Related:
Lame Duck Se$$ion: The People's Priorities
Were they yours?
Lame Duck Se$$ion: Christmas Gift for Wall Street
Lame Duck Se$$ion: War Machine Funded
Lame Duck Se$$ion: Tax Cuts Passed
All $et, readers?
Senate passes spending bill after chaotic, rare session" by Ashley Parker and Robert Pear, New York Times December 14, 2014
My print copy:
Spending bill puts off immigration battle" by David Espo and Donna Cassata, New York Times December 14, 2014
No, that's not it because it's a solo byline by Associated Press. WTF?
"The Senate unexpectedly cleared the way Saturday night for swift passage of a $1.1 trillion government-wide spending bill that highlighted fissures inside both political parties in an era of divided government.
The agreement capped a day of intrigue in which Democrats launched a drive to confirm about 20 of President Barack Obama's stalled nominees before their majority expires at year's end. Several Republicans blamed tea party-backed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for creating an opening for the outgoing majority party to exploit.
Was it all as earlier described?
The spending bill, the main item left on Congress' year-end agenda, appeared certain to pass and Obama has said he will sign it. It will provide funding for most of the federal establishment through the Sept., 30 end of the budget year, and eliminate any chance of a government shutdown until then.
I was told it was Warren and the damn Dems earlier.
"Spending deal may not signal more compromise in 2015 Congress" by Charles Babington, Associated Press December 15, 2014
No, all the $pecial intere$ts have been taken care of. The rest of the year will be a $hit $how fooley as the American people are neglected at home yet again.
WASHINGTON — Optimists might think twice before seeing Congress’s bipartisan agreement to keep the government running another year as a road map for 2015.
The dynamics that tamed partisanship a bit over the weekend will change next year, handing new challenges to congressional leaders. Republicans will feel pressure to show they can produce, but 2016 presidential politics and President Obama’s incentives to veto legislation will add uncertainties to the mix.
The $1.1 trillion spending bill that was passed Saturday night and sent to Obama will finance most of the government through September, making a repeat of the 2013 shutdown unlikely.
Yeah, he's not vetoing the deal the House and Senate leadership had ready months ago.
The bill angered conservatives who wanted to block Obama’s executive changes to immigration policy. And it displeased liberals who say it unwisely loosens restrictions on risky Wall Street practices.
No one is happy except the $ame old $pecial intere$ts.
But Obama and most congressional leaders called it an acceptable compromise. The only top congressional leader to oppose it was House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, and she stopped short of pressing her colleagues to kill it.
The Senate will be in a session few more days to deal with individual and business tax breaks that expired in January, tax-free savings accounts for people with disabilities, judicial and administrative nominations, and renewal of the terrorism insurance program that expires at the end of the year.
When the new Congress convenes next month, four important changes will occur that will make bipartisan accords harder to achieve:
■ Republicans will control both legislative chambers, not just the House. This enhances their clout, but it also will encourage some conservative firebrands to demand politically unfeasible goals, such as repealing the president’s health care law.
■ Senate Democrats will use the same filibuster rules to block GOP measures that Republicans have used for six years. Republicans will hold 54 of the Senate’s 100 seats. Measures need 60 votes to advance beyond a filibuster.
Why? They haven't in the past.
■ Obama may decide to veto some bills that Congress passes. Overriding vetoes is extremely difficult, requiring two-thirds majorities in the House and Senate.
■ The 2016 presidential race will complicate congressional politics. As many as five senators are considering joining the race. They include Republican Ted Cruz, who tried to derail the big spending bill.
And look who is running now.
Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona, the party’s 2008 presidential nominee, told CBS’s ‘‘Face the Nation’’ on Sunday: ‘‘Unless we can show the American people that we can govern, then we’re not going to elect a Republican president in 2016.’’
But it won’t be easy, said Ron Bonjean, a former top GOP congressional aide.
Even with Republican House and Senate majorities, he said, the GOP agenda ‘‘could grind to a halt in the Senate because it will take 60 votes to pass anything.’’
The $1.1 trillion spending bill is mostly about budget choices, such as adding $5.4 billion to fight the Ebola virus and trimming the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget by $60 million. But it’s also packed with policy add-ons known as riders, many of which couldn’t get through Congress on their own.
$mells like pork.
The riders include provisions affecting pension plans, bank investments, school lunches, trucking safety, marijuana sales, and even old-fashioned light bulbs:
■ Banking: The bill loosens some banking rules imposed after the 2008 financial crisis. It relaxes regulation of high-risk investments known as derivatives. Those rules were imposed to reduce risk to depositors’ federally insured money and prevent taxpayer bailouts. Banks said the crackdown stifled the competitiveness of the US financial industry.
Meaning taxpayers are now on the hook for $300 TRILLION -- that's with a T, taxpayer!!
