While calling himself a "vigorous defender" of the free market, President Obama warns that we must learn from last years financial meltdown and enact "common-sense rules that will our allow markets to function fairly and freely while reining in the worst practices of the financial industry."
On Monday, the Banking Committee of the United States Senate will debate a proposal to address the abuse and excess that led to the worst financial crisis in generations ...
Of course, there were many causes of the economic turmoil that ripped through our country over the past two years. But it was a crisis that began in our financial system. Large banks engaged in reckless financial speculation without regard for the consequences – and without tough oversight. Financial firms invented and sold complicated financial products to escape scrutiny and conceal enormous risks. And there were some who engaged in the rampant exploitation of consumers to turn a quick profit no matter who was hurt in the process.
... what we have seen over the past two years is that without reasonable and clear rules to check abuse and protect families, markets don’t function freely. In fact, it was just the opposite. In the absence of such rules, our financial markets spun out of control, credit markets froze, and our economy nearly plummeted into a second Great Depression.
And after saying that reform is essential to "ensure that taxpayers are never again forced to bail out a big bank because it is “too big to fail," the President outlines the purpose of the proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency:
... to prevent predatory loan practices and other abuses to ensure that consumers get clear information about loans and other financial products before they sign on the dotted line.
... an agency that he says will be completely independent.
And for a refreshing change, there was no time wasted waxing poetic about bipartisanship:
Unsurprisingly, this proposal has been a source of contention with financial firms who like things just the way they are. In fact, the Republican leader in the House reportedly met with a top executive of one of America’s largest banks and made thwarting reform a key part of his party’s pitch for campaign contributions. And this week, the allies of banks and consumer finance companies launched a multimillion dollar ad campaign to fight against the proposal. You might call this ‘air support’ for the army of lobbyists already arm twisting members of the committee to reject these reforms and block this consumer agency. Perhaps that’s why, after months of working with Democrats, Republicans walked away from this proposal. I regret that and urge them to reconsider.
The President concluded by urging Senators to "remain strong, to resist the pressure from those who would preserve the status quo," and promised to "use every tool at my disposal to see these reforms enacted."
Since the 1960s, studies have shown that behavior does not change merely as a result of information, even if it is fear inducing. Behavior can change if information is combined with an action plan. In a 1965 study ... showed students the somewhat terrifying results of contracting tetanus, which resulted in 3 percent of the students getting a tetanus shot. Other subjects were given the same lecture but were also given a copy of a campus map with the location of the health center circled. ... In this case, 28 percent of the students managed to show up and get their tetanus shot. The medical message seemed to influence attitudes but a specific plan influenced action.
Speaking of my thoughts, did you know that Dark Matter is some kind of liberal plot? Yeah, neither did I ...
Titan, largest moon of lively ringed Saturn, may be a slush ball with an undifferentiated mantle and core.
The Smithsonian opens its Hall of Human Origins, and it has a pretty spiffy website.
Today is defined in astronomy as the start of Spring, but for earlier people, it was more than that. And some of those ancient rites echo into the our own era:
As can be imagined, ancient cultures took the advent of Spring as a serious and profound time of year. So much so, that eventually the cycle of seasons took on an additional spiritual element and the passing of seasons began to serve as a parable to the passing cycles of life. ...
