Weekly Address: Congress Must Act Now to Stop the Sequester.

President Obama urges Congress to stop the sequester — the harmful automatic cuts that threaten thousands of jobs and affect our national security from taking effect on March 1.

VAWA passes in the Senate 78 – 22 : We ALL need to Stand UP and Speak Out

 and Men

April is known as “Sexual Assault Awareness Month” … Help break the accepted cycle and culture of violence -

Tell Congress to do what is right for ALL victims of Domestic Violence.

What better way for members of the House of Representatives to show ALL victims of domestic violence that as Public Servants, they support and protect the right to live a decent life which includes the pursuit of happiness by passing the Senate version of VAWA S.1925.

The fact is the Violence Against Women’s Act has always passed in both Chambers without a problem is well known, though the Republican led House chose to show overt prejudice against Native Alaskan, Native Americans, Undocumented and LGBT Americans when it rejected VAWA on March 30, 2012.

However, Republicans have yet another opportunity to do what is right. Tell your Republican member of Congress to be on the right side of History and pass the Senate version of #VAWA that protects all victims of these crimes, regardless of their age, gender, race, sexuality, or faith. The mission to continue that conservative party line lives on and seems to insist on taking, stripping, yanking, cutting, slashing away personal power while yelling that they want smaller Government and  it defies what Americans are about . Teapublicans in Congress, a small coalition, have made a choice to attack social issues, the decision to go out of their way to filibuster the economy is beyond my understanding.

If you believe Americans have A RIGHT to experience equality in all its forms: voter, union, women’s, gender, minority, and gay RIGHTs -along with more than a splash of compassion for the poor think about the Violence Against Women Act and how it might be affecting your family friends neighbors or co-workers.

on Apr 25, 2012 by     SenateDemocrats

Democratic Senators Barbara Boxer (CA), Amy Klobuchar (MN), and Patty Murray (WA) stress the importance of reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act to protect victims of domestic violence, regardless of sexual orientation or background.

President Obama and his administration changed the definition of rape to help more people

Please show support for S.1925, Call your member of Congress Tell them to PASS #VAWA  -

A lot of misinformation is being circulated by the bills detractors about S. 1925, the real #VAWA.

Read below for the facts !

(1)    Since #VAWA first passed, the number of individuals killed by an intimate partner has decreased by 34% for women and 57% for men. #VAWA has saved lives while saving money, saving $12.6 billion in its first 6 years alone.

(2)    S. 1925 saves money by consolidating and repealing more than 15 programs, ensuring more funding will go directly to needed victim services rather than grant administration.

(3)   S. 1925 adopts almost word-for-word the accountability measures developed by Senator Grassley for the Trafficking Victims Reauthorization Act.

(4)     S. 1925 does not create “new victims” or support “special interests”.  The real #VAWA protects all victims of these crimes, regardless of their age, gender, race, citizenship, sexuality, or faith.

(5)   Our nation must not say, “There are too many victims” or “You are not the ‘right’ kind of victim”. All victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking deserve help. That is what S. 1925, the real VAWA, does. It’s time – way past time — to do much more to stop this violence, and to protect victims from all walks of life including:

- Lack of services available to LGBTQ victims;•

- Barriers to services for undocumented victims; and•

- Continuing high levels of violence against Native American and Native Alaskan women.

- Please support VAWA’s Reauthorization.

- Domestic violence affects all of us.

- Congress should reauthorize the VAWA and provide funding.

Be a Seed for Change

A new bra … by Allana Maiden Richmond, Virginia

I’m asking Victoria’s Secret to make a “Survivor Bra” to help breast cancer survivors who had mastectomies feel beautiful too.                              Sign My Petition I was six years old when my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. But my mom is one of the lucky ones, and she survived after undergoing a mastectomy — a procedure that removes one or both breasts — when she was just 36 years old. Even though she’s been cancer free for over 21 years, my mom still struggles to find bras for women missing a breast that are not only comfortable and attractive, but affordable. I’ve been a Victoria’s Secret customer for years, and I know they’re outspoken supporters of women with breast cancer. Now I’m asking them to act on their word by making a “Survivor Bra” for women who have lost one or both of their breasts due to cancer. I started a petition on Change.org asking Victoria’s Secret to be a leader for survivors of breast cancer by making a bra that is comfortable for women who have had mastectomies. Click here to sign my petition. My mom is amazing. Even when she was going through exhausting chemotherapy — all while raising me — she never complained. Now, after years of being cancer free, my mom still has to drive to an expensive specialty store just to find bras and swimsuits that fit. Cancer survivors, especially women who have had a mastectomy, often struggle with their image and self-confidence. With thousands of stores located across the country and online, Victoria’s Secret could provide breast cancer survivors everywhere with access to better bras. Victoria’s Secret’s parent company has publicly said that “breast cancer is an issue close to many of us.” I believe that with your signature, they will do the right thing and become a leader in helping women with breast cancer feel beautiful again after a mastectomy. They’ve responded to public pressure like this before, and now you can help get them to respond again. Click here now to sign my petition asking Victoria’s Secret to make a “Survivor Bra” for survivors of breast cancer. Thank you for your support! Allana Maiden Richmond, Virginia

tax deal … By the Numbers

By ThinkProgress War Room

What’s in the Tax Deal

After weeks of tense negotiations and drama (a detailed blow-by-blow can be found here), Congress finally managed to solve at least part of its latest manufactured crisis. After the country had technically already gone over the so-called “fiscal cliff,” the Senate overwhelmingly passed a compromise tax plan early Tuesday morning and the House followed suit late Tuesday night after a rebellion by rank-and-file House Republicans petered out.

Here’s some numbers to know about the deal (officially called the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012):

– 2: The number of decades since there has been a major tax increase on the wealthy.

– 39.6: The rate those earning more than $400,000 ($450,000 for a couple) will pay, the same as under President Clinton.

– 99 percent: The percentage of taxpayers who will keep Bush-era income tax rates.

– $73,633: The additional taxes to be paid by the average member of the top 1 percent.

– 77 percent: The percentage of household who will see a tax increase thanks to the expiration of the payroll tax holiday in place over the past two years. The expiration of the payroll tax cut and failure to replace it with something similar will deal a significant blow to the economy.

– $600 BILLION: The amount of new revenue raised by the deal after accounting for money saved by decreased borrowing costs. An additional approximately $130 BILLION is saved through decreased interest on the debt.

– $1.8 TRILLION: The amount of spending cuts put in place by President Obama so far, resulting in a roughly 2.5:1 ratio of programmatic spending cuts to revenue.

– 2 MILLION: The number of unemployed Americans whose extended unemployment benefits will continue.

– 20+ MILLION: The number of people who benefit from vital tax credits for students and both poor and middle class families that were extended for five years.

– 37,000: The number of jobs saved by the extension of wind energy tax credits.

– 3,730: The number of households that will be subject to the estate tax, the rate of which was increased slightly to 40 percent with a $5 million exemption. Without a deal, the rate would’ve reverted to 55 percent with a $1 million exemption. As the Atlantic’s Matt O’Brien noted, “Only 3,730 households will pay the estate tax next year if the exemption is set at $5 million, versus 47,170 if it’s set at $1 million.”

The deal also many other provisions, including help for underwater homeowners. Another element of the deal prevented a huge spike in the price of milk that would’ve occurred because House Republicans refused to pass a Farm Bill. Numerous special interest tax provisions, including for NASCAR and rum, also made it into the final package.

The deal also puts off automatic spending cuts known as a sequester for an additional two months. The president and Congress must now identify hundreds of billions of dollars in additional savings and revenues in order to cancel the remainder of these across-the-board spending cuts. While Republicans are once again likely to demand massive cuts to programs like Medicare and Social Security, the president reiterated that the next phase of deficit reduction must also be balanced.

Separately, we officially reached the nation’s borrowing limit on December 31 and extraordinary measures will only prevent the nation from defaulting on its obligations for approximately two months. Congress must do its job and raise the debt ceiling in order to make good on the cost of tax cuts, wars, and other spending Congress has already authorized. As the president noted last night, raising the debt ceiling is not up for debate and we will not repeat the debacle Republicans caused in 2011 when they nearly forced the nation into a default that would’ve triggered a global economic calamity.

