Tag Archives: obama

Here’s something that President Obama laid out in his State of the Union that I think deserves special attention:

Recent news reports have raised questions about whether members of Congress are profiting from inside information about the very businesses they’re supposed to be regulating — information about pending legislation that could move markets and generate investor profits.

The President offered one simple fix: End insider trading by members of Congress, extending the rules that apply to anyone else whose jobs give them access to sensitive information about businesses.

If you think this simple effort at good government should be a priority during this campaign, it’s up to you to speak out. Say you support the President and spread the word:

http://barackobama.com/Ban-Insider-Trading

Thanks,

James

James Kvaal
National Policy Director
Obama for America

P.S. — Here’s the full quote from the State of the Union:

“Send me a bill that bans insider trading by members of Congress; I will sign it tomorrow. Let’s limit any elected official from owning stocks in industries they impact. Let’s make sure people who bundle campaign contributions for Congress can’t lobby Congress, and vice versa — an idea that has bipartisan support, at least outside of Washington.”

~ Recent Post

from Jason Rosenbaum and dscc.org

01/30/2012 Nativegrl77

– The next 24 hours will determine our nation’s political path: We either re-elect President Obama. Or President Gingrich or President Romney destroy working families and hand everything to the top 1%.

I really need you to take a look at this spreadsheet. Our make-or-break FEC deadline is 24 hours from now, and we’re still $255,000 short. This is the first deadline since the GOP presidential contest turned from circus to serious. Whether or not we hit this goal will determine who wins: President Obama, or a radical Republican.

Reach this goal, and we have a fighting chance to keep President Obama in office and prevent a total GOP takeover. Fall short, and President Gingrich or President Romney will be calling the shots before a Republican Congress a year from now.

Can you chip in $5 now?

We can’t get there without your help – 90% of our donations come from grassroots supporters. Thanks in advance.

Jason

Jason Rosenbaum
DSCC Director of Online Communications

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

What a Fair Shot at Success Means …for ALL Americans

01/27/2012 Nativegrl77

What a Fair Shot at Success Means

Posted by Matt Compton on December 6, 2011 at 6:47 PM EST

In the state where his mother was born, President Obama made an argument about laying a new foundation for broad-based prosperity in America.

“It starts,” he said, “with making sure that everyone has a fair shot at success.”

That means giving Americans the education, infrastructure, and resources necessary to out-innovate our global competitors, structuring our tax system fairly to pay for those investments, and it means creating an environment where everyone — from Main Street to Wall Street — plays by the same set of rules. The President said:

As infuriating as it was for all of us, we rescued our major banks from collapse, not only because a full blown financial meltdown would have sent us into a second Depression, but because we need a strong, healthy financial sector in this country.

But part of the deal was that we would not go back to business as usual. That’s why last year we put in place new rules of the road that refocus the financial sector on this core purpose: getting capital to the entrepreneurs with the best ideas, and financing to millions of families who want to buy a home or send their kids to college. We’re not all the way there yet, and the banks are fighting us every inch of the way.

And Republicans are standing with Wall Street to block broader reform by refusing to confirm a head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — the watchdog group is charged with protecting everyday Americans from lenders who are out to take advantage of them. Here’s what President Obama had to say:

The man we nominated for the post, Richard Cordray, is a former Attorney General of Ohio who has the support of most Republican and Democratic Attorneys General throughout the country.

But the Republicans in the Senate refuse to let him do his job. Why? Does anyone think the problem before that led to this crisis was too much oversight of mortgage lenders or debt collectors? Every day we go without a consumer watchdog in place is another day when a student, or a service member, or a senior citizen could be tricked into a loan they can’t afford – something that happens all the time. Financial institutions have plenty of lobbyists looking out for their interests. Consumers deserve to have someone whose job it is to look out for theirs. And I intend to make sure they do.

The Senate is slated to vote on Richard Cordray’s confirmation later this week. Check back at WhiteHouse.gov for more information.

Learn more about , Economy

President Obama: “In America, We Are Greater Together”

Posted by Matt Compton on December 6, 2011 at 5:43 PM EST

Members of the audience listen as President Barack Obama delivers remarks at Osawatomie High School in Osawatomie, Kansas, Dec. 6, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

More than a century after Teddy Roosevelt outlined a vision for a “New Nationalism” in a Kansas town called Osawatomie, President Obama visited the same community to talk about what he called a make-or-break moment of the middle class.

He described how the world has undergone an economic transformation unlike any other in our collective history — and how that change has upended our expectations of social mobility in this country. Where professionals ranging from factory workers to travel agents to accountants once enjoyed the promise of a good job and steady income in exchange for their hard work, today they and a range of people like them must compete with new technology and individuals from around the world.

The President told the 1,200 people gathered in Osawatomie that there are two ways to respond to these challenges.

Some in Washington, he said, argue that we should let the markets take care of everything — rolling back regulation and slashing taxes:

Now, it’s a simple theory. And we have to admit, it’s one that speaks to our rugged individualism and our healthy skepticism of too much government. That’s in America’s DNA. And that theory fits well on a bumper sticker. But here’s the problem: It doesn’t work. It has never worked. It didn’t work when it was tried in the decade before the Great Depression. It’s not what led to the incredible postwar booms of the ‘50s and ‘60s. And it didn’t work when we tried it during the last decade.

Thankfully, President Obama said, we can choose a different path:

[T]here’s another view about how we build a strong middle class in this country — a view that’s truer to our history, a vision that’s been embraced in the past by people of both parties for more than 200 years.

