GOP Blocks Measures Boosting Taxes on Oil Companies' Profits: "Provisions Passed by Senate Would Raise About $5 Billion | By Jonathan Weisman | Washington Post Staff Writer | Wednesday, April 26, 2006; Page A06
While Republican leaders sharply criticize soaring gasoline prices and energy industry profits, GOP negotiators have decided to knock out provisions in a major tax bill that would force the oil companies to pay billions of dollars more in taxes on their profits.
House and Senate tax writers have been struggling to reach an accord on separate tax bills approved last year to extend some expiring tax cuts enacted during President Bush's first term. But House Republicans have raised strong objections to Senate-passed provisions that would raise nearly $5 billion in taxes over five years -- primarily by changing arcane accounting rules that have allowed oil companies to substantially lower their tax bills, according to House and Senate tax aides familiar with the talks." ...
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Eighteen families paying millions to kill estate tax
The Raw Story | Eighteen families paying millions to kill estate tax: "RAW STORY | Published: Wednesday April 26, 2006
Eighteen of America's wealthiest families, including the Timkens of Canton, are bankrolling efforts to permanently repeal estate taxes that would save their families a total of $71.6 billion, according to a report released Tuesday by public interest groups, the (information-restricted) Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. Excerpts:"
Eighteen of America's wealthiest families, including the Timkens of Canton, are bankrolling efforts to permanently repeal estate taxes that would save their families a total of $71.6 billion, according to a report released Tuesday by public interest groups, the (information-restricted) Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. Excerpts:"
Groups funded by the super-rich have engaged in a deceptive campaign to convince the public that estate taxes cause widespread problems for small businesses and family farms when they actually affect about one in 370 estates, said the report released by Public Citizen and Boston-based United for a Fair Economy.
Groups that support estate tax repeal say they're close to getting the 60 votes they need in the Senate. Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform says 68 percent of Americans want the tax eliminated. He says estate taxes affect a broad range of people and dismissed the report's contention that it only affects the super rich as "tired rhetoric of hate and envy."
They said families including those that founded Wal-Mart, Gallo wineries, Nordstrom's department stores, Wegman's grocery stores, the Mars candy company, Cox media chain and Campbell Soup Co. joined the Timkens in bankrolling an effort the groups' report called "one of the biggest con jobs in recent history."
Sunday, April 23, 2006
VA Contracts Go to Ex-Chief's Company - Los Angeles Times
VA Contracts Go to Ex-Chief's Company - Los Angeles Times: "By Walter F. Roche Jr., Times Staff Writer | April 23, 2006
Anthony J. Principi has held key positions at the Diamond Bar medical firm before and after heading the agency. Fees could exceed $1 billion.
WASHINGTON — A Diamond Bar company headed by former Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony J. Principi could get fees exceeding $1 billion from the VA, much of it on contracts approved and amended while he ran the agency, records show.
Principi was president of the medical services company QTC Management Inc. before he joined President Bush's Cabinet in 2001. He ran the VA for four years, then returned to the firm as chairman of the board.
While he was VA secretary, Principi's past and future corporate home collected about $246 million in fees, according to VA records. Congressional Budget Office projections show the contracts could be worth as much as $1.2 billion through 2008.
Principi said he had no role in awarding, amending or administering VA contracts with QTC. ...
Anthony J. Principi has held key positions at the Diamond Bar medical firm before and after heading the agency. Fees could exceed $1 billion.
WASHINGTON — A Diamond Bar company headed by former Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony J. Principi could get fees exceeding $1 billion from the VA, much of it on contracts approved and amended while he ran the agency, records show.
Principi was president of the medical services company QTC Management Inc. before he joined President Bush's Cabinet in 2001. He ran the VA for four years, then returned to the firm as chairman of the board.
While he was VA secretary, Principi's past and future corporate home collected about $246 million in fees, according to VA records. Congressional Budget Office projections show the contracts could be worth as much as $1.2 billion through 2008.
Principi said he had no role in awarding, amending or administering VA contracts with QTC. ...
