If conservatives force Republicans to hold votes on unpopular measures—pure conjecture, but abolishing the EPA, say—a filibuster by the Democratic minority would allow Republicans to disguise divisions within their ranks. If a filibuster’s insurmountable, then reluctant Republicans can vote yes, secure in the knowledge that the bill’s not going anywhere, anyhow. Remove the filibuster and suddenly future Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has to get his vulnerable members and his hardliners on the same page, or the bill fails on account of Republicans.
But I don’t think that’s what future Minority Leader Harry Reid’s talking about here. His message is a tacit acknowledgement of structural difficulties that make it harder for Democrats than Republicans to be a united, rejectionist opposition party. Their coalition includes many moderates; isn’t overwhelmed by ideological liberals; is in hock to big business; and, unlike Republicans, is invested in the idea that government should function well.
That the Democratic Party’s favorables have just fallen below the Republican Party’s favorables for the first time since the last Republican midterm blowout (and really for the first time in about a decade) compounds the problem—Democrats don't want to become even more unfavorable, and they saw what obstruction did to the House GOP's approval numbers.
The pending vote on approving the Keystone XL pipeline illustrates how these phenomena combine. Keystone probably had the votes to overcome a filibuster all along, and will definitely have the votes to overcome a filibuster in January. It might even pass by a veto-proof margin then, which moots the White House’s opposition. If voting next week instead of January gives Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu even a small nudge in her runoff election (and I’m skeptical that it will) then Dems might as well bite the bullet now, rather than later.
But this only shows that when Democratic rank and file don’t benefit from Reid controlling the legislative agenda, they scurry for cover, lest they get caught opposing bad-but-popular ideas.
Republicans don’t face the same array of pressures, which made single-minded obstruction easy. As game theory, turning Mitch McConnell’s playbook back on the GOP is probably the right move. But if Harry Reid were to try, he’d run into people like Joe Manchin who are happy to say they won’t put up with his “bullshit.”
The Big Give Away To the Upper Crust 1%ers
The GOP is doing so well representing the wealthy the Democrats have decided to represent them too. So sad for the main street crowd, left out, represented by no major party and soon to be completely forgotten. The $1.01 trillion spending bill unveiled late Tuesday will keep most of the federal government funded through next September.
It is packed with hundreds of policy instructions, (riders), that will upset or excite Democrats, Republicans and various special interest groups.
Obama's buddy who helped lobby votes for the bill, after authoring the bill?
So, what's in the bill? It is highlighted below, enjoy. I wish I could print the names of the people who put the riders in the bill but they are hidden in the shadows. We do know that Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase, joined President Obama to call members and lobby for the passage of this bill. We know that lobbyist from CITI wrote sections of the bill. What we know is sad and highly unusual, what we may in the future learn will be shocking. The highlights of the bill follow.
ABORTION:
The bill once again bans using federal funding to perform most abortions; blocks the use of local and federal funding for abortions in the District of Columbia; and blocks the use of federal dollars for abortions for federal prisoners. Republicans say that there's also new language directing the secretary of health and human services to ensure that consumers shopping for health-care coverage on the federal exchange can tell whether a plan covers abortion services.
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT:
The law is still funded, but there's no new money for it. There's also no new ACA-related funding for the Internal Revenue Service and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the two agencies most responsible for implementing the law. The bill also would cut the budget of the Independent Payment Advisory Board -- what Republicans have called "the death panel" -- by $10 million.
AFGHANISTAN:
Congress withholds funding for the Afghan government "until certain conditions are met," including implementing the bilateral security agreement reached with the United States.
AMTRAK:
The nation's rail passenger service earns $1.39 billion, the same amount it currently receives. The rail service carries passengers through 46 states and hit an all-time high of 31.6 million passengers during the last fiscal year, according to Democratic aides.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE:
The bill would dramatically expand the amount of money that wealthy political donors could inject into the national parties, drastically undercutting the 2002 landmark McCain-Feingold campaign finance overhaul. Bottom line: A donor who gave the maximum $32,400 this year to the Democratic National Committee or Republican National
Committee would be able to donate another $291,600 on top of that to the party’s additional arms -- a total of $324,000, ten times the current limit. Who put this in the bill?
CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL:
The agency would get more than $6.9 billion, an increase of about $42.7 million. The nation's leading disease-fighters also get $30 million to help fight Ebola.
CLEAN WATER ACT:
In a win for Republicans, the spending bill blocks the Environmental Protection Agency from applying the law to certain farm ponds and irrigation ditches -- a move that GOP aides said would benefit farmers.
