H.J.Res. 45 would, as you know, increase the debt ceiling. We've been tracking the proposed Murkowkski amendment to H.J.Res. 45 that would prevent the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases for a full year, but now we've got another amendment to consider: Sen. John Thune (R-SD)'s amendment (S.A. 3301 to S.A. 3299) would a) end the Wall Street bailout, effective on the date of the resolution's passage, and b) lower the debt limit to reflect TARP-related repayments. Thomas.loc.gov has the amendment up now if you want to check it out. I feel compelled to mention that Mr. Thune voted for that humiliation of a bailout-- but I also feel compelled to mention that he's spent much of the last year cranking out anti-bailout amendments that haven't gone anywhere. I think this one warrants a phone call to your Senators. They'll never see it coming.
Speaking of getting Wall Street to repay the bailout: six big banks are paying out enough in bonuses to make up for budget shortfalls in every state in the union, while JP Morgan Chase and Citibank have ratcheted up rates or reduced credit limits even for consumers who made their payments on time. I guess, in their warped morality, you deserve a bonus just for still standing after almost destroying yourself and everything around you -- when the only reason you're still standing is that the taxpayers bailed you out. With money that was supposed to get the economy moving, I should add, not reward yourselves with unearned bonuses. Mr. Obama has proposed a 0.15 percent (not 15 percent, Fox and Friends!) fee or tax or what-you-will on securities transactions. We'll see how far he takes it -- he ought to fight to the death for it even after the new 41-seat Republican Senate minority unifies against it. And we ought to fight for it anyway.
Finally, I just gotta say: that Glenn Beck, he's all class. And he can't even own his lack of class: seconds after twice suggesting that new Republican Senator Scott Brown's career "could end with a dead intern," he tries to walk it back -- "I’m just saying," "could" -- so as to say: if you think I'm a classless turd, you just weren't listening. Way to hide behind your words, Greg Brady. Of course, by raising the spectre of a sex scandal that could hound Mr. Brown, Mr. Beck merely aims to demonstrate independence from the Republican mainstream. At this task, of course, he fails: the Republican mainstream these days reflexively opposes anything that might smell of Obama-nature, so this little spark of "independence" doesn't signify anything to anyone other than the inattentive -- who comprise his real audience, I suppose. I'm struggling to comprehend how a moral society could tolerate being ruled by the inattentive and their big media enablers.
(Yes, I did hear about the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v. FEC; will comment further once I've read it.)
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