Month: October 2013

Immigration reform held hostage by Tea-Publican egotists who want to be president

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Remember this bit of sacriligious pretentiousness from earlier this year?

RubioSavior

Things have been on a downhill slide for Senator Marco "Big Gulp" Rubio ever since he lent his name to the Senate "Gang of Eight" immigration reform bill. He was AWOL during the recent Tea-Publican economic terrorist hostage taking of the federal debt ceiling and GOP government shutdown, which allowed Senator Joe McCarthy Ted "Calgary" Cruz to position himself as the latest darlin' of the foaming at the mouth radical Tea Party extremists whom once worshiped Rubio as their "savior."

"Big Gulp" has previously said that he no longer supports his own immigration reform bill, but now he says that he will also not support any conference committee markup of an immigration reform bill, because he needs to pander to the foaming at the mouth radical Tea Party extremists whom he needs for his narcissistic quest for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016. Rubio Throws In The Towel On Immigration:

The most prominent conservative supporter of sweeping immigration
reform is calling on Congress to dial back the effort and instead focus
on making incremental changes, delivering a significant blow to the
prospects of reform.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) now opposes a
bicameral conference committee to reach a final resolution to the
Senate-passed bill, his spokesman said, arguing that the support is not
there for a comprehensive overhaul and that Congress should act where
there is consensus.

"The point is that at this time, the only
approach that has a realistic chance of success is to focus on those
aspects of reform on which there is consensus through a series of
individual bills," Alex Conant, a top spokesman for Rubio, told TPM in
an email. "Otherwise, this latest effort to make progress on immigration
will meet the same fate as previous efforts: failure."

U.S. Senate to bring ENDA to a vote – contact Sen. Jeff Flake

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Steve Benen reports today,
Senate readies ENDA for floor vote:

Back in July, the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee easily approved
the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), 15 to 7. Since then,
however, there’s been little action – Congress was out in August, and by
September, the prospect of a government shutdown and/or debt-ceiling
crisis dominated the landscape.

But with the crises having past, at least for now, senators are once again returning to the issue.

The Senate’s partisan balance will move a tick to the left
Thursday, when Cory Booker takes his seat as the 55th member of the
Democratic caucus. And the New Jersey newcomer looks increasingly likely
to make a bit of history befitting his national profile only a few days
later, by providing an essential vote to advance the most important
civil rights bill of the decade.

Legislation that would prohibit workplace discrimination
based on sexual orientation or gender identity is on the cusp of
securing a filibuster-crushing supermajority of 60 senators – close
enough that proponents are ready to call the question.

New Jersey’s Cory Booker (D) will be sworn in on Thursday, and by Roll Call’s count, that will bring the total number of ENDA supporters in the chamber to 56, including a handful of Republicans.

That wouldn’t be quite enough to overcome a far-right
filibuster, but proponents believe a lobbying push can secure the
remaining support necessary to overcome obstructionism and allow the
Senate to vote up or down on the proposal. Indeed, the lobbying campaign
will reportedly focus on Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Kelly Ayotte
(R-N.H.), Dean Heller (R-Nev.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Dan Coats (R-Ind.),
and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.). Flake voted for a previous version of ENDA in
the House several years ago, and Portman, who has an openly gay son, has
endorsed marriage equality.

Hawaii Special Session for SB1 – Hawaii Marriage Equity Act begins today

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I know that "Birthers" think Hawaii is some exotic foreign country rather than the 50th state, and the American media tends to disregard news from Hawaii because its time zone does not coincide with their broadcasts or print deadlines, but there is news happening in Hawaii this week that deserves the media's attention. Here is the Honolulu Star-Advertiser today:

Star-Advertiser

The Special Session of the Hawaii Legislature for SB1 – Hawaii Marriage Equity Act begins today.
Fervent assemblies precede session (subscription required).

The Hawaii Reporter does not require a subscription. Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor to Hold Hearing on Marriage Equality Bill:

The Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor will hold a hearing on Senate Bill (SB) 1, Relating to Equal Rights, on Monday, October 28, 2013 at 10:30 a.m. at the State Capitol Auditorium.

The hearing will follow the convening of the Second Special Session of 2013 called by Governor Neil Abercrombie.

“Listening to public input, we’ve strived to strike a balance between
the concerns expressed by both sides of this issue,” said Senator
Clayton Hee, Chair of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor. “We
have also done our best to provide the public with ample opportunity to
review the measure posted online to offer further input. Everyone
wishing to participate may do so by submitting testimony.”

Political-Economic Feedback Loops

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Posted by Bob Lord

[Hat tip to my friend John Gallagher for inspiring this post with his thought provoking Facebook links]

Those of us who read beyond the headlines on climate change understand the concept of a feedback loop. It occurs when a phenomenon feeds on itself. For example, as the planet warms, ice melts, causing the earth to reflect less sunlight and absorb more, thereby causing…..more warming. 

Do feedback loops occur in economic policy making by politicians? Quite clearly, yes. Indeed, these political-economic feedback loops may be the gravest threat to our way of life. For a few examples, follow me after the jump.

50 companies on the S&P 500 paid a zero percent corporate tax rate over the past year

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

More than 50 companies on the S&P 500 paid a zero percent corporate tax rate over the past year. Think Progress reports, Over 10 Percent Of America’s Largest Companies Pay Zero Percent Tax Rates:

CorporateFlagAmong companies listed on the S&P 500, almost one in nine paid an effective tax rate of zero percent — or even lower — over the past year, according to an analysis by USA Today.

There are 57 separate companies listed on the index that paid a zero
percent rate from the past year. Those companies include both household
names like Verizon and News Corp. and lesser-known corporate giants like
the data storage manufacturer Seagate (market value $15.9 billion) and
Public Storage (market value $29.5 billion). Many of the companies USA
Today identified in its analysis as paying negative rates make the list
because they lost money, but several were profitable. Previous analyses
have shown that the typical corporation pays a lower effective tax rate than most middle-class families, and a far lower one than the statutory corporate tax rate against which business interests disingenuously rail.

Getting to a zero percent tax rate despite turning a profit requires
creative accounting, but not lawbreaking. The corporate tax code allows
companies to avoid tax liability even in years when they turn a profit.
Some of the profitable companies on the newspaper’s list, such as
General Motors, achieved a zero percent rate by banking tax credits from
previous years when business was bad. But the more common gambit
involves moving revenues from parent companies to offshore subsidiaries
based in tax haven countries in the Caribbean, Europe, and elsewhere.