DODD-FRANK:
Democrats agreed to make some of the biggest changes yet to the 2010 financial regulatory reforms. In a deal sought by Republicans, the bill would reverse Dodd-Frank requirements that banks "push out" some of derivatives trading into separate entities not backed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporations. Ever since being enacted,
banks have been pushing to reverse the change. Now, the rules would go back to the way they used to be. But in exchange, Democrats say they secured more money for the enforcement budgets at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Dodd-Frank has been completely undone leaving tax payers to pay off the gambeling debts of the banks.
EBOLA:
Roughly $5.4 billion is provided across several agencies to combat the spread of the disease in the United States and around the world. The amount is less than the $6 billion Obama requested.
EGYPT:
The beleaguered country gets $1.3 billion in military aid and $150 million in economic aid -- but the money is subject to "democracy and human rights conditions," while the secretary of state can make exceptions for counterterrorism and border security operations.
EMBASSIES:
There's $5.4 billion for security at U.S. embassies worldwide, $46 million more than Obama requested. The total includes new money to implement recommendations from the Benghazi Accountability Review Board. The bill also once again bans any embassy construction money to be spent on the lavish new U.S. embassy in London.
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE:
One of the GOP's favorite targets will see its budget slashed by $345.6 million. The nation’s tax agency also would be banned from targeting organizations seeking tax-exempt status based on their ideological beliefs.
ISRAEL:
There's $3.1 billion in total aid for the country plus $619.8 million in defense aid.
JOE BIDEN:
The legislation once again enacts a pay freeze for the vice president "and senior political appointees."
LIBYA:
The troubled country cannot receive any U.S. aid until the secretary of state confirms the country is cooperating with ongoing investigations into the September 2012 attack at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
JORDAN:
The Arab kingdom would receive $1 billion in economic and military aid, in addition to U.S. humanitarian aid for millions of Syrian refugees.
LIGHT BULBS:
The bill once again prohibits new standards that would ban the use of cheaper, less energy efficient incandescent bulbs. The proposal was first introduced and set in motion by the Bush administration, but the Obama White House allowed the change to continue, despite sustained consumer demand for older bulbs. What kind of Congressional or Senate Jerks are this concerned with light bulbs and WHY? Let the market decide which light bulbs prevail.
MARIJUANA:
The District of Columbia will be prohibited from legalizing marijuana for the much of the coming year. The development -- upending a voter-approved initiative -- shocked elected D.C. leaders, advocates for marijuana legalization and civil liberties groups. The bill also would block the Justice Department from interfering with state-level medical marijuana measures and prohibits the Drug Enforcement Agency from interfering with industrial hemp production.
METRORAIL:
The D.C. region's subway and bus system would earn $150 million in federal dollars for continued improvements. That's part of $10.9 billion set to be doled out for transit programs nationwide, including the construction of new rail and rapid bus projects in California, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, North Carolina and Texas. But Republicans stress that the bill has no new federal funding for high-speed rail projects, especially the ambitious Los Angeles-to-San Francisco routes envisioned by California Democrats.
MILITARY PAY AND PERKS:
Military service members will receive a 1 percent pay increase next year. But there's a pay freeze for generals and flag officers. The bill also ends a five percent discount on tobacco and tobacco-related products sold at military exchanges.
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY:
The agreement includes $24 million to complete the federal government's contribution to the new museum being built on the Mall. The rest of the money will be raised through private donations.
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH:
The nation's premier medical research agency would receive $30.3 billion, a $150 million overall increase. Democrats noted that the new funding helps especially for ongoing Alzheimer's and brain research programs.
OFFICIAL PORTRAITS:
You're a government official and want an official portrait? You'll have to pay for it (or raise the funds). The bill bans taxpayer funding for official portraits of any Executive Branch employees, lawmakers and heads of legislative agencies.
OVERSEAS MILITARY OPERATIONS:
There's $1.3 billion for a new Counterterrorism Partnership Fund; $5 billion for military operations to combat the Islamic State, including $1.6 billion to train Iraqi and Kurdish forces; $500 million for a Pentagon-led program to train and equip vetted Syrian opposition fighters; $810 million for ongoing military operations in Europe, including requirements that at least $175 million is spent in support of Ukraine and Baltic nations.
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY:
The bill stops assistance to the Palestinian Authority if it becomes a member of the United Nations or UN agencies without an agreement with Israel. It also prohibits funds for Hamas.
PENSIONS:
For the first time, the benefits of current retirees could be severely cut, part of an effort to save some of the nation’s most distressed pension plans. The change would alter 40 years of federal law and could affect millions of workers, many of them part of a shrinking corps of middle-income employees in businesses such as trucking, construction and supermarkets.
U.S. POSTAL SERVICE:
You like your mail on Saturdays? You'll keep your mail on Saturdays. The bill requires the mail service to continue six-day deliveries, despite a years-long attempt to cut back on service to save money.
