The Obama Administration’s Agenda on Seniors & Social Security
“To put us on solid ground, we should also find a bipartisan solution to strengthen Social Security for future generations. We must do it without putting at risk current retirees, the most vulnerable, or people with disabilities; without slashing benefits for future generations; and without subjecting Americans’ guaranteed retirement income to the whims of the stock market.”
-PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA IN THE STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS, JANUARY 25, 2011
Progress
Many seniors are struggling in the face of the economic downturn, having seen their savings fall, and we acted quickly to help provide relief. The Recovery Act provided a one-time payment of $250 to retirees, other Social Security beneficiaries, disabled veterans, and SSI recipients. Fifty-six million retirees and other individuals received this one-time payment, totaling $14 billion. In light of continued economic hardship for too many seniors, the President has called for Congress to enact another $250 Economic Recovery Payment to our seniors this year, as well as to veterans and people with disabilities.
Guiding Principles
* Protecting & Strengthening Social Security
* Strengthening Retirement
For the entire article: http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/seniors-and-social-security/
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/
Friday, August 13 2010
All Times ET
10:00 am
The President receives the Presidential Daily Briefing
Oval Office
Closed Press
10:30 am
The President meets with senior advisors
Oval Office
Closed Press
11:00 am
The President signs the Southwest Border Security Bill
Oval Office
Pool Spray
(Gather Time 10:50AM – Brady Press Briefing Room)
11:45 am
Briefing by Press Secretary Robert Gibbs
James S. Brady Briefing Room
Open Press
8:30 pm
The President hosts an Iftar dinner
State Dining Room
Pooled Press
June 08, 2010
Background on the President’s Tele-Town Hall with Seniors
The President will participate in a national telephone-town hall meeting at the Holiday Park Multipurpose Senior Center in Wheaton, Maryland with senior citizens to discuss new Medicare benefits and protections under the Affordable Care Act and new efforts to combat senior scams and reduce waste, fraud and abuse in advance of the first mailing of the $250 “donut hole” rebate checks, which begin mailing on Thursday. There will be 120 local seniors in attendance, in addition, more than 10,000 seniors across the country will be able to participate in the town hall meeting via phone.
The President has directed the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to cut the improper payment rate, which tracks fraud, waste and abuse in the Medicare Fee for Service program, in half by 2012.
Today, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney General of the United States Eric Holder sent a letter to state attorneys general urging them to work with HHS and federal, state, and local law enforcement officials prevent scams and fraud and protect seniors on Medicare.
Additionally, Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and senior officials from the Administration on Aging and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today launched a national education effort to ensure that seniors have the information they need to protect themselves from potential scams or fraud when it comes to their Medicare benefits. The campaign will begin with a $1 million national radio buy that will run in June through August as $250 tax-free rebate checks get mailed to eligible seniors each month.
For the entire article: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/background-presidents-tele-town-hall-with-seniors
President Obama Tele-Town Hall The Affordable Care Act & Seniors
Bills Signed Into Law by the President
On Saturday, February 27, 2010, the President signed into law:
H.R. 3961, which provides a one year extension of several terrorist surveillance provisions included in the USA PATRIOT Act and the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004; and
H.R. 4532, the “Social Security Disability Applicants’ Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010,” which makes permanent the Social Security Administration programs that allow direct payment of attorneys and certain non-attorney representatives in Social Security and Supplemental Security Income claims cases.
Social Security Administration Upgrades Website
User-friendly format offers something for everyone
By Robert Longley, About.com Guide
Offering a “wealth of information” about the agency’s programs and services presented with a new “fresh, user-friendly look and feel,” the Social Security Administration (SSA) announces its newly designed — http://www.socialsecurity.gov — Website.
The new Website is easier to navigate, more attractive and more accessible to all visitors, including people with visual or other physical disabilities, says the SSA.
“Everything you want to know about Social Security is now easier to find on SSA’s new website, http://www.socialsecurity.gov,” said Jo Anne Barnhart, Commissioner of Social Security. “We’ve redesigned our website so that it is better organized and easier for the public to conduct Social Security business online. And our new address is more easily associated with our agency.”
Apply for Benefits Online
One of the most popular Internet services offered by SSA is the online benefits application, where visitors can apply for retirement, spouse’s and disability benefits via the Internet. This service — found at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/applyforbenefits — allows people to conduct business with SSA at a time that is convenient to them and from the comfort of their own home.
“Social Security’s programs touch the lives of nearly every person in America, from the young to the old,” said Commissioner Barnhart. “socialsecurity.gov offers online services for children and retirees, and for people at every stage of life in between.”
Something for Everyone
socialsecurity.gov provides useful online services and valuable information for all types of people, whether it’s:
# a young adult first entering the workforce,
# a new bride,
# a new parent,
# a person who has become disabled,
# a family member who has lost a loved one, or
# an older person making the transition from work to retirement.
People of all ages and life situations can find an abundance of information in SSA’s publications and Frequently Asked Questions, which can be found easily at SSA’s new, simplified homepage.
Young children and teens can have fun and learn about Social Security at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/kids — SSA’s Kids and Family page.
Workers and people nearing retirement can get estimates of their future Social Security benefits at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/planners by clicking on “calculators.”
A free, monthly electronic newsletter, eNews, is available at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/enews and can be received automatically with a simple online subscription.
People receiving disability benefits, employers and service providers can visit The Work Site at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/work for information about support programs geared towards helping people with disabilities find employment.
Links at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/onlineservices cover the gamut of additional online services offered by Social Security, from general services that anyone can use to specific services for beneficiaries and businesses.
For the entire article: http://usgovinfo.about.com/cs/socialsecurity/a/ssawebsite.htm
Applying Online for Retirement Benefits – Social Security Part 1
Applying Online for Retirement Benefits – Social Security Part 2
Social Security Announces 3.6 Percent Benefit Increase for 2012 Cost-of-Living Adjustment is First Since 2009
October 19, 2011 socialsecurity.gov
Monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for more than 60 million Americans will increase 3.6 percent in 2012, the Social Security Administration announced today.
The 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits that nearly 55 million Social Security beneficiaries receive in January 2012. Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 30, 2011.
Some other changes that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages. Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $110,100 from $106,800. Of the estimated 161 million workers who will pay Social Security taxes in 2012, about 10 million will pay higher taxes as a result of the increase in the taxable maximum.
Information about Medicare changes for 2012, when announced, will be available at http://www.Medicare.gov. For some beneficiaries, their Social Security increase may be partially or completely offset by increases in Medicare premiums.
