White House News: invitation to Obama, Posted by Menelik Zeleke

Photo by Menelik Zeleke

June 30, 2011 4:46:39 PM

WASHINGTON, June 30 (Reuters) - The White House effectively turned down an invitation by Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell for President Barack Obama to visit his members on Capitol Hill on Thursday to discuss raising the U.S. debt limit.

White House press secretary Jay Carney, while not directly saying the invitation had been rejected, said Obama did not need to hear Republicans tell him what they would not support.

That, Carney said, was "not a conversation worth having." (Reporting by Alister Bull)

Man in custody over suspicious car near Pentagon

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Man in custody over suspicious car near Pentagon

Obama, Congress struggle to find budget deal, Posted by Meosha Eaton

* Obama says aides will work through night to get deal

* Boehner, Reid say differences have narrowed

* Fourth White House meeting in three days

* Midnight Friday deadline looms
* (Updates after Obama, Reid, Boehner talks)

By Richard Cowan and Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON, April 7 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and congressional leaders failed to reach a deal but narrowed their differences on Thursday in a bitter budget dispute that could lead to a government shutdown.

Obama said negotiators would work all night and he expects an answer on Friday morning on whether it is possible to avoid a government closure at midnight on Friday that would idle hundreds of thousands of workers and potentially put a crimp on the U.S. economic recovery.

He met for an hour with Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid and the top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, Speaker John Boehner at the White House. It was their fourth meeting in three days.

"I'm not prepared to express wild optimism," Obama told reporters after the nighttime meeting, the second night in a row he has made an evening foray into the White House briefing room to talk about the difficult search for a budget deal.

Neither side seemed willing as yet to make the final compromise necessary for an agreement.

"We have narrowed the issues, however, we have not yet reached an agreement. We will continue to work through the night to attempt to resolve our remaining differences," Reid and Boehner said in a joint statement.

Democrats blamed the impasse on a Republican push for policy provisions that would block public funding of birth control and stymie environmental protection efforts.

But Boehner said the divisions did not stop there.

"There are a number of issues that are on the table. And any attempt to try to narrow this down to one or two just would not be accurate," he said.

Their deadline to avoid a shutdown: Midnight on Friday night. Some cable television news broadcasts included a shutdown clock ticking the time down. (Additional reporting by Kim Dixon, Donna Smith, David Alexander, Andy Sullivan, Thomas Ferraro and David Morgan; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Vicki Allen and Deborah Charles)

Obama, Congress leaders do not reach US budget deal, Posted by Meosha Eaton

WASHINGTON, April 7 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and U.S. congressional leaders have "narrowed their differences" but have not reached a budget deal aimed at averting a government shutdown, Republican House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said on Thursday.

Their statement came following an 80-minute meeting at the White House with Obama.

"We will continue to work through the night to attempt to resolve our remaining differences," the two leaders said in a statement. (Reporting by Richard Cowan and Kim Dixon; Editing by Eric Beech)

Govt Shutdown: Republicans Propose Another Short Term Budget, Posted by Meosha Eaton

By Williams Ekanem for MACTV NEWS


Speaker of the United States House of Representative, John Boehner in a last minute effort to forestall government shut down on Friday is proposing another short term budget of one week during which talks continue on cuts on the budget.

Addressing Congressional Correspondents on Wednesday, the Speaker said that, “we’re going to be prepared to move forward with our troop funding bill that would fund our troops, keep the government open for another week, and cut $12 billion in spending.”

According to him, “ I think this is the responsible thing to do for the United States Congress, and I would hope the Senate could pass it and the president would sign it into law,” Boehner said. “Republicans have no interest in shutting down the government.

Shutting down the government I think is irresponsible and I think it’ll end up costing the American taxpayers more money than we’re already spending. And I believe that our members want to support our troops, want to pay our troops, and we’re going to do the responsible thing tomorrow.”

How far this can will remain to be seen as only the previous day President Obama was very emphatic that he is not ready to sign another short term budget.
Responding to question of another short term budget, the President responded on Tuesday this way, “We did it once for two weeks, then we did another one for three weeks. That is not a way to run a government. I can’t have our agencies making plans based on two-week budgets. I can’t have the Defense Department, I can’t have the State Department, I can’t have our various agencies on food safety and making sure our water is clean and making sure that our airports are functioning, I can’t have them making decisions based on two-week-at-a-time budgets.”

