Advocates for Stem Cell Research
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Stem Cell Research, specifically, Embryonic Stem Cell Research, has the potential to change the face of human disease that plagues mankind forever. This group is designed to promote the awareness of this powerful and extremely important research.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas wants Barack Obama to take away one message from their meeting Wednesday â€" he should focus immediately on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict if elected, or any gains made in peace talks could vanish.
Obama, the presumptive Democratic candidate, made time in his jam-packed Mideast schedule for what is to be a 45-minute meeting with Abbas.
During a stop in Jordan on Tuesday, Obama suggested that he was open to the Palestinians' request, saying that he'd do his best to bring Israelis and Palestinians together, "starting from the minute I'm sworn into office." However, he also cautioned that it is "unrealistic to expect that a U.S. president alone can suddenly snap his fingers and bring about peace in this region."
Obama, the presumptive Democratic candidate, made time in his jam-packed Mideast schedule for what is to be a 45-minute meeting with Abbas.
During a stop in Jordan on Tuesday, Obama suggested that he was open to the Palestinians' request, saying that he'd do his best to bring Israelis and Palestinians together, "starting from the minute I'm sworn into office." However, he also cautioned that it is "unrealistic to expect that a U.S. president alone can suddenly snap his fingers and bring about peace in this region."
T. Boone Pickens, the Republican Texas oil mogul who has been pushing a renewable energy agenda, will be among the experts testifying before a Senate panel Tuesday on energy security.
As oil prices continue to hover around the $140 per barrel mark, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are likely Tuesday to use the Senate hearing as a forum to push for increased U.S. energy security, the idea of reducing foreign influence over the energy consumed in the United States.
Last week, Pickens began a public relations push for the energy plan he simply has titled, "The Pickens Plan." Pickens says installing wind farms in the midsection of the United States could produce 20 percent of electricity consumed domestically, alleviating the need to use natural gas to make electricity.
Under the Pickens Plan, natural gas along with biofuels would power all transportation, reducing foreign oil dependence -- according to Pickens' numbers -- by one-third.
The Economist magazine last week reported that Pickens' plan isn't entirely altruistic, however. According to the magazine, Pickens' company Mesa Power has invested $2 billion in a Texas panhandle wind farm. But Pickens, chairman and founder of BP Capital Management, also regularly points out he doesn't need the money.
The hearing, titled "Energy Security: An American Imperative," will be held at 9:30 a.m. Other panelists before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee will be Gal Luft, executive director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security; Geoffrey Anderson, president and CEO of Smart Growth America; and Habib Dagher, director of the University of Maine Advanced Structures and Composites Laboratory.
As oil prices continue to hover around the $140 per barrel mark, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are likely Tuesday to use the Senate hearing as a forum to push for increased U.S. energy security, the idea of reducing foreign influence over the energy consumed in the United States.
Last week, Pickens began a public relations push for the energy plan he simply has titled, "The Pickens Plan." Pickens says installing wind farms in the midsection of the United States could produce 20 percent of electricity consumed domestically, alleviating the need to use natural gas to make electricity.
Under the Pickens Plan, natural gas along with biofuels would power all transportation, reducing foreign oil dependence -- according to Pickens' numbers -- by one-third.
The Economist magazine last week reported that Pickens' plan isn't entirely altruistic, however. According to the magazine, Pickens' company Mesa Power has invested $2 billion in a Texas panhandle wind farm. But Pickens, chairman and founder of BP Capital Management, also regularly points out he doesn't need the money.
The hearing, titled "Energy Security: An American Imperative," will be held at 9:30 a.m. Other panelists before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee will be Gal Luft, executive director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security; Geoffrey Anderson, president and CEO of Smart Growth America; and Habib Dagher, director of the University of Maine Advanced Structures and Composites Laboratory.
A Palestinian man from east Jerusalem rammed a construction vehicle into three cars and a city bus in downtown Jerusalem on Tuesday, wounding four people before he was shot dead, in a chilling imitation of an attack that took place in the city earlier this month.
The driver went on his rampage in a busy part of downtown Jerusalem, several hundred meters from the luxury hotel where U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama is supposed to stay Tuesday night as he kicks off a visit to Israel.
Police said a civilian driving nearby saw what was happening, jumped out of the car and shot the driver, bringing traffic to a halt. A border policeman who rushed to the scene also shot the driver. Police sealed off possible escape routes into predominantly Arab east Jerusalem and were searching for two suspects who fled the scene, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
The driver of the bus said he was chased by the assailant as he wielded the construction vehicle's shovel.