The Social Security Act provides for how the COLA is calculated. To read more, please visit http://www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.
5 Social Security Changes Coming in 2012
1/23/12 By Emily Brandon | U.S.News & World Report LP – 36 mins ago
Social Security recipients will see bigger payments this year for the first time since 2009. But the future of Social Security taxes for workers remains uncertain. The 2011 payroll tax holiday has been extended only through the end of February and is scheduled to increase in March under current law. Here’s a look at the Social Security changes workers and retirees will experience this year.
A boost in monthly payments. Social Security payments for more than 60 million Americans will increase 3.6 percent in 2012, the first increase since 2009. The typical retiree will see an increase of about $43 per month, although a portion of the increase may be deducted to pay for higher Medicare Part B premiums. Since 1975, Social Security payments have been automatically adjusted each year for inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. Cost-of-living adjustments have ranged from 14.3 percent in 1980 to zero in 2010 and 2011.
Higher Social Security tax cap. The maximum amount of earnings subject to Social Security taxes has increased from $106,800 in 2011 to $110,100 in 2012. The Social Security Administration estimates that about 10 million high earners will pay higher taxes as a result of the increase in the taxable maximum.
Social Security tax holiday temporarily extended. The 2 percent payroll tax cut that workers received in 2011 was recently extended through the first two months of 2012 by the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011. Nearly 160 million workers will continue to have 4.2 percent of their pay deposited into the Social Security trust fund instead of the usual 6.2 percent until Feb. 29, 2012.
However, higher-income employees who earn more than $18,350 in January and February 2012 must pay a 2 percent Social Security tax on the amount they earn between $18,350 and $110,100. “This additional recapture tax is an add-on to income tax liability that the employee would otherwise pay for 2012 and is not subject to reduction by credits or deductions,” according to a statement from the IRS. “The recapture tax would be payable in 2013 when the employee files his or her income tax return for the 2012 tax year.” Under current law, Social Security taxes are scheduled to return to 6.2 percent of pay in March 2012.
Higher earnings limits. Early retirees who work and collect Social Security benefits at the same time can earn $480 more next year before a portion of their Social Security benefit will be temporally withheld. Social Security recipients below their full retirement age (66 for those born between 1943 and 1954) can earn up to $14,640 in 2012, above which 50 cents of each dollar earned will be withheld from their Social Security payments. For retirees who will turn 66 in 2012, the limit climbs to $38,880, after which 33 cents of each dollar earned will be deducted from monthly payments. Starting the month you turn your retirement age, there is no penalty for working and collecting Social Security benefits at the same time. At that time, your benefit will also be adjusted to reflect your continued work record and any benefits that were withheld.
Maximum possible benefit grows. The maximum possible Social Security check will grow to $2,513 per month in 2012, up from $2,366 in 2011. To get this amount, a worker would need to earn the maximum taxable amount ($110,100 in 2012) every year after age 21.
July 28, 2010 majorityleader.house.gov
Hoyer Statement on the 75th Anniversary of the Social Security Act
WASHINGTON, DC – House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (MD) joined Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic Leaders, and House Democrats for a press event ahead of the 75th anniversary of the Social Security Act. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:
“For 75 years, Social Security has been more than a retirement program: it has meant dignity, security, and peace of mind for generations of our seniors. In return for a lifetime of hard work, it has meant that seniors can count on the stable support they’ve earned, no matter what.
“In 1935, Republicans stood in the way of its creation. And in recent years, they’ve only renewed their efforts to undermine and privatize Social Security. President Bush put privatizing Social Security at the top of his agenda in 2005. Fortunately, he didn’t succeed; but today, Republicans have made very clear that this is yet another Bush policy they want to return to if they take back power. Republicans want to subject Social Security to the whims of Wall Street—ending the very security it’s supposed to provide.
“Under the Republican scheme, if seniors were unlucky enough to retire during an economic downturn, they’d find that their retirements had a giant hole in them. Imagine, for instance, that instead of Social Security you put your money in a private account at the beginning of the Bush Administration, and that you invested in the S&P 500 Index. By that Administration’s end, your account would have lost 36% of its value. What would that have meant for your retirement? What would that have meant for your future?
“We owe to seniors to make Social Security sound and sustainable—not subject to market fluctuations. Democrats fought to create Social Security in the face of Republican opposition. And today, in the face of Republican plans to end Social Security as we know it, Democrats are fighting to keep it strong.”
Youth For Human Rights – Social Security
Netroots Nation: Strengthening Social Security
Jul 23, 2010 by Laura Clawson, blog.aflcio.org
One attendee of the Netroots Nation panel provocatively titled “Obama’s Social Security ‘Death Panel’” later told me he had gone into the panel dubious that there is any real threat to Social Security. “But I left mad,” he said, questioning how such an important part of America’s social fabric could be threatened. Yet as the panelists detailed, Social Security is most definitely under attack–and it’s an attack that could fundamentally alter how we understand the program.
Panelists agreed the most direct assaults on Social Security takes are likely to be defeated, as the privatization of the program was in 2005. But they pointed to a more nuanced threat. Robert Borosage of Campaign for America’s Future contrasted the “frightened, timid and cautious leadership” of today with the “confident society” that, following World War II, responded to a much larger deficit (as percentage of GDP) by embarking on a series of spending programs that reshaped the economy and built the middle class.
Today, Borosage said, there is an emerging elite consensus that is “focused on Social Security because it will show they’re ’serious,’ even though it will have no effect on the deficit.” They portray Social Security as being in crisis, then claim that proposed cuts are “saving” the program. Eric Kingson, co-director of Social Security Works, made it clear that Social Security is not in crisis.
Social Security should and can work for the next 75 years.
“But it’s up to all of us” to defend it. Crucially, defending Social Security
is not about dollars and cents and it’s not about balancing the books. It’s about how well the American people do—all of us.
The elite consensus will, unfortunately, drive too much of what happens on a policy level. But what about working people? As a panelist myself, I spoke about what Working America organizers hear in the field every night, on the doorsteps of thousands of working Americans. Working people are deeply worried that their Social Security benefits will be cut, but too much of what they hear is dominated by fear-mongering claims that Social Security is in crisis. If the progressive movement doesn’t reach out to working people with the message that Social Security is not in trouble, we allow its enemies to define the debate. And if the debate begins with the assumption that cuts are needed to “save” the program, we’re stuck fighting against backward movement. Instead, we need to be fighting our way forward by providing working people information that shifts the debate forward.
