Senate Passes Jobs Bill

Earlier today, the Senate passed a bill to help small businesses hire workers and provide highway funding to encourage job growth. The bill, one of many proposals to spur job creation, now goes to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

The Associated Press reported:

Companies that hire unemployed workers will get a temporary payroll tax holiday under a bill that easily won congressional approval Wednesday in what Democrats hope is just the first of several election-year measures aimed at boosting hiring.

The 68-29 bipartisan vote in the Senate sent the legislation to the White House, where President Barack Obama was expected to sign it into law Thursday. Eleven Republicans voted for the legislation, an impressive tally considering the politically charged atmosphere on Capitol Hill.

..."It is the first of what I hope will be a series of jobs packages that help to continue to put people back to work," Obama said after the vote.

The bill contains about $18 billion in tax breaks and a $20 billion infusion of cash into highway and transit programs. Among other things, it exempts businesses that hire people who have been unemployed for at least 60 days from paying the 6.2 percent Social Security payroll tax through December and gives employers an additional $1,000 credit if new workers stay on the job a full year. Taxpayers will have to reimburse Social Security for the lost revenue.

"This is just the first, certainly not the last, piece of legislation that we will put forward in relation to jobs," said its sponsor, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "If we don't create jobs, the economy will not move forward."

It also extends highway and mass transit programs through the end of the year and pump in $20 billion in time for the spring construction season. That money would make up for lower-than-expected gasoline tax revenues.

Chairman Tim Kaine: "The Republicans have failed the American people"

Today, the New York Times ran a story highlighting Senator Mitch McConnell and the GOP’s strategy to delay and use obstructionist tactics to defeat every piece of significant legislation supported by President Obama and Congressional Democrats.

DNC Chairman Tim Kaine released the following statement:

“Today’s news report on Republican obstructionist tactics offers further proof of what we already know – even before President Obama was sworn in, Mitch McConnell and the GOP developed a strategy to push the GOP caucus to reflexively oppose the President’s legislative initiatives in the hope of securing short-term political gains. This is appalling—but not surprising—news. Senator McConnell’s strategy is the embodiment of what is wrong with Washington – instead of fighting for his constituents or working to solve America’s problems, his priority is defeating the President by obstructionist procedural tactics.

“We are facing challenging times and now is not the time to play political games. President Obama and Congressional Democrats have worked to stabilize and rebuild the economy, create jobs, rein in the excesses of Wall Street, and reform the health insurance system to reduce skyrocketing premium increases while giving Americans greater control over their own care. Every step of the way, Republicans have fought tooth and nail to hold up Democrats’ plans to get our country back on track. By rejecting any effort to work with the President on a bipartisan basis, the Republicans have failed the American people. This is not leadership, and it’s not what the American people want. It’s the reason Americans have lost faith in Washington. Changing this approach of politics above results, rigid partisanship, and protecting special interests at all costs is why voters sent President Obama to the White House to change the way government works.

“Senator McConnell is playing these games at the expense of the American people. It’s time for Senator McConnell and his Republican colleagues to put politics aside and start working with the President and Democrats to solve our nation’s problems.”

Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

President Barack Obama has lunch with Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine in the Oval Office Private Dining Room, March 16, 2010. Photo by Pete Souza.

"I just met with the President"

After his lunch with President Obama earlier today, DNC Chairman Tim Kaine sent the following email to supporters:

I just met with the President, where I was proud to fill him in on all the great work that you're doing to pass health reform.

We spoke about the calls you've made, the letters you've written, and the terrific events you've organized on the ground.

And he asked me to pass along a message to you: All of your hard work is paying off. The conversations he's been having with members of Congress in these days are far more productive because you've spoken up back home.

The President is optimistic -- and thinks we're going to have a vote and pass reform very, very soon. But he also made it clear that he's not letting up for a moment, and urged that all of us do the same.

