President Obama's weekly address

In his weekly address, President Barack Obama announced that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is preparing a new strategy for reviving our financial system, and urged the swift passage of an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan.

Republicans Attempt to Dismantle McCain-Feingold

From the DNC:

Today the Democratic National Committee announced that it filed a motion to intervene in the case of the Republican National Committee v. FEC, in which the RNC is seeking to dismantle the soft money provisions of the bi-partisan McCain Feingold campaign reform act (BCRA) of 2002. After a bruising defeat in November 2008, the RNC filed suit in the District of Columbia, challenging the constitutionality of the central tenet of BCRA – the ban on national party soft-money. In its suit, the RNC relies on the same arguments that it made and that the Supreme Court previously rejected in, McConnell v. FEC in 2003.

Co-authored by the Republican Party’s 2008 presidential nominee, John McCain, and signed by President George W. Bush, BCRA represents landmark progress in the efforts to end the corrupting effect of big moneyed, special interests in politics. As the New York Times noted in a recent editorial, “If the suit succeeds, it will seriously damage democracy by allowing a virtually unlimited amount of corporate and other special-interest money to flood into politics.” [New York Times, 1/12/09]

“Cloaked in the veil of a constitutional challenge, the RNC is callously attempting to dismantle needed reforms to make up for their fundraising deficiencies,” said DNC General Counsel Robert F. Bauer.

“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” said DNC Executive Director Jen O’Malley Dillon. “Having failed to connect with ordinary Americans, the Republican Party is trying to change the rules to suit their political objectives, rather than work harder within the law to reach the American people.”

As a national party committee that would be directly impacted by any changes to BCRA, and as the RNC’s main competitor in electoral and party politics, the DNC filed the motion to ensure its interests are adequately represented in the defense of the law. In the motion filed today, the DNC maintains that the RNC’s suit is clearly a politically motivated attempt to re-inject the corrupting influence of special interest monies into the system because of their inability to raise “small donor” hard money. In an interview with the Washington Times in November 2008, RNC chairman Michael Duncan said, "If we can't take non-federal [soft] money to help get these things done, we will be at a severe disadvantage.” [Washington Times, 11/13/08]

For a PDF of the DNC’s complaint, please click here.

Beyond trickle-down

Today's column by Marie Cocco on the economic stimulus package is a must-read:

...a glimpse of what might help [the economy] the most was provided by the CBO analysis of the economic boost it estimates will come from the various provisions of the $825 billion stimulus legislation written in the House. Those that produce the most bang for the buck -- about $2.50 in added economic growth for every dollar spent -- are the precise opposite of what we've been doing until now. They are the very sorts of initiatives congressional Republicans still largely oppose.

The direct purchase of goods and services by the federal government produces as much as $2.50 in growth over several quarters, the CBO says. A dollar transferred to state and local governments for infrastructure spending also is estimated to produce $2.50 in growth. Getting money directly to people through programs such as expanded unemployment benefits and food assistance is estimated to produce $2.20 in growth. And general aid to states to alleviate the problems in balancing their budgets in the face of rapidly deteriorating revenues and rapidly increasing demand for basic public services would produce $1.90.

What element is the least effective? Giving businesses a way to cut their taxes by charging losses that are incurred now against profits made in prior years only produces about 40 cents worth of growth for every dollar spent, the CBO says. It also happens to be the part of the legislation House Republicans are most happy with.

Too big to fail, too big to jail

Today's column by Amy Goodman makes some excellent points:

Karl Rove recently described George W. Bush as a book lover, writing, "There is a myth perpetuated by Bush critics that he would rather burn a book than read one." There will be many histories written about the Bush administration. What will they use for source material? The Bush White House was sued for losing e-mails, and for skirting laws intended to protect public records. A federal judge ordered White House computers scoured for e-mails just days before Bush left office. Three hundred million e-mails reportedly went to the National Archives, but 23 million e-mails remain "lost." Vice President Dick Cheney left office in a wheelchair due to a back injury suffered when moving boxes out of his office. He has not only hobbled a nation in his attempt to sequester information - he hobbled himself. Cheney also won court approval to decide which of his records remain private.

