Now we learn that in the Conference Committee the House represented by Rep Frank (D-MA) was able to add a $19 billion bank tax to the bill. Where was Sen Dodd (D-CT)when this happened? Obviously he didn't object too much as it ended up in the Conference Committee bill.
The letter that Sen Scott Brown (R-MA) sent explains his stance on this bill:
In a letter to U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Newton), chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), head of the Senate banking committee, Brown said a similar tax wasn’t in the bill he voted for in the Senate last month.
“I am writing you to express my strong opposition to the $19 billion bank tax that was included in the financial reform bill during the conference committee,” Brown wrote in his letter. “This tax was not in the Senate version of the bill, which I supported. If the final version of this bill contains these higher taxes, I will not support it.”
We applaud Scott Brown for standing up to Senator Dodd and the others in the Senate who agree with the addition of the $19B tax. Scott Brown is a breath of fresh air from Massachusetts who actually opposes no new taxes.
Sen. Scott Brown writes off finance-reform bill
By Jay Fitzgerald Tuesday, June 29, 2010
U.S. Sen. Scott Brown vowed today he won’t vote for the massive financial-reform package unless a proposed $19 billion bank tax is yanked out of it.
Brown, who last month provided a key vote that allowed a similar reform bill to get out of the Senate, said he simply can’t support a tax increase that might be passed along to consumers.
(snip)
Last week, Brown angrily lashed out at the $19 billion tax, after it was unveiled by conference-committee negotiators. But he stopped short of saying he’d oppose the bill.
Today, he bluntly made his stand clear: No support if the tax remains.
Senator Vitter has been a very good Senator for Louisiana and has been standing strong during this oil disaster in the Gulf against the lack of response by Obama and his Administration along with BP. We are not surprised by these polling numbers as the voters of Louisiana know that off shore drilling is a key to having a sound economy and do not favor the Obama/Salazar moratorium.
Louisiana’s race for the U.S. Senate looks largely the same way it has since the beginning of the year, with incumbent Republican David Vitter continuing to earn over 50% of the vote in a state with unusually high Tea Party membership.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Louisiana finds Vitter, who is seeking a second six-year term, with 53% support. His Democratic challenger, Congressman Charlie Melancon, picks up 35% of the vote. Three percent (3%) like some other candidate, and nine percent (9%) are undecided.
In April, Vitter posted a similar lead over Melancon.
Since January, Vitter’s support has never fallen below the 50% mark considered critical for incumbents, ranging instead from 52% to 57%. Melancon, by contrast, has been unable to break out of the 30s, with his support holding in the 33% to 36% range.
The Republican leads by nearly 30 points among male voters and by a more modest 11 points among women. He holds a three-to-one lead among voters not affiliated with either major party.
All of a sudden Kagen respects and reveres the military? Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) has the details of what happened from the military services she banned so her comments fly in the face of the military recruiters. We will side with Sessions and the military recruiters on this one.
Is Kagen going to give honest answers to questions or is she going to spin like her former boss Bill Clinton? Time will tell but today her answers reminded us of Clintonian spin.
Republican attacks Kagan stance on military recruiters on campus
By Sean Lengell 11:09 a.m., Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan on Tuesday defended her position to restrict military recruiter access to Harvard Law School while she was dean, telling a Senate panel she always acted within the law.
But Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama attacked Miss Kagan's argument, saying that it was "unconnected to reality."
The debate took place during the second day of an expected week-long confirmation hearing before Senate Judiciary Committee.
Miss Kagan said she never barred recruiters from campus. Rather, she said she let the school's military veterans association sponsor recruiters instead of the school.
Miss Kagan said the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy against allowing gays and lesbians to serve opening in the military clashed with the school's anti-discrimination policy.
"The military had full access to our students, both before I became dean and after I became dean," said Miss Kagan, 50, who now serves as the U.S. Solicitor General, the federal government's top litigator before the Supreme Court.
She said she personally disagrees with the 'don't ask, don't tell' rule but that she admires the military.
"I respect and indeed I revere the military," said Miss Kagan, who added that her father served in the military. "I always tried to make sure I conveyed my honor for the military."
But Mr. Sessions said the nominee's response was disingenuous and questioned whether her actions created a hostile atmosphere toward recruiters and treated them in a "second-class way."
"The Air Force and the Army says they were blocked, they were stonewalled, they were getting the run-around from Harvard," Mr. Sessions says. "I feel like you mishandled that, I'm absolutely confident you did."
Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), the longest-serving member of Congress in American history, died Monday at the age of 92. Byrd was the president pro tempore of the Senate and third in line to the presidency.
In all, Byrd's congressional career spanned 12 presidencies, numerous wars, countless political movements, and nearly the full arc of the civil rights movement. Once a staunch segregationist and a member of the Ku Klux Klan, Byrd endorsed Barack Obama for president in 2008 and praised his fellow Democrat as a "good Christian."
In addition to serving the most years in Congress -- 57 -- Byrd also cast the most votes of any U.S. senator -- more than 18,500. He also held the records for being elected to the most full terms in Senate history, with nine; of being the longest-serving member on any Senate committee; and of holding the most Senate leadership positions, including Senate majority leader (twice) and Senate minority leader.
Dino Rossi has a very good opportunity to pick up this seat from Patty Murray (D-WA). He is another one of the good candidates Republicans have running this year, and we encourage you to get behind him with your support.
Please visit Dino Rossi's website at: DinoRossi.com to sign up to help or donate money. Let's send Rossi to the Senate to help our other Republican fiscal conservatives right the ship!
Dino Rossi announcement, May 25, 2008, to run for Senate in Washington State against Patty Murray:
Already Rossi has tied Murray in the latest polling:
47 all (MoE 4.5) in the latest Rasmussen poll. It will be interesting to see how this goes after the first round election when it becomes a proper two way race.
If you only choose to get behind only one Republican Governor's candidate, please make it Jan Brewer, Governor of Arizona, who is standing up against the Obama Administration, LaRaza, and the Mexican President to defend their Immigration Bill that enforces what the Federal Government should be doing but won't.
These signs by the Obama Administration are a slap in the face to Arizona residents and the American people. If these signs are his idea of Border Security 80 miles from the border and 30 miles from the State Capitol to warn how dangerous the area is, then once again Obama has failed to deliver on a promise to provide Border Security.
Eighty miles from the Border, the Obama Administration has basically given the land to the illegals as these signs warn Americans how dangerous it is to travel in this area. These signs only 30 miles from the State Capitol show how poorly Napolitano performed as Governor as she allowed the illegals to continue to cross the border and evolve into the situation we have today. Guess she figures every illegal is a potential Democrat voter. Now as Secretary of Homeland Security she still does nothing to protect the Arizona border. Terrorists could easily cross the Arizona border into the United States but the Obama Administration doesn't seem to care.
Read Governor Brewer's letter to Obama asking for answers after her visit with him in the Oval Office on Border Security two weeks ago. When do you think he will get back to her? Probably not in the near future because he has too many golf dates planned.
This Republican Governor is standing up for the citizens of Arizona and America. She needs elected to a full term in office so she can continue to take on the Washington DC bureacracy of the Obama Administration and Democrat Congress. We need to send her some new members of Congress in January to join others like Senators McCain and Kyl and Congressman Flake who understand Border Security and will help Governor Brewer with this dangerous border situation.
Your vote on NOvember 2nd, 2010, is necessary to send Pelosi and Reid packing from leadership. We need to return some sanity to the halls of Congress where our Border Security will become a major issue and not shoved aside like is happening today with the Obama Democrats.
Watch Governor Brewer's YouTube video below and be reminded just how useless Obama and his Administration are when it comes to Border Security.
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer says new border signs are an outrage
Posted: 06/25/2010 Last Updated: 10 hours and 7 minutes ago
By: ABC15.com staff, wire reports PHOENIX - Arizona Governor Jan Brewer is calling a new border security initiative an outrage.
In a campaign video posted on YouTube Friday, Brewer stood in front of what she called newly posted signs by President Obama's administration about the Arizona desert being an active drug and human smuggling area.
"Washington says our border is as safe as it has ever been," Brewer said. "Does this look safe to you? What is our country coming to…we need to stand up and demand action. Washington is broken, Mr. President. Do your job. Secure our borders."
In a separate letter released the day before, Brewer told Obama she'd like specifics on National Guard deployments and other steps to be taken in Arizona before a planned Monday visit to Phoenix by Obama administration officials to discuss plans. The governor told reporters Friday she expects five officials from the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security at the meeting.
The meeting is an outgrowth of Brewer's June 3 visit to the White House where she and Obama discussed border security and immigration.
Brewer is currently running for re-election as Arizona's governor.
