Another Day on Capitol Hill
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a blog entry called Best Practices: Transparency in Government.
I linked my blog to a CNN Clip that profiled two freshman legislators from both sides of the aisle. CNN has posted the second and third chapters of their profile about Freshmen on the Hill. Click here to check out the new clips featuring Rep. Jared Polis (D), from Colorado's 2nd Congressional District and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R) of Utah.
These clips provide an interesting peek into the world of our Congressmen, and give insight about the challenges and privileges of their position.
I linked my blog to a CNN Clip that profiled two freshman legislators from both sides of the aisle. CNN has posted the second and third chapters of their profile about Freshmen on the Hill. Click here to check out the new clips featuring Rep. Jared Polis (D), from Colorado's 2nd Congressional District and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R) of Utah.
These clips provide an interesting peek into the world of our Congressmen, and give insight about the challenges and privileges of their position.
Hi am a member of this informative website thought I would share a positive website.
Dear MoveOn member,
Want to see what change looks like? Real change?
Well, here it is. Last week, President Obama unveiled his budget—his blueprint for America—and it's ambitious, amazing, and unapologetically progressive. As Paul Krugman said, it will set America on a "fundamentally new course."1
President Obama called his budget "a threat to the status quo," and trust me, the status quo noticed. Oil companies, big banks and insurance companies are already mobilizing to stop it.2
Unfortunately, most folks don't realize how far-reaching and progressive the plan is—that's where we all come in.
Here are 10 really incredible things about Obama's plan. Check them out and then send them on to your friends and family so that millions of people will have the information they need to fight to make this vision a reality.
10 things you should know about Obama's plan (but probably don't)
The plan:
Makes a $634 billion down payment on fixing health care that will go a long way toward paying for a more efficient, more affordable health care system that covers every single American.3
Reduces taxes for 95% of working Americans. And if your family makes less than $250,000, your taxes won't go up one dime.4
Invests more than $100 billion in clean energy technology, creating millions of green jobs that can never be outsourced.5
Brings our troops home from Iraq on a firm timetable, finally bringing the war to a close—and freeing up almost ten billion dollars a month for domestic priorities.6
Reverses growing income inequality. The plan lets the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans expire and focuses on strengthening the middle class.7
Closes multi-billion-dollar tax loopholes for big oil companies. 8
Increases grants to help families pay for college—the largest increase ever.9
Halves the deficit by 2013. President Obama inherited a legacy of huge deficits and an economy in shambles, but his plan brings the deficit under control as soon as the economy begins to recover.10
Dramatically increases funding for the SEC and the CFTC—the agencies that police Wall Street.11
Tells it straight. For years, budgets have used accounting tricks to hide the real costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush tax cuts, and too many other programs. Obama's budget gets rid of the smokescreens and lays out what America's priorities are, what they cost, and how we're going to pay for them.12
This is the change we voted for. President Obama has done his part, now we need to do ours.
Can you pass this on to your personal network and then click here to let us know how many people you told, so we can track our impact together:
http://pol.moveon.org/budget10/?id=15687-11102543-oRhueOx&t=1
Thanks for all you do.
–Daniel, Tanya, Peter, Justin and the rest of the team
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Recommendation for a must-see movie:
Yesterday I went to see Joshua Tickell's movie "Fuel".
It is playing at the Starz Film Center, 900 Auraria Parkway, Denver CO 80204 until 3/26/2009.
On Thursday, it will move, for one day only, to a Boulder theater.
For information as to show times and locations, you can check out the website: http://thefuelfilm.com.
In my mind, this is a must-see movie for every American citizen, man, woman or child.
It tells us where we are coming from, where we are, what the industry is experimenting with today, and where we can go in the future, if we want to, as far as energy efficiency and alternative energies are concerned.
The picture you get from the movie is very different from the one you get from established energy think-tanks like the Energy Information Administration, the International Energy Agency, and the National Petroleum Council.
And there is a reason for that: these think-tanks are responsible for telling it to us the way it is, not for imagining what could be.
On the other hand, imagination is precisely what we need today, in the field of energy. Our lives and the lives of our children depend on it.
What we need today, in the field of energy, is a JFK "man-on-the-moon" moment. No established think-tank in early 1962 would have told us that by the end of that decade a man would have been walking on the moon...
But still, we made it happen.
I strongly recommend watching this movie, and spreading the word around.
Stefano Chioetto
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