ISSUE #2: Boosting the Minimum

People were angry that the minimum wage was only $5.15 an hour and they wanted it to be changed to $7.25 an hour. Increasing it would raise the take-home pay of millions of Americans and it would raise people out of poverty. It would need the help from food stamps and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) too. In May 2007, Congress passed a large Iraq war funding bill and it included domestic spending provisions raising the wage and providing $4.8 billion in small business tax breaks. Full time workers that earn minimum wage are still living below the poverty line. Increasing the minimum wage would effect millions of Americans, especially single mothers because they're the group with the highest risk of being poor. They think that doing this would boost the economy because if people have money they will spend more. This would also create wealth throughout all the social classes. But what big businesses are worried about is if the minimum wages increase, then their tax cuts will be taken away and they will still lose a lot of their profits.

I think that having a higher minimum wage is a good thing because then we can keep this country's poverty numbers a bit lower. Plus, not allowing the minimum wage to go up limits the amount of necessities a person can get. Ralph Nader once wrote in a newsletter, "The cost of freezing the minimum wage has deprived millions of working Americans of trillions of dollars for their necessities of life." He is absolutely right! Minimum wage increases are a good thing for this countries and all those big businesses that are against it should stop being so selfish and allow it to happen.


ISSUE #1: All Things Being Unequal - Chris Sholts

ISSUE#3: Putting Welfare to Work - Thomas Williams

Environmentalists critical of Obama drilling plan

Some environmentalists slam Obama's plan, citing danger to ecosystem and tourism. Florida senator says the plan is better than others proposed. Obama proposal would keep offshore drilling 125 miles from Florida coast. Another environmentalist praises protection for sensitive areas on West Coast. Basically, the environmentalists are angry that Obama has these plans. And as you can see from the picture, people have already been protesting his plans by standing on a beach next to the ocean, holding hands, symbolizing something like a barrier trying to stop them from drilling in the ocean.

I don't exactly understand why the environmentalists are so angry about this plan. Its safer than other ones that have been proposed and its going to be 125 miles off shore. I think that these plans would be good for the economy and it would make gas prices go down for the American people. Some environmentalists need to settle down.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/31/energy.environmentalists/index.html

Obama will take to mound for presidential tradition

A presidential tradition that dates 100 years will continue Monday: President Obama will throw out the first pitch before the Washington Nationals take on the Philadelphia Phillies. It all started in 1910 when President William Howard Taft threw a ball from the box seats. There have been a few years, though, wherethe president has not been able to throw the first pitch in a game. Like in 1912, Taft wasn't able to throw the first pitch because the Titanic had just sunk. John Odell, curator of history and research at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, said that President Dwight Eisenhower may have had the best form. It was rumored that he had played for a semi-pro team while he was at West Point.

I think that its a great thing for the president to throw the first pitch of a game. A first pitch says a lot about how a president ought to behave, we want him to take the job seriously but not so seriously that he can't take a few hours to come out and be a regular guy like the rest of us and enjoy our national pastime. Its good to see Obama taking the time to throw the first pitch. He is a veteran when it comes to throwing first pitches. He threw one for a White Sox game in 2005 as the U.S. Senator from Illinois and he lived in Chicago. He also threw the first pitch of the 2009 All-Star Game. But even though he has experience, he doesn't have good form at all so its humorous to watch him throw.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/03/31/presidential.first.pitch/index.html

Obama energy plan would open Atlantic and Gulf drilling

President Obama unveiled plans earlier today to open large swaths of U.S. coastal waters in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico to natural gas and oil drilling. This move will likely please the energy industry but upset the administration's environmentalist supporters. There has been a 20-year ban on drilling off the Virginia coastline, but this plan would lift the ban. And it would put the clamps on sites such as southwest Alaska's Bristol Bay. The plan allows the Interior Department to conduct seismic surveys off the south and mid-Atlantic coasts to determine the quantity and location of potential oil and gas resources to support energy planning.

I think that these plans are a good idea because then the U.S. would be able to have some less expensive prices for barrels of oil since they wouldn't be coming from a foreign country. Therefore, gas prices wouldn't be so inflated in the U.S. and Americans wouldn't have to spend every penny they have on filling a tank of gas!

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/31/obama.energy/index.html

Obama set to sign health care 'fixes' bill

Obama will sign into law a package of changes to the newly enacted health care reform bill today. The signing ceremony at a community college in northern Virginia will culminate almost a year of fiercely partisan debate and a tortuous legislative journey on the proposals generated by Democrats and unanimously opposed by Republicans. Due to a shifting political landscape, Democrats eventually needed the separate bill being signed Tuesday to make changes in the original legislation in order to get the overall package passed by Congress.

I think that its a good thing that President Obama is going to makes some changes to the health care reform bill. I don't know exactly what changes are going to be made but its a good thing he's making changes because over 70% of Americans didn't want this bill yet they still passed it. But with these changes, I think more people will be satisfied with the health care bill that was passed last week.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/30/pol.health.care/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Afghan war remains 'absolutely essential,' Obama says

President Obama rallied U.S. troops and pledged continued partnership with Afghanistan during a previously unannounced trip to the country Sunday. Speaking to about 2,000 U.S. and allied troops at the major U.S. base in Afghanistan, Obama said, "Those folks back home are relying on you. I know it's not easy," he said. "You're far away from home. You miss your kids, you miss your spouses, your family, your friends." But he added, "If I thought for a minute that America's vital interests were not served, were not at stake here in Afghanistan, I would order all of you home right away." Obama met with Hamid Karzai (Afghanistan's president) at the Presidential Palace to discuss progress by the Afghan government in strengthening its ability to run the country and provide security for its people. Karzai is expected to come to Washington on May 12th to "express the gratitude of our people for the help that America has given us for the last eight years." He specifically thanked U.S. taxpayers for their aid in helping rebuild his country.

Some people agree with Obama's choice to keep troops in Afghanistan while others disagree with him. I, personally, think that its the President's choice. So since he decided that they need to stay, I'll agree with it. Many people don't understand how many influential factors there are when it comes to making a decision on something like this. I feel that Obama and his cabinet have discussed this issue enough and know what they are doing.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/28/obama.afghanistan/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Senators battle again over extending jobless benefits

The Senate was battling again over the issue of a short-term extension of unemployment benefits and other programs. Senators were called to the Senate floor late Thursday for a rarely used "live quorum" so they could try to work out a way forward. Senator Tom Coburn, a Republican from Oklahoma, is objecting to a commonly used unanimous-consent agreement to pass the bill under emergency conditions, even if it increases the federal deficit. Coburn wants to eliminate additional government spending to pay for the bill. Democratic and Republican leaders spent much of the day seeking a solution that would avoid keeping senators in town through the weekend to overcome Coburn's objection. Federal unemployment benefits kick in after the basic state-funded 26 weeks of coverage expire. During the downturn, Congress has approved up to an additional 73 weeks, which it funds.

I think that Senator Coburn's idea is stupid. You don't have to pass this bill under emergency conditions. Coburn should just go back to Oklahoma and watch his Oklahoma St. Cowboys play in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. Oh wait, they lost to a 10 seed in the first round. Good job team. So go home Coburn. No need for this emergency condition talk.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/25/senate.jobless.benefits/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29