Republican Congress screws Americans

Republicans say cut the debt, yet increase budget costs again.
This time President Obama had requested a 1-year extension of middle-class citizen payroll tax cuts before the house holiday vacation. The house republicans wasted time in Congress. They went day-after-day discussing names for post offices and other buildings around the country. Some days they did not meet at all - just did an opening ceremony, then immediately recessed. The republicans spent days talking about religion in government and days talking about a wide array of other non-urgent issues. They purposefully left the payroll cut extension for the last days before the Christmas holiday, then they padded the payroll cut with other controversial issues, the Canada pipeline, hoping President Obama would reject it and the republicans could blame him for the financial hit across America. Wise to the republican tricks, President Obama said he would sign the bill. The Senate was not happy with the bill and passed a two month tax-cut extension. Now the incompetent house went to work to sock it to Americans by rejecting the Senate bill. The house claimed it would only pass a year-long payroll-cut extension (they could have done this in November), so republicans rejected the Senate bill and created a new one. Meanwhile, the senators went home for Christmas. So, no tax-cut extension and the republicans have caused everyone to have an automatic lower income beginning January 1st 2012.
Fear not, the republicans yell, we will do this in January, after we take our luxury holiday vacations. What the republicans fail to realize is not only will Americans have a lower income, but the government must spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, perhaps millions, in changing all of the accounting and payroll systems and notices for every employee. This is FINANCIAL WASTE caused by republicans playing stupid political games and failing to represent Americans - and American debt grows bigger.
We need a focused and competent Congress, not a bunch of Obama haters who will ruin every American for their selfish personal job goals. Yes, the republicans have jobs and could care less about the homeless and/or unemployed regular citizens. The republicans chant, if Obama supports it, we will fight it - regardless of what it is and the injury it will cause Americans, along with government excess, waste and fraud.
We voters must get these republican congressmen OUT in 2012, so we can save America and ensure our kids will be able to enjoy the American dream. Do you know that the US gives billions of dollars of financial aid to CHINA!! And from where does that money come from that we give regularly to China come????  CHINA!!!
Yes, America borrows the money from China, then gives billions back to China as aid - and American debt grows and Americans pay the loan and interest on the deficit. Maybe the republicans could schedule this topic on one of those many days that they get paid, but don't show up for work!!!
WE NEED A MUCH BETTER CONGRESS!!!!
STOP the repetitive TV sound bites, CUT HE DEFICIT and help AMERICANS!!!

Where is Sarah?

Real new winner for the Republicans may be Sarah Palen. Now, she is starting to look good and smart. And you thought she was out. I can see her negotiating in the Middle East now.

Merry Christmas God

An unhappy Republican stated he was even unhappier because President Obama did not mention "God" in his speech. Well statesmen today, may not because they realize they are the leader of many different people with different names for "God." I know many who are often speaking of God, yet they are committing crimes or bigoted or controlled by money and hate. It is not the mentioning of God that is important, it is your everyday actions to your spouse, family, and community. If the words are not explicitly spelled out, look between the lines and look at the actions and life of the speaker. I can not think of a better family role model than the Obama family. Living in front of the world is difficult and living a daily godly life is even harder.
I remember when President Obama stated he was ending the war in Iraq. President Bush started the war looking for weapons after 9/11, and after no weapons were found, he continued the war for profit. Now, President Obama stated he was going to stop the killing on both sides. After he said those words, thousands of troops and military families yelled "Thank God!"
A child asked, is President Obama God? I said, no, but sometimes God works through President Obama. This Christmas most of our troops will be spending Christmas in the good 'ole USA. I hope everyone will hang "Welcome Home Troops, the war is over - Thank you for your service" ribbons and signs outside their homes. (Now here is a job for some needy artists - I haven't seen any for sale.)
If you are unhappy with President Obama and Michelle, wait until you hear about Newt Gingrich. Hold on to your hats and cover the kid's eyes and ears. I guess Newt thought it was godly to discuss divorce with his wife as she recovered from cancer surgery in the hospital.
Anyway - Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, Feliz Navidad - I can add more, but some people will never be happy. God Bless you, and Peace on Earth...and let it begin with me.

Cain accuser a prostitute?

