CONGRESS: the Republican led House – State Work Period August 6-September 7, 2012 – the Senate considers S.3364,BringJobsBackAct


Motion to invoke Cloture to proceed to S.3364Bring the JObs Home Act – NOT invoked 56-42 Brown,Heller,Snowe and Collins voted with Dems  – Kohl (D-WI) NV

  • Convenes: 9:30am
  • Following the prayer and pledge, the Majority Leader will be recognized.
  • The first hour of debate will be equally divided and controlled between the two Leaders or their designees with the Republicans controlling the first half and the Majority controlling the final half.
  • As a reminder, cloture was filed on the motion to proceed to S.3364, the Bring Jobs Home Act during Tuesday’s session.  As a result, the cloture vote on the motion to proceed to S.3364 will be at 2:15pm on Thursday.

At 2:15pm today, the Senate will proceed to a roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S.3364, the Bring Jobs Home Act.

2:15pm The Senate began a roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S.3364, the Bring Jobs Home Act

2:15pm The Senate began a roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S.3364, the Bring Jobs Home Act; NOT invoked 56-42

Senator Reid announced on the floor there will be no further roll call votes today. Senators should expect the next vote to occur at approximately 5:30pm on Monday, July 23 in relation to Executive Calendar #663, the nomination of Michael A. Shipp, of New Jersey, to be U.S. District Judge for the District of New Jersey. Another message will be sent when the vote is scheduled.

Senator Reid filed cloture on Executive Calendar #663, the nomination of Michael A. Shipp, of New Jersey, to be U.S. District Judge for the District of New Jersey. By consent, the cloture vote will occur at 5:30pm on Monday, July 23.

WRAP UP

ROLL CALL VOTE

1)      Motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S.3364, the Bring Jobs Home Act; Not Invoked: 56-42

LEGISLATIVE ITEMS

Began the Rule 14 process of S.3414,  the Cybersecurity Act of 2012. (Lieberman and others)

Began the Rule 14 process of H.R.5872, the Sequestration Transparency Act of 2012.  (Republican request)

Completed the Rule 14 process of S.3401, the Tax Relief Act of 2012. (Hatch)

Considered the following 2 bills to have been read twice and subsequently placed on the calendar:

–          S.3412, the Middle Class Tax Cut Act of 2012. (Reid)

–          S.3413, the Tax Hike Prevention Act of 2012. (Hatch)

No EXECUTIVE ITEMS

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The next meeting is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on July 19, 2012.  Click on link below for live stream

www.Houselive.gov

Legal to murder gay people? Michael Whitney, Change.org


 

 

 

“Yeah, I killed him, but he did worse to me.”

In 1997, a man in Queensland, Australia killed a gay man who he claimed flirted with him by bashing his head into a wall and stabbing him to death. Today, “gay panic” is still a legal defense for murder in Queensland that can result in lesser charges.

In fact, just two years ago, a man was brutally killed in a Queensland churchyard, and his killer used the “gay panic” defense in court. He was subsequently acquitted of murder.

Father Paul Kelly is a priest in the parish where that man was killed, and he started a petition on Change.org demanding that Queensland abolish the gay panic defense. It looked like Father Kelly’s petition was headed for victory, but now there’s a new Premier in Queensland, Campbell Newman, and he won’t say whether he will abolish the gay panic loophole.

Father Kelly thinks it’s crucial to build quick international pressure on Premier Newman, particularly from important Australian allies like the US — click here to add your name to Father Kelly’s petition demanding that Queensland abolish the gay panic defense.

A recent study named Queensland as Australia’s most homophobic state — 73% of gay and lesbian Queenslanders are subjected to verbal abuse or physical violence for their sexuality. Father Kelly believes that if the gay panic defense stands, Queensland’s gay community will be forced to live in terror knowing that the law is on their tormentors’ side.

“The support from people in Australia for my petition has been wonderful,” Father Kelly says, “but we need help from our friends in the US. We need to send Premier Newman a message that he is being watched, and we will not tolerate this despicable gay panic loophole.”

Click here to sign Father Kelly’s petition demanding that Queensland abolish the legal loophole that justifies the murder of gay people.

Thanks for being a change-maker,

– Michael and the Change.org team

CONGRESS: the Republican led House / Congress will take a State Work Period 8/6 – 9/7 / the Senate considers S.3364BringJobsHomeAct


  • Convenes: 9:30amET July 18, 2012
  • Following the prayer and pledge, the Majority Leader will be recognized.
  • The first hour will be equally divided and controlled between the two Leaders or their designees with the Majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half.
  • As a reminder, cloture was filed on the motion to proceed to S.3364, the Bringing Jobs Home Act on Tuesday.  If no agreement is reached, that cloture vote will be on Thursday.

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www.Houselive.gov

keep the conversation going


The White House Monday, July 16, 2012
It’s time to keep the conversation goingIf we’re going to get traction for President Obama’s proposal to help responsible homeowners refinance their mortgages, we need to make sure as many people get the facts as possible.That’s why we recently organized a discussion between Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan and a group of homeowners from across the country to talk about the President’s plan.And now, we want to keep the conversation going.

So take a moment to watch these homeowners describe their situations to Secretary Donovan, then share your own story.

In the past month, we’ve received tens of thousands of messages from Americans who support President Obama’s proposal. We have shared them with advisors to the President, published them on WhiteHouse.gov, and posted them to Twitter and Facebook.

Again and again, the facts of their stories are the same. We’re hearing from people who’ve done everything right, who have made their payments on time each month, and who are locked out of lower payments through no fault of their own.

They want a refinancing process that’s simpler. And if we can get a vote in Congress, that’s exactly what President Obama’s proposal will give them.

But we are running out of time.

So add your voice to the discussion now, and help us bring this issue to the top of the agenda. We’ll feature stories on WhiteHouse.gov, and make sure they’re part of the conversation here in Washington:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/why-refi

Thanks.

P.S. — Watch the full Google+ Hangout with Secretary Donovan here.

Stay Connected

Transportation and Student Loan Bills … get signed


President Obama Signs Transportation, Student Loan Bill Friday, July 6, 2012     Washington, DC

President Obama signed HR 4348, the bill passed by Congress on the last day before the 4th of July recess, which includes the transportation and student loan interest rate bills.

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