In the same vein, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has indicated that there is not an appetite for another short-term CR, particularly one that cuts $12 billion in one week, rather than the $2 billion pace of the two previous short-term stopgap measures.
When asked Tuesday if the GOP’s short-term CR would be “dead on arrival” Reid, D-Nevada, replied, “Oh sure, absolutely.”

But with stiff opposition to another short-term CR in the Senate, a shutdown now appears closer than ever if Congressional leaders are unable to reach a long-term deal.

All this is happening less than three days away from a government shutdown.

U.S. special envoy departs for meetings on Sudan, Posted by Meosha Eaton

WASHINGTON, April 1 (Reuters) - Newly appointed U.S. special envoy Princeton Lyman will depart on Saturday for meetings in Ethiopia and Sudan on the transition of South Sudan to independence in July, the State Department said.

Lyman was scheduled to participate in discussions in Ethiopia on security in Sudan before meeting senior Sudanese officials in Khartoum on North-South issues and on Darfur.

Following that, Lyman was to return to Ethiopia for discussions on economic arrangements between North and South Sudan.

President Barack Obama appointed Lyman, a veteran U.S. Africa hand and former ambassador to South Africa and Nigeria, as special envoy for Sudan on Thursday.

Lyman said he would work on outstanding issues such as border demarcation, citizenship and division of oil revenue on his trip, as well as agreement on the disputed border region of Abyei.

The State Department also said Robert Loftis, the acting U.S. coordinator for reconstruction and stabilization in Sudan, was to depart on Monday to meet U.S. officials in Juba and governors in southern Sudan on security and stabilization priorities. (Reporting by Charles Abbott, editing by Anthony Boadle)

Obama Administration adds .2m Jobs in March, Posted by Meosha Eaton

By Williams Ekanem


WASHINGTON - The Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers Austan Goolsbee said employment report shows that private sector payrolls increased by 230,000 in March, marking 13 consecutive months of private employment growth.

A breakdown shows that private sector employers added 1.8 million jobs over that period, including more than half a million jobs in the last three months.
The unemployment rate fell for the fourth straight month to 8.8 percent.

The full percentage point drop in the unemployment rate over the past four months is the largest such decline since 1984, and, importantly, it has been driven primarily by increased employment, rather than people leaving the labor force, he indicated.

According to him, as long as millions of people are looking for jobs, there is still considerable work to do to replace the jobs lost in the downturn. Nonetheless, the steep decline in the jobless rate and the solid employment growth in recent months are encouraging.

He added that the last two months of private job gains have been the strongest in five years.

“We are seeing signs that the initiatives put in place by this Administration – such as the payroll tax cut and business incentives for investment – are creating the conditions for sustained growth and job creation. We will continue to work with Congress to find ways to reduce spending, so that we can live within our means and focus on the investments that are most likely to help grow our economy and create jobs - investments in education, infrastructure, and clean energy,” he emphasized.

My Africa Channel Television found out that in addition to the increases last month, the estimates of private sector job growth for January (now +94,000) and February (now +240,000) were revised up significantly. Overall payroll employment rose by 216,000 in March. Payroll employment grew in almost every sector. Solid employment increases occurred in professional and business services (+78,000), education and health services (+45,000), leisure and hospitality (+37,000), wholesale and retail trade (+31,800), and manufacturing (+17,000). Local government experienced a decline of 15,000, and has shed jobs in 16 of the past 17 months.

The overall trajectory of the economy has improved dramatically over the past two years, but there will surely be bumps in the road ahead. The monthly employment and unemployment numbers are volatile and employment estimates are subject to substantial revision. Therefore, as the Administration always stresses, it is important not to read too much into any one monthly report.

Presidency Opposes House Stand on Home Modification Program, Posted by Meosha Eaton

By Williams Ekanem, Capitol Hill Correspondent for MACTV News

The Executive Office of the President says it strongly oppose the House of Representative passage of H.R 839-HAMP Termination act which would eliminate the Department of Treasury’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

According to the statement of administration policy the program offers eligible homeowners an opportunity to lower their mortgage payments, helping individuals avoid foreclosure and leading to the protection of home values and the preservation of homeownership.

A statement dated March 29, 2011 made available to My Africa Channel Television stated that the Administration is committed to helping struggling American homeowners stay in their homes, and has taken many steps over the last two years to stabilize what was a rapidly-declining housing market.

