Federal Credit Card Maxed Out
Treasury Secretary John Snow notified Congress yesterday that the administration had taken “all prudent and legal actions” to keep from hitting the $8.2 trillion national debt limit.
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This category is for posts related to actions by the Congress of the United States (House and/or Senate), and any member’s of Congress.
Gonzales Backtracks on Senate Testimony – Hints At Additionaly Spying Programs
In a letter yesterday to senators in which he asked to clarify his Feb. 6 testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Gonzales also seemed to imply that the administration’s original legal justification for the program was not as clear-cut as he indicated three weeks ago.
Read moreThe Library Tower Plot And We Still Don't Need to Cancel The Constitution
Well, it is interesting that after Little Al Gonzales got ripped a new one during the Senate Hearings on King George’s domestic warrantless spying, the King suddenly decided it was OK to declassify some bogus “threat” so he could tell us about it (you know 9/11, airplanes into buildings, be afraid, be very afraid). Bush says he will not talk about specific security threats to America. Unless, of course, he needs to talk about a specific threat to Los Angeles to confuse the public and gain some cheap political advantage.
Read moreSenate Denies Returning Vets Badly-Needed Support
The New York Daily News reports on an internal Veterans Health Administration (VHA) study showing 120,000 U.S. soldiers — “more than one of every four who served in Iraq and Afghanistan” — have already sought VHA treatment.
Read moreMore Money for War-Less for Poor Americans
“The White House said Thursday that it planned to ask Congress for an additional $70 billion to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, driving the cost of military operations in the two countries to $120 billion this year, the highest since the Sept. 11 attacks.” The new spending will add to the cost of an Iraq war that is currently estimated at $250 billion. Total war spending since 9/11 would rise to $440 billion.
Read moreLegal Scholars Dispute Bush's Defense of Domestic Spying
Bush’s defense of his illegal domestic spying program in the State of the Union was almost entirely disputed yesterday by legal specialists across the ideological spectrum. “Bush’s assertion that his program was legal prompted a group of 14 prominent law professors, including both liberals and conservatives, to pen a joint letter objecting to his arguments.” Legal scholars disputed three false claims made by Bush.
Read moreNo Honor Among Vote Stealers
House Republicans are taking a mulligan on the first ballot for Majority Leader. The first count showed more votes cast than Republicans present at the Conference meeting. They can’t even conduct their own elections without cheating.
Read moreSection 605 of Proposed Patriot Act
Section 605 of the House version of the Patriot Act renewal legislation. It calls for the creation of a Federal Police Force. Your imperial presidency at work.
Read moreDeconstructing the Various Domestic Spying Lies
Just over a week ago, the White House promised to provide the legal, constitutional and moral justifications for the sort of warrantless spying on Americans that has been illegal for nearly 30 years. Instead, we got the familiar mix of political spin, clumsy historical misinformation, contemptuous dismissals of civil liberties concerns, cynical attempts to paint dissents as anti-American and pro-terrorist, and a couple of big, dangerous lies.
Read moreState of The Economy
Historically-low job growth, declining wages, rising poverty, record deficits, and the worst deterioration of America’s fiscal situation in history characterize the current state of the U.S. economy. President Bush continues to tout tax cuts as the central part of his economic plan, which he claims will “help the economy create new jobs today while permanently raising the wages and living standards of American workers now and in the future.” But the tax cuts have failed to deliver, leaving more people worse off. The typical middle class family is doing no better today than it was 25 years ago, facing stagnant incomes and staggering costs. Next Tuesday, you’ll hear a lot of happy talk about the economy. American Progress has the facts.
Read moreState of American Health Care
The American health care system is broken. Skyrocketing costs have placed enormous burdens on families and small businesses. The United States spends approximately $1.7 trillion — over 15 percent of the nation’s economy — on health care, yet the nation still falls behind on basic health care measures. “Health care costs are seen as the primary threat facing our country’s economy,” and the Bush administration has only made the situation worse. During President Bush’s term, “the number of Americans without health insurance has increased by 6.2 million,” now totaling nearly 46 million.
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