One of the most talked-about issues in the coming Midterm elections is the state economy. In fact, the votes for this election will be greatly influenced by how candidates will address the very sensitive issue of unemployment. During the past couple of months, there have been mostly negative feedbacks towards the stimulus program that was approved by President Obama more than a year ago. In fact, some sectors in society even tagged it as an ultimate failure. There are numerous criticisms as to why the stimulus was unable to live up to its expectations of creating and saving between 900,000 – 3.5 million jobs.
Despite the numerous and sometimes harsh criticisms, the White House now claims the $800 billion stimulus bill is still on tract in producing the targeted amount of jobs since it was passed in Congress. It was remembered that the stimulus bill was signed by Congress February of last year as a way to minimize the destructive effects of the economic recession and jumpstart the economy. The funds will be spent for the next ten years with the bulk of it on tax cuts and tax breaks. Its major goal was to increase consumer spending in order to also generate more jobs.
But critics most especially Republicans said that the bill was ineffective and was only able to come up with a very minimal number of jobs. They also cited the increasing national rate of unemployment which now stands at over 9.6%. In a report presented by Vice President Joe Biden to President Obama, he underlined the consistent progress of their commitment to create jobs that is slowly being achieved by the stimulus. He also added that taxes have been lowered in over 95 percent of working families.
The report also mentioned that about $300 billion has been spent for the continuity of unemployment benefits, government projects and various grants to states in order to avoid layoffs of public workers. Another $243 billion was allocated for tax cuts where business institutions and institutions will surely benefit. Also included in the funding was Obama’s “Making Work Pay” policy where it gives $400 worth of tax credit to individuals while $800 for couples. The office of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office also claims that the bill is credited to over 1.4 to 3.3 million jobs.
Also included in the report is the renewal this year of unemployment insurance for the long-term jobless and funding aid to state governments and local school boards. Other projects such as reforms in the transportation sector (high speed rail) and other research and development projects (Information Technology) were also in high note. What’s more impressive is that only 0.2 percent of stimulus projects were investigated for reasons of fraud. This number is significantly lower than typical federal programs.
But several Republicans have criticized various stimulus projects. For example, Sen. Tom Boburn pointed out dozens of unreasonable projects such as the $554,000 used to replace the windows of a visitor center in Mount St. Helens. The center was reportedly closed three years ago by the state government. Also, another $90,000 was used to replace a five-year-old stretch of sidewalk in an Oklahoma town that led to a ditch. But a report on Friday by the Commerce Depart indicated that there was a big increase in construction spending which helped to reverse the negative effects of the recession to the sector.
Showing posts with label US congress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label US congress. Show all posts
Friday, October 1, 2010
Congress is Adjourned, Decides to Campaign Instead
With just 5 weeks left in the campaign period before voters decide the fate of aspiring lawmakers, members of the US Congress are rushing up things in order to proceed with their different campaign events. Instead of taking up major issues such as Bush-era tax cuts and coming up with a comprehensive budget, congressmen and senators are more than willing to face the anger of their constituents and seek for their votes. There are actually numerous politicians who are seeking reelection and our counting on their campaign efforts to convince disgusted and uninspired voters to give them another chance.
With recent polls pointing to an impending Republican victory this November, Democratic congressional leaders decided to postpone their voting of the controversial tax cuts and other requests for spending by President Barack Obama. Instead, they passed a temporary bill which will assure them that the government will be running until the midterm elections. Because of these, several politicians from the Democratic and Republican Party have joined hands in protesting before Congress. They argue that these lawmakers should stay in session and continue with their work instead of facing their voting constituents before the November polls.
Despite of intense pressure and a string of protests, the session was still adjourned thanks to one vote. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who is expecting a tight reelection bid in Nevada against Republican candidate Sharron Angle, mentioned the following words, “All 100 senators want to get out of here and get back to their states”. Candidates for the November polls most especially Democrats are so eager to face the voting population and convince them that their reelection or appointment will easily translate into a productive economy and a better society.
Late Wednesday, the Senate was able to approve the temporary spending bill with 69 “yes” votes as opposed to 30 “no” votes. Hours later, the House also voted with a 228-194 result. It will now await Pres. Obama’s signature for it to be signed into law. During the last few months, we saw Obama’s tough stance towards expiring tax cuts for people earning more than $250,000 a year. But several moderate and conservative Democrats are now joining Republicans in calling for the extension of tax cuts regardless of income. It is now unclear whether Democrats are really in favor of extending them or follow Obama’s agenda instead.
Americans will have to wait till November if Congress pushes for the extension of these tax cuts. If no bill is passed by the end of December, American households are expecting to face higher rates of taxes. It is interesting to know that only two of a dozen annual appropriations bills have passed the House this year. None of those has passed the Senate as Democratic leaders have opted against lengthy floor debates and politically difficult votes on spending. Out of desperation, our lawmakers are going home while leaving unfinished business behind.
With recent polls pointing to an impending Republican victory this November, Democratic congressional leaders decided to postpone their voting of the controversial tax cuts and other requests for spending by President Barack Obama. Instead, they passed a temporary bill which will assure them that the government will be running until the midterm elections. Because of these, several politicians from the Democratic and Republican Party have joined hands in protesting before Congress. They argue that these lawmakers should stay in session and continue with their work instead of facing their voting constituents before the November polls.