“As tens of thousands of responsible American homeowners struggling with their mortgages receive permanent assistance each month from HAMP, the Administration believes that continuation of HAMP is important to the Nation’s sustained economic recovery.”
Accordingly, the statement indicated that , “if the President is presented with H.R. 839, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto the bill.”

Representative McHenry, R-NC sponsored the bill and is supported by eight cosponsors.

BACK OFF SOCIAL SECURITY! Posted by Meosha Eaton, Capitol Hill Correspondent

U.S. will Help Japan Recover and Rebuild---Obama, Posted by Meosha Eaton

By William Ekanem, MACTV NEWS

On St. Patrick’s Day during the week, President Barack Obama said that the United States will help Japan to recover and rebuild.

Speaking at a luncheon at the Capitol, Obama described Japan as one of The United States finest allies, adding that as  Japan endures a terrible tragedy, “  As Americans, our first instinct naturally has been to help in any way that we can.”

Special guest at the gathering was Irish Prime Minister, Taoiseach Kenny, whose presence Obama acknowledged by saying that, “ today is a day for tens of millions of Americans of Irish descent to celebrate the tremendous influence that one small island with a big-hearted people has had on our country.”

On the funny side he told the Irish Prime Minister that, we thank you for joining us.  Your presence at this lunch virtually guarantees that any partisan clashes will be limited to who is more Irish than whom.”

Obama added, “now, speaking of ancestry, there has been some controversy about my own background.    Two years into my presidency, some are still bent on peddling rumors about my origins.  So today I want to put all those rumors to rest.  It is true my great-great-great-grandfather really was from Ireland.    It’s true.  Moneygall, to be precise.  I can’t believe I have to keep pointing this out.”

He enjoined those present at the luncheon, which were mainly political kingpins that “ as servants of the people who sent us here, we can all do better to live up to the example that Tip O’Neill and Ronald Reagan and others often set -– to put the differences of the day aside; to seek common ground; to forge progress for the sake of this country that we love.”

Present at the event were Speaker Boehner, leaders of the GOP and Democrats as well as top government functionaries.   

U.S. Not Likely to Suspend Nuclear Energy Plans, Posted by Meosha Eaton

By Williams Ekanem

Although the twin explosions at nuclear power plants in Japan have created a somewhat freeze on prospecting for nuclear power by various countries, the United States may not necessarily  tow the same line of putting on hold its nuclear energy plans.

Indications to this emerged on Tuesday at the Capitol Hill when leading Senators signified their lack of support for further suspension of work on development of nuclear energy.

Republican Senator John  Barrasso told congressional Reporters while responding to question on the issue that he does not subscribe to the United States to continue waiting on the development of nuclear energy, having been doing that for about fifteen years now.

In the same manner, Senate majority Leader, Harry Reid, D-Nev  said on Tuesday that the United States should not eliminate nuclear energy right away but understudy what is going on in other parts of the world.

Talks on the possibility of a nuclear freeze resurfaced on the front burner  when in only three days, Japan  has experienced two hydrogen explosion nuclear reactor.

Reports say the cascading troubles at the Fukushina Dai-Chi complex were set in motion when last Friday’s quake and tsunami in Japan’s northeast knocked out power, crippling the cooling systems needed to keep nuclear fuel from going into full meltdown weeks after a reactor shuts down.

Consequent upon the above, some countries in the midst of development of nuclear power are considering put a freeze on their nuclear energy plans.

Associated Press reports that Switzerland has ordered a freeze on new plants or replacements. The report quoted the country’s energy minister Doris Leuthard as saying that this necessary, Until safety standards have been carefully reviewed and if necessary adapted.”

The decision put on hold the construction of nuclear power stations at three sites approved by Swiss regulatory authorities. Switzerland now has five nuclear power reactors that produce about 40 percent of the country’s energy needs; it also has nuclear research reactors.

In Germany, thed government said it is suspending for three months a decision to extend the life of its nuclear power plants.  That also means that two older nuclear power plants will be taken off the grid shortly=at least for now- pending a full safety investigation, Chancellor Angela Merkel was reported to have told reporters.

A previous government decided to shut all 17 German nuclear plants, but Merkel’s administration last year moved to extend their lives by an average of 12 years.