That fight “is going to be the battle of our lives,” according to the blogger Digby. She referred back to the successful fight against privatization in 2005 and highlighted the importance of repetition: For every time opponents of Social Security say it’s in crisis, its defenders have to say “no, it’s not.” Or “strengthen Social Security—don’t cut it.” (And make no mistake, raising the eligibility age is a cut.) As progressive bloggers and individuals and organizations, she emphasized, we have to use every tool at our disposal to amplify those simple messages.
Medicare Gets New Lease On Life; Social Security Remains Healthy
08- 5-10 Dan Froomkin – HuffingtonPost.com
The new health care law has significantly improved the prognosis for Medicare, extending the life of its trust fund by 12 years until 2029, and thereby delaying any need for dramatic changes in benefits or revenues, according to a new report.
The annual check-up from government actuaries overseeing the nation’s two central safety-net programs also found that Social Security continues to be much less of a problem than Medicare, and will remain in strong financial shape at least through 2037.
“The financial outlook for the Medicare program is substantially improved as a result of the far-reaching changes in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,” concludes the Medicare report — although the trustees warned that the improvements depend on the successful implementation of the law.
Social Security, according to its annual report, is expected to pay out slightly more in benefits than it receives in payroll tax this year, for the first time since changes were made in 1983. But payroll taxes are only one source of income for the program, and with the others — including interest income on its $2.5 trillion trust fund, held in special issue U.S. Treasury securities — the program is expected to continue to run a surplus until 2024.
The program will need to start spending from its trust fund in 2025, with that fund becoming exhausted in 2037, which is consistent with last year’s estimate. But at a press conference Thursday, Social Security Commissioner Michael J. Astrue, one of the government trustees releasing the report, begged reporters not to scare the public by exaggerating the significance of trust fund exhaustion
“That does not mean that there will be no money left,” Astrue said. At that point, even if Congress took no action, Social Security could still pay out 78 percent of expected benefits from annual revenues. “That would be a bad result, but it is a far cry from having no benefits at all,” he said.
For the entire article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/05/medicare-gets-new-lease-o_n_671936.html
Saving Money and Giving Seniors Better Care
August 05, 2010 Nancy-Ann DeParle – WhiteHouse.gov
Today, we got more good news about the Affordable Care Act, the new law that will give seniors better benefits and save Medicare $575 billion over the next ten years. Many savings provisions in the new law kick in immediately, totaling about $8 billion in just the first two years. That’s real money, even in Washington, and it’s money we’re saving by cutting waste, fraud and abuse and making Medicare more efficient — not by changing seniors’ guaranteed Medicare benefits. In fact, we’re making benefits for seniors even better. In the coming years, seniors will save an average of $200 per year in premiums and more than $200 in coinsurance, and we’ll completely close the Medicare prescription drug gap known as the “donut hole.”
This morning, the Social Security and Medicare Boards of Trustees released a new report that demonstrates how the Affordable Care Act is helping to reduce costs and make Medicare stronger. The report shows that the Affordable Care Act will extend the life of the Medicare Trust Fund by 12 additional years – the biggest extension ever – and help preserve Medicare for generations to come.
But the Affordable Care Act isn’t just about saving money for Medicare. It’s about providing better services and giving seniors higher quality care. Many of the provisions on the Affordable Care Act are specifically designed to improve care and lower costs – like providing free preventive care and avoiding hospital readmissions.
Forty -five years ago, President Johnson signed Medicare into law – making a solemn commitment to provide to our seniors and some of the most vulnerable Americans with health care coverage. President Obama will always uphold that commitment. That’s why we fought for the Affordable Care Act in first place – to ensure that Medicare is protected for years to come.
Today we also learned that the Affordable Care Act is actually expected to strengthen Social Security and improve its solvency by bringing down health premiums, resulting in higher take-home pay for America’s workers. Social Security is a critical bedrock of economic security not just for America’s seniors but for people with disabilities and survivors and our Administration is committed to working to keep it that way not just for the current generation but for generations to come.
You can learn more about ways the Affordable Care Act is cutting costs and improving health care for seniors and all Americans at HealthCare.gov.
Nancy-Ann DeParle is Director of the White House Office of Health Reform
USGOVHHS | June 30, 2010
Here are a few things you should know about the health insurance reform bill called the Affordable Care Act and how it affects your Medicare. For more informtion visit:
http://HealthCare.gov/foryou/seniors
VP Biden Talks Medicare with Seniors
June 22, 2010
Background and Fact Sheet on the President’s Event today on the Affordable Care Act and The New Patients’ Bill of Rights
EAST ROOM
* READ THE FACT SHEET (PDF)
90-DAY ANNIVERSARY OF THE SIGNING OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT AND THE NEW PATIENTS’ BILL OF RIGHTS
One day after the 90-day anniversary of the signing of the Affordable Care Act, the President will deliver remarks in the East Room regarding the ongoing effort to implement the new law and announce the release of new regulations implementing the patients’ bill of rights protections included in the Affordable Care Act. The remarks will take place immediately after a meeting with Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary Hilda Solis, state insurance commissioners, and insurance company CEOs in the Roosevelt Room. A fact sheet of the Affordable Care Act and the New Patients’ Bill of Rights is attached.
The audience (approx. 160) will include Americans who are already benefiting from the new law (bios below), as well members of Congress, consumer and disease groups, labor and the business and insurer communities (including insurance company CEOs and state insurance commissioners).
For the entire article: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/background-and-fact-sheet-presidents-event-today-affordable-care-act-and-new-patien
President Obama: Closing the “Doughnut Hole”
DCCC Chair: Dems Will Pound GOP On Social Security, Keep Retirement Age In Place
8/12/10 Sam Stein – Huffington Post
Facing a historically difficult electoral landscape, Democratic leadership is planning to reconfigure its message by focusing on what the election could mean for the future of Social Security.
Top officials insist that among all the issues they’ve tested with voters, the one that yields the best results for the party is a pledge to protect the retirement program from privatization. And with the economy in the midst of a slow but painful recovery, health care reform still largely a mixed bag in terms of popularity, and an unpopular war in Afghanistan, Social Security has climbed to the top of the list of conversation topics out of both expediency and necessity.
“All of the information I’ve seen, and I’ve seen some of the national polling data and some in local districts as well, show that people are… extremely nervous about privatizing Social Security,” said Democratic Congressional Committee Chairman Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.). “And they are worried that that’s what Republicans intend to do. They tried it once… and it is a major plank in the road map that was set forth by their point person on the budget committee, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.).”