POTATOES:
White potatoes, to be exact. The Women, Infants and Children program that provides food aid to low-income families would receive $6.6 billion, a $93 million cut from the last fiscal year. But the program will be required to ensure that "all varieties of fresh vegetables, including white potatoes, are eligible for purchase" through the
program, said Republicans. The change is a big victory for the potato lobby, which has long fought to be part of the food assistance program.
RACE TO THE TOP:
The bill cuts funding for Obama's signature education initiative -- a big blow to his education legacy, according to The Post's Valerie Strauss. Overall, the Education Department would take a slight hit in funding; at $70.5 billion, down $133 million below the fiscal year 2014, but special education grants to states would get $25 million
more than last year, up to $11.5 billion. There is also no funding for the controversial Common Core State Standards in this legislation.
RAILROADS:
Among other things, there's $3 million to expand inspections along the roughly 14,000 miles of track used by trains hauling oil tankers.
SAGE-GROUSE:
In a victory for the GOP, the bill would ban the Fish and Wildlife Service from adding the rare bird found in several Western states to the Endangered Species List.
Republicans argue that adding the bird to the list "would have severe economic consequences on Western states and the nation’s efforts to become energy independent." But there's also $15 million for the Bureau of Land Management to conserve sage-grouse habitats.
SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM:
The school lunch nutritional changes sought by First Lady Michelle Obama take a hit. The bill allows more flexibility to school districts to implement new whole grain nutrition standards "if the school can demonstrate a hardship" when buying whole grain products, according to Republicans. The bill also relaxes new sodium standards until they are "supported by additional scientific studies."
SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE MILITARY:
There's $257 million for the Pentagon's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response programs, including $25 million more to expand the Sexual Assault Victims’ Counsel program.
But Democrats, led by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), are expected to make a final push to expand the program this week.
TRUCKING:
In a victory for the trucking industry, the bill blocks new Transportation Department regulations requiring truckers to get two nights of sleep before starting a new work week. The regulation slashed a typical trucker's work week to 70 hours, down from 82 hours.
UNITED NATIONS:
The perennial ban on providing money for the ongoing renovation of U.N. Headquarters in New York remains intact.
U.S. CAPITOL (AND RELATED AGENCIES):
There's $21 million to continue restoring the cast-iron Capitol Dome. And $348 million for the U.S. Capitol Police (a force with 1,775 officers). Lawmakers also plan to save $10,000 by allowing the congressional Office of Compliance to email congressional staffers about their employment rights. Old rules required the office to send such
notices by snail mail. Finally, for the first time the agency formerly known as the Government Printing Office is now officially known as the Government Publishing Office.
VETERANS:
After a year of embarrassing scandals at the sprawling Department of Veterans Affairs, lawmakers are making good on promises to provide more money and oversight. There's a total of $159.1 billion in discretionary and mandatory spending. Of that, $209 million was added to address new costs related to the bipartisan veterans' reform bill passed last summer. The legislation calls for adding medical staff and expanding dozens of facilities. In order to specifically addressing the "wait list" scandal, the VA's inspector general is getting a $5 million budget increase to continue investigating lapses in patient care.
WHISTLEBLOWERS:
The bill includes language ensuring that government contractors are not barred from reporting allegations of waste, fraud or abuse if they sign a confidentiality agreement. And the Occupational Safety and Health Administration would receive a $500,000 increase for its enforcement of existing whistleblower laws.
WHITE HOUSE BUDGET:
There's $222 million for executive mansion operations, a $10 million increase. The money pays for the National Security and Homeland Security councils, the Council of Economic Advisers, the vice president's office and the executive residence. The bill doesn't provide any new funding "to address security weaknesses at the White House complex," according to Democrats. But the U.S. Secret Service would be allowed to use some of its funding "to prepare and train for the next presidential election campaign," Democrats said.
WOLVES:
Well, only if you're attacked. There's $1 million in the bill "to compensate ranchers for livestock killed by wolves."
YUCCA MOUNTAIN:
There's no new money for the site, but current money for it must be spent pursuant to a recent court decision. Republicans say that the bill continues to leave open the possibility that the site could be used someday to store nuclear waste -- but that won't happen as long as Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) is around.
ACVDN Certified HERO
Senator Elizabeth Warren
During remarks on the Senate floor, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) encouraged a Democratic rebellion while ripping and shredding Wall Street and House Republicans for trying to weaken financial protections will giving Big Banks a huge gift in the government funding bill.
"I come to the floor today to ask a fundamental question. Who does Congress work for? Does it work for the millionaires, the billionaires, the giant companies with their
armies of lobbyists and lawyers, or does it work for all the people?
People are frustrated with Congress and part of the reason, of course, is gridlock, but mostly it’s because they see a Congress that works just fine for the big guys, but it won’t lift a finger to help them.
