$410B Earmarks Filled Bill Signed

3/11/2009

President Obama signed the $410 billion bill Wednesday morning to keep most of the government operations running until September 30. Banking on Obama's willingness to sign the bill, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers jammed the bill with about 8,500 earmarks worth of $8 billion. At $410 billion, the bill represents an 8 percent increase over last year's spending levels, more than double the rate of inflation. Given the fact that the U.S. national deficit has been making its record everyday - currently at $10.9 trillion, we all know where the money is going to come from.

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Cartoosh's View: CA: Give Me Your Unwanted Stimulus Money

1/22/2009

Some GOP governors appear to have difficult time in deciding whether to accept any money from the $787 billion economy stimulus package provided by the federal government. Some even are doing their calculus in determining which portion of the stimulus aid would be accepted and which portion not. Their reasons: The stimulus package is a waste of the taxpayers' money and is not going to help much of the economy or create enough jobs.

Well... California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is more than happy to offer an easier solution to those governors: "Give your unwanted money to California. I'll take it!" Gov. Schwarzenegger just signed a painful budget deal last week in his state with severe cuts in spending, tax hikes, and borrowing to fill a $41 billion budget gap.

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Cartoosh's View: Bank CEOs Grilled By Congress

2/11/2009

After Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner announced yesterday that the government, the Federal Reserve, and the private sectors would spend around $2 trillion to bailout the troubling financial institutions, US bank CEOs appeared in front of the House Financial Services Committee in an attempt to repair their tarnished reputation. The banks are accused of using the money to cushion their balance sheets or buy up rivals. They are also accused of rewarding themselves with exceptional amount of bonus and corporate retreats to swanky hotels in Las Vegas and other resorts.

In response to questions regarding his previous plan to treat his bank to a new private jet, Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit said: "We did not adjust quickly enough ... and I take personal responsibility for this mistake." He now pledged that he'll take a salary of one dollar a year with no bonus, until Citigroup is back in profit.

After the hearing, these US bank CEOs will be facing a much bigger "challenge" in terms of what would be "the best uses" of the $2 trillion bailout money for the financial institutions.

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Cartoosh's View: Obama Administration Tries Its Best

2/9/2009

President Obama held a conference today to call on Republicans not to "play the usual politics games" and pressure the lawmakers to approve the massive economy stimulus plan.

"The plan is not perfect," the president said. "No plan is. I can't tell you for sure that everything in this plan will work exactly as we hope, but I can tell you with complete confidence that a failure to act will only deepen this crisis as well as the pain felt by millions of Americans."

President Obama said the country could well be in better shape by next year, as measured by increased hiring, lending, home values and other factors. "If we get things right, then, starting next year, we can start seeing significant improvement," Obama said.

Most of people seem to agree on President's call that the government has to take swift actions to bailout the troubling economy. Some experts concern that the stimulus plan lacks a clear strategy and is very much like a whole bunch of plans bundled together. Under the tremendous pressure in time, I guess we just has to throw all the mud on the wall and hope some would stick.

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Cartoosh's View: Same Old Politics Played By Obama?

President Obama has suffered a great political setback due to recent withdrawals announced by Nancy Killefer and Tom Daschle. Killefer's withdrawal was due to her tax issues, while Daschle's has to do with both his tax issues and interest conflicts related to his work with some health care companies. Not long ago, Gov. Bill Richardson withdrew from consideration of Commerce Secretary due to the federal probe of a company's business dealings with the government he leads. Although Tim Geithner was already sworn in as Treasury Secretary, he also failed to pay for his self-employment taxes.

The frauds those people revealed are part of the reason why Americans no longer trust politicians and their governments. That President Obama stood by those candidates firmly to the last minute makes American people wonder if he is still serious about his promise for new politics in Washington.

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Cartoosh's View: Daschle and Killefer Withdrew Their Nominations

2/3/2009

Apparently, Timothy Geithner is not the only one who has failed to pay taxes. But, he is luckier than Tom Daschle and Nancy Killefer.

Due to concerns over his tax issues and potential conflicts of interests, Daschle has announced his withdrawal from the nomination by President Obama to lead the nation's health-care reform.

Concerns about Daschle's failure to fully pay his taxes from 2005 through 2007 had been growing, even after he paid $128,203 in back taxes and $11,964 in interest last month. It was reported that Daschle also has also failed to pay Medicare taxes, although the actual amount has not been disclosed. There are also concerns about potential conflicts of interests related to his work at a law firm with some health care special interests.

Hours earlier, Nancy Killefer, who was considered to become Chief Performance Officer - a role that is supposed to make our government better, also announced her withdrawal from the nomination. There were concerns that her tax issues might go beyond the unpaid unemployment compensation tax on household help in 2005.

President Obama has promised us a change in Washington politics. With all these issues surfacing up today, I have to ask President Obama a question: "Is your change for better or for worse?"

