Senate passes sweeping financial overhaul legislation

Posted in News Clips | 07/16/10 | By Jim Puzzanghera Nearly two years after a financial crisis triggered the worst recession since the Great Depression, the Senate approved bold and controversial legislation aimed at preventing a repeat — and set the stage for a showdown over the issue in this fall's midterm elections. The 60-39 vote Thursday was a major victory for President Obama and Democratic leaders and marked the second landmark overhaul — the first was healthcare reform — that the administration has pushed through Congress this year. Obama…

41 Million People To See Free Preventive Care

Posted in News Clips | 07/16/10 | By Ricardo Alonso-Zalidivar Screenings, Vaccines, Counseling To Be Offered Without Copay From counseling for kids who struggle with their weight, to cancer screenings for their parents, preventive health care will soon be available at no out-of-pocket cost under consumer rules the Obama administration unveiled. That means no copays, deductibles or coinsurance for people whose health insurance plans are covered by the new requirements. The Obama administration estimates that 41 million Americans will benefit initially, with the number projected to rise to 88 million…

Harry Reid, Dean Heller back clean energy legislation

Posted in News Clips | 07/15/10 | By Stephanie Tavares Congressman Dean Heller and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid today introduced legislation that would extend royalties and lease income from solar and wind projects to home states and counties. The Clean Energy, Community Investment, and Wildlife Conservation Act would change the system for acquiring Bureau of Land Management land for solar and wind developments from a “right of way” process originally intended for multiple use applications like grazing, off-road racing and transmission corridors, to a competitive lease auction. Such a…

Angle on refusing ‘mainstream media’ interviews: ‘There’s no earnings for me’

Posted in News Clips | 07/15/10 | By Shannon Travis Nevada Senate candidate Sharron Angle is explaining why she routinely refuses to do mainstream media interviews, saying that "there's no earnings for me there." The Republican made the comments to David Brody of The Christian Broadcasting Network in an interview on Tuesday. Angle is battling to oust Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in the November election. "People say that I went 'dark.' I didn't," Angle said. "I have done over 60 interviews. I quit counting a couple of weeks ago.…

Senate clears sweeping bank bill for final passage

Posted in News Clips | 07/15/10 | By Jim Kuhnhenn A sweeping crackdown on banking and high-finance broke through a Senate Republican blockade Thursday, setting the stage for Congress to send the massive regulation overhaul to President Barack Obama. The vote to end debate was 60-38, the minimum needed to overcome a filibuster. But that ensured that the bill has the votes for final passage, which could come later Thursday. At a thud-inducing 2,300 pages, the legislation is designed to rein in big banks and protect consumers, with the aim…

Republicans To Unemployed: Why Won’t You All Just Get Some Jobs Already?

Posted in News Clips | 07/14/10 | By Jillian Rayfield Jim Bunning and Tom Coburn blocked the extension of unemployment benefits. Jon Kyl called  supporting the unemployed a "necessary evil." There's even been talk  from one Republican that Congress is creating a nation of "hobos."So here's TPM's round-up of Republicans hating on the jobless for...well, for being jobless.In June, Nevada Senate nominee Sharron Angle said that "what has happened is the system of entitlement has caused us to have a spoilage with our ability to go out and get a…

Sharron Angle Now ‘Glad’ Reid Re-Posted Her Old Website

Posted in News Clips | 07/14/10 | By Sam Stein Republican Senate candidate Sharron Angle says that she is now "glad" that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid re-posted her primary website despite earlier sending a cease and desist order demanding that he take it down. The Tea Party favorite told the Christian Broadcasting Network's Brody File on Tuesday that she isn't running from her primary campaign platform when she took her website down and scrubbed its contents clean. In fact, she's willing to promote the old content that Reid's campaign…

Let them eat cake

Posted in News Clips | 07/13/10 | Las Vegas Sun Editorial That’s the heartless response of those who won’t extend jobless benefits Republican opposition in Congress has stalled legislation that would extend much-needed benefits to unemployed workers. While Republican leaders complain about the cost of extended benefits, it is not merely a budgetary issue. The bill’s critics also question the value of unemployment payments, and some have been as brazen as to call the benefit an “entitlement.” As we have noted before, some conservatives stunningly argue that benefits keep people from…

Sharron Angle vs. Saving jobs

Posted in News Clips | 07/13/10 | by Jed Lewison Last week, Sharron Angle blasted Harry Reid for helping save thousands of jobs on the Las Vegas Strip. Seriously. Without using taxpayer dollars, Reid helped MGM Resorts' CityCenter -- the largest resort development project in American history -- avoid bankruptcy by encouraging financial institutions to continue extending the project the credit it needed to complete construction. Thanks in part to Reid's efforts, thousands of Nevadans work at CityCenter properties. When a caller to a conservative talk show asked Angle if…

Sharron Angle flummoxes local press with “stimulus” non-sequitor

Posted in News Clips | 07/13/10 | By Greg Sargent Here's the latest out of Nevada:  Sharron Angle  is getting attention for flubbing an answer involving job creation in a manner that raises questions about whether she grasps an enormously important local issue. This is not going to get the sort of national coverage that attended her "slush fund" or "Second Amemdment Remedies" claims. But in a sense this kind of thing can actually be more important, since it more directly concerns a major local issue directly afflicting Nevada residents.…