…
Now, the House of Representatives is about to show us the worst of government for the rich and powerful. The House is about to vote on a budget deal. A deal negotiated behind closed doors that slips in a provision that would let derivatives traders on Wall Street gamble with taxpayer money and get bailed out by the government when their risky bets threaten to blow up our financial system. These are the same banks that nearly broke the economy in 2008 and destroyed millions of jobs.
….
And now, no debate and no discussion, Republicans in the House of Representatives are threatening to shut down the government if they don’t get a chance to repeal it. That
raises a simple question. Why? If this rule brings more stability to our financial system. If this rule helps prevent future government bailouts. Why in the world would anyone want to repeal it? Let alone hold the entire government hostage to ram through this appeal. The reason unfortunately is simple. It’s about money, and it’s about power. Because while this legal change could pose serious risks to our entire economy, it will also make a lot of money for a handful of our biggest banks.
….
Now, I know that House and Senate negotiators from both parties have worked long and hard to come to an agreement on the omnibus spending legislation, and Senate leaders deserve great for preventing House leaders from carrying out some of their more aggressive fantasies about dismantling even more pieces of financial reform, but this
provision goes too far. Citigroup is large and it is powerful, but it is a single private company. It shouldn’t get to hold the entire government hostage, to threaten a
government shutdown, in order to rollback important protections that keep our economy safe.
This is a democracy and the American people didn’t elect us to stand up for Citigroup. They elected us to stand up for all the people.
I urge my colleagues in the House, particularly my Democratic colleagues, whose votes are essential for moving this package forward to withhold support from it until this risky giveaway is removed from this legislation. We all need to stand and fight this giveaway to the most powerful banks in this nation.
Warren also explained during her remarks that the provision in the legislation was written by Citicorp lobbyists. Democrats and Republicans are divided within their own
parties on this bill. The left is in full rebellion over this provision, and if enough Democrats withhold their support, the bill won’t pass the House.
It is estimated that 50-60 House Republicans will vote against the bill because they are displeased with the lack of action over Obama’s immigration executive orders.
Boehner needs House Democrats in order to pass this bill. If he doesn’t get the Democrats, the bill will die.
Democrats must keep the pressure on. Boehner will drop the provision from the bill because he will do almost anything to avoid a government shutdown. Sen. Warren was
correct. If they keep the heat on, they can prevail. The first fight is in the House. A victory by Warren and the other congressional liberals would be the biggest sign yet that the left is going to be a force in the next Congress.
ACVDN Certified Nut Job
Michelle Bachmann is bat shit crazy and so are the people who elected her.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) is retiring from Congress at the end of this year, and she wants to go out with a bang. A very specific kind of bang, in fact: the type you get when you drop a U.S. bomb on an Iranian nuclear facility, which experts believe could upend months of delicate negotiations and spark even more conflict in the Middle East.
Mr. President you need to bomb those MFers.
At the White House holiday party for members of Congress on Monday, Bachmann had her final interaction with President Barack Obama as a member of Congress. She used the opportunity to tell the president he must bomb nuclear facilities in Iran. The Iranian government claims the country's nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but the international community worries that the country is attempting to build a nuclear weapon.
Bachmann told the Washington Free Beacon, a conservative online newspaper, all about the exchange for an interview the Beacon published Thursday afternoon:
"I turned to the president and I said, something to the effect of, ‘Mr. President, you need to bomb the Iranian nuclear facilities, because if you don’t, Iran will have a nuclear weapon on your watch and the course of world history will change,'" Bachmann said in the interview.
"And he got his condescending smile on his face and laughed at me and said, ‘Well, Michele, it’s just not that easy,’" she continued. "And I said to him, ‘No, Mr. President, you’re the president, it will happen on your watch, and you’ll have to answer to the world for this.’ And that was it and then I left. Merry Christmas."
Bachmann told the Beacon she had heard from experts that the U.S. could destroy Iran's nuclear facilities in six to eight weeks.
The U.S. and five other countries -- Germany, France, the U.K., Russia and China -- are presently in negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that the negotiations -- which have now been extended beyond previously set deadlines twice -- seem likely to produce an agreement by February or March.
Such a deal would be a key foreign policy success for a beleaguered Obama. Yet congressional opponents of the nuclear diplomacy process have said they worry that Obama's team will concede too much in the deal by allowing Iran to retain a dangerous capacity to build a bomb. Critics have proposed bolstering U.S. pressure on Iran by imposing new sanctions, which Obama administration diplomats say could destroy the talks.
Bachmann's suggestion of military action against Iran isn't an option many prominent commentators have raised in recent months. Still, she is not alone in making her recommendation: Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.), who serves with Bachmann on the House Intelligence Committee, promoted the same action at a roundtable with reporters on Dec. 3.
