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Politics : President Barack Obama -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (69527)	2/17/2010 4:27:03 PM
From: tejek	Respond to of 149317

BAYH'S UNEXPECTED SUPPORT FOR FILIBUSTER REFORM.... With renewed interest in reforming the way the Senate does business, it's encouraging to see support from an unexpected corner: the one Democratic senator who seems to have the spotlight all to himself this week. The Senate should reform the filibuster as a way to end partisan gridlock, Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) said today. Bayh, who cited partisanship and incivility as reasons for his retirement, said the filibuster has been used by the Republican minority too frequently. "Now it's being routinely used to frustrate even low level presidential appointees," Bayh told MSNBC.... The Indiana Democrats said it may be time to lower that to 55. "It's just brought the process to a halt and the public is suffering," Bayh said. Good for Bayh. Indeed, asked specifically whether the rules can be changed before his retirement, the Indiana senator added, "I think it can happen," adding, "The public has a right to see its business done and not routinely allow a small minority to keep us from addressing the great issues that face this country. I think the filibuster absolutely needs to be changed." A pleasant surprise, to be sure, especially after Sen. Chris Dodd's (D-Conn.) disappointing comments earlier. It's often forgotten, but the Senate has altered this threshold before. Before 1975, it took 67 votes to end debate and allow an up-or-down vote. Faced with the prospect of never passing anything, the number was lowered to 60. Now we're once again faced with a minority shutting down the legislative process. I'd prefer to see the filibuster disappear altogether, but lowering the threshold to 55 votes, as Bayh suggests, seems like a reasonable compromise. What's more, given Bayh's reputation and media adoration, his support for reforming the dysfunctional status quo has the capacity to make a difference. If Bayh is known for being a leading "moderate" who's tired of "both parties" and "partisanship" -- and he is -- then his support for changing the filibuster rules characterizes reform as a necessary, mainstream idea that will help improve how the Senate does business.

To: stockman_scott who wrote (69527)	2/17/2010 4:38:00 PM
From: tejek	Respond to of 149317

Its sounds to me like this guy Gelb just doesn't agree with Obama's positions nor his public optimism. Hardly the stuff that warrants reorganizing his staff. It seems to me that too many lefties are overthinking things these days. As for Obama's optimism, its been absolutely necessary in these bad times.....and I wouldn't want him to stop for one second. If the president isn't optimistic, who can be? And finally, none of Gelb's criticisms are about competence or intelligence......he just doesn't like the way the three men are doing their jobs. Someone needs to inform Mr. Gelb that he is not the president. • Obama is forever taking strong stances only to backfill and trim. Most recently, he said he did not “begrudge” Wall Streeters their big earnings because that was part of the market system. This, in the face of his saying only a couple of weeks ago that such big bonuses were “shameful.” • Obama doesn’t know what’s really going on. Regarding the Middle East, he recently said that “I think it is absolutely true that what we did this year didn't produce the kind of breakthrough that we wanted, and if we had anticipated some of these political problems on both sides earlier, we might not have raised expectations as high.” He had to be totally out of it not to realize that the Palestinians and Israelis were nowhere close to sitting down with each other and dealing. • Obama wants to get along with everyone so badly he doesn’t recognize real opposition when he sees it—let alone know how to deal with it. He emerges from a meeting with congressional Republican leaders on health-care reform and says he is “an eternal optimist”—when those very same Republican leaders just told the press that they don’t see any common ground and believe the administration has to “scrap the bill and start over.” • It’s even hard to follow his latest Afghan policy. He calls Afghanistan a “war of necessity” and orders more than 30,000 new troops there, coupled with an announcement that he’ll begin withdrawing some of them in a year plus, only to see some of his advisers say he will start withdrawals and some say he won’t.

To: stockman_scott who wrote (69527)	2/17/2010 6:09:43 PM
From: tejek	Respond to of 149317

US troops in Iraq below 100,000 for first time since 2003 AFP/ Wed Feb 17, 4:19 am ET BAGHDAD (AFP) – The size of the US force in Iraq has dropped below 100,000 troops for the first time since the invasion of the country in 2003, a military spokesman said Wednesday. "We have approximately 98,000 service members here at this time," First Lieutenant Elizabeth Feste said in an email. The total number of US soldiers in Iraq peaked at 170,000 in 2007 during then US president George W. Bush's so-called "surge" of troops in a bid to stabilise the country which was wracked by sectarian violence. American forces have gradually been withdrawing from Iraq under the terms of a bilateral security agreement between the two countries that calls for all US combat troops to leave the country by the end of August. Around 50,000 soldiers will remain, however, in training and advisory capacities before a complete withdrawal, which is due by the end of 2011. news.yahoo.com

To: stockman_scott who wrote (69527)	2/18/2010 11:47:50 AM
From: ChinuSFO	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 149317

The economy, aided by Obama's policies and the stimulus is limping back and that should be good news. The Democrats in Congress should give Obama the leeway he needs to take this country back. They need to stop their bickerings. As for Obama, it is time he looks into giving the auto industry some of the 30 billion that banks have returned. With Toyota having fallen flat, there is an opportunity for US automakers to fill the gap. GO US GO And the union leaders should also back off and hand over the unions to the workers. ================================== GM to Invest $494 Million, Recall 565 Workers at 3 U.S. Plants February 18, 2010, 10:16 AM EST More From Businessweek By Katie Merx Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Co., attempting to improve the fuel economy of its vehicles, will invest about $494 million and recall 565 workers at three U.S. plants making its revamped four-cylinder Ecotec engine. GM is spending $425 million of the total and recalling 470 employees at its engine factory in Tonawanda, New York, Kimberly Carpenter, a GM spokeswoman, said today. The Detroit-based automaker’s investment includes renovations, machinery, equipment and special tooling in Tonawanda as well as at plants in Defiance, Ohio, and Bay City, Michigan, she said. The Ecotec is part of GM’s effort to replace larger- displacement engines to meet fuel-economy regulations calling for an increased fleetwide average of 35.5 miles per gallon in 2016. “Four-cylinder engines are very important,” said Rebecca Lindland, an analyst at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts. “You can get a lot of horsepower and driving excitement with a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The problem GM and other manufacturers face is getting everyone to believe that.” GM also plans to invest $59 million and recall 80 jobs at a plant in Defiance and spend $10.5 million and restore 15 workers at its plant in Bay City, Carpenter said. GM wouldn’t name the vehicles that will use the new engines. --Editors: Steve Walsh, John Lear businessweek.com