Tag Archives: California

the Senate CONGRESS 12/23 the House

12/23/2013 Nativegrl77

The Senate will meet for a pro forma session only with no business conducted at 11:45am on Friday, January 3, 2014.

Additionally, only if the Senate does not receive a message that the House has adopted S.Con.Res.30, the adjournment resolution, the Senate will meet on the following dates and times:

– Tuesday, December 24^th at noon

– Friday, December 27^th at noon and

– Tuesday, December 31^st at noon

Schedule for Monday, January 6, 2014

The Senate will convene at 2:00pm on Monday, January 6, 2014. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S.1845, the Unemployment Insurance Extension Act with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

At 3:00pm, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session to resume consideration of Executive Calendar #452, the nomination of Janet Yellen, of California, to be Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System with the time until 5:30pm equally divided and controlled in the usual form prior to a vote on confirmation of the Yellen nomination.

At 5:30pm, there will be 2 roll call votes:

– Confirmation of the Yellen nomination and

– Motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S.1845, the Unemployment Extension Act.

=====================================================

Last Floor Action:12/19
11:05:00 A.M. – The Speaker announced
that the House do now adjourn pursuant to H. Res. 438.

The next meeting is
scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on December 23, 2013.

10:00:32 A.M.		The House convened, starting a new legislative day.
10:00:48 A.M.		The Speaker designated the Honorable Fred Upton to act as Speaker pro tempore for today.
10:01:06 A.M.		Today’s prayer was offered by Reverend Eugene Hemrick, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC
10:02:01 A.M.		The Chair announced that pursuant to section 6(a) of H. Res. 438, the Journal of the last day’s proceedings was approved.
10:02:11 A.M.		PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – The Chair designated Mr. Denham to lead the Members in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
10:02:58 A.M.		The House received a message from the Clerk. Pursuant to the permission granted in Clause 2(h) of Rule II of the Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Clerk notified the House that she had received a message from the Secretary of the Senate on December 20, 2013 at 3:07 p.m. stating that that body had passed H.R. 3343 and H.R. 3487, and had agreed to S. Con. Res. 30.
10:03:33 A.M.		The House received a message from the Clerk. Pursuant to the permission granted in Clause 2(h) of Rule II of the Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Clerk notified the House that she had received a message from the Secretary of the Senate on December 20, 2013 at 9:50 a.m. stating that that body had concurred in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.R. 3304, had passed S. 1614, H.R. 623, H.R. 767, and H.R. 2319; and agreed to H. Con. Res. 71. The message further announced appointments to the United States-China Economic Security Review Commission.
10:04:30 A.M.		The House received a message from the Clerk. Pursuant to the permission granted in Clause 2(h) of Rule II of the Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Clerk notified the House that she had received a message from the Secretary of the Senate on December 19, 2013 at 11:37 a.m. stating that that body had concurred in the House amendment to the Senate amendment to H.J. Res. 59.
10:05:12 A.M.	S. 1614	Mr. Denham asked unanimous consent to take from the Speaker’s table and consider.
10:05:12 A.M.	S. 1614	Considered by unanimous consent. S. 1614 — “To require Certificates of Citizenship and other Federal documents to reflect name and date of birth determinations made by a State court and for other purposes.”
10:05:41 A.M.	S. 1614	On passage Passed without objection.
10:05:45 A.M.	S. 1614	Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
10:05:59 A.M.		The Speaker announced that the House do now adjourn pursuant to H. Res. 438. The next meeting is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. on December 26, 2013.

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Black History

the Senate CONGRESS the House

12/21/2013 Nativegrl77

The Senate will meet for a pro forma session only with no business conducted at 11:45am on Friday, January 3, 2014.

Additionally, only if the Senate does not receive a message that the House has adopted S.Con.Res.30, the adjournment resolution, the Senate will meet on the following dates and times:

– Tuesday, December 24^th at noon

– Friday, December 27^th at noon and

– Tuesday, December 31^st at noon

The Senate will convene at 2:00pm on Monday, January 6, 2014.

Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S.1845, the Unemployment Insurance Extension Act with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

At 5:30pm, there will be 2 roll call votes:

– Confirmation of the Yellen nomination and

– Motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S.1845, the Unemployment Extension Act.

=====================================================================

Last Floor Action:12/19
11:05:00 A.M. – The Speaker announced
that the House do now adjourn pursuant to H. Res. 438.

The next meeting is
scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on December 23, 2013.

Black History

the Senate CONGRESS 12/20 the House

12/20/2013 Nativegrl77

The Senate stands in adjournment until 9:00am on Friday, December 20, 2013.

Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume Executive Session to consider Executive Calendar #456, Alejandro Mayorkas, of the District of Columbia, to be Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, post-cloture. There will be one hour of post-cloture debate remaining, equally divided and controlled between Senators Carper and Coburn.