We'll all need to step up to help the President pass reform. Can you take a moment right now to write to your member of Congress?

http://my.democrats.org/ReformLetters

I'm grateful for all you've done. And today, the President reminded me that he is as well.

Thank you,

Governor Tim Kaine

Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

President Barack Obama looks at framed images of performers in the backstage hold at The Fillmore Auditorium in Denver, Colo., Feb. 18, 2010. Photo by Pete Souza.

President Obama: "I'm here because of Natoma"

Speaking to a crowd in Ohio this afternoon, President Obama spoke passionately about the reasons he is fighting so hard for health reform, and told the story of one of the countless Americans he is fighting for: Natoma Canfield, an Ohio woman without insurance who was diagnosed with leukemia last Saturday.

Natoma wrote a letter to the President last year, after she heard that her health insurance rates would be rising by 40%. Unable to pay for such an increase, Natoma’s last month with insurance was this January. Natoma had cancer 16-years ago, and hoped that she wouldn't get sick again.

Last week, Natoma was rushed to the hospital, where after a series of tests she was diagnosed with leukemia. Still in the hospital today, she now faces more than a month of chemotherapy -- along with worries about how she'll pay for her treatment without insurance.

The President told the Ohio crowd:

“You want to know why I’m here, Ohio? I’m here because of Natoma. I’m here because of the countless others who have been forced to face the most terrifying challenges in their lives with the added burden of medical bills they can’t pay. I don't think that’s right. Neither do you. That’s why we need health insurance right now. Health insurance reform right now.

I’m here because of my own mother’s story. She died of cancer, and in the last six months of her life, she was on the phone in her hospital room arguing with insurance companies instead of focusing on getting well and spending time with her family.

I’m here because of the millions who are denied coverage because of preexisting conditions or dropped from coverage when they get sick.

I’m here because of the small businesses who are forced to choose between health care and hiring.

I’m here because of the seniors unable to afford the prescriptions that they need.

I’m here because of the folks seeing their premiums go up 20 and 30 and 40 and 50 and 60 percent in a year.
Ohio, I am here because that is not the America I believe in and that’s not the America that you believe in.”

Monday Open Thread

Good morning.

President Barack Obama is saluted by Air Force members as he waves from Air Force One prior to departing from Andrews Air Force Base en route to Denver, Colo., Feb. 18, 2010. Photo by Pete Souza.

Weekend Open Thread

Hello Saturday.

President Barack Obama signs a wall during a tour of the International Brotherhood of Electricians (IBEW) Local 26 headquarters in Lanham, Md., Feb. 16, 2010. Photo by Pete Souza.

Friday Open Thread

Happy Friday.

President Barack Obama speaks with John Brennan, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, while dining in the President's private dining room, Feb. 18, 2010. Photo by Pete Souza.

11-Year-Old Asks Members of Congress to Support Reform: "The health care system is broken and it caused my mother's death."

As members of Congress ready for a vote on health reform, today they heard from 11-year-old Marcelas Owens, whose mother died in 2007 because she lacked health insurance.

Tiffany Owens suffered from pulmonary hypertension, which forced her to stop work, and in turn, she lost her medical benefits. She spent the final part of her life fighting for health insurance reform -- and now her 11-year-old son is working to finish her fight.

Marcelas Owens, who just turned 11 today, told MSNBC:

"I'm telling the members of Congress that the health care bill should be passed, because everybody deserves health care.

...I wanted to finish [my mother's] fight for health care."

The Final March for Reform: Call Congress

Yesterday, the Democratic National Committee and Organizing for America kicked off the Final March for Health Reform -- an unprecedented week-long campaign sprint featuring powerful ways for supporters to weigh in directly to Congress.

Today, Day 2, people are calling their representatives to express their support for health reform in the final days before a vote. Click here to make your call now.

After you've made a call, check out yesterday's action here: a page where you can find a fact sheet to show friends and co-workers on how the plan will specifically help them, posters to display, Facebook notes to post, and more.