...Millions have served time in federal prisons for crimes that fall far short of those attributed to the Bush administration. Some criminals, it seems, are like banks judged too big to fail: too big to jail, too powerful to prosecute. What if we apply Obama's legal theory to the small guys? Why look back? Crimes, large or small, can be forgiven, in the spirit of unity. But few would endorse letting muggers, rapists or armed robbers of convenience stores off scot-free. So why the different treatment for those potentially guilty of leading a nation into wars that have killed untold numbers, torture and widespread illegal spying?

...Without thorough, aggressive, public investigations of the full spectrum of crimes alleged of the Bush administration, there will be no accountability, and the complete record of this chapter of U.S. history will never be written.

The Same Old Song

Today's column by Bob Herbert is great. Here's an excerpt:

What’s up with the Republicans? Have they no sense that their policies have sent the country hurtling down the road to ruin? Are they so divorced from reality that in their delusionary state they honestly believe we need more of their tax cuts for the rich and their other forms of plutocratic irresponsibility, the very things that got us to this deplorable state?

...The question that I would like answered is why anyone listens to this crowd anymore. G.O.P. policies have been an absolute backbreaker for the middle class. (Forget the poor. Nobody talks about them anymore, not even the Democrats.) The G.O.P. has successfully engineered a wholesale redistribution of wealth to those already at the top of the income ladder and then, in a remarkable display of chutzpah, dared anyone to talk about class warfare.

...When the G.O.P. talks, nobody should listen. Republicans have argued, with the collaboration of much of the media, that they could radically cut taxes while simultaneously balancing the federal budget, when, in fact, big income-tax cuts inevitably lead to big budget deficits. We listened to the G.O.P. and what do we have now? A trillion-dollar-plus deficit and an economy in shambles.

Biden's 'Face the Nation' interview

In case you missed Vice-President Joe Biden on Face the Nation this morning, here's the video:

President Obama's Weekly Address

In his first weekly address since being sworn in as the 44th president of the United States, President Barack Obama discussed how the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan will jump-start the economy.

Biden to appear on 'Face the Nation' tomorrow

Vice-President Joe Biden is scheduled to appear on CBS's Face the Nation tomorrow, January 25. Locally, the show can be seen on Channel 12 at 10:30 am. Please tune in!

Fox News: Fear Imbalance

Funny stuff from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart:

Mitch distorts facts about Employee Free Choice

The folks at Think Progress do an excellent job debunking Mitch McConnell's arguments against the Employee Free Choice Act:

Today, during an appearance at the National Press Club, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered a two-minute diatribe against the Employee Free Choice Act, announcing that “this is an issue on which there will be no bi-partisanship,” and that the act will “fundamentally harm and Europeanize America”...

First, the stat that McConnell trotted out from former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao (who is also McConnell’s wife) was completely distorted. He claimed that only 7 percent of the private sector (about 8.8 million workers) being unionized indicates that workers don’t want to join unions. However, an AFL-CIO survey found that there are 60 million American workers who say that they would join a union if they could.

...And since McConnell warns that Employee Free Choice will “fundamentally harm and Europeanize America,” it’s worth pointing out that — even using data from the conservative Heritage Foundation — countries with the highest degree of “economic freedom” have “far more worker-friendly labor laws than we do in this nation.” This includes not just Europe, but Australia and Canada. As Seth Michaels noted, “In giving corporations veto power over how workers form unions, the United States is a rare exception among industrialized democracies.”

President Obama's Inauguration and Address

President Barack Obama took the oath of office as the 44th president of the United States and delivered an inaugural address focusing on the themes of sacrifice and renewal.

Obama to appear on This Week tomorrow

President-elect Barack Obama is scheduled to appear on ABC's This Week tomorrow, January 11. Locally, the show can be seen on Channel 9 at 9:00 am. Please tune in!

Obama says plan could add or save 4 million jobs

Barack Obama used his weekly address this morning to discuss his economic stimulus plan. Reuters has more:

President-elect Barack Obama said on Saturday an analysis of his stimulus proposals shows that between 3 million and 4 million U.S. jobs could be saved or created by 2010, nearly 90 percent of them in the private sector.

The analysis of Obama's estimated $800 billion plan to lift the country out of a year-long recession was submitted by the chair of his council of economic advisers, Christina Romer, and by Vice President-elect Joe Biden's chief economic adviser, Jared Bernstein.