It’s not a view that we should somehow turn back technology or put up walls around America. It’s not a view that says we should punish profit or success or pretend that government knows how to fix all of society’s problems. It is a view that says in America we are greater together — when everyone engages in fair play and everybody gets a fair shot and everybody does their fair share.

Read the entire speech here.

~ my 2cents ...

TGIF &some News

01/27/2012 Nativegrl77

Just another rant …

Ten months into President Obama taking office I watched heard and read several comments about President Obama. Reports of folks feeling the President, having taken a great first step toward change just had not gone far enough to sedate or fulfill the promises he made to special interest groups during his campaign. I was very surprised at the astounding lack of patience, suddenly realized President Obama would be held at a different standard and that the odd negative comments which were becoming bold, louder and more frequent …were actually coming from people left of center.

Change takes time

Now, I can’t speak for anyone else but history tells us that Africans and their descendants, which covers so many countries because we all know most were rounded up and shipped out for labour know struggle like nobody’s business. Yes, others have suffered in the timeline of slave life but how many can offer up a story of Black slaves laying the foundation or buildings free for more years than anyone wants to admit to and some in the southern states are trying to eliminate from history books. Yes, there have been some improvements made but Black People still suffer from higher rates of arrest, incarceration, pregnancy unemployment and still fighting for 21^st Century civil rights. Yet, even with all the hurdles blocking some aspects of progress for African Americans and decades of Caucasian Presidents. A man with a funny name and big ears who also happens to be bi-racial gains steam in Illinois, gets spotted for potential, becomes a US Senator and while in the Senate works for the people then is tapped to be a part of the Convention blowing everyone away with an awesome speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention. Yes, a lot happened before 53% of Americans voted for a Black Man for the first time but shocking (sarcasm), we also found after governing for a little over ten months that discrimination is alive and well. It was odd to see some our own run hold grudges and ignore what voters needed them to do … govern let alone support the first black President. It became clear that more Blacks definitely had the President’s back, 53% had patience but was growing thin listening to folks in the media giving viewers subliminal messages that we should expect President Obama to govern with a hammer, use his power and get their issues passed quickly. I have said it before … here is when schoolhouse rock comes to mind … and I sing it every time I hear those who think they voted for a King or Dictator. I cannot tell you how frustrating it is to hear people who seem smart, use great verbiage, can recite a law or two not to mention wonderful knowledge congressional protocol and dangle their degrees when necessary yet, they forget that Congress creates debates and votes yea or nay to ALL Federal laws of the land. Ok, a chill of states’ rights came over me

Change takes time …

especially when the gauntlet of obstruction was laid down … say day 1 after taking office and three years later Teapublicans are still stating that their main job is to make sure the President Obama is a one term President, not to get Americans back to work, not to pass bills that will move us forward.

Change takes a Congress that will compromise and cooperate with President Obama unlike the first 2yrs when members of Congress seemingly left our President to save their congressional seats … I get that but they also stopped working for We the People and allowed the Teapublicans into Congress

Change takes time … but

The Democratic Party had problems to overcome and clearly, the 2010 exposed those cracks

I have to say seeing members of Congress and the professional left seemingly lose common sense and some seemed to have lost their minds was very disturbing then now it just irritates me that they feel perfectly ok with blaming President Obama for what should get done in Congress. It took decades of bad behavior that set up the possibility for a big recession. The notion that our economic collapse could be rectified in 1-2 years still boggles my mind yet the professional left pushed, complained and whined for that list of demands or mandates that have never been President and should watch that schoolhouse rock video more than once or take a civics class. What they should be doing is pressing their representatives in Congress to do their jobs , uh create a law for the good of all Americans not just a select few instead of whining and sitting on the side lines after giving money. I say be proactive not reactive. Yes, giving money is definitely necessary but giving money is not the end of any political campaign or a move toward change we can ALL believe in. It is only a start. It is obvious that money and 53% voted, helped get Barack Obama into office, but the work of Governing is troublesome. When we have people like Mitch McConnell telling Americans he has one job and it is to make President Obama a one term President instead of doing the Peoples Business we all have wonder how much progress can even be imagined let alone be accomplished at all. The party of NO has filibustered progress in both Chambers of Congress more than any other, refuses to think about their fellow Americans with 15miilion people still unemployed yet, Indies and some special interest groups like the list below still have issues with the President Obama.

Yes, hold the President accountable but do not sit on the sidelines and demand change if you are not helping the President achieve a win for all Americans.

In 2009, we heard …

**Environmentalist… like Phil Radford, exec director/Greenpeace USA stated among other things,” Obama is missing in action” as it relates to global warming …in an article written by Bryan Walsh from Time Magazine…

**Gay/Lesbian leaders… are starting to make comments about Obama not going far enough on don’t ask/don’t tell but today he announced he will enact federal benefits for same sex couples …moving too slow? Too little too late? come on… People of colour know what being impatient means …

**Health-care liberals… are impatient and talking about how they put Obama in office and threatening a change in 2012 …

**Wall Street … flexed their muscles to show Obama who really is in charge of the market … but bad behavior needs to be regulated

**Hispanics … are upset

It is time for them to help President Obama

Yes, change will happen and contrary to how folks feel we are going in the right direction but President cannot do it all, we need to call, write and march to let Congress know what We the People voted for …

A change we can believe in

Other News …

President Obama and Vice President Biden at House Democratic Retreat

Pres. Obama Discusses College Costs

Sec. Panetta Presents Defense Dept. FY 2013 Budget

DNI Director Clapper Gives Keynote on Information Sharing at CSIS