At approximately 10:15am, there will be 6 roll call votes:

– Confirmation of the Mayorkas nomination,

– Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #459, John Koskinen, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of Internal Revenue

– Confirmation of the Koskinen nomination

– Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #382, Brian Davis, of FL, to be US District Judge for the Middle District of Florida

– Confirmation of the Davis nomination and

– Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #452, Janet Yellen, of California, to be Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

At approximately 10:03am this morning, there will be 6 roll call votes:

1) Confirmation of the Mayorkas nomination,

Live quorum

2) Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #459, John Koskinen, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of Internal Revenue

3) Confirmation of the Koskinen nomination

Live quorum

4) Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #382, Brian Davis, of FL, to be US District Judge for the Middle District of Florida

5) Confirmation of the Davis nomination and

Live quorum

6) Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #452, Janet Yellen, of California, to be Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

9:45am The Senate began a 15-minute roll call vote on confirmation of Executive Calendar #456, Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas, of DC, to be Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security; Confirmed: 54-41

10:22am The Senate began a 10 minute roll call vote on motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #459, John Koskinen, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of Internal Revenue; Invoked: 56-39

10:38am The Senate began a 10 minute roll call vote on confirmation of Executive Calendar #459, John Koskinen, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of Internal Revenue Confirmed: 59-36

10:52am The Senate began a 10 minute roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #382, Brian Davis, of FL, to be US District Judge for the Middle District of Florida

Invoked: 56-36 with 2 Senators voting present

11:09am The Senate began a 10-minute roll call vote on confirmation of Executive Calendar #382, Brian Davis, of FL, to be US District Judge for the Middle District of Florida Confirmed: 68-26

11:25am The Senate began a 10-minute roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #452, the nomination of Janet Yellen, of California, to be Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve;

Invoked: 59-34

Under the previous order, the vote on confirmation of the nomination will occur at a time to be determined by the Majority Leader, in consultation with the Republican Leader, on Monday, January 6, 2014.

The Senate is in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Senator Durbin moved to proceed to Calendar #265, S.1845, A bill to provide for the extension of certain unemployment benefits, and for other purposes. He then filed cloture on the motion to proceed. Senators will be notified when the vote is scheduled.

Senator Schumer asked unanimous consent the Senate up and pass S.1882, a bill to extend the exclusion from income for employer-provided mass transit and parking benefit.

Senator Hatched asked the request be modified and that the bill be referred to the Finance Committee.

Senator Schumer objected to the modification and Senator Hatch objected to the original request.

Senator Durbin asked unanimous consent that all nominations received by the Senate during the 113^th Congress, First Session, remain in status quo notwithstanding the provisions of Rule 31, paragraph 6 of the Standing Rules of the Senate.

Senator Graham objected.

By unanimous consent, the Senate confirmed the following military nominations and all nominations on the Secretary’s Desk in the Air Force, Army, and Navy:

AIR FORCE

#460 Brig. Gen. Paul S. Dwan – to be Major General

#461 To be Major General-

Brigadier General Catherine A. Chilton

Brigadier General Stayce D. Harris

Brigadier General William B. Waldrop, Jr.

Brigadier General Tommy J. Williams

#462 Col. Josef F. Schmid, III – to be Brigadier General

#463 To be Brigadier General-

Colonel Talentino C. Angelosante

Colonel James R. Barkley

Colonel Thomas G. Clark

Colonel Michael J. Cole

Colonel Samuel C. Mahaney

Colonel Brett J. McMullen

Colonel Jose R. Monteagudo

Colonel Randall A. Ogden

Colonel John P. Stokes

Colonel Stephen D. Vautrain

#464 Col. Stephen E. Rader – to be Brigadier General

#465 Col. Michael T. McGuire – to be Brigadier General

#466 Maj. Gen. John W. Raymond – to be Lieutenant General

ARMY

#467 Brigadier General Charles A. Flynn – to be Major General

#468 Lt. Gen. David G. Perkins – to be General

#469 To be Brigadier General-

Colonel James T. Iacocca

Colonel Daniel G. Mitchell

Colonel Kurt L. Sonntag

#470 Col. Anthony L. Hall – to be Brigadier General

#471 Col. Paul S. Wilson – to be Brigadier General, Judge Advocate General’s Corps

#472 Maj. Gen. Robert S. Ferrell – to be Lieutenant General

#473 Lt. Gen. Joseph Anderson – to be Lieutenant General

NAVY

#474 Rear Adm. (lh) Rebecca J. McCormick-Boyle – to be Rear Admiral

#475 Vice Adm. Michelle J. Howard – to be Admiral

#476 Adm. Mark E. Ferguson, III – to be Admiral

#477 Rear Adm. Joseph P. Mulloy – to be Vice Admiral

The Senate discharged the Commerce Committee from further consideration and confirmed the following nominations:

PN877 – To be Rear Admiral (Lower Half); Coast Guard

Capt. Francis S. Pelkowski

PN878 – All to be Rear Admiral (Lower Half); Coast Guard

Capt. Meredith L. Austin Capt. Peter W. Gautier Capt. Michael J. Haycock Capt. James M. Heinz Capt. Kevin E. Lunday Capt. Todd A. Sokalzuk Capt. Paul F. Thomas

WRAP UP

Roll Call Votes

1) Confirmation of Executive Calendar #456, Alejandro Mayorkas, of the District of Columbia, to be Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security; Confirmed: 54-41

2) Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #459, John Koskinen, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of Internal Revenue; Invoked: 56-39

3) Confirmation of the Koskinen nomination; Confirmed: 59-36

4) Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #382, Brian Davis, of FL, to be US District Judge for the Middle District of Florida; Invoked: 56-36 (2 Present)

5) Confirmation of the Davis nomination; Confirmed: 68-26

6) Motion to invoke cloture on Executive Calendar #452, Janet Yellen, of California, to be Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; Invoked: 59-34

Legislative items

Passed H.R.3343, to amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to clarify the rules regarding the determination of the compensation of the Chief Financial Officer of the District of Columbia.

Passed H.R.3487, the FEC Administrative Fines Program Extension.

Adopted S.Res.75, condemning the Government of Iran for its state-sponsored persecution of its Baha’l minority and its continued violation of the International Covenants on Human Rights with committee-reported amendments to the resolution and the preamble.

Adopted S.Res.325, designating the week of December 22 through December 28, 2013, as “National Toy Week”.

Adopted S.Res.326, Congratulating the 2013 Southern New Hampshire University men’s soccer team on winning the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Men’s Soccer Championship.

Adopted S.Res.327, Congratulating Sporting Kansas City for an outstanding 2013 season in Major League and for winning the Major League Soccer Cup 2013.

Adopted S.Con.Res.30, the adjournment resolution.

Completed the Rule 14 process of:

– S.1859, a bill to amend the internal revenue code of 1986 to extend certain expiring provisions and for other purposes. (Reid)

– S.1881, a bill to expand sanctions imposed with respect to Iran and to impose additional sanctions with respect to Iran and for other purposes. (Menendez)

Began the Rule 14 process of H.R.2109, to eliminate taxpayer financing of political party conventions and reprogram savings to provide for a 10-year pediatric research initiative through the Common Fund administered by the National Institutes of Health, and for other purposes.

Indefinitely postponed H.Con.Res.72, Providing for corrections to the enrollment of H.J.Res.59 and H.R.219, the Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013.

Executive items

Discharged the Commerce Committee and confirmed:

PN877 – To be Rear Admiral (Lower Half); Coast Guard

Capt. Francis S. Pelkowski

PN878 – All to be Rear Admiral (Lower Half); Coast Guard

Capt. Meredith L. Austin

Capt. Peter W. Gautier

Capt. Michael J. Haycock

Capt. James M. Heinz

Capt. Kevin E. Lunday

Capt. Todd A. Sokalzuk

Capt. Paul F. Thomas

Confirmed all nominations on the Secretary’s desk in the Air Force, Army and Navy and the following items:

AIR FORCE

#460 Brig. Gen. Paul S. Dwan – to be Major General

#461 To be Major General-

Brigadier General Catherine A. Chilton

Brigadier General Stayce D. Harris

Brigadier General William B. Waldrop, Jr.

Brigadier General Tommy J. Williams

#462 Col. Josef F. Schmid, III – to be Brigadier General

#463 To be Brigadier General-

Colonel Talentino C. Angelosante

Colonel James R. Barkley

Colonel Thomas G. Clark

Colonel Michael J. Cole

Colonel Samuel C. Mahaney

Colonel Brett J. McMullen

Colonel Jose R. Monteagudo

Colonel Randall A. Ogden

Colonel John P. Stokes

Colonel Stephen D. Vautrain

#464 Col. Stephen E. Rader – to be Brigadier General

#465 Col. Michael T. McGuire – to be Brigadier General

#466 Maj. Gen. John W. Raymond – to be Lieutenant General

ARMY

#467 Brigadier General Charles A. Flynn – to be Major General

#468 Lt. Gen. David G. Perkins – to be General

#469 To be Brigadier General-

Colonel James T. Iacocca

Colonel Daniel G. Mitchell

Colonel Kurt L. Sonntag

#470 Col. Anthony L. Hall – to be Brigadier General

#471 Col. Paul S. Wilson – to be Brigadier General, Judge Advocate General’s Corps

#472 Maj. Gen. Robert S. Ferrell – to be Lieutenant General

#473 Lt. Gen. Joseph Anderson – to be Lieutenant General

NAVY

#474 Rear Adm. (lh) Rebecca J. McCormick-Boyle – to be Rear Admiral

#475 Vice Adm. Michelle J. Howard – to be Admiral

#476 Adm. Mark E. Ferguson, III – to be Admiral

#477 Rear Adm. Joseph P. Mulloy – to be Vice Admiral

======================================================

Last Floor Action:12/19
11:05:00 A.M. – The Speaker announced
that the House do now adjourn pursuant to H. Res. 438.

