Blog Post 2.8 "More Great News!"

There are people who are upset with Congress for lifting the ban on killing horses for food. They are depressed and people are just sending horses to Mexico to be slaughtered anyway. Some people have the same issue about ducks. 

1. They were sent to Mexico where slaughter was legal anyway.

2. People have the right to do what ever they want to. If they decide they don't want to eat something that is fine but do not try to tell me i am a bad person for eating what i want.

3. He laughs at their stupidity. He wishes they would worry about real problems.

4. People proclaim that Ducks live peaceful lives before being slaughtered.

5. Ducks suffer when tubes are shoved down their throats to swell their livers, but horses can lead a good life and die peacefully in an abattoir. 

6. This entire issue is irrelevant in the scope of government. There are so many more pressing issues that need attention. THIS IS NOT A BIG DEAL!!!!!!

blog post 2.6 "Balanced Budget Amendment FAIL"

1. two-thirds majority vote.

2. They believe that such a requirement would force Congress to make devastating cuts to social programs.

3. yes

4. The national debt is how much debt we are in or money we owe as a nation.

5. Congress could cut billions from social programs during times of economic downturn and disputes over what to cut could result in Congress ceding its power of the purse to the courts.

6. He is important because he`s over the House Rules Committee and they must often vote for bills and bills must often come through them.

7. National security and defense spending.

8. Budget spending

Blog Post 2.7 "Great News for America!!!!"

Obama legalizes horse slaughter for human consumption. People can now eat horses. Apparently the only thing Democrats and Republicans can agree on during these trying times is eating horses.

1. Uhhh It doesn't really matter to me if this is awesome or not....

Blog Post 2.5

1. What is a financial - disclosure record? A record or history of what type of investments Legislators make.

2. Why do we need those? They show what type of investments Legislators make.

3. Which one of John Kerry's jobs in the Senate is mentioned? What does that mean he is responsible for? His job as the Massachusetts Senator and  chairman of the health subcommittee of the Senate’s powerful Finance Committee. He is heavily responsible for the stock market part of the Finance Committee.

4. What was John Boehner doing during health care reform debates? Investing “tens of thousands of dollars” in health-insurance-company stocks

5. What is insider trading? Insider trading is the trading of a corporation's stock or other securities (e.g. bonds or stock options) by individuals with potential access to non-public information about the company.

6. What do the House and Senate ethics rules say about congressmen's stock ownership?  a member’s recusal from a vote affecting his or her stock portfolio “might be denying a voice” in the process

7. What suspicious activity did former Speaker Nancy Pelosi take part in? Her husband made a big play—between $1 million and $5 million—on Visa, the credit-card company when she was Speaker of the House.

8. How will the Tea Party and Occupy movements likely respond to this book? They will have a lot of negative things to say about this book because it goes against their interests.

9. What does the author (of the book) say is his main problem with politicians? The fact that the political elite gets to play by a different set of rules than the rest of us.

Blog Post 2.4 "Pork Barrel Legislation!"

This article was written by Daniel Stone. It is talking about the Tea Party and why they are upset about the budget. It also talks about the pork projects being requested by House leaders and other Representatives. It also shows how some of the GOP candidates are using pork barrel and trying to cut the bdget at the same time. Basically, the whole thing is abut how on the outside, most of the Tea Party congressmen want to cut the spending but privately want more spending in their constituency.

1. He is supposed to help the Speaker of the House and lead his party in the House of representatives.

2. Because his constituency is in Virginia and not in Nevada.

3. Because the members of the House have to simultaneously help thier constituents and do work in Washington, the budget isn't really getting cut and the Tea Party members are upset that the budget isnt being cut.

4. Both John Boehner (The Speaker of the House) and Darrell Issa (The Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman) both asked for pork projects.

5. Because pork projects have nothing to do with the party as a whole. Pork projects are for a Congressman's constituency.

6. because he is a very far right person, he believes that all spending should be cut and asking for pork projects is a direct contradiction of that belief.

7. Republicans are outwardly opposed to the stimulus package but are orivately happy about it because they can can put it in their constituency.

8. It's kind of a "does this out weigh that?" thing. They are not acting on their beliefs but they are benefiting from it.

Blog Post 2.3 "Congress and Potential Policies"

The article is written by Chris Good. Good talks about the GOP candidates and why their plans wouldn't work or only have a slight chance of working. It also talks about the discord in Congress and how unwilling all parties are to work together to pass laws that would actually do the country some good instead of run it into the ground. Especially in the Senate where the Democrats have the mojority. At the end of the article there is a slideshow of the GOP candidates's plans and why they would never work or only have a slight chance of working.

1. They believe that if the Republicans win the Senate Democrats will be very unwilling to cooperate and won't repeal Obamacare and the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill.

2. The president can't make or even really introduce laws. Thats is Congress's job.
3. 33 Senate seats will be up for the 2012 election.

4. 11 seats could actually change hands.

5. In order to get anything done in the Senate, you have to have atleast 60 guarenteed votes.
6. By allowing younger citizens to not have Social Security it would lessen the ammount of people on it and therefore more money would be avaliable.

7. Because Perry and Cain havent said anything about repealing Obamacare, their plans are more aggreable than Romney's plan.

8. Obamacare can only be repealed if the Republicans can get more than 60 Senate seats and keep their House majoity. Even then it will still be tricky because people refuse to acknowledge that Obamacare is socialist medicine.

9. Republicans don't like it because Grover Norquist doesn't approve and everyone else doesn't like it because it actually raises taxes for certain people. It hurts poor people.

10. Mitt Romney because I know him the best (other than Rick Perry but seriously, who has land named that??) and because he wants to repeal Obamacare.

Blog Post 2.2 "Republicans and Chris Christie"

This column was written by Thomas L. Friedman.  He writes about the country's upcomming election and how Chris Christie has decided not to run.  He also mentions a Grand Bargain and tells us that it needs to happen.  Friedman has also atated his opinion about the presidential race and said that both the far left and far right would do serious damage to the country.

1. He feels that the Republican Party has become a danger to the country.

2. Something that provides more near-term investment in the economy that spurs job growth, combined with a credible long-term plan to increase tax revenues and trim entitlements so the country’s debt-to-G.D.P. ratio stays in a safe range.

3. Lower spending today means lower taxes tomorrow, and limiting the future path of government spending does limit future taxes.

4. Promising never to raise taxes, without reaching a deal on spending, really means a high and rising commitment to future taxes.

5. President Obama’s latest budget plan is moving away from entitlement reform and embracing multiple tax increases on the wealthy.

6. No. He left the country with no credible, long-term fiscal option before it now.

7. They would cut the debt by $3.9 trillion by 2020 — through raising tax revenues, cutting defense and increasing the age at which people would qualify for Social Security and Medicare.

8. Democrats

9. Obama has left a gap for a sane Republican or independent candidate.

10. Because he seemed ready to tell hard truths that Obama has started to shrink from.

11. It is a race between the Democratic left and the Republican right.

12. He seems to be fairly moderate because he is pointing out that the extremes would be very bad for the country.