And watch a video about joining in and taking part in the Final March:

What John Boehner's offered on the floor of the House

Privileged resolutions aren’t all John Boehner likes to offer on the House floor.  He also has handed out checks cut by Big Tobacco on the floor of the House at a time when the House was considering ending a subsidy for tobacco companies. 

John Boehner is all too ready to cast stones from glass houses – even though he was part of and a leader of one of the most corrupt Congresses in history.  The Abramoff fedora didn’t become famous as a fashion choice – it became famous as a symbol of the widespread, systemic corruption that existed for years during Republican rule which Boehner and his colleagues were part of, participated in and benefited from. 

John Boehner is exposing himself as one huge hypocrite when he offers this resolution today but hasn’t lifted a finger to note or deal with his own ethical short comings or that of his caucus.   We look forward to Boehner’s return to the floor to call for a re-opening into that investigation as well as a further examination of the following members of his caucus who have or have had troubling ethics and/or legal questions raised against them.

·         Representative John Boehner, (R-OH-8th) – House Minority Leader John Boehner handed out campaign checks from the tobacco industry to members on the House floor at a time when lawmakers were considering eliminating a tobacco subsidy.  Former Representative Chris Shays, a Connecticut Republican, criticized Boehner’s ties to lobbyists. ``The problem John faces is that he's so close to K Street; that's the challenge he's got,'' said Shays. [Bloomberg News, 1/10/06]

·         Representative Eric Cantor, (R-VA-7th) – House Minority Whip Eric Cantor has faced a number of ethical questions including ties to lobbyists and misuse of taxpayer money for political purposes. In 2009, he started the National Council for a New America, a group that ultimately ”flamed out” after a number of questions about its use of taxpayer money for political meetings. A Roll Call editorial said, “Cantor should reimburse his House account from his campaign account or leadership political action committee for the staff resources that he has used.” Cantor also had close ties to disgraced lobbyists Jack Abramoff who actually named a sandwich at his deli after Cantor during a fundraiser, an even that drew criticism since Cantor initially failed to report the debt to Abramoff’s deli. During legal problems surrounding Tom DeLay, Roll Call wrote that “Cantor appears to have acquired a new role: chief defender of Majority Leader Tom DeLay.” [Roll Call, 5/13/09; Time, 11/28/05; Jewish Forward, 6/20/03; Politico, 8/10/09]

• Representative Pete Sessions, (R-TX-32nd): Just hours after federal agents charged banker Allen Stanford with fleecing investors of $7 billion, the disgraced financier received a message from one of Congress' most powerful members, NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions. ‘I love you and believe in you,’ said the e-mail sent on Feb. 17. `If you want my ear/voice -- e-mail,’ it said, signed ‘Pete.'' [Miami Herald, 12/27/2009] Earlier in the year, Sessions came under fire for steering a $1.6 million earmark for dirigible research to a company with no experience in government contracting or building blimps. The company hired a former aide to Sessions to lobby on their behalf. [Politico, 7/30/2009] Sessions held a fundraising event at a Las Vegas strip club for his leadership committee, joined by casino executives and payday lenders at Forty Deuce nightclub, located in the Mandalay Bay Restort. [NPR, 7/22/08]

• Representative Don Young, (R-AK-AL): Yes, Rep. Don Young is still in Congress, even though he has been the subject of at least two recent federal criminal investigations. One involved a $10 million earmark for a Florida company Young dropped into a 2006 bill just before it passed; another dealt with a broad investigation into political corruption in Alaska, tied to the (ultimately flawed) case that led to former Sen. Ted Stevens's defeat. [Salon, 3/5/10]
• Representative Ken Calvert, (R-CA-44th): Rep. Ken Calvert has reaped the benefits of his own earmarks. Calvert is under investigation by the FBI after a story in the Los Angeles Times alleged that Calvert’s earmarks have benefited his own property holdings. In one particular case, Calvert sold a property less than a year after purchasing it for a 79 percent markup after earmarking almost $10 million for the area. Despite his ethically questionable land deals, the House Republican leadership chose Calvert to replace Rep. Doolittle on the powerful Appropriations Committee. In an attempt to make up for his tarnished reputation, Calvert plans to run all earmarks through the House ethics panel in the future. In addition, Calvert is involved in a community controversy surrounding a parcel of land he and his partners bought without competition. In 2007, a Riverside County grand jury found that the services district violated state law when it sold the land to Calvert and his partners. [Los Angeles Times, 5/15/06; Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, 2008; Washington Post, 6/22/06; Riverside Press-Enterprise, 5/23/07; Riverside Press-Enterprise, 7/03/07]