■ Pensions: Allows some pension plans to cut benefits promised to current and future retirees. The change is designed to save some financially strapped plans from going broke.
It applies to multiemployer plans, which together cover more than 10 million people mostly at small, unionized firms, often in the construction business.
All so TAX CUTS can be PAID FOR!
So corporate and government promi$es are truly worth nothing now, huh?
That IS FA$CI$M!
■ School lunches: Eases rules requiring more whole grains in school lunches and suspends the lower sodium standards due to take effect in 2017, while keeping other healthful-eating rules.
Some school nutrition directors — and some students complaining of unappetizing lunches — lobbied for a break from the standards championed by first lady Michelle Obama.
Have you seen the mush Michelle wants you to eat?
■ Truck safety: Rolls back rules that were supposed to keep sleepy truckers from causing wrecks. The rules had effectively shortened truckers’ maximum workweek from 82 hours to 70. The trucking industry fought back.
And what did the trucking companies do? Hit the accelerator on the rates, thank you.
■ Campaign funds: Allows more money to flow into political parties. Under the new rules, each donor could give almost $1.6 million per election cycle to political parties and their campaign committees. The comparable limit for 2014’s elections was $194,400.
Wow, talk about $erving your$elves!
■ Internet taxes: Extends a freeze on state and local Internet access taxes to Oct. 1, 2015.
That failed?
■ Marijuana: Blocks the Justice Department from raiding medical marijuana dispensaries in states that permit them.
But it also blocks federal and local spending to legalize marijuana in Washington, D.C., where voters approved recreational use in a November referendum. It is unclear what the practical effect of the spending ban would be.
Yeah, to hell with what you voters think.
■ Light bulbs: Attempts to switch off federal rules that are making it harder to find old-fashioned incandescent bulbs. The bill extends a ban on the government spending money to enforce the ongoing phase-out of incandescent bulbs.
Thank you, because not even Hitler, Stalin, or Mao, told their people what light bulb they could use.
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Won't find any fans of it up here:
"Spending bill had no fans in Mass. delegation" by Noah Bierman, Globe Staff December 16, 2014
WASHINGTON — Hours after Congress released its $1.1 trillion spending bill last week, Senator Edward J. Markey called it “a huge job-creating budget for Massachusetts,” and “the first off-shore wind budget in the history of the United States.”
Yet Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, voted against the bill late Saturday night. It was an awkward situation. Markey, who is seldom shy about his legislative victories, released press statements on two separate topics Sunday, but neither of them addressed the 1,603-page spending bill.
In fact, no member of the state’s all-Democratic delegation voted for the bill, despite the presence of several measures they had fought for, including $100 million toward the Green Line extension to Somerville and Medford, and the preservation of a $150 million loan guarantee for Cape Wind, both championed by Markey.
A variety of factors, including Senator Elizabeth Warren’s crusade against a provision that weakened the Dodd-Frank financial regulations, put pressure on the state’s liberal delegation to oppose the final product. The House and Senate voted for the bill last week, and President Obama has said he will sign it.
The use of the word shows that it met with disapproval from the rulers and their mouthpiece.
A cru$ade, huh?
Related:
"Senator Elizabeth Warren set off a new round of speculation about her presidential ambitions last week by sparking a liberal rebellion against a spending bill."
I'm going to stop for a moment to note there was no raised fist or thumb this time, the rebel(?) that she is!
Markey said Monday that he had not yet read the full bill when he made his initial positive comments about it and was not “fully aware of all of the other numerous giveaways” to Wall Street and the coal industry.
Great. That really gives me confidence in him.
“At the end of the day, the repeal of that Dodd-Frank provision, the watering down of environmental protections that were in the bill, the dramatic change in pension protections, all created a pile of bad policy that made it impossible for me to vote for the total bill,” Markey said.
Representative Joseph Kennedy III also voted against the bill, even though it included a $300 million manufacturing provision that he had co-authored, as well as $22.3 million for an MIT fusion experiment that is slated to shut down in 2016.
“There’s a bunch of good stuff that was actually in that bill. The problem was there was also enough bad stuff to counterbalance and make it unpalatable,” Kennedy said in an interview Monday.
Kennedy seemed especially proud of his work on the bill, at first. He released a statement Wednesday noting that it included his provision to build manufacturing institutes across the United States.
After casting a vote against the bill Thursday, Kennedy released a statement explaining that he opposed the spending bill because it included money for military aid to Syrian rebels, it raised campaign contribution limits to political parties, and it weakened Dodd-Frank.
He blamed the breakdown in the process for forcing him to choose between funding a military effort that has neither been debated nor approved, and voting for a measure that he worked hard to include.