"I was driving on the main road when the (construction vehicle) hit me in the rear, on the right hand side," the driver of the bus, who was not identified, told Channel 10 TV.
"After I passed him he turned round, made a U-turn and rammed the windows twice with the shovel. The third time he aimed for my head, he came up to my window and I swerved to the right, otherwise I would have gone to meet my maker," he said.
Witness Moshe Shimshi said the driver, who was wearing a large, white skullcap commonly worn by religious Muslims, slammed into the side of the bus, then sped away and went for a car.
"He didn't yell anything, he just kept ramming into cars," Shimshi said.
The driver then headed for cars waiting at a red light "and rammed into them with all his might," he added.
Channel 10 TV said a mother and her baby were wounded. Israeli rescue services said they had evacuated one person whose leg was partially severed; Israel media said he was in the car that was overturned.
"This was another attempt to murder innocent people in a senseless act of terrorism," said government spokesman Mark Regev. "All people who believe in peace and reconciliation must unequivocally condemn this attack. Unfortunately, it is clear that we as a society will have to remain vigilant against terrorism."
Minutes after the attack, the driver, wearing shorts and black shoes, was sprawled backward in the construction vehicle's cabin, his legs dangling lifelessly.
Firetrucks had massed at the scene, where the smell of gas was wafting and liquid had spilled on the ground.
Sirens wailed in the background, and a police helicopter hovered overhead.
The assault was eerily reminiscent of an attack earlier this month, when another Palestinian from east Jerusalem plowed his front-end loader into a strong of vehicles and pedestrians on another busy Jerusalem street about 3 miles away. Three people were killed in that attack and dozens of others were wounded before an off-duty soldier shot the assailant dead.
Tuesday's attack was carried out with the same type of front-end loader. A four-door sedan next to the vehicle had been rammed from the rear and had crashed into a utility vehicle.
A compact car stood nearby, its driver's side smashed, and its hood and engine destroyed. Another four-door sedan was overturned on the sidewalk.
Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupolianski was in the area when he heard a commotion and rushed over to the scene.
The attacker "is from east Jerusalem," he said. "They keep on inventing ways to attack us," he said. "Every work tool has become a weapon."
The three latest attacks in Jerusalem have been carried out by Palestinians from the city's eastern sector.
The driver went on his rampage in a busy part of downtown Jerusalem, several hundred meters from the luxury hotel where U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama is supposed to stay Tuesday night as he kicks off a visit to Israel.
Police said a civilian driving nearby saw what was happening, jumped out of the car and shot the driver, bringing traffic to a halt. A border policeman who rushed to the scene also shot the driver. Police sealed off possible escape routes into predominantly Arab east Jerusalem and were searching for two suspects who fled the scene, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.
The driver of the bus said he was chased by the assailant as he wielded the construction vehicle's shovel.
"I was driving on the main road when the (construction vehicle) hit me in the rear, on the right hand side," the driver of the bus, who was not identified, told Channel 10 TV.
"After I passed him he turned round, made a U-turn and rammed the windows twice with the shovel. The third time he aimed for my head, he came up to my window and I swerved to the right, otherwise I would have gone to meet my maker," he said.
Witness Moshe Shimshi said the driver, who was wearing a large, white skullcap commonly worn by religious Muslims, slammed into the side of the bus, then sped away and went for a car.
"He didn't yell anything, he just kept ramming into cars," Shimshi said.
The driver then headed for cars waiting at a red light "and rammed into them with all his might," he added.
Channel 10 TV said a mother and her baby were wounded. Israeli rescue services said they had evacuated one person whose leg was partially severed; Israel media said he was in the car that was overturned.
"This was another attempt to murder innocent people in a senseless act of terrorism," said government spokesman Mark Regev. "All people who believe in peace and reconciliation must unequivocally condemn this attack. Unfortunately, it is clear that we as a society will have to remain vigilant against terrorism."
Minutes after the attack, the driver, wearing shorts and black shoes, was sprawled backward in the construction vehicle's cabin, his legs dangling lifelessly.
Firetrucks had massed at the scene, where the smell of gas was wafting and liquid had spilled on the ground.
Sirens wailed in the background, and a police helicopter hovered overhead.
The assault was eerily reminiscent of an attack earlier this month, when another Palestinian from east Jerusalem plowed his front-end loader into a strong of vehicles and pedestrians on another busy Jerusalem street about 3 miles away. Three people were killed in that attack and dozens of others were wounded before an off-duty soldier shot the assailant dead.
