Dec 8, 2005 at 11:58 PM by Political Chase
Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald impaneled a new grand jury for the CIA leak case. There are many players, past and present, in this game and the circumstances vary significantly; too much information to remember or keep on Post-Its. Starting with the Plame investigation, we have added a Reference Section to TPC. Items added today are: (1) the Plame investigation key players and their bios, and (2) the background on the the CIA leak case.
The Reference Section is not a duplication of the document library, although there may be some cross links as things progress and are applicable. It is a Lexis-Nexis wanna be.
The objective is to provide primarily via links, historical and current information related to or arising from current affairs. Future examples – items related to the investigations of Jack Abramoff, Michael Scanlon, et al, will be added. Possibly items related to pending legislation that are significant and/or controversial may be appropriate. Links to organizations will be added. Additionally, it will not necessarily be contained to political information or resources. If we find it useful and informative, it will be there.
You can access the Reference Section throught the Navigation Bar or by clicking one of the links in this post.
If you are passing through and want to help by suggesting a link, resource or whatever, we would appreciate the tips.
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Dec 8, 2005 at 9:38 PM by Political Chase
The House passed three tax cuts and plans on a fourth today, which will reduce revenue $94.5 billion over five years. Before going into this further, I want to highlight the wisdom of one Representative.
“Our economic policies have done the trick,” said Rep. Deborah Pryce (R-Ohio). “We are in the middle of one of the strongest economies this country has ever seen.”
Add ice, shake this time - do not stir, and make your own jokes.
Now that we’ve firmly established the economy is red hot, on to a few details.
The groups targeted by the tax cuts approved today (414 to 4 vote) are:
- Business reconstruction in the Gulf Coast region — $7.1 billion
- US taxpayers serving in Iraq; allows combat pay to claim earned income credit — $153 million
- Taxpayers who otherwise would be hit by the alternative minimum tax (without detail and on the surface that means middle classs) — $31.2 billion
My abacus indicates that totals $38.4 billion. Nice to see the House really stretched it out for our troops (tongue firmly planted in cheek). I agree with the concept for the the items above, with the caveat that the military assistance is inadequate.
Remaining in the que for debate today is a $56 billion tax package that will extend the 2003 tax cuts (rates not elimination) on dividends and capital gains.
While conceptually the first three are appropriate, I have to ask the question again. Where is the revenue coming from that will offset these tax cuts? The fourth cut (or extension) is absolutely insane.
If you will remember, just three weeks ago, I wrote about the House voting (primarily along party lines) to reduce the budget by approximately $50 billion. That bill cut approximately 220,000 people off food stamps, allows states to impose new costs on Medicaid beneficiaries, squeeze student lenders, cut aid to state child-support enforcement programs and trim farm supports — whacking the farm supports are acceptable. Is this where the balance for the three tax cuts above are derived?
Let’s dig a little deeper.
The Senate approved a $60 billion dollar tax cut at the same time the House reduced the budget by $50 billion three weeks ago.
I want Rep. Pryce to answer the question, if the economy is so strong why are the budget cuts for the needy even brought up for consideration and what is the exact justification for the tax cuts for the wealthly? No “trickle-down economics” answers please. President Reagan proved that was a failure 20 years ago, and Bush is employing the same policy but at a more substantial rate.
Let’s spell it out in simple terms. Alan Greenspan has already warned the current deficit is dangerously high. Moreover the richest 1 percent of Americans, with an average income of almost $1.3 million in 2009, would enjoy 53 percent of the value of the tax-cut extensions in that year alone, while 78 percent would receive no benefit.
Arbusto is the word that keeps coming to my mind. Go figure.
Technorati Tags : Politics, Tax+Cuts, Taxes
Dec 8, 2005 at 8:29 PM by Political Chase
Republican congressional negotiators announced a White House-backed deal on Thursday to extend the USA Patriot Act, a centerpiece of President George W. Bush’s war on terror.
The most interesting comment I’ve heard about this today is Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, saying that the other unsavory alternatives were to let the Patriot Act expire at the end of the year or to renew an “existing bill which has a lot of problems.”
Then he goes on to say, “We have cut through the knotty problems to produce what I think is a balanced bill.”
Specter acknowledged that the compromise was not “perfect” and some key Republicans and Democrats in the Senate were quick to say that they still opposed the measure, which expanded the government’s powers to track suspected terrorists after the September 11, 2001, attacks.
New controls also would be placed on “sneak and peek” search warrants, which allow law enforcement officials to enter someone’s house without their knowledge. Under the compromise bill, notice of the search would have to be given within 30-days of its execution.
Caroline Fredrickson, director of the ACLU’s Washington legislative office, complained that the bill would still give the FBI access to private records of “innocent Americans” without having to demonstrate a connection between the records and a suspected foreign terrorist or terrorist organization.
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Dec 8, 2005 at 1:20 PM by Political Chase
Obviously I have not maintained my normal posting the past few days. I regret not being able to keep things up to date and apologize for not meeting the established objectives of TPC. I wish I could tell you I have been goofing off at St. Bart’s or something similar, but I can’t. There has been a serious illness in my immediate family, which obviously has mandated a high priority.
It’s been a bit like a riding a roller-coaster. That notwithstanding, I will strive to keep things as normal here as possible.
Please keep TPC in your subscription list. Thank you for being faithful readers.
— David Pleasant
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