Bachmann told the Beacon that her other concerns about the Obama administration's foreign policy include cuts to the military budget, the release of prisoners from Guantanamo Bay, and, perhaps most controversially, the end of the CIA torture program. A report on the program released this week by the Senate Intelligence Committee found that the CIA's use of torture was harsher and more pervasive than the spy agency had previously reported.
The departing congresswoman also told the Beacon about her future plans. Bachmann's comments should put to rest any worries her fans might have that she won't be around to offer uplifting holiday messages in the years to come:
Bachmann now plans to travel across the country, giving speeches and writing op-eds ahead of what she called a “consequential” election in 2016. Presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton will simply continue Obama’s widely criticized domestic and foreign policies, Bachmann said. Republicans for their part need to ensure that they do not nominate a candidate who is “changing their stripes just for an election.”
“If we get a very bold conservative who has a strong identification of where they want to take the country, both economically and in terms of national security, we do have a chance to have a major course correction for America in the future," she said.
And then Bachmann winked, dropped her crack pipe and rode off in the sunset toward Minnesota. And to all a good night.
Amherst County Virginia Democratic News
ACVDN
Amherst Democratic News
The GOP is doing so well representing the wealthy the Democrats have decided to represent them too. So sad for the main street crowd, left out, represented by no major party and soon to be completely forgotten. The $1.01 trillion spending bill unveiled late Tuesday will keep most of the federal government funded through next September.
It is packed with hundreds of policy instructions, (riders), that will upset or excite Democrats, Republicans and various special interest groups.
So, what's in the bill? It is highlighted below, enjoy. I wish I could print the names of the people who put the riders in the bill but they are hidden in the shadows. We do know that Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase, joined President Obama to call members and lobby for the passage of this bill. We know that lobbyist from CITI wrote sections of the bill. What we know is sad and highly unusual, what we may in the future learn will be shocking. The highlights of the bill follow.
ABORTION:
The bill once again bans using federal funding to perform most abortions; blocks the use of local and federal funding for abortions in the District of Columbia; and blocks the use of federal dollars for abortions for federal prisoners. Republicans say that there's also new language directing the secretary of health and human services to ensure that consumers shopping for health-care coverage on the federal exchange can tell whether a plan covers abortion services.
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT:
The law is still funded, but there's no new money for it. There's also no new ACA-related funding for the Internal Revenue Service and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the two agencies most responsible for implementing the law. The bill also would cut the budget of the Independent Payment Advisory Board -- what Republicans have called "the death panel" -- by $10 million.
AFGHANISTAN:
Congress withholds funding for the Afghan government "until certain conditions are met," including implementing the bilateral security agreement reached with the United States.
AMTRAK:
The nation's rail passenger service earns $1.39 billion, the same amount it currently receives. The rail service carries passengers through 46 states and hit an all-time high of 31.6 million passengers during the last fiscal year, according to Democratic aides.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE:
The bill would dramatically expand the amount of money that wealthy political donors could inject into the national parties, drastically undercutting the 2002 landmark McCain-Feingold campaign finance overhaul. Bottom line: A donor who gave the maximum $32,400 this year to the Democratic National Committee or Republican National
Committee would be able to donate another $291,600 on top of that to the party’s additional arms -- a total of $324,000, ten times the current limit. Who put this in the bill?
CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL:
The agency would get more than $6.9 billion, an increase of about $42.7 million. The nation's leading disease-fighters also get $30 million to help fight Ebola.
CLEAN WATER ACT:
In a win for Republicans, the spending bill blocks the Environmental Protection Agency from applying the law to certain farm ponds and irrigation ditches -- a move that GOP aides said would benefit farmers.
DODD-FRANK:
Democrats agreed to make some of the biggest changes yet to the 2010 financial regulatory reforms. In a deal sought by Republicans, the bill would reverse Dodd-Frank requirements that banks "push out" some of derivatives trading into separate entities not backed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporations. Ever since being enacted,
banks have been pushing to reverse the change. Now, the rules would go back to the way they used to be. But in exchange, Democrats say they secured more money for the enforcement budgets at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Dodd-Frank has been completely undone leaving tax payers to pay off the gambeling debts of the banks.
EBOLA:
Roughly $5.4 billion is provided across several agencies to combat the spread of the disease in the United States and around the world. The amount is less than the $6 billion Obama requested.
EGYPT:
The beleaguered country gets $1.3 billion in military aid and $150 million in economic aid -- but the money is subject to "democracy and human rights conditions," while the secretary of state can make exceptions for counterterrorism and border security operations.
EMBASSIES:
There's $5.4 billion for security at U.S. embassies worldwide, $46 million more than Obama requested. The total includes new money to implement recommendations from the Benghazi Accountability Review Board. The bill also once again bans any embassy construction money to be spent on the lavish new U.S. embassy in London.