In an interview with the Huffington Post, the Maryland Democrat said he is taking his cues from the debate that Democrats successfully argued during the turn of George W. Bush’s second term. “The fact is that the American people soundly rejected the Bush privatization proposal,” said Van Hollen. “The events of the past 18 months underscore what kind of economic devastation would have been caused to seniors.”
This week alone, Democrats are set to host 100 town halls centered on keeping Social Security intact. And they’re putting together TV advertisements to air against Republican lawmakers who have supported privatization.
For the entire article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/12/dccc-chair-dems-will-poun_n_680473.html
Nancy Pelosi Hits The Campaign Trail For Democrats In Red, Blue States
8/13/10 CHARLES BABINGTON – AP
WASHINGTON — The big political bull’s-eye on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s back isn’t keeping her from campaigning for Democratic candidates in several states, even if she avoids some of the most conservative regions.
Pelosi will attend fundraisers this month in Houston and Dallas, plus make a joint appearance Aug. 16 with President Barack Obama in Los Angeles. She recently headlined a fundraiser in Santa Fe for New Mexico’s three House Democrats, two of whom face tough Republican challengers who criticize their ties to the speaker.
That Aug. 3 event underscored the double-edged nature of Pelosi visits.
No Democrat except Obama raises more money, say party officials, who credit Pelosi with pulling in $189 million since 2003. But she also is the GOP’s favorite target this year, eclipsing even the president in the guilt-by-association tactic that Republicans are using in dozens of races.
As a result, some Democrats like to collect their money with a minimum of public interaction with the liberal from San Francisco. At the Santa Fe event, quietly held in a private home, “Democrats weren’t saying much about the visit,” the Albuquerque Journal reported.
House speakers are powerful figures in Washington. But most could stroll streets outside their district without being recognized. (Think Dennis Hastert, Tom Foley, Jim Wright.)
That’s not true of Pelosi. She has attracted attention as the first woman to hold the post and as a fierce tactician who cajoles, charms and strong-arms colleagues to enact difficult bills such as this year’s health care overhaul.
For the entire article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/13/nancy-pelosi-hits-the-cam_n_681117.html
Great information about Social Security. Thanks, CR!
FDR signs Social Security Act
DemRapidResponse | September 19, 2008 -
Senator Obama: “We’re not going to gamble with Social Security…That’s my commitment as President.”
TGIF O’Team…please join me in lighting a daily candle as our First Family prepares for a weekend vacation in the Gulf.
http://www.gratefulness.org/candles/candles.cfm?l=eng&gi=pbo
Good morning and thank you Donna!
Gates: Congress hurting Afghan civilian aid effort
8/12/10 By SAGAR MEGHANI, AP
SAN FRANCISCO – Defense Secretary Robert Gates is calling for a “change in attitude” on Capitol Hill in getting more civilian help in Afghanistan.
Gates told an audience in San Francisco that resources given to the State Department for work in the war zone are “woefully inadequate” and that Congress is “part of the problem.”
Gates noted that lawmakers approved the entire $550 billion budget he asked for this year, but shaved a few billion off the $50 billion Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton had requested.
The Pentagon chief said there now are about 1,000 State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development workers in Afghanistan but it was “critically important” hat more attention be given the diplomatic part of the Afghan effort.
US nabs al-Qada-linked militants in Afghanistan
8/13/10 AP
KABUL, Afghanistan – U.S. and Afghan forces stepped up operations against a Taliban faction linked to al-Qaida, arresting several key figures in the network in raids in two eastern provinces, NATO reported Friday.
A raid Thursday in the Manduzai district of Khost province led to the capture of a deputy commander of the Haqqani group who had been supplying weapons to other members of the network, NATO said in a statement. The commander was not identified but the statement said he was among “several” Haqqani group members rounded up in the raid.
Another Haqqani weapons supplier, who was also not named, was picked up Wednesday in Paktiya province, NATO said. The statement said he had been involved in smuggling weapons, ammunition and bomb materials from Pakistan to fighters operating in Afghanistan.
The U.S. considers the Haqqani group, led by Jalaluddin Haqqani and his son Sirajuddin, as one of the most dangerous Taliban groups because of its links to al-Qaida.
The group is suspected of playing a major role in the Dec. 30 bombing of a CIA base in Khost as well as a series of attacks in the capital of Kabul. It is based in the western border area of Pakistan, where U.S. forces cannot operate on the ground.
So far Pakistani authorities have resisted U.S. calls to launch a ground operation against the Haqqani network, saying its forces are overstretched fighting the Pakistani Taliban and other militants that have staged attacks inside Pakistan.
Obama’s iftar
Second Ramadan dinner to be held
8/11/10 By CAROL E. LEE – POLITICO
President Obama will host an iftar dinner Friday night at the White House to mark the start of Ramadan before heading off to the Gulf Coast on Saturday, a White House official said.
The event will be similar to the one Obama hosted last year in the State Dining Room, said the official.
Last year’s guest list included various ambassadors, as well as members of Congress and the administration.
“On behalf of the American people, Michelle and I want to extend our best wishes to Muslims in America and around the world,” Obama said in a statement Wednesday. “I look forward to hosting an Iftar dinner celebrating Ramadan here at the White House later this week, and wish you a blessed month.”
Obama reflected on “Islam’s role in advancing justice, progress, tolerance, and the dignity of all human beings,” and described Ramadan as “a celebration of a faith known for great diversity and racial equality.”
“Ramadan is a time when Muslims around the world reflect upon the wisdom and guidance that comes with faith, and the responsibility that human beings have to one another, and to God,” Obama said. “This is a time when families gather, friends host iftars, and meals are shared. But Ramadan is also a time of intense devotion and reflection — a time when Muslims fast during the day and pray during the night; when Muslims provide support to others to advance opportunity and prosperity for people everywhere. For all of us must remember that the world we want to build — and the changes that we want to make — must begin in our own hearts, and our own communities.”
Obama to sign border security bill Friday
8/12/10 By JIM ABRAMS, AP
WASHINGTON – Determined to show a commitment to stopping the flow of illegal immigrants, the Senate convened a special session Thursday and passed a $600 million bill to put more agents and equipment along the Mexican border.
The voice vote in the nearly empty Senate chamber sends the legislation to President Barack Obama, who planned to sign it into law on Friday. Obama had urged Congress to channel more money toward border security amid complaints from states besieged by undocumented immigrants and illegal drug trafficking.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the chief sponsor, said the measure would provide Obama and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano “with the boots on the ground and the resources necessary to combat the crime and violence.”