The next meeting is
scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on December 23, 2013.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Degrading black professors

12/04/2013 Nativegrl77 2 Comments

Depicting a black professor as a gorilla being sodomized by his white supervisor was just the beginning. Sign my petition calling on California’s attorney general to investigate systemic racism at UCLA.

Sign Ron’s Petition

Dr. Christian Head was a respected surgeon at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). But because he is black, Dr. Head was the target of blatant discrimination — including a public presentation that featured an image depicting Dr. Head as a gorilla being sodomized by his white supervisor.

Dr. Head fought back. After more than 100,000 people signed a petition supporting him on Change.org, his lawyers were able to secure a landmark settlement from UCLA. But Dr. Head was far from the only faculty member to experience racism at UCLA.

In fact, a shocking new study reveals that the problem is extremely widespread. As a national board member of the NAACP who lives in Los Angeles, I am abhorred that a prestigious public university like UCLA would turn a blind eye to the systematic degradation of its non-white faculty members.

That’s why I started a petition on Change.org calling on California’s attorney general, Kamala Harris, to launch an investigation into racism at UCLA to determine if civil rights laws have been violated and to recommend solutions. Click here to sign my petition.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the recent campus-wide study of racism at UCLA — led by former California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno — said that UCLA regularly ignored complaints about discrimination and retaliation. One Latino professor reported being called a racial slur by a colleague in front of his students. He says he was told that reporting what happened to him would only “cause more trouble.”

Since UCLA refuses to take action to address systemic racism on campus, it’s time for Attorney General Harris to step in.

As a strong woman of color in California leadership, Attorney General Harris is uniquely positioned to take swift and decisive action to address UCLA’s pernicious culture of discrimination. I know that if thousands of people sign my petition, Attorney General Harris will respond, just as a petition created key pressure to enable Dr. Head to win his settlement from UCLA.

Click here to sign my petition calling on Attorney General Harris to launch an investigation into systemic racism at UCLA.

Thank you,

Ron Hasson Los Angeles, CA

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

VICTORY: UC Regents settles suit against UCLA Surgeon, Dr. Christian Head

12/02/2013 Nativegrl77

Friend,

Thanks to you, UCLA couldn’t shake the public’s outrage that nearly 120,000 Change.org signatures awakened. The late Willis Edwards started this petition to stop the discrimination and retaliation against an African American surgeon. Despite succumbing to cancer before the resolution of this case, you made his effort a success.

Dr. Christian Head, a respected UCLA surgeon who was the target of blatant racial discrimination and unrelenting retaliation, was finally awarded a settlement sum of $4.5 million from the University of California’s Board of Regents.

In fact, your signature and support for Dr. Head was so effective that the petition pressed UCLA to undertake a campus-wide survey to evaluate the university’s racial climate among its faculty.

The 5-member panel that oversaw the survey was led by former California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno. The results were scathing. Thanks to the Los Angeles Times, the public has learned the findings of the report reveal a shameful pattern.

The report found that UCLA’s review process “failed to adequately record, investigate, or provide for disciplinary sanctions for incidents which, if substantiated, would constitute violations of university nondiscrimination policy.” In other words, UCLA ignored complaints about discrimination and retaliation.

While Dr. Christian Head’s settlement is a huge victory, the university faces continued problems. Currently, Dr. Joel Sercarz, the only physician to have publicly substantiated Dr. Head’s allegations, is currently involved in a lawsuit against UCLA for the retaliation he faced when he came to Dr. Head’s defense. And other suits regarding unprofessional workplace conduct are also pending.

You can help reform UCLA’s racial climate. It’s time to ask the California Attorney General, Kamala Harris to step in to conduct and independent investigation on claims of discrimination and retaliation that UCLA bypassed.

Follow this link to sign the petition: https://www.change.org/petitions/ca-attorney-general-kamala-harris-investigate-ucla-for-ignoring-discrimination-and-retaliation-complaints-by-faculty-members

UCLA has forfeited its credibility to handle such sensitive and critical matters.

Thank you so much for supporting Dr. Head in this landmark case taking on institutionalized racism. Now, let’s keep up the tremendous effort to change the toxic climate at UCLA.

Ron Hasson, NAACP Board Member