Congress travels more at taypayer expense
Members of Congress may be telling others to cut back and criticizing corporate CEOs for lavish perks, but taxpayer-paid junkets are on the increase in the House and Senate and family members often go along for the ride.
A study by the Wall Street Journal shows traveling well at taxpayer expense is a perk that hasn’t been cut back in these financially-trouble times. To the contrary, travel is up and the costs continue to rise.
Obama health care plan: emotion, not details
President Barack Obama wanted to put a human face on his plans to overhaul health care, and a Virginia supporter did just that Wednesday.
Fighting back tears, Debby Smith, 53, told Obama of her kidney cancer and her inability to obtain health insurance or hold a job. The president hugged her — she’s a volunteer for his political operation — and called her "exhibit A" in an unsustainable system that is too expensive and complex for millions of Americans.
Senate Dems trim cost of health care bill
Determined to advance President Barack Obama’s health care agenda, key Senate Democrats are calling for a government-run insurance option to compete with private plans, as well as a $750-per-worker annual fee on larger companies that do not offer coverage to employees.
In a letter outlining the details, Sens. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., and Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said their revised plan would cost dramatically less than an earlier, incomplete proposal, and help show the way toward coverage for 97 percent of all Americans.
Feds threaten to pull out of GM deal
The US government will pull its support from General Motors if the automaker does not get court permission for a speedy exit from bankruptcy protection by July 10, an official testified on Wednesday.
"We cannot make an open-ended commitment," Henry Wilson, a member of President Barack Obama’s automotive task force, told the New York court.
GM is seeking court permission to sell its best assets to a new company in which the US government will get a majority stake.
Sotomayor advised group that opposed Bork
A Puerto Rican civil rights organization advised by Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor campaigned against seating conservative Robert Bork on the high court in the late 1980s, according to new documents that shed light on the group that’s become a key focus of Republicans questioning Sotomayor’s fitness to be a justice.
Can Franken boost Dems on key issues?
The jokes about Minnesota’s prolonged recount can finally stop, just in time for Democrats to secure a reliable vote from a former funny man.
Al Franken is on his way to Washington and the comedian-turned-senator-elect will bring with him a likely yes vote on key legislation, including two of President Barack Obama’s top priorities — health care and climate change.
Montgomery County Officials Seek Funding for Silver Spring to D.C. Bike Trail
County officials say they will push for capital funding in next year’s budget to continue a long-delayed bike trail that would run from downtown Silver Spring to downtown Washington, a move residents say is overdue.
Opposition Leaders Defy Iranian Authorities, Call Ahmadinejad Government Illegal
TEHRAN, July 1 — Three opposition leaders, including a former president, openly defied Iran’s top political and religious authorities Wednesday, vowing to resist a government they have deemed illegitimate after official certification of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s reelection.
ACLU Says Detainee Mohammed Jawad Was Tortured Into Confessions
The American Civil Liberties Union yesterday accused the Obama administration of using statements elicited through torture to justify the confinement of a detainee it represents at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.