From today's Huffington Post:
"Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) seems to be a big fan of constitutional history, even if his own legislative history hasn't always lived up to that document.But an appearance on "The Last Word" with Lawrence O'Donnell may have shown that such dedication was lacking in the past. On Tuesday, Goodlatte came on the program to discuss his symbolic reading, and also played up the fact that the "we have, as a part of our new rules of the House, a requirement that all bills introduced in the Congress state the basis in the Constitution -- the section of the Constitution -- upon which that introducer of the bill relies in introducing it."
O'Donnell asked Goodlatte for the current Supreme Court justice who "most reflects" his own reading of the Constitution. After Goodlatte heaped praise on Antonin Scalia and indicated that legislation should stick within the framework of the Constitution, O'Donnell pointed out that Scalia had been part of a 7-2 majority that rulled Goodlatte's own internet censorship bill unconstitutional.
The congressman told O'Donnell that he has not looked into the constitutionality of the minimum wage, despite voting to increase it.
The host pressed, "You voted for an increase in something that you don't even know has constitutional authority to exist?"
"That's correct," Goodlatte admitted."
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Other than those things, we're just thrilled though
When the Obama insiders seem confused as to why we on the Left are so upset with him, maybe no example is easier to show why than this simple display of, well, pussy-ness:
"The Obama administration, reversing course, will revise a Medicare regulation to delete references to end-of-life planning as part of the annual physical examinations covered under the new health care law, administration officials said Tuesday."
Hard to find many examples where the expression "Grow a pair, willya?!" is more appropriate, unless maybe it was tax cuts for the rich...or a public option...or carbon taxes...or getting the hell out of Afghanistan...or...
"The Obama administration, reversing course, will revise a Medicare regulation to delete references to end-of-life planning as part of the annual physical examinations covered under the new health care law, administration officials said Tuesday."
Hard to find many examples where the expression "Grow a pair, willya?!" is more appropriate, unless maybe it was tax cuts for the rich...or a public option...or carbon taxes...or getting the hell out of Afghanistan...or...
And that's the way it's going to be from now on - no exceptions! Well, except this one time.
News Item from the NYT today:
Representative John A. Boehner, who on Wednesday will be sworn in as the new speaker, has made serious alterations in the rules. Members will vote on Wednesday on changes that ostensibly increase the transparency of lawmaking, but also consolidate Republican power over the budget process.
Mr. Boehner seeks to do away with large omnibus spending bills, preferring to break them into smaller bills, and to allow for more amendments on bills generally, and more extensive debate.
Members offering bills for new programs will have to explain how they will pay for them, not by raising new revenues but by finding other ways to cut costs. Each bill introduced will also have to cite the specific constitutional authority for its contents.
For the first time under the House rules, all bills will be required to be placed online. Committees will post their rules and their votes, as well as information about testifying witnesses in an effort to make public any conflicts of interest.
In an unusual grab of budgetary power, the incoming chairman of the House Budget Committee will be able to unilaterally set limits for categories of domestic spending until a budget resolution is passed this spring, as a budget enforcement measure.
Some of Mr. Boehner’s more notable proposals concern the transparency and speed with which bills are going to be considered. The Republicans are committed to making all legislation available to lawmakers, and the public, at least three days before a House vote; in large part, this is a response to the late-night revisions made to the energy bill, among others, that was decried by Republicans.
Before bills are marked up — a sacred practice that allows lawmakers to change the content of bills — three days’ notice must be given, also to stave off dark-of-night revisions.
Requiring bills to be placed online is “very, very unusual and groundbreaking,” said Muftiah McCartin, a former staff director of the House Committee on Rules.
Republicans have also pledged to have an open rule on all spending bills, which means that members of both parties will be able to offer more amendments and have more debate, which in theory would lead to more scrutiny for each government agency seeking financing.
Let the record show that I strongly agree with all these ideas. And I hope they stick to them. Nancy Pelosi said she was going to do many of the same things, but not right away, when she became Speaker. But then she told us that there were some things she wanted to get done right away before she made substantive changes. But John Boehner is going to be different.