Today a lady, Sharon Bialek, came out and made more specific accusations against Republican candidate Herman Cain. According to her story Cain's behavior showed that he considered her a prostitute, or some other sex worker. We certainly don't want have this sort of behavior going on in the White House by a president. However, I am sure many of the presidential and congressional candidates have done similar activities as Cain, but the accusations were not made public for various possible reasons.
I believe this woman has credibility, but the event is old and there were obvious mixed messages between the two. First, why would she fly in to meet Cain and stay in a room paid for by Cain, in order to ask him for a "job?"  She met Cain at night in a bar and had drinks (I find this unusual for a job 1st interview). Sharon Bialek calls Cain, Herman (I have worked for bosses for years and never called them by their first names - it is a sign of respect and acknowledgment of the employer/employee relationship). Then, she had a private dinner with Cain - why would this potential employer take Sharon out on an upscale dinner date? Next she consented to go off into the night to visit some vague empty restaurant offices. Why would she go to an empty building site late at night with a man she is asking for a job? She had no prior connection with Cain and Cain even asked her why she was there? We can only imagine her answer. She could remember all of Cain's remarks, but she left out her side of the conversations. She said she was sent to meet Cain that evening by her "boyfriend." Perhaps he is a pimp-like person.
Anyway, this lady has no common sense and seems like a "set-up," probably trying to get money from the event. She probably wanted the sexual advancements to occur in the Restaurant Association offices so she could sue for big bucks against Cain and the association. She says Cain took her home (the hotel room he paid for) the minute she protested (she never said how far they went before she protested).  Since they were not in the association's offices, Cain was not at work, Sharon Bialek was not an employee or client, she accepted a hotel room from him and they went out on a date (which she asked to fly in for at night), this becomes a bad date experience by a married man and a potential prostitute. I feel Cain was confused because she was acting like a prostitute. Cain actions can not be overlooked. If Cain is in a bad marriage, it will only get worse in the White House. Washington, DC is full of stories, going back generations, about political sex scandals and prostitutes. We need leadership, not more sex scandals.

Rich invited to US

While many cry to keep illegal aliens out of the US, there are other pathways to US citizenship. Some use the old, come to the US for a few weeks and have a baby born here. The child will be a US citizen and can later come to the US for a free education. Others use the US investment angle. Just by buying a house in the US or starting a US business you can become eligible for a US visa and apply for permanent citizenship.

Many want to move to Miami. Miami has drawn significant interest from both the Latin American elite looking to escape political instability and drug violence — and the developers who want their money.Naturally, many rich criminals are interested in moving there too, as Miami has a reputation for drug trades. But, all states have their draw and immigrants are investigating the choices.

By investing $500,000 in a designated high-unemployment or rural area, or $1 million anywhere else, a foreign national and his or her family can obtain conditional EB-5 visas that become permanent if the investment creates at least 10 jobs for two years.

What’s more, experts say, is that the U.S. recession has contributed to a growing EB-5 industry as dozens of private companies seek permission to pool investors’ money in order to finance projects such as hotels and housing developments that can’t get traditional loans from banks. For the foreigners, applying through a so-called EB-5 regional center lets them live in the U.S., put their children through school here and sit back while somebody else manages their investment and worries about fulfilling the job creation requirements.

“It’s access to capital,” said Emilio González, a former director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services under President George W. Bush. “It satisfies the U.S. need to create jobs and it satisfies an investor’s need to get a green card for whatever reason.”

In recent months, the Obama administration has promised to streamline the EB-5 process in order to encourage more foreigners to make investments that will create jobs. The program is estimated to have created about 34,000 jobs since its inception in 1990. Meanwhile, two U.S. senators recently proposed a similar program that would grant visas to foreigners who spend $500,000 on real estate as a way to bolster the housing market.

In the 2009 fiscal year, about 1,000 foreigners applied for EB-5 visas, according to USCIS. The number doubled in 2010. And, in just the first 10 months of the 2011 fiscal year, 3,355 foreigners had petitioned for the visa, of which about 1,400 have been approved.

More than half the applicants are Chinese. However, in the past two years petitions from Latin Americans rose by about 71 percent, with Venezuela and Mexico leading the way. Government statistics show that 95 Latin Americans applied for the program in the 2010 fiscal year. Another 163 applied in the first 10 months of 2011. Of these, USCIS approved 44 petitions in 2010 and 68 in 2011.

By Melissa Sanchez and Alfonso Chardy | The Miami Herald

Gun control for some?

Conservative radio commentator, Mike Levine says now he wants gun control. Why?  Well, Mike is angry that the criminals involved in the drug trade in Mexico are committing horrible crimes with weapons, allegedly purchased with American money, and American border guards are being killed. So, let’s see…no gun control in the US because “guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” Now, since the Mexicans are creating problems with guns, Mike wants federal gun control and he wants the Obama administration to head this project. Mike needs to understand laws don’t work against just one group of people. The Republicans want no gun control, so that is what we have. If they are committing crimes with guns, go after the people, not the guns.
Also, when President Bush started the wars in the Middle East, many American military and innocent civilians were killed by weapons purchased by the enemy with American money. Often they used American payments to buy American weapons to kill Americans. We have a long history of giving large amounts of money to hostile groups abroad, even as Americans are in great financial need.
Pray that President Obama can get our remaining military out of this quagmire fast and safely.