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE:
One of the GOP's favorite targets will see its budget slashed by $345.6 million. The nation’s tax agency also would be banned from targeting organizations seeking tax-exempt status based on their ideological beliefs.
ISRAEL:
There's $3.1 billion in total aid for the country plus $619.8 million in defense aid.
JOE BIDEN:
The legislation once again enacts a pay freeze for the vice president "and senior political appointees."
LIBYA:
The troubled country cannot receive any U.S. aid until the secretary of state confirms the country is cooperating with ongoing investigations into the September 2012 attack at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
JORDAN:
The Arab kingdom would receive $1 billion in economic and military aid, in addition to U.S. humanitarian aid for millions of Syrian refugees.
LIGHT BULBS:
The bill once again prohibits new standards that would ban the use of cheaper, less energy efficient incandescent bulbs. The proposal was first introduced and set in motion by the Bush administration, but the Obama White House allowed the change to continue, despite sustained consumer demand for older bulbs. What kind of Congressional or Senate Jerks are this concerned with light bulbs and WHY? Let the market decide which light bulbs prevail.
MARIJUANA:
The District of Columbia will be prohibited from legalizing marijuana for the much of the coming year. The development -- upending a voter-approved initiative -- shocked elected D.C. leaders, advocates for marijuana legalization and civil liberties groups. The bill also would block the Justice Department from interfering with state-level medical marijuana measures and prohibits the Drug Enforcement Agency from interfering with industrial hemp production.
METRORAIL:
The D.C. region's subway and bus system would earn $150 million in federal dollars for continued improvements. That's part of $10.9 billion set to be doled out for transit programs nationwide, including the construction of new rail and rapid bus projects in California, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, North Carolina and Texas. But Republicans stress that the bill has no new federal funding for high-speed rail projects, especially the ambitious Los Angeles-to-San Francisco routes envisioned by California Democrats.
MILITARY PAY AND PERKS:
Military service members will receive a 1 percent pay increase next year. But there's a pay freeze for generals and flag officers. The bill also ends a five percent discount on tobacco and tobacco-related products sold at military exchanges.
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY:
The agreement includes $24 million to complete the federal government's contribution to the new museum being built on the Mall. The rest of the money will be raised through private donations.
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH:
The nation's premier medical research agency would receive $30.3 billion, a $150 million overall increase. Democrats noted that the new funding helps especially for ongoing Alzheimer's and brain research programs.
OFFICIAL PORTRAITS:
You're a government official and want an official portrait? You'll have to pay for it (or raise the funds). The bill bans taxpayer funding for official portraits of any Executive Branch employees, lawmakers and heads of legislative agencies.
OVERSEAS MILITARY OPERATIONS:
There's $1.3 billion for a new Counterterrorism Partnership Fund; $5 billion for military operations to combat the Islamic State, including $1.6 billion to train Iraqi and Kurdish forces; $500 million for a Pentagon-led program to train and equip vetted Syrian opposition fighters; $810 million for ongoing military operations in Europe, including requirements that at least $175 million is spent in support of Ukraine and Baltic nations.
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY:
The bill stops assistance to the Palestinian Authority if it becomes a member of the United Nations or UN agencies without an agreement with Israel. It also prohibits funds for Hamas.
PENSIONS:
For the first time, the benefits of current retirees could be severely cut, part of an effort to save some of the nation’s most distressed pension plans. The change would alter 40 years of federal law and could affect millions of workers, many of them part of a shrinking corps of middle-income employees in businesses such as trucking, construction and supermarkets.
U.S. POSTAL SERVICE:
You like your mail on Saturdays? You'll keep your mail on Saturdays. The bill requires the mail service to continue six-day deliveries, despite a years-long attempt to cut back on service to save money.
POTATOES:
White potatoes, to be exact. The Women, Infants and Children program that provides food aid to low-income families would receive $6.6 billion, a $93 million cut from the last fiscal year. But the program will be required to ensure that "all varieties of fresh vegetables, including white potatoes, are eligible for purchase" through the
program, said Republicans. The change is a big victory for the potato lobby, which has long fought to be part of the food assistance program.
RACE TO THE TOP:
The bill cuts funding for Obama's signature education initiative -- a big blow to his education legacy, according to The Post's Valerie Strauss. Overall, the Education Department would take a slight hit in funding; at $70.5 billion, down $133 million below the fiscal year 2014, but special education grants to states would get $25 million
more than last year, up to $11.5 billion. There is also no funding for the controversial Common Core State Standards in this legislation.
RAILROADS:
Among other things, there's $3 million to expand inspections along the roughly 14,000 miles of track used by trains hauling oil tankers.
SAGE-GROUSE:
In a victory for the GOP, the bill would ban the Fish and Wildlife Service from adding the rare bird found in several Western states to the Endangered Species List.
