CongressionalChatter

Senator Cornyn and Senatory Durbin on FNS

congressionalchatter — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 01:51:15 +0000

Today, Senators Cornyn and Durbin sat down with Fox News Sunday. They discussed their views on health care, the economy, the War in Afghanistan, and the the plan to send troops to Afghanistan by president Obama including his time line of being out by July 2011. Cornyn says he supports the strategy that is needed and suggested, but has questions about the announced deadline, and sees it as a bad idea to not have the deadline be conditions based but rather have a definite end date.

Hear the entire program here.

What is Going on Behind Closed Doors?

congressionalchatter — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 01:44:36 +0000

Today, it was written on Foxnews.com that Senate Republicans are accusing President Obama of “backroom arm-twisting”. The bill still faces heavy opposition from the Senate’s 40 Republicans and is in danger of not getting it’s unanimous vote of 60 Senate Democrats that it needs to pass. The abortion amendment and and a government-funded insurance program are the main ideas causing the dissension, and it is thought by Republicans that President Obama is attempting to push his agenda through these Democratic Senators. Read more Here about this controversy.

Wicker on Obama’s Plan for Afghanistan

congressionalchatter — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 01:22:16 +0000

Republican senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi discussed his ideas on President Obama’s plan for Afghanistan Today on CSPAN’s Washington Journal. He discussed the Republican view of the health care bill debate. See the full video on CSPAN.com Here.

Democrats Work Around the Clock to Hash Out Public Option Compromise

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 05:21:06 +0000

A group of 10 Senate Democrats are working together to find an answer for the Public Option debate. They have created a group that is comprised of 5 liberal democrats and 5 conservative democrats in hopes of reaching a middle ground compromise. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid apparently started the process and has the mentality of “What’s in the bill is not going to work, so get behind closed doors and work something out”. This article on Foxnews.com does a great job of showing who is comprising the group, how they feel about what is going on, and what they foresee being the pitfalls and outcomes of the process. Hopefully these Democrats won’t forget that they have intelligent Republican Senators too, that probably have some decent ideas if they would just get past being partisan.

A Break From Bi-Partisainship

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 04:34:30 +0000

So, I know I constantly preach that we should all be more bi-partisan, but I just thought this was funny. With all the new legislation about health care and how we’re going to pay for it, people thinking like these little kids is nothing out of the ordinary.

Turning the Tide: Senate Seats Could Possibly Switch Sides in 2010 Election

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 03:24:39 +0000

With the health care and stimulus debates heating up in both the House and the Senate, it is anyone’s guess as to how the votes will fall in the 2010 election. It does, however, appear that it will be a quarrelsome and controversial election. CNN.com has begun tracking what they think are going to be the top most Contentious elections in the 2010 race, and who they believe will be newsworthy opponents. Does your state make the cut? Find out HERE.

Is President Obama’s Plan for Afghanistan on the Right Track? Senators Question It.

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 02:10:16 +0000

President Obama’s approval ratings have been said to be lower than 50% after his speech last week. His plan is to send 30,000 more soldiers to Afghanistan, and to plan a date to pull troops out of July 2011. American citizens obviously have reservations, for many reasons, about this plan to win in Afghanistan, and that is expected. But Senators actively questioning the plan? That makes me worried.

Thursday, Republicans and Democrats alike questioned Obama’s plan for Afghanistan wondering if it focus on problems in Afghanistan too narrowly and if it did so at the expense of other Priorities of National Security. House Speaker Nancy Peolosi asked the White House to send its entire national security team to brief Congress about the plan and said “”I think we have to handle it with care (and) listen” to what they present”.

To read more about what members of Congress and other political figures had to say about this, read this article on CNN.com

Thune Sponsors Senate Bill for WWI Memorial

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 01:48:21 +0000

Republican Senator John Thune of South Dakota will sponsor a bill that would make the current Washington DC World War I memorial, the official World War I memorial for the Nation. This comes after a hearing was given from the last living survivor of World War I testified on Capital Hill today.

Cpl. Frank Buckles is 108 years old. He was born in 1901, and is the last surviving member of World War I. Last year he was taken the the District of Columbia’s World War I memorial and toured the overgrown and somewhat rundown memorial from his wheelchair. He noticed that the memorial only contained names of those from the District of Columbia. This inspired him to begin working to get this monument named the official WWI memorial.

Buckles and Thune’s idea of a WWI National monument at in Washington DC is being challenged by Democrat Claire McCaskil from Missouri, who has been campaigning for the Liberty Memorial at the National World War I Museum in Kansas to be the home.

To read more on Buckles’ speech visit this article on CNN.com

Rep. Representative Jason Chaffetz Makes CNN’s “Tweets of the Week”

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 01:37:58 +0000

Utah Republican Representative Jason Chaffetz made the CNN.com “Tweets of the Week” list at number 9. He responded to a question posed on twitter by CNN’s Rick Sanchez about President Obama’s decision to send more troops into Afghanistan soon, saying “Pres didn’t state moral imperative for 100,000 in Afghanistan. Didn’t define victory. Go big or go home. God bless our troops!”

To view the other political tweets of the week, visit this site.

Reading the Health Care Bill Can Now Be Easier for Some of Us

congressionalchatter — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 01:23:05 +0000

On multiple occasions I have attempted to read through the almost 2,000 page health care bill and on all of those occasions I have only managed to scratch the surface. It is long, it is complicated, and it is very very boring. I almost feel sorry for the politicians who have to read it on a daily basis. Lucky for us, we don’t have to, and also lucky for us I have found a great way to get all the important information contained within those 2,00 pages and still manage to keep our sanity. This tool on cnn.com gives the average person tips, links, ad helpful advice on how to read the health care bill. You no longer can use to excuse of it being too long or complicated to read. So curl up by the fire with your computer and enjoy some not so light holiday reading.