President Obama to speak to black congressional caucus

Posted by:

CNN's Athena Jones

WASHINGTON (CNN) – The economic slowdown has hit the black community particularly hard, pushing the unemployment rate among blacks up to 16.7% in August, nearly double the national average. The problem is the Congressional Black Caucus' chief concern and one many members have pushed the White House to do a better job of addressing.

As President Barack Obama prepares to speak at Saturday night's 2011 Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Phoenix Awards Dinner, he is likely to tout some of the proposals in the American Jobs Act he introduced this month. Several are aimed at tackling the problem of long-term unemployment, steps that could provide much-needed aid to the community where the jobless rate is highest.

One CBC member who has been especially critical of the president in recent months is Rep. Maxine Waters, a Democrat who represents California's 35th congressional district. At a CBC jobs tour town hall in Detroit in August, she said black unemployment was "unconscionable," the strategy to fix it was unclear and that the caucus was "getting tired" of waiting for one.

Earlier this month, she questioned the president's decision to focus on the Midwest during a three-day jobs bus tour in August, saying the 3 million population of Iowa, an electorally important state that is also mostly white, is roughly equal to the number of African Americans who are out of work and suggesting that the population of that key state seemed more important to the administration than the black community.

"Are the unemployed in the African-American community, including almost 45% of its youth, as important as the people of Iowa?" she asked in the statement she released ahead of the president's speech before a joint session of Congress in which he announced his jobs plan.

The White House is well aware of this criticism from some in the black community and has made a point of trying to address it.

"The president shares the frustration of African Americans and all Americans about the pace of the economy," said Kevin Lewis, the White House director of African-American media. "Though the president is committed to improving the economy for all Americans, he'll note in tonight's speech that the American Jobs Act includes targetd initiatives and programs that protect, support and provide economic stability for the most vulnerable Americans.  He'll continue to urge Americans to urge Congress to act in a bipartisan fashion and pass the bill."

The president has proposed a $4,000 tax credit to employers for hiring long-term unemployed workers and higher credits to companies that hire veterans who have been unemployed for at least six months. He also wants to see unemployment insurance extended to prevent 5 million Americans from losing their benefits and stronger programs to help the long-term unemployed through counseling and job training.

A number of CBC members - including Missouri Democrat and CBC Chairman Rep. Emanuel Cleaver and Democratic representatives like John Lewis of Georgia and Frederica Wilson of Florida - released statements of support for the American Jobs Act after the president's speech, as did other black leaders like Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter.

Waters also praised the plan in television interviews after the speech, though she said she and other CBC members wished the plan was "even bigger" and that she hoped the kind of help proposed would get to the people who need it most.

More than anything, CBC members want to see the president fight hard for the jobs plan and not give in to any demands to weaken it. Members' staffers have spoken of concerns that the White House did not negotiate from a position of strength with past bills, such as the Dodd-Frank financial regulatory overhaul or the health care overhaul, and say they hope the president has learned a lesson from those experiences.

While some African-American critics of the president have argued he has not done enough to listen to the concerns of the black community, his recent schedule shows he has spent time meeting with black journalists and with the leaders of organizations that serve the community like the NAACP's Ben Jealous, the National Urban League's Marc Morial and the Rev. Al Sharpton from the National Action Network.

At a panel this month with black media group Interactive One, one of the president's top advisers, Valerie Jarrett, called the unemployment rate in the black community "unacceptably high" and said the president understood that "inaction is not an option." In remarks to the panel, the president said 20 million African-American workers would benefit from the jobs bill proposal to cut the payroll tax in half, a measure he said would save the average family $1,500 a year.

"It helps out-of-work Americans, including the 1.4 (million) African-American folks and their families who are out of work by extending unemployment benefits to help support them and their families while they're looking for work," the president said. "And it also reforms the training programs that are available so that they can build real skills and connect to jobs. And that will particularly help the long-term unemployed."

The president also taped an interview with BET Networks, set to air Monday, in which he is expected to specifically address the "increase of unemployment among African-Americans since taking office, the current economic crisis, the political landscape around the 2012 presidential election" among other issues, according to the network.

OBAMA SIGNS TO HELP 9/11 RESCUERS

Thanks to President Obama, during the December break while home in Hawaii, the President signed a financial help package for the 9/11 rescuers. The 9/11 World Trade Center Rescuers will get some money to help with medical care, death benefits, disability retirement benefits and other terrorist-related injuries. The President had a rough time passing this legislation because the Republicans in Congress did not want to pass it. The Republicans said it there was no plan to fund the bill, so they voted against it. Finally, there was a statement that the funding will come from overseas corporations..

I know our rescuers did not hesitate to search and rescue victims of the tragedy...and I would not have allowed them to suffer so long. Thanks President Obama. Rotten tomatoes to the Republicans in Congress.