“It’s really frustrating and sad,” he said. His manufacturing bill was initially approved as a stand-alone measure in the House, drawing bipartisan support. But it was blocked in the Senate. Kennedy said he lamented that the only way to advance the measure was through a large spending bill that was considered “must-pass.”
Representative Michael E. Capuano, who serves on the transportation committee and represents the Somerville district that would benefit most from the $100 million set aside to boost the Green Line expansion, was the only member of the Massachusetts delegation who missed the vote. His wife was in the hospital following ankle surgery. But his office later said he would have joined his colleagues in opposing the bill.
After Congress in 2010 banned so-called earmarks that enabled members to direct money for favorite projects, large spending bills contain far fewer pet projects than they once did. Nonetheless, the spending bill did include money for several priorities favored by members of the Massachusetts delegation.
Oh, what a $hock.
Calls from constituents tilted against the overall bill, said Representative Richard E. Neal, a Springfield Democrat.
Last month, Neal, the dean of the state’s congressional delegation, said there used to be “the rule” on the tax committee on which he serves that says members who fought for provisions in a bill would vote for the overall package.
“If you got something and did not vote for the entire package, you would not get something again,” he said in a speech to the New England Council, according to remarks posted on the group’s website. “Now, too many people try to have it both ways, and that prevents the process from working.”
Neal said he did not lobby for any special provisions in the spending measure. Neal voted against it because of a provision that would allow some employers to cut pension plans for current retirees and because the process of approving it was flawed, he said. He said he did not think the old rule applied to this bill because House leaders told members of Congress to vote their conscience.
Well, certain intere$ts got what they wanted.
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"Senate OK’s 4 Obama aides; 12 judicial picks likely to follow; Plymouth man named assistant secretary of state" by Deb Riechmann, Associated Press December 17, 2014
WASHINGTON — The Senate passed a last-minute bill extending a massive package of temporary tax breaks through the end of the year. The bill would enable millions of businesses and individuals to claim the tax breaks on their 2014 tax returns. The bill now goes to Obama, who is expected to sign it.
The 54 tax breaks benefit big corporations and small businesses, as well as struggling homeowners and people who live in states without a state income tax. More narrow provisions include tax breaks for filmmakers, racehorse owners, and rum producers in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
In all, the package would add nearly $42 billion to the budget deficit over the next decade.
While the American citizen and taxpayer has austerity shoved down it's throat.
So much for the fi$cal cliff, huh?
Also Tuesday, majority leader, Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada, is hoping to confirm a dozen more of Obama’s judicial appointments.
That takes up far more attention.
He is pushing the votes with the knowledge that the Republicans who control the Senate next year will be less accommodating.
If those appointments are approved, Democrats will have confirmed 88 of Obama’s top judicial nominations this year, a total that would be the highest for any president in two decades.
Last year, Democrats made it harder for Republicans to derail Obama’s nominations by weakening the Senate’s rule on filibusters.
And now they are in the minority, damn fools!
Whatever this year’s final figure on judicial confirmations, it will easily surpass the 43 approved last year and the 49 confirmed in 2012. It will also increase Obama’s imprint on the federal judiciary, though judges do not always champion the political ideology of the president who picked them.
‘‘He’s changed the face of the judiciary,’’ said Russell Wheeler, who studies the judiciary for the liberal-leaning Brookings Institution. ‘‘Whether or not that will have a long-term impact, I think, is another question.’’
If the Senate confirms 88 of Obama’s judicial selections, that would be the highest number since a Democratic-led Senate approved 99 of President Clinton’s appeals and district court nominees in 1994, according to Wheeler.
Several lawmakers said Democrats got a chance to consider more nominees than expected after conservatives led by Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, forced a weekend vote on Obama’s executive actions deferring the deportation of millions of immigrants. They said that gave Reid more time to hold votes on nominations.
All his fault, yup.
The 88 judges would mean the Senate would have confirmed 303 federal appeals and district court judges through Obama’s six years in office, according to Wheeler.
That would be more than the 298 confirmed during Clinton’s first six years and the 253 confirmed during that same period under President George W. Bush.
It would also leave just 50 federal appeals and district court vacancies out of 856 judgeships, according to data from the US court system. That is the lowest number of vacancies since December 2008, the month before Obama took office. Vacancies during his presidency peaked at 108 in December 2010.
What?
This after we have been told the last few years there is gridlock and no one getting confirmed?
Of Obama’s judges confirmed so far, 42 percent have been women, 19 percent black, and 11 percent Hispanic, the White House said.
All from the same cla$$.
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Related: Mass. doctor Vivek Murthy OK’d as surgeon general
See: Obama Finds the Man Most Eager To Initiate Govt. Behavioral Control and Makes Him Surgeon Gen.
I'm trying to look at things through different lenses these days.