• Representative Marsha Blackburn, (R-TN-7th): Rep. Marsha Blackburn admitted to federal elections officials in 2008 she had failed to report $286,278 in campaign expenditures over her time in Congress, as well as $102,044 in contributions she had never disclosed. Some of the unreported expenditures were payments to her daughter and her son-in-law. [Salon, 3/5/10]

• Representative Jerry Lewis, (R-CA-41st): Rep. Jerry Lewis was investigated by federal agents four years ago as part of the same investigation that led Cunningham to plead guilty to taking bribes. He's also been investigated for his relationship with a lobbying firm, the clients of which Lewis helped obtain millions of dollars in earmarks. [Salon, 3/5/10; Los Angeles Times, 6/8/06]
• Representative Gary Miller, (R-CA-42nd): News reports confirm that the FBI and “federal agents” are investigating Rep. Gary Miller’s possible involvement with attempts to secure federal earmarks to purchase tracts of land Miller owns in California.  Miller has denied any wrongdoing. Despite the ethical questions surrounding Miller, House Republicans named him the ranking Member of the subcommittee on oversight and investigations of the Financial Services Committee. [Washington Post, 10/30/09; Associated Press, 8/14/06; Los Angeles Times, 8/13/06; The Hill, 1/31/07; Orange County Register, August 10, 2006; Washington Post, 6/22/06]
• Representative Vern Buchanan, (R-FL-13th): Rep. Vern Buchanan has a wide array of serious ethics problems.  During his first campaign in 2005, Buchanan received $110,000 over the course of a single week from employees of his numerous car dealerships.  Two employees gave sworn affidavits stating that they were asked to donate $1,000 to Buchanan’s campaign with the understanding that they would be reimbursed by the company.  At least ten lawsuits have been filed by employees and business partners alleging harassment or fraud.  [Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, 2009; Sarasota Herald Tribune, 7/24/08; Roll Call, 6/2/08; Sarasota Herald Tribune, 7/29/08; Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/31/06; Huffington Post, 8/19/08 Sarasota Herald Tribune, 10/6/05]
• Representative Harold Rogers (R-KY-5th): As ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Homeland Security, Rep. Harold Rogers was responsible for the $41.1 billion Department of Homeland Security budget. Rogers has a history of steering earmarks to campaign contributors and those who fund his travel.  In 2009, it was reported that Rogers steered $30 million in earmarks to companies that donated $48,000 to his political committees. The most egregious case, though, was his earmark of ID cards to a company that paid for 11 trips for Rogers and his wife to Hawaii, Ireland, California, and other locations even though the earmark was opposed by the Bush Administration, the Republican Chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, and industry leaders. The congressman, who was described as the “prince of pork” by his hometown paper, has repeatedly taken official actions on behalf of the top contributor to his PAC, even sponsoring an earmark for a private parking lot in a resort owned by one of his large donors, and even helped secure a $4 million contract for a company while they hired his son. [New York Times, 5/14/06; McClatchy, 4/19/09; Associated Press, 1/19/05; Lexington Herald Leader; 1/19/05]
• Representative Sam Graves, (R-MO-6th): Rep. Sam Graves has been the subject of a new scandal every few months over the past two years. Graves has been the beneficiary a contributor's plane -- and Graves "frequently flies the airplane to events around the district."  Yet, ethics experts have stated the trips are concerning since travel on corporate flights for free is not permitted and because the company in question had business before the House. Graves’ failed to disclose his personal financial stake in an ethanol company while he invited members of the company to testify before a House committee.   In 2008, the Missouri State Auditor claimed that Graves was avoiding paying taxes on two of his eight planes by not listing them with the county assessor’s office. [Roll Call, 11/7/07; Roll Call, 12/04/07; Kansas City Star, 12/06/07; Kansas City Star, 10/7/08; Roll Call, 3/9/09]