Tuesday's attack was carried out with the same type of front-end loader. A four-door sedan next to the vehicle had been rammed from the rear and had crashed into a utility vehicle.
A compact car stood nearby, its driver's side smashed, and its hood and engine destroyed. Another four-door sedan was overturned on the sidewalk.
Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupolianski was in the area when he heard a commotion and rushed over to the scene.
The attacker "is from east Jerusalem," he said. "They keep on inventing ways to attack us," he said. "Every work tool has become a weapon."
The three latest attacks in Jerusalem have been carried out by Palestinians from the city's eastern sector.
The rap on Barack Obama, at least in the realm of foreign policy, has been that he is a softheaded idealist who thinks that he can charm America's enemies. John McCain and his campaign, conservative columnists and right-wing bloggers all paint a picture of a liberal dreamer who wishes away the world's dangers. Even President Bush stepped into the fray earlier this year to condemn the Illinois senator's willingness to meet with tyrants as naive. Some commentators have acted as if Obama, touring the Middle East and Europe this week on his first trip abroad since effectively wrapping up the nomination, is in for a rude awakening.
These critiques, however, are off the mark. Over the course of the campaign against Hillary Clinton and now McCain, Obama has elaborated more and more the ideas that would undergird his foreign policy as president. What emerges is a world view that is far from that of a typical liberal, much closer to that of a traditional realist. It is interesting to note that, at least in terms of the historical schools of foreign policy, Obama seems to be the cool conservative and McCain the exuberant idealist.
These critiques, however, are off the mark. Over the course of the campaign against Hillary Clinton and now McCain, Obama has elaborated more and more the ideas that would undergird his foreign policy as president. What emerges is a world view that is far from that of a typical liberal, much closer to that of a traditional realist. It is interesting to note that, at least in terms of the historical schools of foreign policy, Obama seems to be the cool conservative and McCain the exuberant idealist.
Democrats and Republicans queasy about a federal rescue of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are coalescing around the idea of letting the government slap limits on the multimillion-dollar pay packages of their executives.
Key lawmakers â€" puzzling over how to explain to constituents why they voted to bail out the troubled government-sponsored firms â€" see new curbs on compensation for the top officers as a crucial measure to cut down on the cringe factor.
At a time when Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's (FRE: 8.75, -0.43, -4.68%) troubles have investors worried and the government ready to jump in with untold sums of cash, the lavish pay of the two companies' executives is increasingly difficult to defend, they say.
Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., says Fannie and Freddie "have had their hard-won credibility undermined in recent weeks," on the heels of major accounting scandals at the firms in 2003 and 2004.
"While the subprime mortgage crisis is hardly the fault of these companies, past practices of awarding huge bonuses and higher executive salaries calls into question the prudence of extending an unlimited credit line of taxpayer money to the companies whose management practices have been questionable over recent years," Casey said in a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson.
Casey called for capping the companies' executive pay "at reasonable levels" if they used the line of credit or need Treasury to step in and buy their stock. Casey also said their boards should sue to recover recent bonuses.
Last year, Freddie Mac paid Chairman and Chief Executive Richard Syron nearly $19.8 million in compensation even though the mortgage company's stock lost half its value. During the same period, Fannie Mae President and Chief Executive Daniel Mudd got compensation valued by the company at $12.2 million, including a $2.2 million bonus.
"I would like to know why taxpayers should extend Fannie and Freddie an unlimited line of credit at a time when their stock and investor confidence has fallen precipitously and their CEOs continue to make multimillion-dollar salaries and bonuses," Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., told Paulson in a letter last week.
Critics of Fannie Mae (FNM: 14.13, +0.73, +5.44%) and Freddie Mac, including Republicans who question the very existence of government-sponsored mortgage companies, have long denounced the firms for richly compensating shareholders and executives in good times while relying on taxpayers and the government to prop them up should they falter.
With the request for a federal lifeline, though, even their biggest boosters are embracing the idea of scrutinizing pay packages.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., the House Financial Services Committee chairman, said a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should have the power to approve executive compensation. Frank and Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., the
Senate Banking Committee chairman, want to add the controls to a broad housing package that creates a new regulator.
The House could vote on the bill, which also includes a foreclosure rescue for 400,000 strapped homeowners, as early as Wednesday.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac together hold or guarantee $5 trillion in mortgages â€" almost half the nation's total. Their stocks have plummeted on fears about their financial stability in a chaotic housing market where falling home values and rising defaults have contributed to large losses at the companies.