Or is he? Read on:
A big exception will be the bill to repeal the health care law that House Republicans plan to bring up next week. That bill will not be subject to amendments, nor will Republicans have to abide by their own new rules that compel them to offset the cost of new bills that add to the deficit; the health care repeal and tax cuts are not subject to this new rule.
Representative Peter Welch, Democrat of Vermont, had hoped to propose an amendment to the health care repeal legislation to provide for an up-or-down vote on several major components of the law. The components include elimination of lifetime limits on care, coverage of individuals up to age 26 on their parents’ health care plans, the banning of discrimination against those with pre-existing conditions and free preventive care for older Americans.
Democrats are displeased.
As should everyone else be.
Representative John A. Boehner, who on Wednesday will be sworn in as the new speaker, has made serious alterations in the rules. Members will vote on Wednesday on changes that ostensibly increase the transparency of lawmaking, but also consolidate Republican power over the budget process.
Mr. Boehner seeks to do away with large omnibus spending bills, preferring to break them into smaller bills, and to allow for more amendments on bills generally, and more extensive debate.
Members offering bills for new programs will have to explain how they will pay for them, not by raising new revenues but by finding other ways to cut costs. Each bill introduced will also have to cite the specific constitutional authority for its contents.
For the first time under the House rules, all bills will be required to be placed online. Committees will post their rules and their votes, as well as information about testifying witnesses in an effort to make public any conflicts of interest.
In an unusual grab of budgetary power, the incoming chairman of the House Budget Committee will be able to unilaterally set limits for categories of domestic spending until a budget resolution is passed this spring, as a budget enforcement measure.
Some of Mr. Boehner’s more notable proposals concern the transparency and speed with which bills are going to be considered. The Republicans are committed to making all legislation available to lawmakers, and the public, at least three days before a House vote; in large part, this is a response to the late-night revisions made to the energy bill, among others, that was decried by Republicans.
Before bills are marked up — a sacred practice that allows lawmakers to change the content of bills — three days’ notice must be given, also to stave off dark-of-night revisions.
Requiring bills to be placed online is “very, very unusual and groundbreaking,” said Muftiah McCartin, a former staff director of the House Committee on Rules.
Republicans have also pledged to have an open rule on all spending bills, which means that members of both parties will be able to offer more amendments and have more debate, which in theory would lead to more scrutiny for each government agency seeking financing.
Let the record show that I strongly agree with all these ideas. And I hope they stick to them. Nancy Pelosi said she was going to do many of the same things, but not right away, when she became Speaker. But then she told us that there were some things she wanted to get done right away before she made substantive changes. But John Boehner is going to be different.
Or is he? Read on:
A big exception will be the bill to repeal the health care law that House Republicans plan to bring up next week. That bill will not be subject to amendments, nor will Republicans have to abide by their own new rules that compel them to offset the cost of new bills that add to the deficit; the health care repeal and tax cuts are not subject to this new rule.
Representative Peter Welch, Democrat of Vermont, had hoped to propose an amendment to the health care repeal legislation to provide for an up-or-down vote on several major components of the law. The components include elimination of lifetime limits on care, coverage of individuals up to age 26 on their parents’ health care plans, the banning of discrimination against those with pre-existing conditions and free preventive care for older Americans.
Democrats are displeased.
As should everyone else be.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Economy to USA: "I resolve to have a great year!'
In some ways, this is a lame initial entry for a new year, especially after so few postings lately, but in some ways it's perfect too. From Yahoo News today:
"All positive indicators:
• A key index of activity at manufacturing firms showed that in December, America's factories expanded faster than in any month since May. Within that index, new orders and production were also up, suggesting that future months could see continuing rises.
• A Commerce Department report showed that construction spending rose by more than expected in November -- the third straight month that it has risen. The construction industry was hit hard by the housing bust but now appears to be on the rebound.
• New jobless claims recently fell to their lowest weekly level since 2008.
• And the Dow Jones, NASDAQ, and S&P 500 indexes all rose yesterday, the first trading day of the new year, continuing strong gains from late 2010."
And from the Daily Local:
INDICATOR: December Supply Managers’ Manufacturing Survey
KEY DATA: ISM (manufacturing): 57.0 (up 0.4 point); new orders: 60.9 (up 4.3 points); production: 60.7 (up 5.7 points)
IN A NUTSHELL: “Manufacturing ended the year on a positive note and the surging orders point to stronger growth ahead.”