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Cartoosh's View: Blagojevich Got The Boot

1/29/2009

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was thrown out of office Thursday. The Illinois Senate voted 59-0 to convict him of abuse of power in related to his attempt to profit from the U.S. Senate seat left open by President Obama. Even so, he is still going to face the corruption charges from the federal prosecutors.

The now former Gov. argued that he did nothing wrong and that there is no sufficient evidence to support such verdict. "You haven't proved a crime, and you can't, because it didn't happen, " Blagojevich told the law makers. Outside of his Chicago home Thursday night, he said to the reporters that he'll "keep fighting to clear my name." He then added: "I love the people of Illinois today more than I ever have been before."

Also see this editorial cartoon at CNN's iReport.com.

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Cartoosh's View: Digital TV Changeover Delayed for Four Months

1/26/2009

The Senate on Monday voted unanimously to postpone the upcoming transition from analog to digital television broadcasting by four months to June 12.

Monday's Senate vote is responding a growing concern that many Americans are not ready for such changeover. According to The Nielsen Co., more than 6.5 million U.S. households that rely on analog television sets to pick up over-the-air broadcast signals could see their TV sets go dark next month if the transition is not postponed. The changeover could add additional stress on particularly low-income and elderly viewers who have been overwhelmed by the economic downturn.

President Barack Obama has called for delay of the transition, after learning that the Commerce Department hit a $1.34 billion funding limit for government coupons that consumers may use to help pay for digital TV converter boxes. The boxes that translate digital signals back into analog ones for older TVs typically cost between $40 and $80 dollars.

Also see this editorial cartoon at CNN's iReport.com.

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Cartoosh's View: Obama Orders Guantanamo to Close

1/22/2009

In his presidential campaign trail, President Obama had pledged to close down Guantanamo, where many suspects have been detained for years without trial or charge. Thursday, he signed an executive order to halt the torture of suspects and close down the Guantanamo prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, within a year.

"We intend to win this fight. We're going to win it on our terms," Obama declared. In the mean time, he appointed high-profile envoys for Middle East hot spots and emphasizes diplomacy as a key element of the U.S. foreign policy.

"We think that it is precisely our ideals that give us the strength and the moral high ground to be able to effectively deal with the unthinking violence that we see emanating from terrorist organizations around the world," he said.

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Cartoosh's View: Obama's First Day In The Office

1/21/2009

The inauguration ceremony is over. President Obama goes to work in the Oval Office of the White House the first time in his presidency.

The hand-off of the White House from former President Bush to President Obama went more smoothly that Bush's own eight years ago. Unlike the 2001 hand-off, Bush found that all the Ws were removed from the keyboards in the executive office building of President Bill Clinton's departing administration. When Bush and Obama met Monday afternoon at the White House, the outgoing president had set in motion a transition that would make orderliness part of his legacy. That would probably be the only good news for President Obama, as he inherits from Bush the worst economy since the Great Depression along with many other issues.

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Cartoosh's View: Exactly How Unpopular Is Bush?

As President Bush prepares to leave the White House, many people plan to hold celebration parties - not farewell. Over the past few months, Bush's approval rating has slid to its historical low level. If you ever wonder what that mean, take a look at what happens, when Uncle Sam goes return "The Bush Administration" book that he checked out eight years ago.

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Cartoosh's View: Illinois Gov. Blagojevich Announced Obama's Replacement

12/30/2008

On December 9 of 2008, U.S. Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was arrested from his residence on the accusation of a "political corruption crime spree" that was to sell the state's U.S. Senate seat left open by President-elect Barack Obama.

He was later released on $4,500 bail and back to his office on Thursday to continue his governor business as usual.

On December 30, Gov. Blagojevich made a surprising announcement that he would appoint Roland W. Burris, a former state attorney general who was the first African-American elected to statewide office in Illinois to fill the Senate seat.

Continue to read the full story.

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Cartoosh's View: Government a Solution Not a Problem

1/9/2009

Two months after winning the election, Mr. Obama warned that if Congress resisted or delayed approving a stimulus package designed to counter the worst effects of the recession, “a bad situation could become dramatically worse”.

He said in his speech: “At this particular moment, only government can provide the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a recession this deep and severe. Only government can break the vicious cycles that are crippling our economy where a lack of spending leads to lost jobs which leads to even less spending, where an inability to lend and borrow stops growth and leads to even less credit.”

Words in Mr. Obama's speech seemed to imply that government as a solution, rather than a problem. Continue to read the full story.

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Cartoosh's View: Bush Greeted by Size 10 Shoes in Iraq

December 14, 2008

Baghdad, Iraq - On his farewell trip to Iraq, President George W. Bush hailed progress in the war that defines his presidency and got a size-10 reminder of his unpopularity, when a man hurled two shoes at him during a news conference. Apparently, not everyone agreed with him.

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