House Meets At... 9:00 a.m.: Legislative Business First Vote Predicted... 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Last Vote Predicted... 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
"One Minutes" (5 per side)
H.R. 1612 - Public Lands Service Corps Act (Rep. Grijalva – Natural Resources)
Suspensions (7 Bills):
H.Res. 1075 - Commending the members of the Agri-business Development Teams of the National Guard for their efforts, together with personnel of the Department of Agriculture and the United States Agency for International Development, to modernize agriculture practices and increase food production in war-torn countries (Rep. Luetkemeyer - Armed Services)
H.Res. 1099 - Recognizing the 65th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima (Rep. Braley - Armed Services)
H.Res. 925 - Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the meritorious service performed by aviators in the United States Armed Forces who were shot down over, or otherwise forced to land in, hostile territory yet evaded enemy capture or were captured but subsequently escaped (Rep. DeFazio - Armed Services)
H.Res. 900 - Supporting the goals and ideals of a Cold War Veterans Recognition Day to honor the sacrifices and contributions made by members of the Armed Forces during the Cold War and encouraging the people of the United States to participate in local and national activities honoring the sacrifices and contributions of those individuals (Rep. Israel - Armed Services)
H.Res. 1119 - Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that all people in the United States should participate in a moment of silence to reflect upon the service and sacrifice of members of the United States Armed Forces both at home and abroad (Rep. Peters - Armed Services)
H.Con.Res. 222 - Recognizing the leadership and historical contributions of Dr. Hector Garcia to the Hispanic community and his remarkable efforts to combat racial and ethnic discrimination in the United States of America (Rep. Ortiz - Judiciary)
Postponed Suspension Votes (3 Bills):
H.Res. 1040 - Honoring the life and accomplishments of Donald Harington for his contributions to literature in the United States (Rep. Snyder - Oversight and Government Reform)
H.R. 4840 - To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1979 Cleveland Avenue in Columbus, Ohio, as the "Clarence D. Lumpkin Post Office" (Rep. Tiberi - Oversight and Government Reform)
H.Res. 1174 - Supporting the goals and ideals of National Women's History Month (Rep. Woolsey - Oversight and Government Reform)
Conference Reports may be brought up at any time.
Motions to go to Conference should they become available.
Possible Motions to Instruct Conferees.
The Senate is not in session today.
UPDATE: Finally got a chance to get some sleep this weekend, and missed my chance to add some commentary this morning. But no biggie, there's very little happening on the floor besides the waiting game.
But today, the ball moves forward a little bit, with the House Rules Committee taking up consideration of the question of how to send the reconciliation bill to the floor, and whether or not to use self-executing language (and what kind) in doing so.
The committee, which usually meets in a cramped room in the Capitol and with very little fanfare, is today for the first time setting up a satellite overflow room for members of the media and the public who want to watch the proceedings (you can watch on C-SPAN2, seen online here), which begin at 10 a.m and are expected to last all day -- with over 90 amendments filed, almost all of which will be rejected.
The Rules Committee also does the important work of determining the mechanics of swapping out the text of the old, October 2009 reconciliation package (the one that appearedto have the public option in it) for the text of the new agreement that's been hammered out over the past few weeks. The Rules Committee can itself opt to amend the text and do the job before it sends the bill to the floor, as opposed to arranging for the amending to be done on the floor. It's probably easier to just guarantee that the job be done neatly in committee, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 9-4.
The thing to watch today: how the committee deals with Bart Stupak (D-MI-01) and his demands for a vote on an "enrollment corrections" resolution that would seek to amend the main Senate health care bill (H.R. 3590) in the space in between its passage by the House and its being sent to the President. Did you know you could do that? Yes you can. Do you wish you had known that while everyone was telling you that the procedural circumstances were such that the Senate bill could not be touched, and that's why you couldn't have a public option vote? Yes you did. But for various reasons, including the fact that the public option wasn't able to hold votes hostage like abortion is, it likely wouldn't have worked.
Hang on. The next few days could get... interesting.
As we stand at the verge of the historic vote on the health care bill — a signature piece of President Obama’s agenda — it feels appropriate to take a look at how he has fared during the long slog that got us here. My quick assessment: remarkably well.
The pundits didn't fool us into thinking Bush was doing poorly, but they have no issue pretending Obama is 'plummeting'.
The empty-headed chattering class began another round of speculation and inane analysis this week when his approval rating dropped to 46 percent, its lowest yet. Silly pundits.
It was a minor tick and overplayed. If I were a Republican strategist (God forbid!), I would actually be very worried that the lower 50s/upper 40s could be Obama’s bottom. He has weathered some of the worst months of his young presidency recently, and his numbers have barely budged.
That's no surprise. We write about it all the time. Pundits don't know how to read polls (or are paid not to know.) Amy Walter and the Hotline crew, Chuck Todd, Charlie Cook and few other exceptions...