• Representative Patrick McHenry (R-NC-10th): Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) is a third-term member of Congress, representing North Carolina’s 10th congressional district. McHenry spent the early part of 2007 trying to answer questions about possible voter fraud engaged by a campaign staffer who were registered to vote at McHenry’s home while payroll records showed he lived in Tennessee.  McHenry paid $20,000 to the defense fund of the staffer and his spokesman accused the prosecutor of a “three-year smear campaign,” even though the prosecutor had only recently taken office and had even helped host a McHenry fundraiser. [Roll Call, 4/16/08; Shelby Star, 5/11/07; CBS News, 5/11/07; Charlotte Observer, 5/15/07]
• Representative Mike Turner (R-OH-3rd): In 2007, Roll Call broke the news that the “largest year-end legal payment – more than $115,000 belonged to Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio who paid the law firm Freund, Freeze & Arnold to “dig up dirt on himself.” That begs the question – what is Mike Turner so afraid of?  It seems the research was related to a $1.5 million no-bid contract received by his wife’s marketing company, The Turner Effect.  Half of the funding for the contract came from a major donor to Turner’s campaign.   The ethical cloud resulted in the naming of Turner in 2008 as a “dishonorable mention” in the Center for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington’s annual list of the Most Corrupt Members of Congress. [Roll Call, 2/1/07; Dayton Daily News, 2/1/08; Dayton Daily News, 3/1/08; Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, 2008]
• Representative Tim Murphy (R-PA-18th): Rep. Tim Murphy has been the target of an FBI investigation for his misuse of his taxpayer-funded official office for campaign activities. Six former and current Murphy employees came forward in late 2006 to state that they had been coerced into working on campaign activities including door-to-door campaigning, use of the office for campaigns strategy sessions, use of office equipment for campaign work, and preparing a mailing to campaign contributors. Since news of the FBI probe against him broke, Murphy has spent at least $79,000 on legal fees from his campaign account. Murphy was so intent on covering up his abuse of taxpayer money, that he fired one of the whistleblowers in his office, and physically took documents showing misconduct from a reporter asking him questions about the scandal. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 10/28/06; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 11/11/06; KDKA, 12/14/08; CREW Press Release, 5/18/08; FEC]
• Representative Nathan Deal, (R-GA-9th): Rep. Nathan Deal is leaving Congress to run for governor of Georgia. But even conservatives have pointed out that he's also the subject of a House ethics investigation into contracts between a business he owns and the state government. [Salon, 3/5/10; RedState, 3/1/10]
• Representative Steve Buyer, (R-IN-4th): Rep. Steve Buyer helped found the Frontier Foundation, Inc in 2003 and was its honorary chairman. Family members, including his daughter and son, make up its board and ran its day-to-day operations. Although Frontier claimed its central purpose is to provide scholarship for Indiana students, in its six years of existence it has not awarded a single scholarship. Even the paltry donations the foundation has made have no relationship to scholarships - largely, they went to a charity run by a drug company lobbyist and the NRA. Instead, Frontier has held fundraisers at golf resorts where representatives from corporations and trade groups with issues before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on which Rep. Buyer sits, have access to the congressman. [Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, 1/25/10; Fox News, 1/29/10; CBS News, 11/11/09]
• Representative Henry Brown (R-SC-1st): In 2004, Rep. Henry Brown started a fire on his property despite an alert that the day’s conditions were particularly hazardous. When the fire skipped onto federal property and burned part of a national forest, Brown refused to pay the fine, demanded the federal regulations be retroactively changed to clear him and made an “implied threat” that he would more closely scrutinize the USDA Forest Service budget. Some four years later, $1,000 in fines were waived without an explanation as to how that agreement was reached and the fine was paid. A whistleblowers report was filed by Forest Service officials who claimed that that Brown and other officials engaged in congressional and ethical violations and possibly bribery and/or extortion. Editorials criticized Brown for the special treatment he received and the apparent “congressional muscle” that was misapplied. [McClatchy-Tribune News Service, 9/18/08; Georgetown Times, 9/20/08; Associated Press, 10/15/08] 