Paulson's request for a government lifeline to them has shone an uncomfortable spotlight on the workings of the companies. Both wield armies of lobbyists and shower lawmakers with campaign cash â€" prompting critics to charge that their financial problems are of their own making.
Frank said the housing legislation already includes "any reasonable control over Fannie and Freddie," but that he now believes Congress should explicitly give the regulator power to approve pay packages.
The agency that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac already has the authority to bar them from awarding executives "excessive" compensation that's out of whack with what similar firms' top people receive. But the law expressly forbids capping Fannie and Freddie executives' compensation.
Both versions of the housing bill give the new regulator more latitude to decide what constitutes excessive pay, including taking into account wrongdoing by an executive. The Senate-passed bill also gives the government the power to limit or ban "golden parachute" payments for executives if either company becomes financially unstable, goes belly up or needed a federal bailout.
Key lawmakers â€" puzzling over how to explain to constituents why they voted to bail out the troubled government-sponsored firms â€" see new curbs on compensation for the top officers as a crucial measure to cut down on the cringe factor.
At a time when Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's (FRE: 8.75, -0.43, -4.68%) troubles have investors worried and the government ready to jump in with untold sums of cash, the lavish pay of the two companies' executives is increasingly difficult to defend, they say.
Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., says Fannie and Freddie "have had their hard-won credibility undermined in recent weeks," on the heels of major accounting scandals at the firms in 2003 and 2004.
"While the subprime mortgage crisis is hardly the fault of these companies, past practices of awarding huge bonuses and higher executive salaries calls into question the prudence of extending an unlimited credit line of taxpayer money to the companies whose management practices have been questionable over recent years," Casey said in a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson.
Casey called for capping the companies' executive pay "at reasonable levels" if they used the line of credit or need Treasury to step in and buy their stock. Casey also said their boards should sue to recover recent bonuses.
Last year, Freddie Mac paid Chairman and Chief Executive Richard Syron nearly $19.8 million in compensation even though the mortgage company's stock lost half its value. During the same period, Fannie Mae President and Chief Executive Daniel Mudd got compensation valued by the company at $12.2 million, including a $2.2 million bonus.
"I would like to know why taxpayers should extend Fannie and Freddie an unlimited line of credit at a time when their stock and investor confidence has fallen precipitously and their CEOs continue to make multimillion-dollar salaries and bonuses," Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., told Paulson in a letter last week.
Critics of Fannie Mae (FNM: 14.13, +0.73, +5.44%) and Freddie Mac, including Republicans who question the very existence of government-sponsored mortgage companies, have long denounced the firms for richly compensating shareholders and executives in good times while relying on taxpayers and the government to prop them up should they falter.
With the request for a federal lifeline, though, even their biggest boosters are embracing the idea of scrutinizing pay packages.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., the House Financial Services Committee chairman, said a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should have the power to approve executive compensation. Frank and Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., the
Senate Banking Committee chairman, want to add the controls to a broad housing package that creates a new regulator.
The House could vote on the bill, which also includes a foreclosure rescue for 400,000 strapped homeowners, as early as Wednesday.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac together hold or guarantee $5 trillion in mortgages â€" almost half the nation's total. Their stocks have plummeted on fears about their financial stability in a chaotic housing market where falling home values and rising defaults have contributed to large losses at the companies.
Paulson's request for a government lifeline to them has shone an uncomfortable spotlight on the workings of the companies. Both wield armies of lobbyists and shower lawmakers with campaign cash â€" prompting critics to charge that their financial problems are of their own making.
Frank said the housing legislation already includes "any reasonable control over Fannie and Freddie," but that he now believes Congress should explicitly give the regulator power to approve pay packages.
The agency that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac already has the authority to bar them from awarding executives "excessive" compensation that's out of whack with what similar firms' top people receive. But the law expressly forbids capping Fannie and Freddie executives' compensation.
Both versions of the housing bill give the new regulator more latitude to decide what constitutes excessive pay, including taking into account wrongdoing by an executive. The Senate-passed bill also gives the government the power to limit or ban "golden parachute" payments for executives if either company becomes financially unstable, goes belly up or needed a federal bailout.
Sen. Barack Obama said Sunday that United States needs to focus on Afghanistan in its battle against terrorism.
Sen. Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai meet Sunday in Kabul.
"The Afghan government needs to do more. But we have to understand that the situation is precarious and urgent here in Afghanistan. And I believe this has to be our central focus, the central front, on our battle against terrorism," Obama said Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation."
"I think one of the biggest mistakes we've made strategically after 9/11 was to fail to finish the job here, focus our attention here. We got distracted by Iraq," he said.