"GOP blames Cruz for opportunity to confirm nominees" by David Espo, Associated Press December 16, 2014
WASHINGTON — Unhappy Republicans say Senator Ted Cruz of Texas has given President Obama a present this holiday season —among them are nominees that Republicans have sought to block for two relatively high-profile posts. They include Dr. Vivek Murthy of Boston, who was confirmed Monday as surgeon general. Another is Sarah Saldana, who has been picked to head Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency that will oversee a new immigration policy that Cruz wants to defund.
Senators are set to vote Tuesday on Daniel Santos, who has waited more than 500 days to be confirmed as a member of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, one of the longest waits ever for an Obama pick.
Others set for confirmation Tuesday include Frank A. Rose of Massachusetts to be assistant secretary of state for verification and compliance; Antony Blinken to be a deputy secretary of state; and Saldana.
At the root of the dispute over the nominees are a combination of the Senate’s all-but-indecipherable rules, Cruz’s attempt to use murky tactics to his advantage, and a bipartisan desire of many lawmakers to finish work for the year and return home for the holidays....
Which is why all this $tuff is at the last minute!
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Related: Senate cancels vote on Obama Social Security pick
Also see: Lame Duck Se$$ion: The NSA and Nazis
Lockheed's role gets left out a lot!
And as they are doling out the tax sought to the well-connected:
"Decision to take out federal loans haunts some Sandy victims
Some victims of Hurricane Sandy who took out federal loans in the storm’s aftermath are having a case of buyer’s remorse. Federal rules say loans like those handed out by the Small Business Administration count as aid when homeowners apply for relief grants. But some who took loans say they didn’t fully understand the financial repercussions. Federal officials say the program worked like it should. HUD funds, known as Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery allocations, can be the only lifeline for some disaster victims. Those who are deemed financially capable of repaying the loans don’t eat up relief money that would otherwise go to those with bigger needs. Federal rules were actually loosened last year so that only the amount a homeowner takes in a loan — not what they were approved for — is counted as aid in grant requests."
In other words, the GOVERNMENT WANTS the CHUMP CHANGE AID BACK!
Round and round we go, 'eh?!!
That's why you NEVER ACCEPT GOVERNMENT AID of ANY KIND!
"Obama declares ‘turning point’ for US military" Associated Press December 16, 2014
Yeah, copays for health care are going up and the housing allowance is being cut.
FORT DIX, N.J. — Marking what he called a ‘‘turning point’’ for the US military, President Obama saluted troops returning from Afghanistan on Monday and declared the United States is moving past the time for large deployments aimed at nation-building.
We are just going to bomb people into oblivion or covertly overthrow their governments and install puppets.
‘‘The time of deploying large ground forces with big military footprints to engage in nation-building overseas, that’s coming to an end,’’ the commander in chief said in a speech to 3,000 at New Jersey’s Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, a launching point for deployments to Afghanistan.
US and NATO troops closed their operational command in Afghanistan last week after 13 years of war. Some troops will remain, however, to carry out operations against Taliban and Al Qaeda targets....
Oh, look, another turning point that eventually becomes a circle. Seen this movie before.
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He says that as he deploys more soldiers to Iraq to help fight ISIS!
"Several US government buildings lose power" Associated Press December 16, 2014
WASHINGTON — A blown transformer and a construction accident caused power failures at several government buildings in Washington on Monday, authorities said.
My first thought: terrorists. Second thought: China
Then I realized it was likely neglected infrastructure.
The State Department said a power line serving its headquarters was cut in a construction accident on nearby private property.
Yeah, but the question is, BY WHO?!!!!!
The Pepco power company said power was restored within a few hours.
A transformer explosion at the US Office of Personnel Management caused power failures there and at several government buildings Monday, police said.
Officer Araz Alali, a D.C. police spokesman, says the transformer blew at 9:05 a.m. He said the problem was a mechanical failure and no one was injured.
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Time to power down this post.
NEXT DAY UPDATES:
Mitch McConnell wants to stop coal rules
McConnell reaffirmed plans to make approving the Keystone XL pipeline as the first order of business.
Republican wins Arizona House seat after recount
The results mean Republicans will hold their largest House majority since the administration of President Herbert Hoover, controlling 247 seats to 188 for Democrats.
FURTHER UPDATE(S):
"Obama ends Social Security payments to former Nazis
WASHINGTON — President Obama on Thursday signed into law a measure that bars suspected Nazi war criminals from receiving Social Security benefits. The Associated Press found that dozens of former Nazis collected millions of dollars in retirement benefits after being forced to leave the United States. They ranged from the SS guards who patrolled the Third Reich’s network of camps where millions of Jews died to a rocket scientist who helped develop the V-2 rocket, which Germany used to attack London. The law terminates payments for individuals stripped of their US citizenship due to their participation in Nazi persecutions during World War II. US law previously mandated a higher threshold — a final order of deportation — before Social Security benefits could be terminated."