"Day 2: Call for reform"

Organizing for America Director Mitch Stewart just sent this email to supporters:

President Obama has called for the House to vote to move health reform forward as early as next week.

Today, across the country, supporters of President Obama are calling their representatives to thank them if they've been fighting for reform, and ask them to support it if they haven't made up their mind. The final vote will be very close, and we need to let members of Congress know that voters at home are standing with the President on health reform.

Click here to look up your representative and make a call today.

We know the stakes: Coverage for millions of uninsured Americans. Ending insurance company abuses, like denying coverage to those with pre-existing conditions and drastically raising premiums. Reining in costs that are bankrupting families and crushing businesses. Putting life-and-death decisions in the hands of patients and doctors, not insurance company bureaucrats.

Everything we've worked for depends on winning this upcoming vote in the House of Representatives -- and it's going to be very, very close. If there was ever a time to pick up the phone and make a difference, that time has come.

Please call today:

http://my.barackobama.com/FinalMarchCall

Thanks for joining together for this Final March for Reform. Because of you, we're going to win this.

Mitch

Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America

Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

Vice President Joe Biden talks with National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform co-chairs Alan Simpson, center, and Erskine Bowles, far left, in the Outer Oval Office prior to a meeting with President Barack Obama, Feb. 18, 2010. Also present in the room, from left, are Director of White House Economic Council Larry Summers, Director of the Office of Management and Budget Peter Orszag, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers Christy Romer. Photo by Pete Souza.

VIDEO: DNC Chairman Kaine on Insurance Companies and the Republicans Who Refuse to Hold Them Accountable

In a new video released today, DNC Chairman Tim Kaine takes to task insurance companies and the Republicans who defend them even in the face ofjaw-dropping premium increases and discriminatory practices that deny care to those who need it the most. As Kaine notes, while the President and Democrats are pursuing reform that ends the worst practices of insurance companies, reduces costs for families and businesses large and small and extends coverage to 31 million uninsured Americans – insurance companies are pouring millions into efforts to derail reform and preserve their record profits. What’s worse - Republicans are standing with them in an effort to block reform.

Yesterday, the nation’s largest insurers kicked-off a meeting at the luxurious Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Washington, DC to plot how they will attempt to thwart the President’s proposed health insurance reforms. Also yesterday, a leading economist praised the President’s reforms, noting that they draw broadly from Republican and Democratic ideas for controlling costs and represent “the most significant action on medical spending ever proposed in the United States.” If insurance companies were truly committed to reducing costs for their consumers, they would embrace these reforms. Instead, they are spending millions on lobbyists and misleading ad campaigns aimed at spreading fear and killing the President’s proposed reforms. Why? Because the insurance companies know that the President’s reforms put consumers back in control of their health care by placing long over-due restrictions on insurance companies’ ability to impose ad hoc rate hikes and drop patients when they get sick.

And, while Democrats and the President are standing up for the American people, Republicans are promising to campaign to repeal reform after it becomes law. As Chairman Kaine says in his video, “if Republican leaders want to campaign on the belief that there is nothing wrong with the way insurance companies currently do business, then that’s a fight we’re ready to have.”

As Chairman Kaine states in the video, the President’s reforms put an end to insurance company practices that put their profits over Americans’ care. The final march for reform has begun and Republicans must decide who they will march with – the American people or the insurance providers.