In Turkey, opposition in one voice renounce government’s nuclear expansion plans. And anti-nuclear groups staged rallies around France, the world’s most nuclear-dependent country as the government sought to reassure the public that the risks remain minimal.

The governments of Russia, China, Poland and even earthquake-prone Chile say they are sticking to their plans to build more reactors. Bulgaria may freeze its Belene nuclear project and instead install a Russian reactor it has already ordered at its Kozloduy plant to reduce safety risks, Economy and Energy Minister Traicho Traikov said on Tuesday.

MACTV NEWS From Captial Hill

MACTV News: Senator Rockefeller Introduceed by Menelik Zeleke

Washington, D.C., March 8, 2011

By Williams Ekanem

Chirman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health Care on Tuesday presented a bill to Congress which aims to prevent the unsafe use of prescription drugs.

Addressing Congressional Reporters later in the day, the Senator said that, “I have heared far too many drugs abuse is hurting young people, children, families and local business. Although this is a serious problem throughout the country, it is heratbreaking that prescription drug deaths have been particulary devasting in West Virginia.”

According to Rockefeller, “my bill aims to change this course and help reduce the number of deaths from prescription drugs. As well as better assist those facing problems with abuse. I will continue to make this initiative a top priority.”

At the media briefing, Rockefeller, who was joined by Senators Schumer, Casey, Nelson and Brown said the bill would also help reduce the number of deaths from prescription drugs, as well as help states create and maintain prescription drug monitoring programs that all states can access.

Rockefeller’s bill aims to combat prescription drug related deaths andoverdoes by amongst others: requiring that health care professionals receive speciallised training on safe pain management in order to be licensed to prescribe these powerful drugs.

Giving consumers potentially life-saving information by funding a competitive grant program to states to educate consumers on the proper use of prescription drugs and how to prevent abuse.

It also proposes creating a commision to establish appropraite and safe guidelines for all dosing of prescription drugs, benchmarks to reduce abuse, and patient education guidelines.

It also proposes providing $25 million annually to establish prescription drug monitorng programs within each state where sates can share information with each other.

Abortion protesters lobby Capitoll Hill in favor of regulations, Posted by Meosha Eaton, Capitoll Hill MACTV Correspondent

Protester on the Hill today condemning abortion and yelling that "If you love Jesus, you would not stand for abortion". As I entered the Capitol the protester then asked me if I loved Jesus...I said Yes I do. He then went on to ask if I believed in abortion. I said its not whether or not  believe in it, however it is a matter that can stand  little more accountability and regulation. I am in no way in favor of taking away the right to choose or the right to defend the right to life, however, too much access too or overkill of subliminal promotional propaganda encouraging abortion, as in several urban cases, as first option in "family planning". Well that's some kind of planning....when does the actual "family" come in?


Meosha Eaton
MACTV NEWS

White House condemns violence in Libya as "Appalling" Posted by Meosha Eaton

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE, Feb 22 (Reuters) - The White House on Tuesday condemned what it called "appalling violence" against anti-government protesters in Libya and said it is working with the international community to speak with one voice on the Libyan situation.

White House spokesman Jay Carney, aboard Air Force One as President Barack Obama headed for a business event in Ohio, urged Libya to respect the rights of its people. He also told reporters that the administration was closely monitoring any effects on oil prices from ongoing Middle East unrest. (Reporting by Matt Spetalnick)

MACTV News: US House poised to pass Republican spending cuts, Posted by Menelik Zeleke

* Republicans vote to block Internet, EPA rules

* Republicans take aim at Planned Parenthood

* Social Security says it may furlough workers (Adds new material throughout)

By Richard Cowan and Donna Smith
WASHINGTON, Feb 17 (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday was poised to approve deep spending cuts for this year, setting the stage for a battle with the Democratic-run Senate that could lead to a government shutdown.

The House debated the spending measure, which cuts some $61.5 billion from current levels, well into the night Thursday. The House was expected to vote on passage of the bill on Friday, sending it to the Senate.
President Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats in the Senate are likely to reject many of the cuts, which are being pushed by Republicans associated with the conservative Tea Party movement who were elected in November.

The two sides have until March 4 to cut a deal. That's when a temporary funding measure expires. Failure to reach agreement means lawmakers will either have to pass another stopgap spending bill or allow the government to shut down -- something leaders from both parties claim they want to avoid.

