Congress – Page 94 – Behind The Black

New Congress lets expire a decades-old $2.4 billion pork program

February 11, 2011 11:16 am Robert Zimmerman

Change! The House kills a decades-old $2.4 billion pork program. Key quote:

The Trade Adjustment Assistance program dates back to the Kennedy-era Trade Expansion Act of 1962 and was expanded under the 1974 Trade Act, signed into law by Gerald Ford. It was the kind of bipartisan program thought to be bulletproof. In the last session, it went from a small program, designed to aid workers displaced by foreign trade, to a huge $2.4 billion pork program providing laid-off workers with 156 weeks of “income support,” subsidies and even education.

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SpaceX puts Dragon 9 space capsule on display in D.C.

February 11, 2011 11:02 am Robert Zimmerman

SpaceX has put the Dragon 9 space capsule that flew in space on display in D.C. Though it is really cool that they are making the capsule so available to the public, this quote tells us the real story:

With Congress preparing in the weeks ahead to again address the question of government contracts for commercial space businesses such as SpaceX, the company wanted to give it (and attendees of the nearby FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference) an opportunity to see the capsule. Members of Congress and of the Obama administration were invited to attend a Thursday evening viewing, and company officials said the response has been enthusiastic.

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Cutting the Full $100 Billion

February 10, 2011 11:01 pm Robert Zimmerman

Keep this momentum going! The House Republican leadership was forced this week to increase its proposed budget cuts to $100 billion because of tea party movement pressure, both in the House and back at home. Key quote from this New York Times report:

The reversal was the most concrete demonstration yet that the wave of fiscal conservatives who catapulted Republicans into the House majority is reshaping the political and policy calculations being made by the party leadership.

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CBO Director Says Obamacare Would Reduce Employment by 800,000

February 10, 2011 8:46 pm Robert Zimmerman

Repeal the damn bill! The director of the Congressional Budget Office admitted today that Obamacare will destroy about 800,000 jobs.

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House Panel to Take Second Bite Out of Science Budgets

February 10, 2011 7:01 pm Robert Zimmerman

The revolt of the freshman Republicans is working: The House science panel is going to revisit its budget cut proposals for science from yesterday and find ways to cut more.

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Freshman GOP to leadership: Business as usual is over

February 10, 2011 11:49 am Robert Zimmerman

This is truly hopeful news: Freshman GOP to leadership: Business as usual is over.

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House Spending Plan cuts billions from federal research agencies

February 9, 2011 12:52 pm Robert Zimmerman

Stand by for oinks! The House spending plan would cut billions from federal research agencies such as NIH, NSF, NOAA, NASA, and a host of Department of Energy programs. Specifics at the link.

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House to vote next week to block health funds

February 8, 2011 3:50 pm Robert Zimmerman

Repeal the damn bill! The House will vote next week to block all funds to Obamacare.

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Democrats Rally Lobbyists to fight Upcoming Spending cuts

February 7, 2011 11:24 am Robert Zimmerman

Oink-oink! Senate Democrats met with lobbyists and special interest groups in a big closed-door meeting on January 24 to plan their opposition to any spending cuts. Key quote:

The Jan. 24 meeting was attended by approximately 400 people, sources told ABC, and served as a “call to arms” for those determined to fight Republican budget cuts.

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House committee to review NASA budget

February 7, 2011 10:55 am Robert Zimmerman

The first post-2010-election House appropriations committee hearing on NASA’s budget will take place this week. Key quote:

“The goal of the hearings is to help identify top management challenges and find ways to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in these respective departments and agencies,” the chairman of the CJS subcommittee, Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA)

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Bernanke headlines a day of grim warnings about the nation’s fiscal standing

February 4, 2011 12:24 pm Robert Zimmerman

Fed chairman Bernanke issued a grim warning yesterday about the federal government’s overwhelming debt. Key quote:

The national debt is currently about 60 percent of the economy, or Gross Domestic Product, [Bernanke] said, adding that it is projected to reach 90 percent of GDP by 2020 and 150 percent of GDP by 2030. But Bernanke’s citation of $9.5 trillion in national debt didn’t include the $4.6 trillion owed by the government to trust funds for things such as Social Security and Medicare, which have paid out cash to the Treasury in exchange for promisory notes. The full national debt – when both forms of debt are included – is already just under 100 percent of GDP, which is currently around $14.6 trillion.

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