Senate Republicans seem to be willing to force a shutdown of the federal government as part of negotiating deep cuts to the federal budget, according to comments made Sunday by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Appearing on NBC’s Meet The Press, McConnell pointedly refused to rule out a government shutdown under direct questioning by moderator David Gregory. McConnell simply repeated that a deadline to continue funding most government operations after March 4, and an impending need to raise...
Monthly Archives: January 2011
Getting Local: Newburyport Slights Non-resident Employees With Paid Parking Plan
For months the city of Newburyport, MA has been debating a paid parking plan for the downtown area, that is now one city council session vote away from being implemented. I’ve watched the news stories in the local paper for sometime as others from the area have, but the recent vote on the issue caused me a great deal of concern. I am a former resident of Newburyport. My father owned a business in Newburyport for over 3 decades, I...
DNC Promises To Promote Obama Agenda
The head of the Democratic National Committee is promising to help advance the agenda that President Obama laid out this week in his State of the Union address. Democrats will make “crucial investments to support the President’s agenda for our country’s future — from ads on the air to conversations on the ground, we’re going to do everything we can to promote his vision for our country,” DNC Chairman Tim Kaine says in a Friday email to supporters, soliciting...
Of Football Teams, Fraternities, and Other Important Intellectual Concerns
by Walter Brasch The $50 million Burton Family Football Complex at the University of Connecticut may be nameless soon. Robert G. Burton, who had donated about $3 million to help fund the stadium, wants his money back and his family’s name erased from UConn football. He also informed UConn he will cancel his $50,000 a season suite in the stadium. What upset Burton, who had donated about $7 million to UConn, mostly for its football program, was that the...
UPDATE: Senate Leaders’ Agreement Called ‘Significant Step’ Toward Filibuster Reform
The Democratic and Republican leaders of the Senate late Thursday announced a new agreement to reduce obstruction in the chamber, after a more-forceful effort toward filibuster reform was killed. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) took to the floor to outline the shape of their deal, in lieu of a rules reform package which had been advanced by Sens. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.). The push for reform...
Filibuster Reform Falters In Senate
Three Senate Democrats failed to win enough support to push forward with rules changes that would have made it more difficult to obstruct legislation. Sens. Tom Udall of New Mexico, Tom Harkin of Iowa and Jeff Merkley of Oregon, had introduced measures that would have made it more difficult for a minority of the Senate to stand in the way of passage of bills favored by the majority. However, Wednesday night Senate Republicans objected to allowing the Senate to...
Many Say They Are Ready To Help President Obama ‘Win The Future’
President Obama’s decision to make such priorities as research, infrastructure and education key themes in his State of the Union speech won wide acclaim from diverse sets of advocates following Tuesday night’s address. Obama urged the adoption of policies intended to facilitate enhanced innovation, improved infrastructure, and access and quality of education as key means of creating new American jobs. “We know what it takes to compete for the jobs and industries of our time,” the president says. “We...
Senator Wants President Obama To Talk Foreclosures in State of The Union
While President Obama is expected to focus largely on jobs and U.S. economic competitiveness in his State of the Union, a Democratic senator wants to hear the president talk about how to more strongly stem the tide of housing foreclosures across the country. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) last week wrote Obama, urging him to do so. The freshman highlighted the well-reported troubles with Obama’s existing program to combat foreclosures, and proposes a six-point plan to keep Americans from losing...
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