Obama said the bill would help protect communities along the Southwest border and across the country.
“And this new law will also strengthen our partnership with Mexico in targeting the gangs and criminal organizations that operate on both sides of our shared border,” he said in a statement.
House Democrats had also called a special session, summoning lawmakers back from their summer break Tuesday to pass the border security bill and a $26 billion aid bill to keep teachers and other public workers from being laid off. Both issues — jobs and border security — are among those expected to be on voters’ minds when they go to the polls in November.
Senate historian Donald Ritchie said it was only the second time since the August break became official policy in 1970 that the Senate had reconvened. The first time was after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
For the entire article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100813/ap_on_bi_ge/us_congress_border_10
Call and answer
Border bill’s passage praised
8/13/10 By POLITICO STAFF
President Obama released this statement after the Senate passed a $600 million bill to increase security along the U.S.-Mexico border:
“I have made securing our Southwest border a top priority since I came to office. That is why my administration has dedicated unprecedented resources and personnel to combating the transnational criminal organizations that traffic in drugs, weapons and money and smuggle people across the border with Mexico. Today’s action by Congress answers my call to bolster the essential work of federal law enforcement officials and improve their ability to partner with state, local and tribal law enforcement. The resources made available through this legislation will build upon our successful efforts to protect communities along the Southwest border and across the country. And this new law will also strengthen our partnership with Mexico in targeting the gangs and criminal organizations that operate on both sides of our shared border. So these steps will make an important difference as my administration continues to work with Congress toward bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform to secure our borders, and restore responsibility and accountability to our broken immigration system.”
Good Friday Morning Everyone!
I HOPE that you have a good day!
August 12, 2010
Statement by the President on the Passage of the Southwest Border Security Bill
I have made securing our Southwest Border a top priority since I came to office. That is why my administration has dedicated unprecedented resources and personnel to combating the transnational criminal organizations that traffic in drugs, weapons, and money, and smuggle people across the border with Mexico. Today’s action by Congress answers my call to bolster the essential work of federal law enforcement officials and improve their ability to partner with state, local, and tribal law enforcement. The resources made available through this legislation will build upon our successful efforts to protect communities along the Southwest border and across the country. And this new law will also strengthen our partnership with Mexico in targeting the gangs and criminal organizations that operate on both sides of our shared border. So these steps will make an important difference as my administration continues to work with Congress toward bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform to secure our borders, and restore responsibility and accountability to our broken immigration system.
Fact Sheet on the President’s Strategic and Integrated Southwest Border Security Strategy:
The President will sign into law a comprehensive plan to secure the Southwest border, including $600 million in supplemental funds for enhanced border protection and law enforcement activities, offset by cancelling $100 million from the SBInet program within DHS. Though not specifically provided in this bill, the President has also authorized the deployment of up to an additional, requirements-based 1,200 National Guard troops to the border, a deployment that has already begun.
$600 Million in Additional Resources
The Administration has secured $600 million in supplemental funds which will be utilized to enhance technology at the border, share information and support with state, local, and tribal law enforcement, and increase DOJ and DHS presence and law enforcement activities at the border, to include increased agents, investigators, and prosecutors, as part of a multi-layered effort to target illicit networks trafficking in people, drugs, illegal weapons, and money. The supplemental is fully offset by cancelling $100 million from the SBInet program within DHS and from a temporary increase to the fraud prevention and detection fees for some employers seeking high skilled foreign workers.
Department of Homeland Security
* The supplemental provides $394 million for the Department of Homeland Security. The bill includes $244 million to hire new and maintain existing levels of Border Patrol agents and Customs and Border Protection Officers, $32 million for two new unmanned aerial detection systems, $6 million for forward operating bases for Border Patrol agents, $14 million for tactical communications to support enforcement activities, and $80 million for new ICE agents and supporting investments along the border, and $8 million to train new law enforcement staff.
Department of Justice
* The supplemental provides $196 million for the Department of Justice to surge federal law enforcement officers in the Southwest border region and the temporary deployment of personnel to high crime areas. Location of assignments will be operationally dependent. Specifically, Justice funding would increase the presence of federal law enforcement in the Southwest border districts by adding seven (7) ATF Gunrunner Teams, five (5) FBI Hybrid Task Forces, additional DEA agents, equipment, operational support, and additional attorneys including over thirty (30) prosecutors and immigration judges. It also would provide additional funds for detention and incarceration of criminal aliens in coordination with Department of Homeland Security enforcement activities.
* The supplemental request would also provide funding to support Mexican law enforcement operations with ballistic analysis, DNA analysis, information sharing, technical capabilities, and technical assistance, including over twenty (20) Deputy US Marshals dedicated to the Mexican Investigative Liaison Program and the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) to address cross-border investigations.
For the entire article: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2010/08/12/statement-president-passage-southwest-border-security-bill
Senate passes border bill
75 Years Later: GOP: Hands Off Social Security
45 Years Ago Today…
Honoring Social Security, Not Privatizing It
White House against ending birthright citizenship
8/13/10 AP
WASHINGTON – The Obama administration says it’s wrong to try to change the constitutional amendment that grants automatic citizenship to babies born in the United States.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano says she’s surprised that Republican congressional leaders are joining a push to reconsider the 14th Amendment instead of working with Democrats on comprehensive immigration reform. Napolitano says that’s “just wrong.”
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says President Barack Obama agrees with Napolitano.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has said he supports holding hearings to reconsider the citizenship rights of illegal immigrants’ babies born in the U.S. But he emphasized that Washington should remain focused on border security.
GOP Targeting 14th Amendment
Obama to mark Katrina anniversary in New Orleans
8/13/10 AP
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama will mark the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans on Aug. 29.
The White House says Obama will speak at Xavier University. Other administration officials who have worked on Katrina recovery efforts will also be in the region to mark the anniversary.
Obama made his first trip to New Orleans since taking office in October, holding a town hall with local residents. He returned to the city again this year to assess efforts to stop the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
White House hails new GM CEO Akerson
8/13/10 by Matt Spetalnick & Steve Holland – Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House hailed GM’s new CEO Dan Akerson on Friday as a proven and respected executive who can guide the company’s recovery.
Spokesman Robert Gibbs said President Barack Obama was informed of Edward Whitacre’s resignation and was grateful for his service.