For proof, witness the results of a Kaiser Family Foundation poll that showed 46 percent of Americans in favor of the health reform proposal and 42 percent opposed. The poll has a margin of error of 3 points ... meaning the public is almost evenly divided on the issue.
However, Democratic support is solidifying, with 52 percent of Democrats now strongly in favor of the plan, up from 30 percent in January.
If Republicans were in power, the media would call it a mandate.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that as of mid-January 2010, between 41 million and 84 million cases of H1N1 influenza have occurred in the United States. Estimates of H1N1-related hospitalization range from 183,000 to 378,000, and estimates of deaths number between 8330 and 17,160. In nearly all reports, most infections occurred among young adults. In addition to this study, a synchronous publication of H1N1 cases from Mexico echoed previous reports of increased rates of disease in obese patients (36% of patients in the Mexican cohort).[3] Although chronic respiratory disease has not been a consistent risk factor for H1N1 infection, chronic comorbid medical conditions are disproportionately high in patients with H1N1 influenza.[4] Fortunately, treatment with neuraminidase inhibitors is nearly universal and is associated with improved survival.[3] At present, it seems that the pandemic phase of H1N1 disease may be waning, although vigilance remains important as sporadic cases continue to occur.
41 to 84 million is a lot of Americans. With the next pandemic (yeah, there'll be another, quite possibly worse) they will mostly have health insurance.
I think it is because so much of the vote-counting is going on behind closed doors and, hence, not available for public consumption.
Remember that simply because there remain a number of undecideds publicly on the bill doesn't mean all of those ame people are undecided privately. My guess is that there are only a handful of truly undecided members at this point.
I have long believed that the White House simply cannot let this bill fail as it would fundamentally undermine the argument Obama made in 2008 that he could get Washington working again.
That said, there is at least one very smart observer of the House that I speak to regularly who insists it is going to be much harder for Pelosi to get to 216 than people realize.
Either way, C-SPAN on Sunday is going to be must-watch TV.
"This is the largest tax bill in history," the Republican leader fumed. The reform "is unjust, unworkable, stupidly drafted and wastefully financed."
And that wasn't all. This "cruel hoax," he said, this "folly" of "bungling and waste," compared poorly to the "much less expensive" and "practical measures" favored by the Republicans.
"We must repeal," the GOP leader argued. "The Republican Party is pledged to do this."
That was Republican presidential nominee Alf Landon in a September 1936 campaign speech. He based his bid for the White House on repealing Social Security.
As probably every Psych 101 student knows, in 1961, just three months after former SS-Obersturmbannführer Adolf Eichmann went on trial for war crimes in Jerusalem, Stanley Milgram began his experiment with 40 subjects in a lab at Yale. In groups of two, participants were told that one would be the "learner" and one the "teacher," chosen by whomever picked those identities written on folded slips of paper they drew as lots.
But the drawing was rigged. And the "learner" was actually a confederate of the experimenters, an actor. The teacher and the learner were put in separate rooms where they could communicate with, but not see, each other. The teacher was then told to push a button to administer electric shocks in 15-volt increments to the learner each time he answered a question wrong. The learner's reactions were, of course, faked. But none of the 40 teachers knew that. Only one of them stopped "shocking" the learner before the bogus voltage indicator hit 300. Twenty-six of them went all the way to the top, 450 volts.
Laurent Le Doyen, an actor in the documentary "Game of Death," broadcast in France, pretends to grimace as participants in a game show obey orders to deliver increasingly powerful electric shocks to him. Ultimately, he appears to die.
The hostess and a chanting audience urged the players — who had levers in front of them — to send jolts of electricity into the man in the box when he gave an incorrect answer.
Even when the player screamed out in pain for them to stop, 80 percent of the contestants kept zapping him. In reality, the man in the electric chair was an actor who wasn't really being shocked — but the players and the audience did not know that.
The documentary makers say reality television relies increasingly on violent, humiliating and cruel acts to boost ratings. They say they simply wanted to see if we would go so far as to kill someone for entertainment.
Christophe Nick produced the documentary, The Game of Death, with a group of scientists and researchers. ...