Sen. Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai meet Sunday in Kabul.
"The Afghan government needs to do more. But we have to understand that the situation is precarious and urgent here in Afghanistan. And I believe this has to be our central focus, the central front, on our battle against terrorism," Obama said Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation."
"I think one of the biggest mistakes we've made strategically after 9/11 was to fail to finish the job here, focus our attention here. We got distracted by Iraq," he said.
Number of electoral votes based on the latest polls for each state:
Barack Obama - 309
John McCain - 229
Latest Poll Results By State
State #EV End Date Obama McCain
California 55 6/25/08 58.0 30.0
Texas 34 6/28/08 39.0 48.0
New York 31 6/16/08 51.0 32.0
Florida 27 7/1/08 41.0 48.0
Illinois 21 3/6/08 60.0 31.0
Pennsylvania 21 6/24/08 46.0 42.0
Ohio 20 6/27/08 48.0 46.0
Michigan 17 6/26/08 48.0 42.0
Georgia 15 6/20/08 43.0 44.0
New Jersey 15 6/27/08 49.0 33.0
North Carolina 15 6/17/08 41.0 45.0
Virginia 13 6/30/08 49.0 47.0
Massachusetts 12 6/12/08 53.0 30.0
Indiana 11 4/25/08 43.0 51.0
Missouri 11 6/26/08 43.0 50.0
Tennessee 11 6/26/08 36.0 51.0
Washington 11 6/21/08 55.0 40.0
Arizona 10 6/29/08 40.0 49.0
Maryland 10 3/6/08 53.0 40.0
Minnesota 10 6/26/08 54.0 37.0
Wisconsin 10 6/26/08 52.0 39.0
Alabama 9 7/1/08 36.0 51.0
Colorado 9 6/26/08 49.0 44.0
Louisiana 9 6/1/08 41.0 50.0
Kentucky 8 6/17/08 41.0 53.0
South Carolina 8 6/9/08 39.0 48.0
Connecticut 7 6/2/08 47.0 44.0
Iowa 7 6/20/08 49.0 45.0
Oklahoma 7 6/13/08 38.0 52.0
Oregon 7 6/23/08 48.0 45.0
Arkansas 6 6/15/08 39.0 48.0
Kansas 6 6/16/08 37.0 47.0
Mississippi 6 6/26/08 44.0 50.0
Nebraska 5 6/1/08 40.0 49.0
New Mexico 5 6/24/08 47.0 39.0
Nevada 5 6/20/08 42.0 45.0
Utah 5 6/24/08 33.0 52.0
West Virginia 5 6/6/08 37.0 45.0
Hawaii 4 3/6/08 61.0 31.0
Idaho 4 3/6/08 39.0 52.0
Maine 4 6/18/08 55.0 33.0
New Hampshire 4 6/20/08 50.0 39.0
Rhode Island 4 3/6/08 53.0 38.0
Alaska 3 6/18/08 41.0 45.0
Delaware 3 3/6/08 50.0 41.0
South Dakota 3 3/6/08 43.0 47.0
Montana 3 5/25/08 39.0 47.0
North Dakota 3 3/6/08 46.0 42.0
Vermont 3 3/6/08 63.0 29.0
Wyoming 3 5/29/08 40.0 53.0
Permalink.