GOPers Line Up To Repeal Wall Street Reform
08-13-10 Lucia Graves- Huffington Post
Last month Dino Rossi became the first Senate candidate in the country to call for the repeal of Wall Street reform. Now it’s clear he has plenty of company on Capitol Hill.
With Washington state’s primary Tuesday just a few days away, HuffPost asked around at the Capitol to see how Rossi, the Republican challenger expected to face Democratic incumbent Patty Murray in the general election, stacks up with sitting Republican Senators on financial reform.
The verdict? When it comes to Wall Street reform, Rossi’s views fall in line with many top GOP leaders.
Rossi made headlines when he said on ABC/Washington Post’s “Top Line” program, “I think it should be [repealed]“, charging the Wall Street reform bill has “created six super banks and left Fannie [Mae] and Freddie [Mac], which were at the epicenter of the problem, out of the deal.”
Democrats pounced on Rossi’s words, saying he is much too conservative for a state that leans left and arguing Rossi shows more loyalty to big banks than to Washington taxpayers. “Rossi seems to want to go back to the days when Wall Street ran roughshod over families resulting in the worst economic recession since the Great Depression,” DNC spokesman Frank Benenati said. And Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokeswoman Deirdre Murphy said Rossi “is out of step with Washington values and not on the side of consumers in his state.”
For the entire article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/13/gopers-line-up-to-repeal_n_680733.html
Republican Party Only Winning Key 2010 Poll In Southern States
8/12/10 Elyse Siegel – The Huffington Post
Findings released in a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll suggest that the Republican Party is very much a Southern regional white party in terms of the demographics of its supporters.
MSNBC relays the numbers:
The GOP has a HUGE generic-ballot edge in the South (52%-31%), but it doesn’t lead anywhere else. In the Northeast, Dems have a 55%-30% edge; in the Midwest, they lead 49%-38%; and in the West, it’s 44%-43%.
MSNBC notes that many of the races in which Republicans stand to make electoral gains are taking place in the South “where you have whiter and older voters,” or in congressional districts with Southern-like constituencies.
Earlier this year, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele raised eyebrows when he suggested the GOP for decades has pursued a “‘Southern Strategy’ that alienated many minority voters by focusing on the white male vote in the South.”
Speaking at DePaul University, Steele — the first African-American to chair the RNC — told a group of students that African-Americans “don’t have a reason” to vote for Republican candidates.
Elizabeth Warren Wins The Support Of Two More Senators
8/13/10 Ryan Grim – Huffington Post
Two more Senate Democrats climbed aboard the Elizabeth Warren bandwagon on Friday, signing on to a statement circulated by Sen. Al Franken encouraging President Obama to nominate the Harvard professor to lead the nascent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an entity she first proposed and helped shepherd through Congress.
The Progressive Change Campaign Committee and the P Street Project have been urging their membership to flood Congress with calls of support for Warren. Franken’s statement gives advocates something to organize around. The group is also calling on citizens to sign a petition backing her.
Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Mark Udall (D-Colo.) have now gotten behind the effort. “Elizabeth Warren has proven that she is willing to stand up to Wall Street on behalf of consumers and is the logical choice to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” reads the statement they signed. “If appointed by President Obama, I would vote to confirm Elizabeth Warren to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.”
On Thursday, Warren met with senior staff at the White House. “The President believes that Elizabeth Warren is a champion for middle class families and consumers and she, among others, is a strong contender for this position. The President has not yet made a decision and no announcement is imminent,” said White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage.
Why GOP’s predicted gains in midterm elections might be short-lived
8/13/10 By Linda Feldmann – Christian Science Monitor
Washington – Everyone knows the Democratic Party is unpopular and that it stands to lose a substantial number of House and Senate seats come November, perhaps even control of one or both chambers.
But in fact, the public thinks worse of the Republicans, according to a new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. The poll shows 24 percent of Americans view the Republican Party positively, an all-time low in the poll’s 21-year history. That compares with a 33 percent positive rating for the Democrats. The negative ratings are comparable – 46 percent unfavorable for the Republicans, 44 percent for the Democrats.
Those numbers do not foretell major losses for the Republican incumbents. Generalized unhappiness with the GOP does not necessarily mean discontent with one’s member of Congress.
Most important, the Democrats control both Congress and the White House, and voters will take out their frustration over the state of the country on them. In particular, a well-documented enthusiasm gap, demonstrated most recently in Tuesday’s higher turnout numbers for Republicans over Democrats in the primaries, means GOP voters are more motivated to go out and vote against Democrats than Democrats are to support their own party.
The ‘short fuse’ electorateBut these numbers present a warning to Republicans: Voters may support them in November and give them big gains, but if they don’t deliver, they could be in trouble. This is particularly so if the Republicans take over at least the House and don’t accomplish much, they could be short-timers.
After all, it’s only been three-plus years since the Democrats took over both houses of Congress, and the pendulum has already swung sharply in the opposite direction.
“The public’s on a really short fuse nowadays,” says Steven Schier, a political scientist at Carleton College in Northfield, Minn. “And it’s because times are bad. We’re at war, the economy is terrible.”
Democratic pollster Peter Hart, codirector of the NBC/WSJ poll, calls it a “JetBlue election.” “Everyone is frustrated,” Mr. Hart told NBC. “And everyone is headed for the emergency exit.”
A GOP campaign agenda: Does it matter?Congressional Republicans have yet to come out with a policy agenda to run on in the November midterms, but they are promising to do so next month. For now, they’re on a listening tour.
But Mr. Schier isn’t sure a 2010 version of the Contract With America – the GOP’s list of 10 action items released in the run-up to their successful 1994 takeover of Congress – will have much lasting impact for the Republicans. Even in 1994, most voters weren’t aware of the Contract when they handed the Republicans a 53-seat gain and control of the House.
An agenda for 2010 “could help them short-term in the cycle, if the specifics are well received, and certain candidates use them as a message in certain districts successfully,” says Schier. But, he adds, there’s little Republicans can do about their brand until they have a presidential candidate.
In a bit of hopeful news for the Democrats, the NBC/WSJ poll shows that the public generically prefers congressional Republicans over Democrats only in the South, where it’s 52 percent to 31 percent. In the Northeast, the Democrats lead 55-30. In the Midwest, they lead 49-38. And in the West, they’re up by one, 44-43.
“Yet do keep this caveat in mind,” says the analysis on MSNBC.com. “Many of the congressional districts Republicans are targeting outside of the South resemble some of those Southern districts they’re hoping to win back in November – where you have whiter and older voters.”