Republicans argue that adding the bird to the list "would have severe economic consequences on Western states and the nation’s efforts to become energy independent." But there's also $15 million for the Bureau of Land Management to conserve sage-grouse habitats.
SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM:
The school lunch nutritional changes sought by First Lady Michelle Obama take a hit. The bill allows more flexibility to school districts to implement new whole grain nutrition standards "if the school can demonstrate a hardship" when buying whole grain products, according to Republicans. The bill also relaxes new sodium standards until they are "supported by additional scientific studies."
SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE MILITARY:
There's $257 million for the Pentagon's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response programs, including $25 million more to expand the Sexual Assault Victims’ Counsel program.
But Democrats, led by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), are expected to make a final push to expand the program this week.
TRUCKING:
In a victory for the trucking industry, the bill blocks new Transportation Department regulations requiring truckers to get two nights of sleep before starting a new work week. The regulation slashed a typical trucker's work week to 70 hours, down from 82 hours.
UNITED NATIONS:
The perennial ban on providing money for the ongoing renovation of U.N. Headquarters in New York remains intact.
U.S. CAPITOL (AND RELATED AGENCIES):
There's $21 million to continue restoring the cast-iron Capitol Dome. And $348 million for the U.S. Capitol Police (a force with 1,775 officers). Lawmakers also plan to save $10,000 by allowing the congressional Office of Compliance to email congressional staffers about their employment rights. Old rules required the office to send such
notices by snail mail. Finally, for the first time the agency formerly known as the Government Printing Office is now officially known as the Government Publishing Office.
VETERANS:
After a year of embarrassing scandals at the sprawling Department of Veterans Affairs, lawmakers are making good on promises to provide more money and oversight. There's a total of $159.1 billion in discretionary and mandatory spending. Of that, $209 million was added to address new costs related to the bipartisan veterans' reform bill passed last summer. The legislation calls for adding medical staff and expanding dozens of facilities. In order to specifically addressing the "wait list" scandal, the VA's inspector general is getting a $5 million budget increase to continue investigating lapses in patient care.
WHISTLEBLOWERS:
The bill includes language ensuring that government contractors are not barred from reporting allegations of waste, fraud or abuse if they sign a confidentiality agreement. And the Occupational Safety and Health Administration would receive a $500,000 increase for its enforcement of existing whistleblower laws.
WHITE HOUSE BUDGET:
There's $222 million for executive mansion operations, a $10 million increase. The money pays for the National Security and Homeland Security councils, the Council of Economic Advisers, the vice president's office and the executive residence. The bill doesn't provide any new funding "to address security weaknesses at the White House complex," according to Democrats. But the U.S. Secret Service would be allowed to use some of its funding "to prepare and train for the next presidential election campaign," Democrats said.
WOLVES:
Well, only if you're attacked. There's $1 million in the bill "to compensate ranchers for livestock killed by wolves."
YUCCA MOUNTAIN:
There's no new money for the site, but current money for it must be spent pursuant to a recent court decision. Republicans say that the bill continues to leave open the possibility that the site could be used someday to store nuclear waste -- but that won't happen as long as Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) is around.
ACVDN Certified HERO
During remarks on the Senate floor, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) encouraged a Democratic rebellion while ripping and shredding Wall Street and House Republicans for trying to weaken financial protections will giving Big Banks a huge gift in the government funding bill.
"I come to the floor today to ask a fundamental question. Who does Congress work for? Does it work for the millionaires, the billionaires, the giant companies with their
armies of lobbyists and lawyers, or does it work for all the people?
People are frustrated with Congress and part of the reason, of course, is gridlock, but mostly it’s because they see a Congress that works just fine for the big guys, but it won’t lift a finger to help them.
…
Now, the House of Representatives is about to show us the worst of government for the rich and powerful. The House is about to vote on a budget deal. A deal negotiated behind closed doors that slips in a provision that would let derivatives traders on Wall Street gamble with taxpayer money and get bailed out by the government when their risky bets threaten to blow up our financial system. These are the same banks that nearly broke the economy in 2008 and destroyed millions of jobs.
….
And now, no debate and no discussion, Republicans in the House of Representatives are threatening to shut down the government if they don’t get a chance to repeal it. That
raises a simple question. Why? If this rule brings more stability to our financial system. If this rule helps prevent future government bailouts. Why in the world would anyone want to repeal it? Let alone hold the entire government hostage to ram through this appeal. The reason unfortunately is simple. It’s about money, and it’s about power. Because while this legal change could pose serious risks to our entire economy, it will also make a lot of money for a handful of our biggest banks.
….