Barack Obama - 309
John McCain - 229
Latest Poll Results By State
State #EV End Date Obama McCain
California 55 6/25/08 58.0 30.0
Texas 34 6/28/08 39.0 48.0
New York 31 6/16/08 51.0 32.0
Florida 27 7/1/08 41.0 48.0
Illinois 21 3/6/08 60.0 31.0
Pennsylvania 21 6/24/08 46.0 42.0
Ohio 20 6/27/08 48.0 46.0
Michigan 17 6/26/08 48.0 42.0
Georgia 15 6/20/08 43.0 44.0
New Jersey 15 6/27/08 49.0 33.0
North Carolina 15 6/17/08 41.0 45.0
Virginia 13 6/30/08 49.0 47.0
Massachusetts 12 6/12/08 53.0 30.0
Indiana 11 4/25/08 43.0 51.0
Missouri 11 6/26/08 43.0 50.0
Tennessee 11 6/26/08 36.0 51.0
Washington 11 6/21/08 55.0 40.0
Arizona 10 6/29/08 40.0 49.0
Maryland 10 3/6/08 53.0 40.0
Minnesota 10 6/26/08 54.0 37.0
Wisconsin 10 6/26/08 52.0 39.0
Alabama 9 7/1/08 36.0 51.0
Colorado 9 6/26/08 49.0 44.0
Louisiana 9 6/1/08 41.0 50.0
Kentucky 8 6/17/08 41.0 53.0
South Carolina 8 6/9/08 39.0 48.0
Connecticut 7 6/2/08 47.0 44.0
Iowa 7 6/20/08 49.0 45.0
Oklahoma 7 6/13/08 38.0 52.0
Oregon 7 6/23/08 48.0 45.0
Arkansas 6 6/15/08 39.0 48.0
Kansas 6 6/16/08 37.0 47.0
Mississippi 6 6/26/08 44.0 50.0
Nebraska 5 6/1/08 40.0 49.0
New Mexico 5 6/24/08 47.0 39.0
Nevada 5 6/20/08 42.0 45.0
Utah 5 6/24/08 33.0 52.0
West Virginia 5 6/6/08 37.0 45.0
Hawaii 4 3/6/08 61.0 31.0
Idaho 4 3/6/08 39.0 52.0
Maine 4 6/18/08 55.0 33.0
New Hampshire 4 6/20/08 50.0 39.0
Rhode Island 4 3/6/08 53.0 38.0
Alaska 3 6/18/08 41.0 45.0
Delaware 3 3/6/08 50.0 41.0
South Dakota 3 3/6/08 43.0 47.0
Montana 3 5/25/08 39.0 47.0
North Dakota 3 3/6/08 46.0 42.0
Vermont 3 3/6/08 63.0 29.0
Wyoming 3 5/29/08 40.0 53.0
Permalink.
The political vision of a summer gas tax holiday died a quick death in Congress, losing to a view that federal excise taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel will have to go up if they go anywhere.
Despite calls from the presidential campaign trail for a Memorial Day-to-Labor Day tax freeze, lawmakers quickly concluded â€" with a prod from the construction industry â€" that having $9 billion less to spend on highways could create a pre-election specter of thousands of lost jobs.
Now, lawmakers quietly are talking about raising fuel taxes by a dime from the current 18.4 cents a gallon on gasoline and 24.3 cents on diesel fuel.
Despite calls from the presidential campaign trail for a Memorial Day-to-Labor Day tax freeze, lawmakers quickly concluded â€" with a prod from the construction industry â€" that having $9 billion less to spend on highways could create a pre-election specter of thousands of lost jobs.
Now, lawmakers quietly are talking about raising fuel taxes by a dime from the current 18.4 cents a gallon on gasoline and 24.3 cents on diesel fuel.
I think these institutions have outlived their usefulness and should die. Their disappearance may cause some temporary dislocation and “the system” as we know it may never be the same. The wonderful thing about markets though is that they tend to evolve new systems when it makes sense. The only people who should be scared are the Wall Street and Washington big shots who feed on this corrupt and obsolete system. But we shouldn’t let them scare the rest of us into rescuing them, because the destruction of this system and its replacement with something better will only be a minor blip in our lives and in the end will benefit us all. We should rejoice that this detrius may be swept away in favor of something better, newer and more equitable. We should be excited, not scared, that the future can be bright if we don’t insist on preserving the vestiges of the past.
I have completed building the website for the Dracut Democratic Town Committee,and would like everyone in the world to click on it so that it will start coming up in google searches.I am new at sitebuilding but it came out O.k. and the committee seems to like it.Please find the time to check it out,the address is www.dracutdems.com.Thank You Much,Bye...
FBI Looking Into IndyMac For Possible Fraud
The Associated Press has learned that the FBI is investigating now-defunct
IndyMac banks for possible fraud.
The Associated Press has learned that the FBI is investigating now-defunct
IndyMac banks for possible fraud.
U.S. presidential hopeful Barack Obama met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday -- a leader the Democratic senator has criticized for not doing enough to rebuild the war-torn nation.
Sen. Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai meet Sunday in Kabul.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee met with Karzai in the capital city of Kabul during Obama's first visit to the Asian nation.
Shortly after the meeting, Obama left Afghanistan to continue a trip that will take him to the Middle East and Europe.
Sen. Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai meet Sunday in Kabul.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee met with Karzai in the capital city of Kabul during Obama's first visit to the Asian nation.
Shortly after the meeting, Obama left Afghanistan to continue a trip that will take him to the Middle East and Europe.
Sen. Barack Obama's trip to the Middle East and Europe marks the Democrat's first high-profile step onto the international stage, a campaign-season audition of sorts for a presidential candidate pledging a new era in diplomacy and an end to the U.S. combat role in Iraq.