Despite of intense pressure and a string of protests, the session was still adjourned thanks to one vote. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who is expecting a tight reelection bid in Nevada against Republican candidate Sharron Angle, mentioned the following words, “All 100 senators want to get out of here and get back to their states”. Candidates for the November polls most especially Democrats are so eager to face the voting population and convince them that their reelection or appointment will easily translate into a productive economy and a better society.
Late Wednesday, the Senate was able to approve the temporary spending bill with 69 “yes” votes as opposed to 30 “no” votes. Hours later, the House also voted with a 228-194 result. It will now await Pres. Obama’s signature for it to be signed into law. During the last few months, we saw Obama’s tough stance towards expiring tax cuts for people earning more than $250,000 a year. But several moderate and conservative Democrats are now joining Republicans in calling for the extension of tax cuts regardless of income. It is now unclear whether Democrats are really in favor of extending them or follow Obama’s agenda instead.
Americans will have to wait till November if Congress pushes for the extension of these tax cuts. If no bill is passed by the end of December, American households are expecting to face higher rates of taxes. It is interesting to know that only two of a dozen annual appropriations bills have passed the House this year. None of those has passed the Senate as Democratic leaders have opted against lengthy floor debates and politically difficult votes on spending. Out of desperation, our lawmakers are going home while leaving unfinished business behind.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Another Offshore Explosion and Its Impact to Oil Politics
This decade is perhaps one of the busiest decades for any U.S. President. The economic recession has created a domino effect that affected not only business and financial institutions but various government departments and functions as well. The ballooning budget deficit along with the increasing unemployment rate has kept U.S. officials very busy in solving these potential dangers to the American society. You may have also heard about the BP Oil spill disaster. Just as we thought that luck will finally be in our side, another impending oil spill is waiting to happen.
On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig exploded spilling along tons of barrels of oil in the Gulf of Mexico. It was considered as the worst oil spill by any offshore oil rig in U.S. history. The environmental impact was horrendous prompting the government to take immediate actions to contain the oil leak. And not long after, another similar disaster would happen in the same gulf where oil is ultimately abundant. The oil platform Mariner Energy, located west from the site of the April oil spill, exploded creating concerns about another possible oil spill to occur.
The explosion was first reported at 0930 local time (1330 GMT). Rescuers and firefighters were quick to respond to the scene saving 13 rig workers and were able to put out the fire immediately. An immediate investigation has been called upon to determine the presence of an oil leak and to assess the risk to the environment. Fortunately, investigators were quickly to point out that there is indeed no oil leaking from the platform. The owners of the platform, Mariner Energy, also said that the platform was undergoing maintenance and was not producing any oil or gas at the time of the explosion.
The recent disaster has created a major impact especially on the offshore oil production industry. Since the BP oil spill last April, the energy industry has been battling tough sanctions and regulations imposed by the government to offshore oil operations. Environmental groups and politicians are now more than determined to impose a permanent ban to offshore drilling. The hazards and dangers it impose not only to the environment but also to its workers are beyond the normal and safe operating levels. There is now an ongoing debate on how feasible these offshore oil platforms are.
The American Petroleum Institute is planning to stage rallies and protests nationwide next week to urge the Obama administration to lift its moratorium on deep-water drilling and to pressure Congress to avoid imposing new taxes and liability measures. BP has evened threatened that if the ban will continue, then they will lose the money to pay for the cleanup and recovery effort. Oil politics is gaining its popularity with a tough battle going on between the White House and Oil platform owners.
On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig exploded spilling along tons of barrels of oil in the Gulf of Mexico. It was considered as the worst oil spill by any offshore oil rig in U.S. history. The environmental impact was horrendous prompting the government to take immediate actions to contain the oil leak. And not long after, another similar disaster would happen in the same gulf where oil is ultimately abundant. The oil platform Mariner Energy, located west from the site of the April oil spill, exploded creating concerns about another possible oil spill to occur.
The explosion was first reported at 0930 local time (1330 GMT). Rescuers and firefighters were quick to respond to the scene saving 13 rig workers and were able to put out the fire immediately. An immediate investigation has been called upon to determine the presence of an oil leak and to assess the risk to the environment. Fortunately, investigators were quickly to point out that there is indeed no oil leaking from the platform. The owners of the platform, Mariner Energy, also said that the platform was undergoing maintenance and was not producing any oil or gas at the time of the explosion.
The recent disaster has created a major impact especially on the offshore oil production industry. Since the BP oil spill last April, the energy industry has been battling tough sanctions and regulations imposed by the government to offshore oil operations. Environmental groups and politicians are now more than determined to impose a permanent ban to offshore drilling. The hazards and dangers it impose not only to the environment but also to its workers are beyond the normal and safe operating levels. There is now an ongoing debate on how feasible these offshore oil platforms are.
The American Petroleum Institute is planning to stage rallies and protests nationwide next week to urge the Obama administration to lift its moratorium on deep-water drilling and to pressure Congress to avoid imposing new taxes and liability measures. BP has evened threatened that if the ban will continue, then they will lose the money to pay for the cleanup and recovery effort. Oil politics is gaining its popularity with a tough battle going on between the White House and Oil platform owners.
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