Hey CR, just checking in. Where is everyone today? I guess it is sort of a slow news day. Slow news days frightens me because the media have a tendency to try and create some nonsense controversy. You have posted lots of good article today. Thanks.
Hi COS!
I am glad that you dropped by! It has been slow today.
Obama will meet with business owners in Panama City
8/13/10 Alex Leary – TamapaBay.com
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, in Panama City Saturday, will hold a roundtable discussion with business owners, officials and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, the White House formally announced today.
Obama previously planned to spend the weekend in Panama City privately with his family. The White House said the roundtable will help generate ideas for the long-rang Gulf Coast Restoration Plan, which the president called for before the BP oil disaster. Afterward, he’ll address reporters.
Saturday 8/14 & Sunday 8/15 thread will be:
The 65th Anniversary of the World War II
Please feel free to share stories of family, friends or neighbors that have had an experience in WWII.
Obama backs mosque near ground zero
8/13/10 By ERICA WERNER, AP
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama on Friday forcefully endorsed building a mosque near ground zero, saying the country’s founding principles demanded no less.
“As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country,” Obama said, weighing in for the first time on a controversy that has riven New York City and the nation.
“That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances,” he said. “This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable.”
Obama made the comments at an annual dinner in the White House State Dining Room celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
Republicans were quick to pounce on the president’s remarks.
“President Obama is wrong,” said Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y. “It is insensitive and uncaring for the Muslim community to build a mosque in the shadow of ground zero. While the Muslim community has the right to build the mosque they are abusing that right by needlessly offending so many people who have suffered so much.”
For the entire article: http://yhoo.it/eGwpw2
I am glad POTUS took this strong stand. This is America.
Freedom of religion in the United States:
Freedom of religion was first applied as a principle of government in the founding of the colony of Maryland, founded by the Catholic Lord Baltimore, in 1634.Fifteen years later (1649) the Maryland Toleration Act, drafted by Lord Baltimore, provided: “No person or persons…shall from henceforth be any waies troubled, molested or discountenanced for or in respect of his or her religion nor in the free exercise thereof.” The Maryland Toleration Act was repealed with the assistance of Protestant assemblymen and a new law barring Catholics from openly practicing their religion was passed. In 1657, the Catholic Lord Baltimore regained control after making a deal with the colony’s Protestants, and in 1658 the Act was again passed by the colonial assembly. This time, it would last more than thirty years, until 1692[20], when after Maryland’s Protestant Revolution of 1689, freedom of religion was again rescinded. In addition in 1704, an Act was passed “to prevent the growth of Popery in this Province”, preventing Catholics from holding political office. Full religious toleration would not be restored in Maryland until the American Revolution, when Maryland’s Charles Carroll of Carrollton signed the American Declaration of Independence.
The modern legal concept of religious freedom as the union of freedom of belief and freedom of worship with the absence of any state-sponsored religion, originated in the United States of America.
Reiterating Maryland’s earlier colonial legislation, the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, written in 1779 by Thomas Jefferson, proclaimed:
“[N]o man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer, on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.”
The United States formally considers religious freedom in its foreign relations. The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 established the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom which investigates the records of over 200 other nations with respect to religious freedom, and makes recommendations to submit nations with egregious records to ongoing scrutiny and possible economic sanctions. Many human rights organizations have urged the United States to be still more vigorous in imposing sanctions on countries that do not permit or tolerate religious freedom.
US bailouts prevented 1930s-style Great Depression say economists
New study by economists Mark Zandi and Alan Blinder says US economic stimulus averted a worse downturn
7/28/10 Andrew Clark – guardian.co.uk
To Washington conservatives they were egregious examples of “big government” overreach, but the White House’s economic stimulus and bailout policies have saved 8.5m jobs and averted a further slump of 6.5% in US economic output, according to a study by two influential economists.
An in-depth modelling exercise by Moody’s chief economist, Mark Zandi, and a Princeton University expert, Alan Blinder, paints a bleak scenario of a 1930s-style Great Depression if the US government had enacted none of its $1.7tn (£1.3tn) programmes to avert a financial meltdown.
Using historical statistical relationships and a focus on the government’s impact on narrowing credit spreads, the pair found that the downturn would have continued into 2011, with unemployment peaking at 16.5% rather than last year’s actual high of 10.1%.
They believe US gross domestic product would have slumped by 7.4% in 2009 and by 3.7% in 2010, producing a “peak to trough” decline of 12%, rather than the anticipated 4%. Starved of demand, shops and employers would be cutting prices and wages.
“With outright deflation in prices and wages in 2009 to 2011, this dark scenario constitutes a 1930s-like depression,” says the study, entitled How the great recession was brought to an end”.
Thwarting stiff opposition from Republicans in Congress, the Obama administration introduced an economic stimulus package of more than $780bn last year, adding to giveaways of $170bn by the Bush administration in 2008 that included tax refunds to tens of millions of Americans. Adding in banking-bailout measures of $600bn and smaller programmes such as the “cash for clunkers” scheme and a rescue of insurer AIG, total commitments by the US government reach $1.7tn.
Zandi and Blinder say that although economic activity and job creation remain extremely sluggish, the US economy has made “enormous progress” since its nadir last year: “Maybe the country and the world were just lucky. But we take another view: the great recession gave way to recovery as quickly as it did largely because of the unprecedented responses by monetary and fiscal policymakers.”
The study’s authors are likely to have their findings hotly disputed by Republicans, who maintain that an unemployment rate stubbornly close to 10% means the government’s interventions were a failure, fuelling an out-of-control budget deficit.
Speaking earlier in the week, the Republicans’ senate leader, Mitch McConnell, insisted stimulus efforts had “little or no results”, and that such intervention “simply didn’t work”.
“Simply borrowing money from our grandchildren to send down to state governments is not going to jump start the economy,” McConnell told a newspaper in his home state of Kentucky. “The biggest way for the economy to recover is for the private sector to grow.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jul/28/us-bailouts-prevented-1930s-style-great-depression
Democrats: For senior citizens.
Republicans: Against senior citizens.
Chicago Tribune, Oct. 15, 2010:
Obama to seek $250 payment to Social Security recipients
By Jordan Steffen and Christi Parsons, Tribune Washington Bureau
President Obama will press Congress to send a one-time payment of $250 to senior citizens to help them get through another year without an increase in their Social Security benefits, White House officials said Friday.
The renewed call for those payments came shortly after the Social Security Administration announced that millions of retirees and disabled workers will see no cost-of-living adjustments for the second year in a row, a result of the low U.S. inflation rate.
