert on their show "In Performance at the White House". It will air at 8:00 PM ET. USAToday.com has more here.

--------------------

To receive "Daily Email Updates" from Air-it-Out with George Wenschhof, click on "Subscribe to this feed" below.