Obama announced the report on his weekly radio and Internet address. He had previously said his American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan would create or save 3 million jobs, but said the analysis from his advisers showed that number would range between 3 million and 4 million.

You can view Obama's address below:

Poll finds large majority favoring higher cigarette tax

From the Courier-Journal:

A clear majority of Kentuckians favor raising the state's cigarette tax as much as $1 a pack if some of the proceeds will go to help people stop smoking and improve health care, according to a poll a group of health advocates released yesterday.

About 69 percent of the respondents said they would favor a $1 increase in Kentucky's 30-cent-per-pack tax, which is among the nation's lowest. A similar majority said they would favor a 70-cent increase proposed by Gov. Steve Beshear.

And a majority indicated that either they would be more likely to support a lawmaker who voted for such an increase, or that it wouldn't affect their support.

Even the Enquirer's Dennis Hetzel -- hardly a liberal -- says that the Republicans need to back off of their strict anti-tax zealotry:

As the Kentucky Legislature wrestles with a huge budget deficit, it’s important that groups are organizing to make sure public school funding is kept as whole as possible.

Gov. Steve Beshear’s proposal attempts to do that, but it already seems dead on arrival, particularly among Republican leaders who take an absolutist position – no tax increases of any kind for any reason.

...I think this is pig-headed.

Hypocrisy From the Party of Pork

Today's column by Joe Conason is a must-read. Here's an excerpt:

As the government contemplates spending very large sums of money, it is reassuring to know that somebody still worries about waste. Or it would be reassuring, if only that somebody were not Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, who promises that he and his fellow Republicans will “protect taxpayers against the rush to spend their money.”

This loud pledge of thrift and transparency by the G.O.P. leadership might be more persuasive coming from people who had displayed such inclinations anytime before last year’s election. But these are the same politicians who squandered astronomical amounts when they controlled the federal budget.

And today, at a moment when economists of all stripes agree that we must spend big and spend fast to forestall a depression, the timing of the Republican conversion is as dubious as its credibility. To delay the stimulus spending proposed by President-elect Obama for the sake of partisan posturing is to risk disaster.

Obama warns of dire consequences without stimulus

Via the Associated Press:

President-elect Barack Obama urged dubious lawmakers Thursday to work with him "day and night, on weekends if necessary" to approve the largest taxpayer-funded stimulus ever, warning in almost apocalyptic terms that a dire economic future was certain without it.

...Making a case for action, Obama warned in his speech that "a bad situation could become dramatically worse" if Washington doesn't go far enough. He talked of the possibility of double-digit unemployment and $1 trillion in lost economic activity, stark predictions that recalled the days of the Great Depression in the 1930s.

But, he said, "We are still the nation that has overcome great fears and improbable odds. If we act with the urgency and seriousness that this moment requires, I know that we can do it again."

You can view Obama's entire speech below:

Obama to deliver speech on economy on Thursday

Courtesy of Reuters:

President-elect Barack Obama plans to speak on the economy on Thursday in what his aides are billing as a major address in which he will offer more details of his proposed economic stimulus plan.

...The speech will be held at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, at 11 a.m. EST.

U.S. Must Act Swiftly to Address Economy

President-Elect Barack Obama addressed the need for an economic stimulus package earlier today. Bloomberg has more:

President-elect Barack Obama said that Democrats and Republicans need to act with urgency to address the “great and growing” economic crisis, warning of double-digit unemployment if swift action isn’t taken.

“These are America’s problems, and we must come together as Americans to meet them with the urgency this moment demands,” he said today in his weekly radio address. “If we don’t act swiftly and boldly, we could see a much deeper economic downturn that could lead to double-digit unemployment.”

With the U.S. amid its worst economic slump since World War II, Obama said he is looking forward to meeting with leaders of both political parties in Washington in the new week. Job losses are likely to continue this year, as economists surveyed by Bloomberg News in December forecast the jobless rate to rise to 8.2 percent by the end of 2009 from 6.7 percent in November.

You can view Obama's entire address below:

George W. Bush: How'd He Do?

Has President Bush lived up to any of his promises? David Letterman takes a look: