The Youth Movement

Iran Election

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 03:54:00 +0000

Posted by Ben

I think in the current day its hard to get away from the recent Presidential Elections that were held in Iran. It seems the people of their country (or at least some) have become very angry over the results of the election and feel that there have been major ballot counting irregularities there. The the Iranian press have made it a mission to document the violence and protests that have become a regular occurrence since the results of the election were made public.
In many cases, I would see this as a news story and although I think like most Americans do not favor President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but I have no personal interest in the elections in Iran.

However things have been different this time in terms of the media's attention to the elections, and the reaction of the people of Iran and the Iranian government. The media here in America, in rare form began to devote exclusive coverage to the elections and its aftermath. With the expansion of websites like Facebook, Youtube, and Twitter many of the citizens of Iran have been able to document their experiences, and allow their message to get out to the world.
Much like what happened two weeks ago as we approached and observed the Tienanmen Square anniversary the Iranian Government began to crack down on websites like Facebook, Twitter and Youtube as the Chinese Government did; however for much different reasons. The Chinese Government wanted to keep the history of Tienanmen unnoticed by the Chinese people, while Iran wanted to keep the revolt against the Iranian elections out of the Global news and to smother the protesters from speaking with the news media.

The most compelling development that I have noticed in this constant news coverage is the people standing up for their rights as voting citizens. In the face of a government that is outwardly not ruling in any democratic fashion, they are standing up. This poses a problem for President Ahmadinejad who loses credibility if he stays in office and meets and or deals with other countries. With reporters being arrested in Iran and the media being shut out on TV sets all across Iran I wonder if the people of Iran will keep the pressure on their government to do the right thing. When at the onset of writing this post an Iranian Council ruled that the ballot counting done in the election had no irregularities and that the results will remain the same. Will the Global news stay interested or will some other mundane event happen that will cause the news outlets to focus on other stories to lead the news causing the Iranian people to have to fend for themselves?

Obama's First 100 Days

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 20:20:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

I have been an avid supporter of the President, and much of my time spent away from the blog was also spent away from the news. My aim was to separate myself from the man, and begin to view him as the President. Being one whom disliked President Bush I made it my responsibility to judge President Obama as stringently as I judged Bush. I have slowly brought myself out of hiatus, and started to read newspapers again. I began to watch the nightly news, and on occasion watch the cable news evening news reports. Having yet to relapse from my addiction to the Sunday News shows I rejoin the world of current events just as President Obama enters his first 100 days in office.

As with any President, everyone reflects back on the first 3 months of the Presidents tenure and begin to judge their actions so far, and argue the commitments of the President to his campaign promises. Obama's first 100 hundred days are clear indicators of the way Obama will govern and of how he deals with crisis. No crisis can be more important than the crisis of the day. The economic future of America. After bailouts, and bill passing, Obama and his administration have attempted to maintain a favorable view in the eyes of the American public. This so far has worked for them, as recent polls show that for the first time in five years the majority of Americans feel that the country is moving in the right direction.

Many acknowledge the favorable ratings and positive opinions Obama has received so far, but many are looking towards the next 100 days to be the true test of Obama's Presidency. With the memos and interrogations practices of the previous administration being released to the public Obama is being pressured by many Americans including members of his own party to come down hard on all those involved and to also where fitting begin investigations. The President and the Attorney Generals office have previously already stated that the interrogators will not be prosecuted, but have been oddly silent on future prosecutions or possible investigations of high level Bush officials (including Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and others) who worked closely with President Bush and who authorized the intense interrogations that took place. While on the campaign trail Obama focused his message on hope for the future, and for Americans to not look to the past. This message will surely haunt Obama in the months to come because he will be against his liking forced to make a sound decision on whether he will investigate members of the Bush Administration on torture charges or will be stick with his campaign message and end the talks of investigations once and for all. Obama currently has a favorable approval rating, but in dealing with such an issue is going to cause outrage and discontent by many, and this will see his approval ratings dip.

The current Administration have begun to take on the tasks they promised during the campaign and have begun to deal with issues that they know will bring them a favorable approval. One such issue is the Health care system. In the recent weeks the Obama Administration have been calling the state of affairs in terms of Health care a crisis and have now been positioning to begin preliminary legislation that will ultimately lead them to their goal of Universal Health Care.

On Thursday, Obama will once again go national to speak directly to the American people. There is not yet a general consensus of what he will talk about just yet, but one could conclude that Obama will touch on the economic climate, health care, Bush Administration investigations, and depending on the next few days if anymore outbreaks occur, Swine Flu.
While the first 100 days have gone considerably well for Obama, I look forward to see what the next 100 days will bring.

The Youth Movement Returns...

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 06:16:00 +0000

The Youth Movement has been gone for some time.
And now we are returning... we hope you have missed us as we have missed you and we are returning..... May 19th is our scheduled return date but check back often because we may return sooner than that!!!!

Countdown Clocks, USA Countdowns at WishAFriend.com

The Need for The New York Times

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 03:12:00 +0000

Written by Dave

Earlier this week it was announced that the Tribune Company based out of Chicago was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The Tribune Company owns the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Newsday, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florid Sun-Sentinel, The Morning Call and The Baltimore Sun newspapers along with a number of other investments that include the Chicago Cubs. The debt of the Tribune Company is approximated at $13 billion.

Other newspaper companies that are hurting include McClatchy publishing company and the New York Times Co., which is currently looking to sell or mortgage their headquarters in downtown Manhattan. The main reason for the economic struggles of these printing powerhouses is that advertising dollars are going elsewhere because the printed newspaper continues to decline in popularity. Coupled with incredibly low stock prices these companies are struggling to stay afloat in the Internet age as both the New York Times Co. and McClatchy are trading at 10-year lows.

Additional layoffs are expected from the industry that has already shed approximately 15% of their staff with more than 15,000 having been laid off in 2008 alone.

The decline of the once prominent newspaper industry will have little economic impact on the economy as a whole as their decline has been predicted for quite some time in this age of digital media outlets and 24-hour news. Some say that this is merely an inevitable cultural transition for a modernized society and that the printed press is a thing of the past. Sure some of these newspapers are able to continue readership online but the numbers are increasing far slower than the decreasing number of people purchasing the printed edition.

For as long as we have had a democracy there has always been the printed press, you could go as far to say that the printed press has the indispensible role of truth seeking in government. There is no telling what the consequences are of the absence of this inquiring journalism. The realization that all news is not good quality news is no more evident than on the 24 hour news circuits where facts are not always clear and developments are continuously being bombarded at the viewer regardless of accuracy.

While some boast the future of media is in the hands of online news sources including blogs, this should not be the case. Credibility and accuracy take a backseat to speed and shock value. The printed press plays in integral part in investigative journalism and in its absence many truths may be hidden, many stories that should be told will never be heard. The aim of this blog is not to create the news, sure both Ben and I have gotten involved where we could but for the most part we present articles of interest and give our take on them. While this is certainly valuable it does not play the same role in journalism that the printed press has so long played. Do I think the main media outlets such as CNN will do a good job? After all they have more resources currently than the newspapers and blogs combined. I still believe they will not be able to fill the void left by the printing giants of the past and it will be a challenge in the future for the public to find truth if newspapers continue to fail.

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich & Pay-to-Play Politics

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:49:00 +0000

Written by Dave

Rod Blagojevich, the Democratic Governor of Illinois has been taken into federal custody on corruption charges. The governor along with his chief of staff, John Harris has been charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery. These charges are according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Northern District of Illinois.

Since Barack Obama will no longer be Senator Obama from Illinois, a replacement must be appointed to fill the vacant spot. This vacancy is then filled by a choice from the Governor of that particular state. Governor Blagojevich attempted to profit from this position in a number of ways. As outlined in the U.S. Attorney statements, Governor Blagojevich was seeking a substantial salary ($250,000 to $300,000) for himself at a non-profit organization or an organization with union affiliation, a spot for his wife on paid corporate boards where he sought a salary of $150,000 a year for her, and campaign funds.

According to the U.S. Attorney, Governor Blagojevich had the following statements caught on tape:

“Unless I get something real good [from Senate candidate 1], s***, I’ll just send myself, you know what I’m saying” – said November 3rd, the day before Election Day.

“is a f***ing valuable thing, you just don’t give it away for nothing” – said November 3rd, referring to a Senate seat.

“I want to make money” – referring to the leverage that he wished to cash in on with his position as Governor.

Also among the taped statements was a discussion with Harris, where they discussed the possibility of President-Elect Obama appointing Governor Blagojevich to the Department of Health and Human Services. They then discussed appointing [Senate candidate 1] but that it could not look obvious that the decision was made this quickly and for possibly the wrong reasons.

Other allegations raised against Governor Blagojevich and Harris were negotiations attempted between themselves and the Chicago Tribune as Tribune Co. was attempting to purchase Chicago’s Wrigley Field. The pair demanded that a number of Chicago Tribune’s executive board members be fired in exchange for the Governor’s assistance in the dealings. President-Elect Obama has not been accused of any wrongdoing in the matter.

Final Word

If this case is as strong as the U.S. Attorney is making it out to be, Governor Blagojevich is in serious trouble. It is a crime against the political establishment itself and is another example of why so many young voters are skeptical of politicians. A Governor should be a role model for children and young adults as it is a position of great responsibility and is truly a service to the community, but stories such as these take politics back years as the public is already uneasy these days about where all of their tax money is going.

In a modern society, wire tapping corruption charges seems like more out of the Prohibition Era than it does in this day and age and the wounds created by these allegations will be slow healing. Now every politician must assure the public that they can be trusted because they are all on the hot seat now no matter how deserving or undeserving that may be.

Obamas, Bidens, and Gores OH MY!!

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 00:15:00 +0000

Post Written By Ben.

OK. First I will admit. This blog post title is a bit over the top, but hey I couldn't resist.

On tomorrow, President Elect Obama, Vice President Elect Biden and former Presidential candidate and Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore will have a sit down meeting at Obama's transition headquarters. The announcement sent the political media in a whirlwind attempting to contact every single "insider" they had in the Obama camp to be the first to leak any information that Gore was being considered for a possible Obama appointment.

Aides to Gore have publicly said that Gore has no interest in returning to government any time soon, and for good reason. Ever since Gore left the political scene he has made millions of dollars in his work on Global Climate Change. He even won two Oscars in 2007 for his documentary. Leaving a lucrative career in the private sector would not necessarily be a step in the "right" direction.

Democratic officials however are trying to tame the speculation and rumors saying that Obama is not intending to speak with Gore about a possible cabinet seat. Instead explaining that Obama and Gore have been on regular speaking terms throughout the election and continue to this day.
Obama heavily courted for Gore's endorsement during the election cycle, but only received it after Clinton quit the race because of the clear Obama victory. In April, Obama said that he wanted Gore at the table to help make crucial decisions to help climate change, even if that meant having him there as an informal advisor.

However it seems very odd that just as Obama, Gore and Biden plan to meet in Chicago. The transition team has turned their focus on filling two very important seats in the new administration, Energy Secretary, and Environmental Protection Agency administrator. Two positions that could easily be filled by Gore. A close friend to Gore said that this meeting is more than just face time, it is about business because Gore would not burn that much carbon to speak with the President Elect if it could be done by phone simply.

With the appointments of "political celebrities" in the administration thus far, a Gore appointment would give Obama much credit in the world in terms of climate change. Obama would also please the left wing of his party who have still been angry about the election in 2000.
However to jump the gun too quickly at what this meeting means must not happen.
With Gore spending so much time on climate change, and the administration staring to look at possible candidates for Energy Secretary of E.P.A. administrator; Gore could simply be joining the team to help vet possible candidates. He could even be looking over the person picked for the two seats so that the Obama team can get his opinion on them.

Special Comment: Post Bush Era

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 06:26:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

There are times when I tend to have thoughts or feelings on a topic or person. I have steered clear of writing down thoughts because I really wanted to focus more on the news piece of our blog, but over the past few days I have begun to reflect on many things. I have decided that I would begin to periodically make Special Comments to allow me to share these with you.

As a young voter I have had experience in two presidential elections thus far. 2004 and 2008. As such, this concept of Presidential Transition feels "new" to me. Yes of course I have lived under three presidents already and there have been two Presidential Transitions in my lifetime; this is the first election where I will have a firm understanding of what is going on.
With little over a month before President Bush changes his title for the rest of his life to Former President Bush I begin to think about living in a Post Bush world.
In every generation there is one event that takes place that will be a large part in defining what that generation was. Events like the civil rights movement, the collapse of communism, etc.
For my generation the defining event will obviously be 9/11, but also George Bush. For me, I can recall memories of Clinton in office, but most of that dealt with the Lewinsky scandal. And as someone who has become so enthralled with the political world the Bush years have been my growing years. I learned politics under our current President, and as I reflect on the plethora of things that have occurred it becomes increasingly harder to imagine a world where George Bush is not President.
I admit, I am not a fan of the current President, but I respect the office in which he holds. I cannot imagine the enormous pressure that is on his shoulders every single day.
Eight years is a very long time. I mean think back to who you were eight years ago and you can see how different not only you are but the world as whole. The world has changed so much since Bush took office and the lasting effects of this Administration will be with us for some time to come be that good or bad. I can only imagine what a Post Bush world is going to become.

While you either celebrate or mourn in the coming weeks the Presidential Transition, it is clear that everyone in this country will be entering a new place in history. A new place for our country.

But what will that place be?

Request Increase, 36%

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 21:03:00 +0000

Written by Dave

Listed below are the proposals set forth by Ford, Chrysler and GM. The three companies met again with Congress today and requested $34 billion from Congress to help the three automotive companies avoid bankruptcy. Some chief economists have determined that a complete turn around for the three automakers could cost between $75 billion and $125 billion.

Ford Plan

Financial Assistance Request: $9,000,000,000

Proposal: [pdf]

Shown below is a video put together by Ford CEO Alan Mulally.

Chrysler Plan

Financial Assistance Request: $7,000,000,000

Proposal: [pdf]

General Motors Plan

Financial Assistance Request: $18,000,000,000

Proposal: [pdf]

Clinton Appointment Unconstitutional?

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 02:08:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben.

Hillary Clinton has been appointed Secretary of State, but there is (in Clinton political fashion) some controversy. It came to light that since Clinton has been in the Senate the salary of the Secretary of State has increased. The constitutional provision in which I speak of states "the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during his term”. This means that an elected official in the Congress cannot be appointed to a governmental post that has had an increase in the salary that is approved by Congress while that official was a member of Congress.
Senator Harry Reid has said he will introduce a legislative action to decrease the salary in order for Clinton to move through the appointment process as smoothly as possible. This action by Reid was first used when President Nixon appointed William Saxbe to be Attorney General.

Although it seems the "fix" is simple many Republicans who either do not like Obama or do not want Clinton at the helm of the State Department are in outrage that Capital Hill Democrats are trying to side step the constitution in order to get Clinton appointed. While they acknowledge the precedent set in many cases just like this, especially the Nixon-Saxbe case, but they allege that because without the fix Clinton is not eligible to become Secretary of State. Many who are critical of the decision to decrease the salary, they admit that seeing this become a legal issue barring Clinton from the State Department is far fetched because the salary decrease will fix the problem that exists and it is in the right of Congress to do so.

There are still some lawyers who argue that if a state employee alleges that they are put at a disadvantage or they were "harmed" in the fix there could create legal standing. A spokesman for Clinton answered questions about the so called fix saying "This is a Harvard Law graduate nominating a Yale Law graduate here, so all parties involved have been cognisant of this issue from the outset, but putting frivolous lawsuits by fringe groups aside, this issue has been resolved many times over the past century, involving both Democratic and Republican appointments, and we’re confident it will be here too.”

The Balancing Act

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 18:51:00 +0000

Written by Dave

The worst kept secret in Washington is now official. Hillary Clinton will be Secretary of State in the Barack Obama Cabinet. Both praise and scorn have been showered down on this move and time will tell if the relationship will be Lincoln-Seward or Bush-Powell.

Obama-Clinton: The Lincoln-Seward Compendium

This experiment of rivals working together has been attempted before, under President Lincoln when he selected his then archrival, William Seward as his Secretary of State. Early on in the administration Seward had proposed that President Lincoln relinquish powers to him but after time together they created a mutual respect for each other and became the best of friends.

Similarly the Obama-Clinton relationship may have a rough beginning but former President Clinton will assume the role of assistant and stray away from issues facing the administration. Hillary Clinton leaks to the press will diminish to a trickle and be turned off by the ‘No Drama Obama’ mantra and both Hillary and Barack will have spirited debates behind closed doors and present a united front in public.

Obama-Clinton: The Bush-Powell Compendium

The worst President-Secretary of State relationship of resent memory was that of President George W. Bush and Collin Powell. Powell’s credibility took a number of welts with his unfortunately misleading briefing to the United Nations Security Council. Here Powell’s credibility was destroyed by the misleading and false Iraq weapons of mass destruction claims. Collin Powell’s waning influence in the administration made for the bitter breakup after the President’s first term in office. There relationship or lack there of, became a glaring example of how damaging a poor President-Secretary of State relationship can be to an administration.

While many point out that President Bush and President Obama could not be more different this in no way limits the doomsday scenarios that have Hillary and Obama tearing away in a bitter split. Hillary would influence the Democratic Party more with resignation than Collin Powell had with his, which means the stakes are even higher in this case. Bill Clinton will continue to be a thorn in the Hillary’s side and his outspoken opinions will inevitably fall on Hillary and her ties to the White House. Leaks will continue as the disagreements between Barack and Hillary spill over into the public eye and once again the party will be split along a bitter divide. People will take sides and the audacity of hope will be replaced with the audacity of this pick.

The Final Word

While the Lincoln-Seward match was wildly successful and is the most similar example to the Obama-Clinton experiment one can not say definitively that it will not sour as much as Bush-Powell, but it looks very unlikely. Each side has their reasons and motivations for making this relationship work.

Hillary Clinton, if she so chooses can improve her chances in the 2016 presidential election by being a loyal and insightful Secretary of State for six years or so before stepping aside to pursue the presidency. Also any flair ups within the cabinet will damage Hillary Clinton’s reputation more than that of Barack Obama’s so Hillary would be encouraged for her own sake to keep differences private and show a united front with the President.

Barack Obama will gain the intellect of Hillary Clinton and her valuable insight on issues. This move also goes a step further in improving foreign relations around the world and instilling credibility in the position of Secretary of State once again. Barack Obama will also benefit from having the major players of the Democratic Party in his fold and have the likes of Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton and Bill Richardson working directly under him, while any split would diminish his influence over the party. For these reasons the Barack-Hillary relationship should work well.

United World AIDS Day

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 21:16:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

Today I dedicate this post to the United World AIDS day.

In a world that has become more and more chaotic there are still issues that connect us together.
The AIDS epidemic is a tragic disease that has been taking the lives of the future of this world and we must all do our part.

The simple things like dedicating a blog to the cause, donating money, and even traveling to countries where the epidemic is causing the most damage are admirable and ensures that we can each do our part. During this holiday season we have already been thankful but there is still more that we can do. Click on the title of this post and find out what you can do for the cause.

Peace.

Sunday Predictions

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 01:44:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

Well today is Sunday and its time for predictions.....

Word has been swirling that MSNBC host Chris Matthews is currently building a team to challenge Arlen Spector for his Senate seat in Pennsylvania in the 2010 election. Matthews has denied any implications that he is considering running for the Senate seat and has also denied reports that he is staffing up his campaign. Matthews' current contract with MSNBC will end in June of 2009 giving him enough time to become a candidate and run for office against the long serving senator.
With the country in the last election deciding that change was most important to them Matthews could be trying to capitalize on the current political atmosphere and attempt to steal the Senate seat from Spector.
Even though Matthews is currently saying he is not going to run, Spector was on CNN's Late Edition with Wolff Blitzer to answer questions about the Matthews rumor. Spector said that he isn't worried about the rumors because he doesn't "look over his shoulder every second" when word of possible candidates begin to hit the media. However I predict that if the story does continue into its second with more information being leaked to the media about this possible campaign run, then I predict that it is true. Chris Matthews will run for the Senate seat in Pennsylvania against Spector. It would be sensible to understand why Matthews would think of running with the success of Al Franken is his run for Senate against a long standing Republican. Although the recounts are still being counted it seems as if Franken may have a chance to claiming victory. With Franken best known for being a comedian, Matthews should in theory be a more formidable candidate because of his notoriety as a political pundit. He will however face those 30 second clips from his show when he sometimes goes off on tangents being used in political attack ads against him.

It will be interesting to see what will transpire in this heated campaign fight that actually hasn't started, but I predict soon will.

India's Horror

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 21:11:00 +0000

Written by Dave

The last of the terrorists were killed today, November 29^th, by Indian commandos after the terrorists had stormed hotels and other buildings in the commercial capital of India, the city of Mumbai. At least 195 people have been killed and some 300 injured. The Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai had been gutted by gunfire and grenade explosions from the siege that began at 9:30pm on Wednesday in the hotel’s restaurant the Leopold Café. It was not long before gunfire broke out at a near by train terminal. The terrorists also then killed the head of state’s anti-terrorism squad, Hemant Karkare, commandeered a police car, and did a drive by at cameramen and bystanders in front of the Metro Cinema. Another group of terrorists raided a Jewish cultural center. The Taj Mahal was not the only hotel invaded that night, the Oberoi-Trident hotel was also subjected to attack.

India immediately suspected that Pakistan had a hand in the attacks or that at least the terrorists had come from that region. While details remain unclear, the interrogation of one of the gunmen should give some answers. It is important that the Indian government not assume any conclusions from these events and should proceed cautiously after these terrible events. The attacks are believed to have been carried out by the Lashkar-e Taiba organization and arrived to the coastal city via the sea. The Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra R R Patil reported that the terrorists could have killed 5,000 people with the amount of ammunition and explosives they carried. Indian commandos were able to rescue 250 people in the Oberoi-Trident hotel, 300 in the Taj Mahal hotel and 60 people in the Jewish cultural center through intense gun battles.

Many questions remain but one thing is clear, these terrorist attacks were unlike any others in recent memory. There were no suicide bombers, there were no booby-trapped roadside explosion devices, it was a small well-armed army with the aim of killing as many civilians as possible before they themselves were killed. While initial reports said that Westerners were targeted it soon became apparent that they were killing without prejudice as the vast majority of causalities have been Indian citizens. If the terrorists had really wanted to attack Westerners they would have targeted the local Hilton or Marriott and not the Indian-owned and Indian frequented Taj Mahal and the Oberoi-Trident. A French terrorism specialist Roland Jacquard described the situation,

"Despite a few common elements with al-Qaeda-inspired attacks, this one didn't come out of the usual international jihad playbook. The state and its security forces aren't being attacked as you'd see in Algeria, Saudi Arabia or Pakistan. And the open-ended and complex nature of the Mumbai operation is strikingly different from the sudden suicide missions we see in Iraq or Afghanistan."

The city of Mumbai by definition is a ‘soft target’ because it is open to the public and simply anyone can accomplish a gun attack in a city, there are no metal detectors at every corner, there are no security checkpoints, it is a city like many here in America. When explosions are heard, people do not run away, some run to it to help the injured and that was what the terrorists relied on when they attempted their drive-by attacks against the bystanders that wished to only help. The Indian people must remain strong and everyone in American knows all too well that the only way that terrorists win is by instilling terror in the populous and the Indian populous must remain strong and patient as this crisis continues to unfold.

From Rival to Partner

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 02:04:00 +0000

It is all but official that New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton will become the next Secretary of State under the incoming Obama-Biden Administration. Clinton, who is seen by many as the leading rival of Obama within the Democratic Party, now is taking a huge step over political stubbornness and is accepting a position. Although highly coveted, this position will take her away from the political stage which she has grown to love. Many have argued that the Democratic Party is currently split in two. One group being the strong supporters of Obama who are among all age groups within the party, but with a large majority being those under the age of 45. While group two are strong supporters of Clinton. The demographic makeup for Clinton supporters are those more mature in age and more women tend to support Clinton. Supporters of both Obama and Clinton have been mixed in their reviews of this next phase in the Clinton/Obama saga. It seems that the majority of not only Democrats, but Americans as a whole, view Clinton's rise to the head of the State Department as a good choice.

However, there are some who are very skeptical of this rumored pick. There are some Obama supporters who were very angered by the campaign run by Clinton during the primary season and did not wish to see her attaining a top level position in the Obama Administration. While they understand the reasoning that Obama is picking a "Team of Rivals," they feel with Clinton at the helm of the State Department she will slowly but surely begin to create her own foreign policies and will push back against the orders from the Oval Office as much as she will follow those orders. With Clinton being married to former President Bill Clinton, his foundation donor lists being in question during the primary season, there are some who would question Hillary's motivation while working with those international officials who have been major financial backers of her husband. Then you have those supporters of Clinton who are excited to see their preferred presidential candidate rising to a high level position and they wonder if this choice was all but political. With Clinton being the top rival of Obama's supporters, many have been quietly murmuring that this choice removes her from the political scene, and that all Obama is doing with the creation of his "Team of Rivals" is to ensure that he is the only leader within his party. They feel this move is to ensure that Clinton remains a strong supporter of Obama's and is unable to create any new whirlwind that she may decide to run again during the 2012 election (this is of course contingent on the fact that Clinton remains Secretary of State for Obama's entire first term).

One must also consider what will be the role of a Vice President Biden, who was during the general election, a strength for Obama in terms of foreign policy. Now with Clinton at the head of the State Department, what will this mean to Biden who has vowed to be an integral part of the foreign policy strategies as the issues may arise. This however seems to be far from reality with Clinton in control of the State Department. One thing is clear about Clinton, and that is simple, she is a leader and if she is taking the post at the State Dept. it will have been made clear that she will run the department without much input from Biden unless the orders come from the Oval Office.

Who really knows what this decision will actually mean to President-Elect Obama or Senator Clinton. It is certain that from the outset this seems to be a positive joint venture and will bring the celebrity cabinet that Obama desires.

Thankful For

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 01:54:00 +0000

Written Dave

This Thanksgiving we should give thanks to those that are fighting for us overseas. We gather around the dinner table with our families this evening, a privilege that many American troops will not have the joy of sharing. Their families will have an empty seat and pray that their loved one is doing well, as they do every night, but the holidays are where their absence is most obvious. The sacrifice made not only by the soldier but by their families as well. We should all be thankful for their bravery and the struggles they persevere through in the dead of night and through the scorching desert days.

Currently the United States has some 279,825 service personnel stationed internationally. Since the beginning of combat operations in Iraq, there have been 4,207 American military causalities in Iraq. This marks the numbers of families that will forever miss that spouse, child and family member around the dinner table. The struggles continue for the 30,832 wounded, many struggling to walk, many struggling to breathe at this very moment as you sit here and read this. We should be all thankful for their bravery and their dedication to America.

Many including myself do not believe that we should be in Iraq. We were deceived as a people about circumstances that we did not fully understand and the nation continues to heal from the deception and lies of the Bush Administration. Many once again including myself were concerned that we had enter the Vietnam of our generation but the resolve of our troops was underestimated. They fought against long odds and as of today, they are not repeating the history of Vietnam, having succeeded on many fronts in the war against insurgents, and pushing for regional stability everyday.

We should be thankful for all they and their families have sacrificed over these years and give thanks to the United States of America.

NBC close to picking new anchor

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 00:31:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that NBC executives are close to deciding an anchor or an anchor team to take over the helm of the leading Sunday Political Talk Show Meet the Press. The show's anchor chair was left empty when the long standing and highly respected Tim Russert suddenly died from a heart attack in his Washington Bureau office. Since his sudden death Tom Brokaw stepped in as interim anchor during the Presidential election while the NBC Execs quietly vetted many to decide who would take on the daunting show that Russert left.

The NBC execs have done a stellar job at ensuring no premature leaks were made in who was being vetted or who was on the shortlist.
That is until now.

The LA Times is reporting that there are four people who are currently being considered for the post.
From left to right, David Gregory, Gwen Ifill, Andrea Mitchell and Chuck Todd.

All but Ifill are already apart of the NBC political family with Gregory hosting his own show on MSNBC, Mitchell being the Chief Foreign Relations correspondent and Todd being NBC's Political Director. Ifill is the host of the PBS political show "Washington Week".

Each rumored candidate would bring something distinct to the anchor chair. Ifill has been a long time close friend of Russert and was regularly asked on the show as a panelists. In a groundbreaking year in regards to the President-Elect. If Gwen Ifill does become the new anchor she would become the first African-American to anchor the desk.

Russert was the mentor of Mitchell and was integral in her rise at NBC. Mitchell is out of the four who are strongly rumored to be in contention for the seat would be the most similar to Russert because of their strong working relationship and the influence Russert had on Mitchell.

Todd and Gregory are the two new faces of the NBC team, both are in their 30s and with Meet the Press being a staple show for NBC either one would bring an expected longevity to the anchor chair following the 17 years of the Russert reign. Both men would bring fresh ideas and a much different take to the show. The Times reports that both men are on the outside because of their youth, with both still being in their 30s. However it would seem fit that either would be asked to anchor the show because they would be able to bring their influence into the show and be able to build a successful reign of their own.

In the Times article it is speculated that December 7 will be the possible announcement date.
Insiders told the reporters that the execs at NBC have been playing around with the idea of having a panel host the show instead of a single anchor.

In whatever decision that the NBC executives choose one hopes that they take the show into a new direction. It is incomprehensible that someone or a team of panelists will be able to attempt to recreate the magic that Russert brought to the program. It would be in better taste to take the show into a new generation to ensure the show continues to gain viewership and retains the high accolades that it has garnered throughout its tv history span.

Fallout seems apparent with the replacement pick for Biden

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 06:22:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

With Vice President-Elect Joseph Biden set to resign his seat in the United State Senate representing Delaware, the Governor Ruth Ann Minner (D) is required to name a replacement to fill the seat until 2010 when the seat is up for election again. There has been speculation since Obama named Biden as his VP nominee that Biden's son Beau Biden (who is currently the Attorney General of Delaware) is set to run to replace his father. However, Beau Biden is currently serving in Iraq as he is apart of the Delaware National Guard and because of such is not able to be named the replacement. Beau Biden has not entertained questions asking him if he would be interested in running in 2010 to fill the seat but it is widely speculated in Deleware that he will.

Vice President-Elect Biden did answer this question to reporters once saying, "It is no secret that I believe my son, Attorney General Beau Biden, would make a great United States senator — just as I believe he has been a great attorney general. But Beau has made it clear from the moment he entered public life, that any office he sought, he would earn on his own," Biden said in a statement.

"If he chooses to run for the Senate in the future, he will have to run and win on his own. He wouldn’t have it any other way."

Many in Delaware wanted to see Gov. Minner name the Lt. Governor John Carney as the replacement for Joseph Biden to finish out the rest of the two years left before election. Carney recently lost an attempt to replace Minner who is the current term limited Governor, and so many supporters within the Delaware Democratic Party wanted to see Carney named to fill the seat. So it came as a bit of a shock that Ted Kaufman was named by Minner to replace Biden in the Senate. Kaufman has been a longtime ally of Biden's, having at one point served as Biden's Chief of Staff. Kaufman has already said that he will not make an attempt to run an election of his own in 2010 to be elected in the seat.

Many top Democratic members were stunned by the decision by Minner, and many were not even told of the appointment until after it had already been released. "Delaware Democratic Party Chairman John Daniello was informed neither about the press conference today, nor the appointment of Mr. Kaufman. Therefore, he suggests that all media direct their requests to Governor Minner, Vice President-elect Biden and Mr. Kaufman until he gets an opportunity to speak to the parties involved," Delaware Democratic Party Communications Director Renee Bensley said in a statement, which did not congratulate Kaufman.

Many Democrats quickly went from stun to quiet outrage at the appointment. Many are viewing the appointment as an attempt to ensure that Beau Biden upon his return from Iraq will be the "heir apparent" to take over his father's seat. While if Carney were appointed many believe he would have run in 2010 and would have major backing for his election, and would be the main rival of Beau Biden. With Carney not being appointed, he will have to spend the next two years fighting an uphill battle that Beau Biden (an Iraqi War Veteran) is not ready to be a Senator. This is something spectators do not foresee Carney doing once his term as Lt. Governor ends.

While no one argues that Beau Biden is not qualified to become a United States Senator many within the state party do not like what appears to be a political pick set to create the empty spot that will give Beau Biden the "front runner" and "presumptive nominee" titles for the Democrats in 2010.

The Obama Cabinet

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 17:37:00 +0000

Written by Dave

Cabinet Positions

There are currently 15 Cabinet positions in the executive branch that answer directly to the President. Listed below are the 15 positions with a brief description of their purpose as well as the expected and current position holder.

Secretary of State

Currently: Condoleezza Rice

Expected: Hillary Clinton

Senator Clinton is expected to accept the post and resign from the Senate. The announcement of this post is expected shortly after Thanksgiving.

Secretary of the Treasury

Currently: Henry Paulson

Announced: Timothy Geithner

Timothy Geithner is officially President-Elect Obama’s Secretary of Treasury. The short-term goal for Geithner will be dealing out the $700 billion TARP (Troubled Assets Relief Program) funds.

Secretary of Defense

Currently: Robert Gates

Expected: Robert Gates

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is expected to retain his post under the Obama Administration. This will assist President-Elect Obama in coordinating troop withdrawal efforts with General David Petraeus.

Attorney General

Currently: Michael Mukasey

Expected: Eric Holder

The confirmation hearing of Eric Holder will be the most difficult of all the Cabinet positions as it is expected that Republican Senate members will ask tough questions regarding President Bill Clinton’s pardon of Marc Rich. Eric Holder was then serving as deputy attorney general under President Clinton.

Secretary of the Interior

Currently: Dirk Kempthorne

Expected: Raul Grijalva

Raul Grijalva has been a Democratic member of the House of Representatives for five years and views current immigration laws as harsh and insensitive.

Secretary of Agriculture

Currently: Edward Schafer

Expected: Tom Buis

Tom Buis is currently the president of the National Farmers Union. Before his time with the NFU, Buis was the senior agriculture policy advisor to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle for five years.

Secretary of Commerce

Currently: Carlos Gutierrez

Expected: Bill Richardson

Bill Richardson served as former U.N. ambassador and energy secretary under former President Clinton. This made it all the more surprising when Richardson endorsed Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton. It was also reported that Bill Richardson wanted the Secretary of State post but it was apparently filled by Hillary Clinton.

Secretary of Labor

Currently: Elaine Chao

Expected: Dick Gephardt

Dick Gephardt a representation for the state of Missouri is expected to be named as the Secretary of Labor. Gephardt served 28 years in Congress and retired in 2005. He is currently a lobbyist for DLA Piper. These lobbyist ties may however, steer the nomination away from Gephardt.

Secretary of Health and Human Services

Currently: Michael Leavitt

Expected: Tom Daschle

The former Senate Majority Leader is expected to be announced as the Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Obama administration. He had also served eight years in the House of Representatives and contributed advice to Barack Obama when he was a young Senator.

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

Currently: Steve Preston

Expected: Manny Diaz

Manny Diaz is currently the major of the city of Miami, Florida. He was recently honored as a top leader in 2008 by the US News Media Group for offering optimism and hope through his work

Secretary of Transportation

Currently: Mary Peters

Expected: Jane Garvey

Jane Garvey served as FAA administrator from 1997 to 2002 and had recently accepted a position on President-Elect Obama’s transition team.

Secretary of Energy

Currently: Samuel Bodman

Candidates: Dan Reicher

Dan Reicher is currently the climate director for the philanthropic arm of Google and would be a unique pick if he is in fact chosen, who advocates a more modern electrical grid that would have substantially more transmission capacity for alternative energy sources.

Secretary of Education

Currently: Margaret Spellings

Expected: Roy Barnes

Roy Barnes is the former governor of the state of Georgia and is known for focusing on accountability and raising academic standards.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs

Currently: James Peake

Expected: Tammy Duckworth

Tammy Duckworth is currently the Illinois veterans affairs director. While serving as the director she expanded programs to offer low-interest home loans for veterans, free checkups for traumatic brain injuries and a 24-hour hotline to assist veterans that suffer from post-traumatic stress.

Secretary of Homeland Security

Currently: Michael Chertoff

Expected: Janet Napolitano

Democratic Arizona Governor is expected to be chosen as the Secretary of Homeland Security. Governor Napolitano. She is considered a strong choice for the position because of her law experience, serving as U.S. Attorney, State Attorney General and Governor of a border state that deals extensively with illegal immigration.

CItigroup Rescued and more to come?

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:21:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

After the government stepped in over the weekend to rescue financial institution Citigroup. President Bush spoke to the media about the decision saying that "the first step to economic recovery is to stabilize the financial system." He also said the government if the situation occurs again the government would step in to help other financial institutions as they did over the weekend with Citigroup. Last week Citigroups shares on the marketplace fell 50%.
The Treasury, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC said the federal government would guarantee roughly $300 billion in losses at Citigroup on its troubled assets and inject $20 billion more into the bank. That new capital injection was on top of the $25 billion given to Citigroup weeks ago as part of the $700 billion bailout passed by Congress in October.
President Bush did make it clear that this decision was discussed with the President-Elect and that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson "is working closely with the president-elect's transition team. It's important for the American people to know that there is close cooperation."
Upon the news of this rescue of Citigroup the Stock Market seemed to breath a slight sigh of relief with stocks making a gain at the time of this post.

Sunday Predictions: Sarah Palin Anonymous

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:06:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

The media have fallen in love with Sarah Palin. Yes, the same media that fixated on every mistake and Freudian slip she made during the campaign. Palin (the former Republican Vice Presidential Candidate) is currently sifting through over 800 requests for appearances from December of 2008 on into the new year with around 75% of those requests coming from outside the state of Alaska. She has been entertaining calls from producers for Oprah, Letterman, Leno and The Daily Show, and has had personal calls from Barbara Walter and George Stephanopolous.

With all the news fodder surrounding her and the latest stunt that was undoubtedly not planned by Palin when she was interviewed while standing just feet away from turkeys being beheaded. Palin has withstood the fate of many unsuccessful political candidates and has yet to fade into obscurity back to Alaska where she was picked from obscurity and put on the national stage by Senator John McCain.

With many agreeing that Palin is gearing up for a Presidential run in 2012 of her own it is no wonder that every single media outlet from NBC's Meet the Press to TMZ is falling hand over foot to get a sit down exclusive with the Alaskan Governor. I predict one of two things to take place over the next couple of weeks which will ultimately decided the fate of Gov. Palin. She will toe the line more and more with the media in their obsession of her. If Gov Palin does give in to this instant international celebrity she will become overexposed and will in turn begin to turn herself more into a media hound than a possible contender for the White House in 2012.

My other prediction is that Gov. Palin will do more interviews but they will be few and far between. She will remain in Alaska and focus on the state which she has been elected to serve. She will ensure that she takes care of the state and hope that all the positive things she is doing will be enough to rid her of the image she attained during the Presidential campaign. If she sticks with this plan I predict Palin will be a front runner for the Republican candidacy.

Who knows which path that Palin will take, one is sure that she will choose the latter if she is serious about a run in 2012. I predict the less and less you see of the Alaskan Governor that this image of her as an unintelligent politician will begin to decrease.

3 Reasons for Caution, Chevy Volt

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:22:00 +0000

Written by Dave

General Motors, in there recent talks with Congress about a possible $25 billion low-interest loan has said that they are moving in the right direction towards clearer and more fuel-efficient vehicles and if it were not for the economic crisis the companies would be struggling, but getting by until union obligations are fully lifted. A key element of this argument lies in the development of the Chevy Volt as the Chevy website describes,

“Chevy Volt is designed to move more than 75 percent of America's daily commuters without a single drop of gas.(2) That means for someone who drives less than 40 miles a day, Chevy Volt will use zero gasoline and produce zero emissions.(1)

Unlike traditional electric cars, Chevy Volt has a revolutionary propulsion system that takes you beyond the power of the battery. It will use a lithium-ion battery with a gasoline-powered, range-extending engine that drives a generator to provide electric power when you drive beyond the 40-mile battery range.

Chevy Volt. Fully charged 2010.”

As described the Chevy Volt is a great step in development for a company that in the past has rarely missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity, but while the development of the vehicle is a step in the right direction, as opposed to developing a new line of monster-truck like Hummers with the motto “I like to waste gas and run over children”. The reviews of the vehicle concept have been overwhelmingly positive from media outlets as they trumpet it as a new direction in development and success for the automaker. There are, however, several engineering aspects of the design and implementation that still do not quite add up.

1. Batteries, Batteries, Batteries

As mentioned in the above excerpt the Chevy Volt will be powered by a lithium-ion battery. Currently the Chevy Volt has not chosen a battery for its design, mainly because one that achieves a 40-mile base range has not been developed commercially by any battery producing company in the world.

The great challenge of the 40-mile requirement is to create a lithium-ion battery that is reliable, durable, affordable and most importantly, safe. Lithium-ion batteries have experienced great difficulties scaling down technology to fit conveniently into a vehicle. Past designs have been prohibitively large and heavy with production costs incredibly high.

Lithium-ion batteries are critical because of their relatively high power density, offering a 10% to 15% higher power density than nickel metal-hydride batteries with approximately a 20% higher energy density. Simply put, lithium is to plug-ins as gasoline is to conventional vehicles and a commodity shortage is the equating factor, replacing Saudi Arabia with Bolivia for our energy dependence.

2. Costs

The cost of a Chevy Volt has been estimated at $40,000 and that is including the $7,500 tax incentive on each vehicle that was recently approved in the latest Energy Bill from Congress. This cost will make the vehicle more of a fuel efficient luxury than a viable low-cost sedan. While many will argue that the environmentally conscious will make the sacrifice but consider this, the 2009 Prius is starting at just $22,000 and is a known reliable and carefully developed product. Any Chevy Volt mileage per gallon advantage over a 2010 Prius will be irrelevant if it costs $18,000 more for a similar sized sedan.

Also with Chevy selling each Volt for $40,000, the company is not expected to make a profit on them and best case scenarios of the vehicles production having it finally making a profit after several years in production. This will only further drain capital for a money starved company.

In addition to the initial costs of the Chevy Volt it is very unreasonable that a lithium-ion battery of that size and output will last longer than five to seven years even under ideal circumstances. Once the lithium-ion battery fails in this vehicle it will be extremely expensive to replace, estimates place this cost of repair at $5,000 to $10,000, which you will need to spend every five to seven years of operation.

3. Practical Implementation

The practical implementation of the Chevy Volt is extremely difficult. First, the plug-in hybrid’s performance depends largely on the behavior of the driver. During testing of vehicle prototypes a driver was capable of getting 99.9 mpg, while a cautious driver will get 80 mpg, aggressive drivers will get 60 mpg, then hybrid neglect (not charging vehicle) will get less than 40 mpg.

The most drastic change in performance is in battery range:

The expected 40 mile electric range is reduced to 15 miles by turning on the air conditioner.

Secondly, the Chevy Volt is also geared towards the gas-free commute of less than 40 miles, assuming of course that you do not use your air conditioner, but an oversight of this gas-free trip is that gasoline goes bad after a period of time. This means you will have to purge your gas-tank frequently if you do not use the gas in your tank, which is a difficult and time consuming process.

Thirdly, when was the last time you parked along a road or in a parking lot and saw plug outlets at every spot? If you live in an apartment or in a city you might never have the opportunity to charge your vehicle.

Lastly, with every new concept comes a great amount of research and development. General Motors has been gearing towards the opposite, compressing the development process to meet deadlines rather than tackle practical performance and reliability issues that plague every first generation technology. One executive at GM was quoted as saying “They’re making a huge mistake” and with so much riding on the Volt they can not afford to.

No. 2 of Al Qaeda uses racial remark

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 23:28:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

A new video has surfaced that is alleged to be from the Number 2 man in the hierarchy of Al Qaeda Ayman al-Zawahiri. In the messages he says that Obama will have "a heavy legacy of failure and crime" awaiting him. He spoke negatively about the President-Elect's policies on Afghanistan and his worldview. Al-Zawahiri said that Obama was "the exact opposite of honorable African-American leaders like Malcolm X."
In the message there were pictures and clips from speeches given by Malcolm X but there was no video image of Al-Zawahiri just a voice that is said to be his but has yet been confirmed.

To add insult to injury Al-Zawahiri grouped Obama with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and former Secretary of State Colin Powell when he likened them to "house negroes". And went on to say "You were born to a Muslim father, but you chose to stand in the ranks of the enemies of the Muslims, and pray the prayer of the Jews, although you claim to be Christian, in order to climb the rungs of leadership in America. And so you promised to back Israel, and you threatened to strike the tribal regions in Pakistan, and to send thousands more troops to Afghanistan, in order for the crimes of the American crusade in it to continue," the message said.

Many analysts have said that although this is not out of character for the Al Qaeda leader it shows the terrorist group's frustration.

Experts on the organization have said that Obama was not who they would like to see taking over the White House. With Obama becoming the next president many in the Arab world are in favor of him, and with a middle name like Hussein it makes the sell of Al Qaeda that Obama will be just like Bush very tough.

Because of this experts say they will try anything to get the Arab world not to trust this new American leader because it will conflict with their recruiting efforts.

This may be the first in many attempts to get the President-Elect to give the terrorist group some evidence that he will react and behave as his predecessor. With Obama skillfully picking his cabinet members it seems that the terrorist group might be dealt a steady blow by the President with Hussein in his name.

Slap on the wrist, Lieberman retains committee chair

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 01:37:00 +0000

Written by Dave

Senator Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) will keep his Homeland Security and Government Affairs Chairman post after Democrats voted by secret ballot, 42-13 to retain his position as committee head. Senator Lieberman’s support of John McCain and pointed criticisms of Barack Obama left many liberals angry with the Independent senator for his apparent betrayal of the Democratic Party. Other Congressional Democrats were also critical of Senator Lieberman’s monetary donations to Republican Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, Gordon Smith of Oregon and Susan Collins of Maine.

The secret ballot, organized with the aim to have Senator Lieberman retain his position as committee head was led by Senator Dodd (D-Conn.), Thomas Carper (D-Del.) and Ken Salazar (D-Colo.). Senator Lieberman praised these men in a press conference today and praised President-Elect Obama for his support as he had urged fellow Democrats to not punish the senator and move on to more important matters such as the economy.

Senator Lieberman will retain his leadership of the Armed Services Committee Airland subcommittee but was replaced at his Environment and Public Works Committee. The relatively light sentence of sorts did not please all that were present. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) both spoke in opposition to Senator Lieberman keeping his Homeland Security position. Senator Lieberman spoke briefly before the Congressional Democrats to plead his case. While not apologizing for endorsing Senator McCain, Senator Lieberman did express some regret about some of the things that he may have said about Barack Obama. Senator Lieberman spoke after the decision,

"I know that my colleagues in the Senate Democratic caucus were moved not only that Sen. [Harry] Reid said about my longtime record, but by the appeal from President-elect Obama himself that the nation unite now to confront our very serious problems."

All in all, the publicity is good for President-Elect Obama because it appears that he is willing to forgive and forget when the nation has much more important things to be working on, such as the economy. Although it is also impractical that you are going to have every single committee chairman agree with the President or even support him and those that do disagree should certainly not be punished for it. While this is a positive sign as Congress attempts to move forward I also would view this as the only appropriate action.

It should also be noted that the Democrats still need Lieberman and his historically Democratic leaning position on issues. Also with President-Elect Obama’s recent meeting with Senator McCain, it appears that the next President is positioning himself for more support among both Independents and Republicans.

Can Hillary tame Bill?

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:43:00 +0000

Post Written by Ben

As it was being reported last week that Senator Hillary Clinton was being strongly considered to become the new Secretary of State the questions began to rise at what exactly will this mean for former President Bill Clinton.
Clinton has spent the last eight years all over the world, making millions from speaking engagements and appearances. Bill Clinton has global relationships with many countries in the world and this could become an issue for a Secretary of State Clinton when dealing with countries that have been large donors of her husband.
Many will ask if her decision are in part based on her husband's wishes to keep certain global leaders donating money to his foundation. A foundation which during the primary season was heavily under speculation because the Clinton's refused to release the lists of donors arguing that some large sum donors wished to keep their identity private, and that it was under condition of anonymity that they donated money to Bill Clinton's foundation. Clinton however is also admired still overseas by many and so supporters of the Clinton's would argue that with Hillary Clinton as Sec. of State she would be at a great advantage because of her husband.
It is clear that Senator Clinton has all but officially been named the Secretary of State because according to Politico members of the transition team said that when Clinton met with Obama she was told that the position was hers if she wanted it. Supporting this rumor is the fact that Bill Clinton is now being pressured to release the lists of donors to the transition team.
It is alleged that Bill Clinton is pushing back and hard as he is being pushed for the lists and this could ultimately remove Secretary of State out of the hands of Senator Hillary Clinton.
But with politicians from both sides of the aisle praising the news of Senator Clinton being the possible pick to run the State Department a compromise between both camps must be made in order to make the appointment possible.

Sunday Predictions

noreply@blogger.com (Our Blog Team) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:13:00 +0000

Written by Dave

5 Predictions that will headline this business week.

1. The newly approved pact between the United States and Iraq will come under fire from Iraqi parliament as many Iraqis, both Sunni and Shi’ite are strongly opposed to the measure. Many controversial elements include United States right to use Iraqi land, waters and skies to base and train troops and store military equipment. This will include 50 long-term bases in Iraq as well as supervision of the Iraqi Ministry of Interior and Defense.

2. Senator Clinton will become Obama’s Secretary of State. This pick has already received much approval from both Republicans and Democrats and would be an influential pick if both sides are able to mend their differences and move the country forward.

3. The bailout of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler will once again heat up in Washington as many individuals across America become uneasy about large mismanaged companies receiving bailouts while smaller companies that have been wise enough to diversify away from the automakers receive little help at all.

4. Oil prices will drop even lower as demand from China and India continues to fall, prompting further supply cuts be OPEC in the near future.

5. Criticisms will increase on the recently convened G-20 conference. Very little was accomplished among the global financial leaders as they look to the Obama administration to provide policy next April when the group will meet again.