Evening Brief: Important Stories That You Might’ve Missed

Filibuster reform may be delayed a few weeks.

Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) savaged Speaker Boehner (R-OH) for dropping a bill to aid Hurricane Sandy victims.

Boehner may have dropped the Sandy aid bill in order to spite Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA).

House Republicans also blocked the Violence Against Women Act.

How gerrymandering is keeping Democrats from controlling the House.

Arizona’s anti-immigrant law is costing it millions.

Long lines in Florida caused by GOP changes to election laws cost Obama more than 10,000 votes.

District court denies request for “kill list” disclosure.

Despite the drilling boom, U.S. gas prices hit a record high in 2012.

Reid Statement On Disabilities Treaty

posted 12/4/2012

Washington, D.C.—Nevada Senator Harry Reid issued the following statement after Senate Republicans blocked a treaty to strengthen the rights of people with disabilities around the world. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was modeled on U.S. law, considered the gold standard on equal opportunity laws for the disabled. It failed by a vote of 61-38. A two-thirds vote is required in the Senate to approve treaties.

“It is a sad day when we cannot pass a treaty that simply brings the world up to the American standard for protecting people with disabilities because the Republican party is in thrall to extremists and ideologues. The United States is seen as a leader around the world. Today, we had a chance to lead, and we failed because a small group of Republican senators fear the Tea Party more than they care about equality for people with disabilities.

“Today’s vote wasn’t about Republicans or Democrats. It was about standing up for our heroes – men and women who risked their lives on the battlefield for the United States of America. This treaty was about 57 million Americans who live with a disability. Republicans such as former President George H.W. Bush, Senator McCain and former Senator Bob Dole called on their Republican colleagues to support these Americans. I am saddened those Senators did not listen. Their arguments against the treaty had no basis in fact – the treaty does not change United States law. That is why I plan to bring this treaty up for a vote again in the next Congress. Our wounded veterans and millions more around the world deserve better.”

Harry Reid Senate Dems and the Headlines : January 2013

 

Reid Statement On January Employment Report

Reid
Statement On The Appointment Of Denis McDonough As White House Chief Of
Staff

Reid
Statement On Senator Harkin’s Decision Not To Seek Re-Election

Reid
Statement On Rules Reform

Reid
Statement On House Vote To Decouple Debt Ceiling From Spending Cuts

Reid Statement on White House Proposals to Protect Our Children and Communities from Gun Violence

Reid Floor Remarks: Democrats Will Continue Putting Middle Class Families First In The 113th Congress

Senate Leaders Urge President Obama To Consider “Any Lawful Steps” To Avoid Default

Reid Statement On Sen. Jay Rockefeller’s Announced Retirement

Reid Statement On President Obama’s Nomination Of Jack Lew To Head The Treasury Department

Reid Statement On President Obama’s Nominations To Head The Pentagon And CIA

Reid Statement On Disaster Relief

Reid Announces Updated Committee Assignments For 113th Congress

Republicans object to confirming Medine to be Chrm Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board

Reid Remarks To Convene The 113th Congress

Reid Statement On December Employment Report

White House … updates

Today, I would like to share with you some of the ways in which President Obama and his Administration continue to address the diverse needs of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, including by honoring the life and legacy of Senator Daniel Inouye, the highest-ranking Asian American in the United States government.

To learn more about the White House Office of Public Engagement and the White House Initiative on AAPIs, visit
http://whitehouse.gov/aapi
 and encourage your friends and colleagues to sign up for updates!
Best Regards,
Gautam Raghavan Office of Public Engagement The White House aapi@who.eop.gov

President Obama and Administration Officials Mark the Passing of Senator Daniel Inouye

President Barack Obama speaks at the funeral service for Hawaiian Senator Daniel Inouye at Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., Dec. 21, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Earlier today, President Obama delivered a eulogy at the memorial service for Senator Daniel Inouye, President pro tempore of the United States Senate, saying in part:

I think it’s fair to say that Danny Inouye was perhaps my earliest political inspiration.  And then, for me to have the privilege of serving with him, to be elected to the United States Senate and arrive, and one of my first visits is to go to his office, and for him to greet me as a colleague, and treat me with the same respect that he treated everybody he met, and to sit me down and give me advice about how the Senate worked and then regale me with some stories about wartime and his recovery — stories full of humor, never bitterness, never boastfulness,  just matter-of-fact — some of them I must admit a little off-color.  I couldn’t probably repeat them in the cathedral.  (Laughter.)  There’s a side of Danny that — well.
Danny once told his son his service to this country had been for the children, or all the sons and daughters who deserved to grow up in a nation that never questioned their patriotism.  This is my country, he said.  Many of us have fought hard for the right to say that.  And, obviously, Rick Shinseki described what it meant for Japanese Americans, but my point is, is that when he referred to our sons and daughters he wasn’t just talking about Japanese Americans.  He was talking about all of us.  He was talking about those who serve today who might have been excluded in the past.  He’s talking about me.
And that’s who Danny was.  For him, freedom and dignity were not abstractions.  They were values that he had bled for, ideas he had sacrificed for, rights he understood as only someone can who has had them threatened, had them taken away.

Read the President’s full remarks.

In addition to the eulogy, the President also issued a statement on the Senator’s passing as well as a Presidential Proclamation directing that the flag of the United States be flown at half-staff at the White House and other public buildings and grounds until sunset on the day of Senator Inouye’s interment.

President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, former President Bill Clinton, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, attend the funeral service for Hawaiian Senator Daniel Inouye at Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., Dec. 21, 2012. Senator Inouye’s family is at left. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

In addition, Vice President Biden issued a statement on the Senator’s passing, delivered remarks at the Arrival Ceremony for Senator Inouye at the United States Capitol, and today also delivered remarks at the memorial service.

Other senior Administration officials also released statements:

• Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
• Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta
• Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar
• Secretary of Health & Human Services Kathleen Sebelius
• Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
• Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki
• Daphne Kwok, Chair, President’s Advisory Commission on AAPIs
• Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn

Statement by the President on the Presidential Election in the Republic of Korea

Recently, President Obama issued a statement on the election of President-elect Park Geun-hye, who will become the first female president of the Republic of Korea:

I congratulate President-elect Park Geun-hye on her success in the election held on Wednesday. I look forward to working closely with the Park Administration to further enhance our extensive cooperation with the Republic of Korea on a wide range of important bilateral, regional and global issues. The U.S.-ROK alliance serves as a linchpin of peace and security in the Asia Pacific and our two nations share a global partnership with deep economic, security, and people-to-people ties. I also wish to reiterate my admiration for all that President Lee has done to strengthen U.S.-ROK relations and promote a Global Korea.

On Friday, the President also called the President-elect – click here for a readout of that call.

Blog Highlights

President Barack Obama, with Vice President Joe Biden, delivers a statement and takes questions about the Administration’s gun policy process in the wake of the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut, in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, Dec. 19, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

• Dec 21: A Message from President Obama about Your Petition on Reducing Gun Violence
• Dec 20: The House Republicans’ Spending Reduction Act of 2012 Will Hurt Middle Class Families
• Dec 19: President Obama: “Words Need to Lead to Action” on Gun Violence
• Dec 10: A Lesson in Pacific Islander Collaboration

Plan B exposed ::: White House ::: Get the Facts

With tax cuts for middle-class families set to expire soon, Republicans in Congress have proposed legislation known as “Plan B” that not only raises taxes on 25 million middle-class families, but cuts taxes for households making more than $1 million each year.

We’ve put together a graphic to help explain the proposed legislation. Check it out:

Diplomatic Corps Holiday Reception

. Diplomatic Corps Holiday Reception bywhitehouse

Congressional Budget Office … cost estimates

S. 1744, Guardian Accountability and Senior Protection Act

As reported by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on July, 12, 2012

H.R. 6684, the Spending Reduction Act of 2012

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reviewed H.R. 6684, the Spending Reduction Act of 2012, as posted on the Web site of the House Committee on Rules on December 19, 2012

H.R. 6684, the Spending Reduction Act of 2012

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reviewed H.R. 6684, the Spending Reduction Act of 2012, as posted on the Web site of the House Committee on Rules on December 19, 2012.