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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: tejek who wrote (454183)	2/4/2009 5:57:23 PM
From: Road Walker	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1572529

I watched a good part of this... it was good. He has to figure a way to get to the people; the Republicans have so many more media outlets that are one sided, while the MSM is compelled to 'show both sides' even when it doesn't make sense. ____________________________ Obama responds to GOP critics of stimulus bill By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer Andrew Taylor, Associated Press Writer 7 mins ago WASHINGTON – Polite yet pointed, President Barack Obama pushed back against Republican critics of the economic stimulus legislation making its way through Congress on Wednesday, even as he reached across party lines to consider scaling back spending in the bill. "Let's not make the perfect the enemy of the essential," Obama said as Senate Republicans stepped up their criticism of the bill's spending and pressed for additional tax cuts and relief for homeowners. He warned that failure to act quickly "will turn crisis into a catastrophe and guarantee a longer recession." Democratic leaders have pledged to have legislation ready for Obama's signature by the end of next week, and they concede privately they will have to accept some spending reductions along the way. "This bill needs to be cut down," Republican Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said on the Senate floor. He cited $524 million for a State Department program that he said envisions creating 388 jobs. "That comes to $1.35 million per job," he added. Republicans readied numerous attempts to reduce the cost of the $900 billion measure, which includes tax cuts and new spending designed to ignite recovery from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. But after days of absorbing rhetorical attacks, Obama and Senate Democrats mounted a counteroffensive against Republicans who say tax cuts alone can cure the economy. Obama said the criticisms he has heard "echo the very same failed economic theories that led us into this crisis in the first place, the notion that tax cuts alone will solve all our problems." "I reject those theories, and so did the American people when they went to the polls in November and voted resoundingly for change," said the president, who was elected with an Electoral College landslide last fall and enjoys high public approval ratings at the outset of his term. The president repeated his retort word for word in late afternoon, yet softened the partisan impact of his comments by meeting at the White House with senators often willing to cross party lines. His first visitor was Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, a moderate GOP lawmaker. Later he met with Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine., and Ben Nelson, D-Neb. "I gave him a list of provisions" for possible deletion from the bill, Collins told reporters outside the White House. Among them were $8 billion to upgrade facilities and information technology at the State Department and funds for combatting a possible outbreak of pandemic flu and promoting cyber security. The latter two items, she said, are "near and dear to her," but belong in routine legislation and not an economic stimulus measure. Collins and Nelson have been working on a list of possible spending cuts totaling roughly $50 billion, although they have yet to make details public. The House approved its own version of the stimulus bill last week on a party line vote, but the political environment in the Senate is far different. Democrats hold a comfortable 58-41 majority. But because the legislation would increase the federal deficit, any lawmaker can insist that 60 votes be required to add to its cost. While the 60-vote threshold can impose a check on Democrats, it can also illuminate the cross-pressures at work on Republicans. A Democratic attempt on Tuesday to add $25 billion for public works projects failed when it gained only 58 votes, two short of the total needed. But a few hours later, a proposed $11 billion tax break for new car buyers attracted 72 votes, including several from Republicans. One, Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas, later issued a statement applauding the provision. "The car tax deduction amendment will make the purchase of a new car more affordable and encourage more people to buy a car," he said. On yet another provision to increase the cost of the bill, Republicans simply surrendered rather than take a vote that might have turned out to be politically problematic. Confronted with a proposed $6.5 billion increase in research funding for the National Institutes of Health, Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., initially sought to impose a 60-vote requirement. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., the second-ranking GOP leader, intervened, however, and the increase cleared on a voice vote that drew no audible dissent. When it did, Kyl made a pretend gesture of disappointment. An aide later said the Arizona senator had headed off the roll call because it was late in the evening and the proposal clearly would have passed. ___ Associated Press reporters Jennifer Loven and Andrew Taylor contributed to this story.