Now, I know that House and Senate negotiators from both parties have worked long and hard to come to an agreement on the omnibus spending legislation, and Senate leaders deserve great for preventing House leaders from carrying out some of their more aggressive fantasies about dismantling even more pieces of financial reform, but this
provision goes too far. Citigroup is large and it is powerful, but it is a single private company. It shouldn’t get to hold the entire government hostage, to threaten a
government shutdown, in order to rollback important protections that keep our economy safe.
This is a democracy and the American people didn’t elect us to stand up for Citigroup. They elected us to stand up for all the people.
I urge my colleagues in the House, particularly my Democratic colleagues, whose votes are essential for moving this package forward to withhold support from it until this risky giveaway is removed from this legislation. We all need to stand and fight this giveaway to the most powerful banks in this nation.
Warren also explained during her remarks that the provision in the legislation was written by Citicorp lobbyists. Democrats and Republicans are divided within their own
parties on this bill. The left is in full rebellion over this provision, and if enough Democrats withhold their support, the bill won’t pass the House.
It is estimated that 50-60 House Republicans will vote against the bill because they are displeased with the lack of action over Obama’s immigration executive orders.
Boehner needs House Democrats in order to pass this bill. If he doesn’t get the Democrats, the bill will die.
Democrats must keep the pressure on. Boehner will drop the provision from the bill because he will do almost anything to avoid a government shutdown. Sen. Warren was
correct. If they keep the heat on, they can prevail. The first fight is in the House. A victory by Warren and the other congressional liberals would be the biggest sign yet that the left is going to be a force in the next Congress.
ACVDN Certified Nut Job
Michelle Bachmann is bat shit crazy and so are the people who elected her.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) is retiring from Congress at the end of this year, and she wants to go out with a bang. A very specific kind of bang, in fact: the type you get when you drop a U.S. bomb on an Iranian nuclear facility, which experts believe could upend months of delicate negotiations and spark even more conflict in the Middle East.
At the White House holiday party for members of Congress on Monday, Bachmann had her final interaction with President Barack Obama as a member of Congress. She used the opportunity to tell the president he must bomb nuclear facilities in Iran. The Iranian government claims the country's nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but the international community worries that the country is attempting to build a nuclear weapon.
Bachmann told the Washington Free Beacon, a conservative online newspaper, all about the exchange for an interview the Beacon published Thursday afternoon:
"I turned to the president and I said, something to the effect of, ‘Mr. President, you need to bomb the Iranian nuclear facilities, because if you don’t, Iran will have a nuclear weapon on your watch and the course of world history will change,'" Bachmann said in the interview.
"And he got his condescending smile on his face and laughed at me and said, ‘Well, Michele, it’s just not that easy,’" she continued. "And I said to him, ‘No, Mr. President, you’re the president, it will happen on your watch, and you’ll have to answer to the world for this.’ And that was it and then I left. Merry Christmas."
Bachmann told the Beacon she had heard from experts that the U.S. could destroy Iran's nuclear facilities in six to eight weeks.
The U.S. and five other countries -- Germany, France, the U.K., Russia and China -- are presently in negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that the negotiations -- which have now been extended beyond previously set deadlines twice -- seem likely to produce an agreement by February or March.
Such a deal would be a key foreign policy success for a beleaguered Obama. Yet congressional opponents of the nuclear diplomacy process have said they worry that Obama's team will concede too much in the deal by allowing Iran to retain a dangerous capacity to build a bomb. Critics have proposed bolstering U.S. pressure on Iran by imposing new sanctions, which Obama administration diplomats say could destroy the talks.
Bachmann's suggestion of military action against Iran isn't an option many prominent commentators have raised in recent months. Still, she is not alone in making her recommendation: Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.), who serves with Bachmann on the House Intelligence Committee, promoted the same action at a roundtable with reporters on Dec. 3.
Bachmann told the Beacon that her other concerns about the Obama administration's foreign policy include cuts to the military budget, the release of prisoners from Guantanamo Bay, and, perhaps most controversially, the end of the CIA torture program. A report on the program released this week by the Senate Intelligence Committee found that the CIA's use of torture was harsher and more pervasive than the spy agency had previously reported.
The departing congresswoman also told the Beacon about her future plans. Bachmann's comments should put to rest any worries her fans might have that she won't be around to offer uplifting holiday messages in the years to come:
Bachmann now plans to travel across the country, giving speeches and writing op-eds ahead of what she called a “consequential” election in 2016. Presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton will simply continue Obama’s widely criticized domestic and foreign policies, Bachmann said. Republicans for their part need to ensure that they do not nominate a candidate who is “changing their stripes just for an election.”
“If we get a very bold conservative who has a strong identification of where they want to take the country, both economically and in terms of national security, we do have a chance to have a major course correction for America in the future," she said.
And then Bachmann winked, dropped her crack pipe and rode off in the sunset toward Minnesota. And to all a good night.
Amherst County Virginia Democratic News
ACVDN
Amherst Democratic News
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