WHAT IT MEANS: The key figure in the report was the sharp rise in new orders. The demand for manufactured goods was at the highest point since last spring.Interestingly, while both export orders and imports continued to rise, they did so less rapidly. The implication is that much of the new demand is coming from domestic activity, which is good news.The rise in orders led to a jump in production.
MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The economy is in good shape. The manufacturing sector remains quite solid and with orders strong, there is no reason to believe that will change anytime soon.
That bodes well for future overall economic growth, which we should accelerate as we go through the first half of the year."
It's going to be a great economic year, I tell ya!
"All positive indicators:
• A key index of activity at manufacturing firms showed that in December, America's factories expanded faster than in any month since May. Within that index, new orders and production were also up, suggesting that future months could see continuing rises.
• A Commerce Department report showed that construction spending rose by more than expected in November -- the third straight month that it has risen. The construction industry was hit hard by the housing bust but now appears to be on the rebound.
• New jobless claims recently fell to their lowest weekly level since 2008.
• And the Dow Jones, NASDAQ, and S&P 500 indexes all rose yesterday, the first trading day of the new year, continuing strong gains from late 2010."
And from the Daily Local:
INDICATOR: December Supply Managers’ Manufacturing Survey
KEY DATA: ISM (manufacturing): 57.0 (up 0.4 point); new orders: 60.9 (up 4.3 points); production: 60.7 (up 5.7 points)
IN A NUTSHELL: “Manufacturing ended the year on a positive note and the surging orders point to stronger growth ahead.”
WHAT IT MEANS: The key figure in the report was the sharp rise in new orders. The demand for manufactured goods was at the highest point since last spring.Interestingly, while both export orders and imports continued to rise, they did so less rapidly. The implication is that much of the new demand is coming from domestic activity, which is good news.The rise in orders led to a jump in production.
MARKETS AND FED POLICY IMPLICATIONS: The economy is in good shape. The manufacturing sector remains quite solid and with orders strong, there is no reason to believe that will change anytime soon.
That bodes well for future overall economic growth, which we should accelerate as we go through the first half of the year."
It's going to be a great economic year, I tell ya!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
Rewards for reading this...mebbe
Andy Hachadorian, the editor of The Daily Local News, and more importantly, a local ice hockey referee, has asked me to post this and since they are kind enough to include me on their website, the least I can do, and also hopefully it's also the most I can do, is help them out here:
"The Daily Local News has dozens of gift cards to Chester County restaurants and other merchants that we are set to give away just in time for the holiday season. All you have to do to have a chance to win is follow @wcdailylocal on twitter."
Practically makes me wanna find out how to tweet...in fact the very idea makes me all a-twitter, tho mostly I think of it as just for twits. <-- Those are all in case the national media has overlooked any lame variations on the word that they must have exhausted by now judging from the articles and headlines I've read.
"The Daily Local News has dozens of gift cards to Chester County restaurants and other merchants that we are set to give away just in time for the holiday season. All you have to do to have a chance to win is follow @wcdailylocal on twitter."
Practically makes me wanna find out how to tweet...in fact the very idea makes me all a-twitter, tho mostly I think of it as just for twits. <-- Those are all in case the national media has overlooked any lame variations on the word that they must have exhausted by now judging from the articles and headlines I've read.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Jamie Be Not Proud
I never did get poetry, I don't now get poetry and I doubt I ever will get poetry....especially unless it rhymes, or unless it's in the form of lyrics by Springsteen, and I need look no farther to remind myself of it than one of the greatest poems ever written, or so they tell me.
John Donne
"Death be not proud, though some have called thee"
DEATH be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then;
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.
Heck, he loses me in the very first sentence. So, anytime I'm feeling particularly intellectually superior or pretending to be so, and you see it, please just utter these words: "Death Be Not Proud"
John Donne
"Death be not proud, though some have called thee"
DEATH be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then;
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.
Heck, he loses me in the very first sentence. So, anytime I'm feeling particularly intellectually superior or pretending to be so, and you see it, please just utter these words: "Death Be Not Proud"
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