To: tejek who wrote (454183)	2/4/2009 6:00:14 PM
From: Alighieri	Respond to of 1572529

Where have these arguments been the past few weeks? Might any of these authors be available to, you know, go on television or something? Bingo... Message 25384496 Al

To: tejek who wrote (454183)	2/4/2009 7:27:42 PM
From: Road Walker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1572529

Summers Warns Deflation Is 'Real Risk' for Economy (Update1) Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- White House economics director Lawrence Summers urged swift passage of a stimulus bill and pledged further taxpayer funds for major banks, warning that the economy is in danger of sustained declines in consumer prices. "Deflation is a real risk facing the economy," Summers, the director of the National Economic Council, said today on a conference call with reporters. "We do not have time to wait" to approve the fiscal-stimulus package the Obama administration is pushing in Congress, he said. A prolonged slide in prices would worsen the recession by making debts harder to pay off and banks even less likely to make new loans. Summers's remarks come as the administration seeks congressional approval of the stimulus by the end of next week. "This bill is imperative for our economic security," Summers said. "I've got great confidence that in our country we do the right thing. So I expect a bill to be signed into law." House lawmakers approved a measure last week, and the Senate is deliberating on the bill this week. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner held meetings today with Senate Democrats and House leaders. Capital Injections The stimulus package alone won't be enough, said Summers, a former Harvard University professor and Treasury secretary in the Clinton administration. Policy makers are readying an overhaul of the Treasury's financial-bailout program, which may come early next week, and a strategy to stem record mortgage foreclosures. The focus of the financial recovery plan "will be on maintaining the overall flow of credit" in the economy, Summers said. It will include "government support for the credit markets" and "capital infusions into major financial institutions." Summers said the stimulus package is aimed at helping fill a $2 trillion gap between the economy's potential growth and its actual performance in 2009 and 2010. President Barack Obama today called on Congress to quickly complete the legislation, saying that a failure to act "will turn crisis into a catastrophe and guarantee a longer recession." The economy shrank at a 3.8 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter of 2008, the most since 1982, and analysts anticipate a deeper contraction in the first three months of this year. The unemployment rate likely climbed to 7.5 percent in January, compared with a 4.9 percent rate a year before, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey ahead of a Labor Department report due Feb. 6. To contact the reporter on this story: Nicholas Johnston in Washington at njohnston3@bloomberg.net; Rich Miller in Washington at rmiller28@bloomberg.net Find out more about Bloomberg for iPhone: bbiphone.bloomberg.com Sent from my iPhone - JF

To: tejek who wrote (454183)	2/4/2009 7:45:21 PM
From: Road Walker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1572529

Go long orange juice... it's really cold.... _________________ Florida braces for freezing night By MIKE SCHNEIDER – 6 hours ago ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Florida fruit and vegetable growers braced Wednesday for what was expected to be one of the coldest nights of the year as temperatures were forecast to drop into the 20s in some parts of the state. A hard freeze warning was issued for late Wednesday night for the northern two-thirds of the state, with the advisory stretching as far south as inland Palm Beach and Collier counties. A hard freeze can destroy vegetation. A freeze warning was issued for the rest of the state. Florida is at the peak of its winter agriculture season. Growers currently are harvesting citrus, strawberries, blueberries, tomatoes, snap beans, celery, sweet corn, cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, radishes, squash and ferns. The Sunshine State is a primary supplier of fresh fruits and vegetables to the rest of the country during winter months. Gov. Charlie Crist has extended an executive order relaxing weight and height restrictions on vehicles taking crops to processing plants in an effort to help growers speed up their harvesting ahead of the chilly weather. The greatest concern for the citrus industry was freezing weather in northern stretches of Florida's citrus belt around Orlando, but the bulk of the state's commercial citrus groves are further south. A spokesman for the state's largest citrus growers' group said temperatures in Florida's major orange growing regions were not expected to stay below 28 degrees for more than four hours — a duration that can trigger major damage. "There will be pockets that do get damage, particularly in lower lying areas where it gets colder," Andrew Meadows, a spokesman for Florida Citrus Mutual said by e-mail. Other fruit and vegetable growers, though, were expecting a tough night. "I think everyone is really bracing for tonight," said Lisa Lochridge, a spokeswoman for the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, in an e-mail. "This'll be the tough one."