House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican, said on Thursday the House would not consider another stopgap measure without spending cuts from current levels. The legislation would fund the government through September when the current fiscal year ends.

"When we say we're going to cut spending, read my lips: We are going to cut spending," Boehner said.
Obama has outlined his own plan for less severe spending cuts in 2012, and has warned that tightening the belt too much too soon could harm the slow economic recovery.

AMENDMENTS
The House considered a number of amendments and approved a Republican-backed measure overturning proposed rules barring Internet service providers from blocking legal content.

The House debated into the night on a measure that would bar federal funding for Planned Parenthood, which provides a number of health services for women, including abortion.

The House also voted to block the Environmental Protection Agency from issuing rules to limit mercury and other toxic emissions from cement plants.

Before it completed the bill, the House was also expected to consider an amendment to block funding for Obama's healthcare overhaul, a measure certain to be rejected by the Senate, which has already voted against a Republican bid to repeal the year-old law.

Conservative Republicans are pushing an amendment to give the Treasury Department the ability to avoid a debt default if U.S. borrowing authority runs out, highlighting possible dire consequences of political gridlock over government spending.

The proposal has been described by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner as "unworkable" and opponents in the House might use a procedural maneuver to kill the measure.

Congress must vote sometime in the next several weeks to raise the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling so the government can continue to pay its bills and creditors, which include China and other foreign countries.
The bill also includes spending cuts for the Social Security Administration that Democrats say will slow processing for retirement, survivor and disability claims. The agency said it may be forced to temporarily lay off workers and sent a notice of possible furloughs to the employees' union on Thursday night.

Democrats say they also want to begin shrinking a deficit that is projected to be around $1.65 trillion this year, equivalent to 10.9 percent of the economy. As a result, Democratic senators in coming weeks are likely to write their version of a spending bill for this year that cuts funds, but not as steeply as the House.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan and Donna Smith; editing by Mohammad Zargham and Eric Beech)

Video: Fiscal Appropriations: Republicans Insist on Spending Cuts

Fiscal Appropriations: Republicans Insist on Spending Cuts

Febuary 08, 2011                

                                  

By Williams Ekanem

Senate Minority leader, Mitch McConnell led a group of Republican Senators on Tuesday to press for cut in government spending even as Congress faces an upcoming clash over 2011 fiscal appropriations.

In particular, McConnell wondered why the Obama administration is proposing to spend $3.2 trillion even when income stands at $2.2 trillion.

Republicans have made cutting government spending an overwhelming priority in the 112^th Congress.

At the stake-out on Tuesday led by the minority leader, Republican Senators insist that there must be a cut in spending to create jobs.

All the Republican senators at the briefing spoke with one voice of the urgent need for the government to slash the 2011 fiscal spending by a considerable amount.

The Republicans fell back on their Study Committee which a fourth night ago amongst others recommended that:

FY 2011 CR Amendment: Replace the spending levels in the FY 2011 continuing resolution (CR) with non-defense, non-homeland security, non-veterans spending at FY 2008 levels. The legislation will further prohibit any FY 2011 funding from being used to carry out any provision of the Democrat government takeover of health care, or to defend the health care law against any lawsuit challenging any provision of the act., $80 billion savings.

Discretionary Spending Limit, FY 2012-2021: Eliminate automatic increases for inflation from CBO baseline projections for future discretionary appropriations. Further, impose discretionary spending limits through 2021 at 2006 levels on the non-defense portion of the discretionary budget, $2.29 trillion savings over ten years.

Federal Workforce Reforms: Eliminate automatic pay increases for civilian federal workers for five years. Additionally, cut the civilian workforce by a total of 15 percent through attrition. Allow the hiring of only one new worker for every two workers who leave federal employment until the reduction target has been met.

(Savings included in above discretionary savings figure).

"Stimulus" Repeal: Eliminate all remaining "stimulus" funding. $45 billion total savings.

Eliminate federal control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. $30 billion total savings.

Repeal the Medicaid FMAP increase in the "State Bailout" (Senate amendments to S. 1586). $16.1 billion total savings.

In the spirit of bipartisan politics however, President Obama has responded offering some proposals that might appeal to the Republicans, who control the House of Representatives. These include a corporate tax cut, while closing existing loopholes, and reform of the tax code. He also threatened to veto lawmakers' pet spending projects.