"The stakes are very high for Obama," said Lee Hamilton, president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and a supporter of the Illinois Democrat.
"The stakes are very high for Obama," said Lee Hamilton, president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and a supporter of the Illinois Democrat.
On the surface it may appear rather unusual that the Wayne Pacelle, chief executive of the Humane Society of the United States, finds something to admire about the NRA... One group supports hunting animals for sport and the other protects animals from sport hunters.
As the L.A. Times recently reported, Head of the Humane Society Wayne Pacelle admires their "brute strength". After all there are many other gun rights groups but none with power of the NRA. Since Wayne Pacelle took the reigns of the Humane Society it's assets have nearly doubled to nearly $207 million. "Our movement needs an NRA-type organization to get the job done," Pacelle said. "There are lots of gun rights groups, but the one that you hear about and the one that is feared is the NRA." The Humane Society is now the largest and richest among hundreds of nonprofit animal advocacy membership organizations in the country. "Before Wayne took over, you never heard of anything that HSUS was doing that was proactive," said Jane Garrison, a longtime animal welfare activist from Redondo Beach. "Since Wayne has taken over, it's an extremely proactive group."
The NRA is an organization that is feared. Pacelle says, "I'd rather be loved - and feared." The Obama campaign, our party and our country need to be loved and not feared but respected. Bush has already wielded a big stick with Cheney playing the fear card...The past 8 years I've often heard the message you better love america, embrace our ways our fear our rath. And the Bush philosophy goes back to the days of imminent domain when the US sent settlers across the plains to settle once peaceful indian lands in a sea of blood. It seems the past often repeats itself...
What can the Obama campaign, our party and our country learn from all this? We must strike a balance between a proactive campaign of hope for all americans without laying down for those who would leave tire tracks across our backs. We must stand up and share a love for all and secure a place at the table once more in a world in pain without giving ground to the forces that would create turmoil for no reason other than "just to see the city burn", a line Alfred spoke in the recent Batman flick that echoes in my brain.
The Humane Society, has moved from a mild-mannered protector of dogs and cats into an aggressive group flexing it's muscle on behalf of all animals. We must decide how to walk the beam of balance as stalwart keepers of the flame, embracing our ideals while determining sensible action that will proactively bring truth and healing to the public arena. As we bring truths to the light disonant voices of the other side will be uncovered for what they are and this shall be there own undoing.
-Nick Danger
As the L.A. Times recently reported, Head of the Humane Society Wayne Pacelle admires their "brute strength". After all there are many other gun rights groups but none with power of the NRA. Since Wayne Pacelle took the reigns of the Humane Society it's assets have nearly doubled to nearly $207 million. "Our movement needs an NRA-type organization to get the job done," Pacelle said. "There are lots of gun rights groups, but the one that you hear about and the one that is feared is the NRA." The Humane Society is now the largest and richest among hundreds of nonprofit animal advocacy membership organizations in the country. "Before Wayne took over, you never heard of anything that HSUS was doing that was proactive," said Jane Garrison, a longtime animal welfare activist from Redondo Beach. "Since Wayne has taken over, it's an extremely proactive group."
The NRA is an organization that is feared. Pacelle says, "I'd rather be loved - and feared." The Obama campaign, our party and our country need to be loved and not feared but respected. Bush has already wielded a big stick with Cheney playing the fear card...The past 8 years I've often heard the message you better love america, embrace our ways our fear our rath. And the Bush philosophy goes back to the days of imminent domain when the US sent settlers across the plains to settle once peaceful indian lands in a sea of blood. It seems the past often repeats itself...
What can the Obama campaign, our party and our country learn from all this? We must strike a balance between a proactive campaign of hope for all americans without laying down for those who would leave tire tracks across our backs. We must stand up and share a love for all and secure a place at the table once more in a world in pain without giving ground to the forces that would create turmoil for no reason other than "just to see the city burn", a line Alfred spoke in the recent Batman flick that echoes in my brain.
The Humane Society, has moved from a mild-mannered protector of dogs and cats into an aggressive group flexing it's muscle on behalf of all animals. We must decide how to walk the beam of balance as stalwart keepers of the flame, embracing our ideals while determining sensible action that will proactively bring truth and healing to the public arena. As we bring truths to the light disonant voices of the other side will be uncovered for what they are and this shall be there own undoing.
-Nick Danger
You would expect Americans, in a period of falling home prices, a wobbly stock market and an ongoing war, to be less than satisfied with the direction of the country. It's natural. But Americans are not simply dissatisfied. They are very unhappy. O.K., deeply, pessimistically unhappy. Unâ€"American Dreamy unhappy: 85% of respondents in an exclusive TIME/Rockefeller Foundation poll believe that the country is on the wrong track.