Yet seniors are struggling through the current economic downturn, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Friday, and they can’t rely on their savings because of poor investment earnings.
The $250 Economic Recovery Payment would be akin to a similar benefit paid out by the federal government last year. That payment helped offset last year’s static Social Security rate for about 50 million recipients, according to the White House.
The idea met with support from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said the House will vote in November on a measure to provide the payments to Social Security recipients. News about the Social Security rate is just the latest piece of bad economic news — not just for seniors but for Obama and fellow Democrats trying to keep their majorities in the fall congressional elections.
But the plan faces opposition in the Senate, which defeated a similar measure last year, and among Republicans concerned about long-term funding of the Social Security system….
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sc-dc-1016-social-security-20101015,0,781849.story
WARP Op-Ed in USA TODAY: ‘Seniors Need Relief to Keep Up’
October 18th, 2010 by Karina – Speaker.gov
Last week, Speaker Pelosi announced the House will vote on the Seniors Protection Act of 2010 (HR 5987)—fiscally responsible legislation to provide 54 million seniors with a one-time payment of $250 in light of last week’s announcement by the Social Security Administration that there will be no automatic Cost-of-Living-Adjustment (COLA) for America’s seniors in 2011. This legislation has at least 200 co-sponsors and Democratic Members who have agreed to sign on. As of this morning, no Republicans have announced their support.
An op-ed in this morning’s USA TODAY by Nancy LeaMond, Executive Vice President of the state and national group for AARP, highlights why this legislation is so needed:
Congressional Democrats pledge to provide this Social Security payment in a fiscally responsible way. Congressional Republicans are pledging to privatize and cut Social Security and Medicare, turning it over to Wall Street.
What They’re Saying: New Health Care Rules Protect Consumers
Posted by Stephanie Cutter on November 22, 2010
This morning, the Obama Administration issued a regulation implementing a provision of the Affordable Care Act that will require insurance companies to spend at least 80 to 85 percent of premium dollars on medical care and health care quality improvement, rather than on administrative costs, starting in 2011. If they don’t, the insurance companies will be required to provide a rebate to their customers starting in 2012.
President Obama highlighted the new policy in an email this afternoon, and White House Office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann Deparle has recorded a new White House White Board video discussing the policy.
Consumer groups, Congressional leaders and advocates are praising the new rules for helping to give consumers a better value for their premium dollar and brining transparency to the health insurance marketplace. Here’s what they are saying:
American Medical Association
National Business Coalition on Health
AARP
Consumers Union
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Congressman Henry Waxman
Senator Max Baucus
Senator Tom Harkin
Senator Patty Murray
Senator Al Franken
Congressman Pete Stark
Congressman Sander Levin
For the entire article: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/11/22/what-they-re-saying-new-health-care-rules-protect-consumers
SOCIAL SECURITY
Social Security Invites the Public to Comment on its Regulations
Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today announced a new way for members of the public to participate in open and transparent government. In response to President Obama’s executive order on improving regulations and regulatory review, Social Security is inviting people to provide direct feedback on its rules and regulations. Ideas and comments may be emailed to RegsReview@ssa.gov.
“Social Security values the public’s input and wants to provide a meaningful opportunity for people to participate in the regulatory process,” Commissioner Astrue said. “I invite the public to share their thoughts and I am excited to hear their ideas.”
Social Security’s program rules are available online and may be accessed at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/regulations. There, you will find complete information about Social Security’s laws, regulations, rulings, and employee operating instructions.
For information about what Social Security is doing to improve its regulations and how the agency will implement the President’s executive order, go to the Open Government website: http://www.socialsecurity.gov/open/regsreview/.
Social Security fund now seen to be empty by 2037
1/27/11 STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, AP
WASHINGTON – Sick and getting sicker, Social Security will run at a deficit this year and keep on running in the red until its trust funds are drained by about 2037, congressional budget experts said Wednesday in bleaker-than-previous estimates.
The massive retirement program has been suffering from the effects of the struggling economy for several years. It first went into deficit last year but had been projected to post surpluses for a few more years before permanently slipping into the red in 2016
This year alone, Social Security will pay out $45 billion more in retirement, disability and survivors’ benefits than it collects in payroll taxes, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said. That figure nearly triples — to $130 billion — when the new one-year cut in payroll taxes is included.
Congress has promised to replenish any lost revenue from the tax cut, but that’s hardly good news, either, adding to the federal budget deficit. In another sobering estimate, the congressional office said government red ink this year will increase to $1.5 trillion, the most in U.S. history.
More than 54 million Americans receive Social Security benefits, averaging $1,076 per month.
The outlook for the program has grown more sour as the nation has struggled to recover from the worst economic crisis since Social Security was enacted, during the Great Depression. In the short term, Social Security is suffering from the weak economy that has payroll taxes lagging and applications for benefits rising. In the long term, Social Security will be strained by the growing number of baby boomers retiring and applying for benefits.
The projected deficits add a sense of urgency to efforts to improve Social Security’s finances. For much of the past 30 years, the program has run big surpluses, which the government has borrowed to spend on other programs. Now that Social Security is running deficits, the federal government will have to find money elsewhere to help pay for benefits.
“So long as Social Security was running surpluses, policymakers could put off the need to fix the program,” said Andrew Biggs, a former deputy commissioner at the Social Security Administration who is now a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. “Now that the system is running deficits, it simply becomes clear that we need to act on Social Security reform.”
President Barack Obama said in his State of the Union address Tuesday night that he wanted “a bipartisan solution to strengthen Social Security for future generations.”
For the entire article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110127/ap_on_re_us/social_security
Social Security stopping mailed earning statements
4/7/11 By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, AP
WASHINGTON – Those yearly statements that Social Security mails out — here’s what you’d get if you retired at 62, at 66, at 70 — will soon stop arriving in workers’ mailboxes. It’s an effort to save money and steer more people to the agency’s website.
The government is working to provide the statements online by the end of the year, if it can resolve security issues, Social Security Commissioner Michael Astrue said. If that fails, the agency will resume the paper statements, which cost $70 million a year to mail, he said.
“We’ll provide it, we expect, one way or another, before the end of the calendar year,” Astrue told The Associated Press. “We’re just right now trying to figure out the most cost-effective and convenient way to provide that to the American public.”
For the entire article: http://yhoo.it/hWGN2Y
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NBLB Come on over to my newest post
titled: “World War II ”
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