The McCain campaign criticism of Sen.
Barack Obama's hearing record on Capitol Hill led us to put the shoe on the other foot.
It turns out that presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain has attended even fewer Afghanistan-
related Senate hearings over the past two years than Obama's one. Which is a nice way of saying, McCain, R-
Ariz., the top Republican on the Senate Armed Service Committee, has attended zero of his committee's six
hearings on Afghanistan over the last two years.
Meanwhile, Obama attended the full Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Afghanistan in March
2007, although he used the opportunity to ask Gen. James L. Jones, then the commander of NATO, about
Pakistan.
Barack Obama's hearing record on Capitol Hill led us to put the shoe on the other foot.
It turns out that presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain has attended even fewer Afghanistan-
related Senate hearings over the past two years than Obama's one. Which is a nice way of saying, McCain, R-
Ariz., the top Republican on the Senate Armed Service Committee, has attended zero of his committee's six
hearings on Afghanistan over the last two years.
Meanwhile, Obama attended the full Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Afghanistan in March
2007, although he used the opportunity to ask Gen. James L. Jones, then the commander of NATO, about
Pakistan.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called President Bush "a total failure" on Thursday, among the California Democrat's harshest assessments to date of the president.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says "I disapprove of Congress' performance in terms of ending the war."
"God bless him, bless his heart, president of the United States -- a total failure, losing all credibility with the American people on the economy, on the war, on energy, you name the subject
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says "I disapprove of Congress' performance in terms of ending the war."
"God bless him, bless his heart, president of the United States -- a total failure, losing all credibility with the American people on the economy, on the war, on energy, you name the subject
Former President Clinton said Thursday he is eager to campaign for Barack Obama whenever the Democrat needs him, but has not given any thought to whether he wants to speak at the party convention in Denver.
"I told him that whenever he wanted me to do it, I was ready, and so it's basically on their timetable," Clinton said. "He's got a lot of things to do between now and the convention, of which this is simply one, so I'll do whatever I'm asked to do, whenever I can do it."
"I told him that whenever he wanted me to do it, I was ready, and so it's basically on their timetable," Clinton said. "He's got a lot of things to do between now and the convention, of which this is simply one, so I'll do whatever I'm asked to do, whenever I can do it."
Yesterday I wrote only a few sentences on my Party Builder page blog located on the Democrats.org site. I'd been suffering from low energy and a long day... I didn't even post the entry on any group community blogs. Feeling smug that what I wrote was a clever double entendre to get folks to think about keeping our oceans blue while turning the halls of congress that very same hue...I never expected to receive a comment. Someone claiming to be an Independent replied which I first found rather interesting since I had been writing on the Democratic Party site, Party Builder. By the tone of the response my writings had either been misunderstood or possibly I was the victim of an attempted verbal mugging from someone on the other side. Either way the diatribe that followed really did spur new ideas into this cranium of mine. The writer went on about the surrender of our sovereignty as a nation to the UN topped off with something about America holding each individual nation hostage under it. The exact words are posted on my Party Builder page. This I found baffling as well.
The outcome was an affirmation of my faith that we are moving the blue machine forward and that we will elect Barack Obama as well as a Democratic Congress in November. And secondly an affirmation that the current administration has decidely scared this nation in the eyes of the world. Under the current administration, the American government has become arrogant and in some cases leaning toward the totalitarian regimes we so despise in it's decisions. It truly is time for a change. We must change for the course we are on will lead us down a road we need not travel. And regarding the UN, we actually need it more than it needs us,for an opportunity to silence the ramblings and cowboy justice we've spewn forth the last couple of years and to bring America back into the fold as a respected and carring nation as it had been known in years past. The time has come for "Change We Can Believe In".
The outcome was an affirmation of my faith that we are moving the blue machine forward and that we will elect Barack Obama as well as a Democratic Congress in November. And secondly an affirmation that the current administration has decidely scared this nation in the eyes of the world. Under the current administration, the American government has become arrogant and in some cases leaning toward the totalitarian regimes we so despise in it's decisions. It truly is time for a change. We must change for the course we are on will lead us down a road we need not travel. And regarding the UN, we actually need it more than it needs us,for an opportunity to silence the ramblings and cowboy justice we've spewn forth the last couple of years and to bring America back into the fold as a respected and carring nation as it had been known in years past. The time has come for "Change We Can Believe In".
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