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Daily Kos: Roberts called out on delaying Phase II again; Whines and spins in response
Daily Kos: Roberts called out on delaying Phase II again; Whines and spins in response: "by joc | Fri Apr 14, 2006 at 02:20:55 AM PDT
Senator Roberts of Kansas, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in 2004 that he would begin Phase II of the investigation into the pre-war 'intelligence' about the mythical Iraqi weapons of mass destruction shortly after the elections were over. The reason for that delay was that it wouldn't be good to have the hearings hurt by partisans trying to use them for political gain during the election process. Of course, keeping the report under wraps was a political plus for the Repubicans..."
Senator Roberts of Kansas, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in 2004 that he would begin Phase II of the investigation into the pre-war 'intelligence' about the mythical Iraqi weapons of mass destruction shortly after the elections were over. The reason for that delay was that it wouldn't be good to have the hearings hurt by partisans trying to use them for political gain during the election process. Of course, keeping the report under wraps was a political plus for the Repubicans..."
As soon as the elections were over Senator Roberts came to the conclusion that Phase II was no longer necessary, since the American people had elected Bush. However, the abysmal job this Administration has been doing in Iraq has brought the pressure back, and Senator Roberts has been forced to shift his stance from 'no longer necessary' to 'when we can find the time.'
In today's NYT, Senator Roberts has a whiny letter to the editor, crying about how mean and impatient the Times is being.
There is no evidence that the White House manipulated intelligence to exaggerate the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's regime. The Senate Intelligence Committee pointed out in its 511-page report, which 17 Democrats and Republicans unanimously approved, that the intelligence assessments in the October 2002 National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction were very declarative.For instance, the N.I.E. said, "Baghdad has chemical and biological weapons." Such forward-leaning assessments were prevalent in the N.I.E. Only later, through the committee's review, did we learn that these assessments were not supported by the underlying intelligence and were the result of flawed tradecraft and sloppy analysis.
With respect to alleged Republican foot-dragging on the phase II reports: on April 5, I announced that after the Easter recess, the committee will hold a series of closed meetings to move forward on phase II, including committee approval of factual findings and conclusions concerning three of the report's five elements. These findings will be fact-based and thorough. They will not be based upon agenda-driven and innuendo-laced press reports. ...
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
DeLay's war chest: raised nearly $500,000 in the six weeks before announcing his resignation
Chron.com | DeLay's war chest grows to $1.4 million: "April 18, 2006, 12:43PM | By MICHAEL HEDGES | Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau
He raised nearly $500,000 in the six weeks before announcing his resignation
WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay raised campaign money at a relatively high rate in the six weeks before revealing that he planned to give up his congressional seat, according to disclosures made available Monday.
The $484,475 received by his campaign from Feb. 15 to March 31 helped bring his total cash reserve to $1.4 million, which can be used for legal expenses or political activities." ...
He raised nearly $500,000 in the six weeks before announcing his resignation
WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay raised campaign money at a relatively high rate in the six weeks before revealing that he planned to give up his congressional seat, according to disclosures made available Monday.
The $484,475 received by his campaign from Feb. 15 to March 31 helped bring his total cash reserve to $1.4 million, which can be used for legal expenses or political activities." ...
War Bill Includes Millions to Move Just-Rebuilt Line: "... turn this tragedy into a giveaway for economic developers."
Mississippi Senators' Rail Plan Challenged: "By Jonathan Weisman | Washington Post Staff Writer | Tuesday, April 18, 2006; Page A01
War Bill Includes Millions to Move Just-Rebuilt Line
Mississippi's two U.S. senators included $700 million in an emergency war spending bill to relocate a Gulf Coast rail line that has already been rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina at a cost of at least $250 million."
Republican Sens. Trent Lott and Thad Cochran, who have the backing of their state's economic development agencies and tourism industry, say the CSX freight line must be moved to save it from the next hurricane and to protect Mississippi's growing coastal population from rail accidents. But critics of the measure call it a gift to coastal developers and the casino industry that would be paid for with money carved out of tight Katrina relief funds and piggybacked onto funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
War Bill Includes Millions to Move Just-Rebuilt Line
Mississippi's two U.S. senators included $700 million in an emergency war spending bill to relocate a Gulf Coast rail line that has already been rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina at a cost of at least $250 million."
Republican Sens. Trent Lott and Thad Cochran, who have the backing of their state's economic development agencies and tourism industry, say the CSX freight line must be moved to save it from the next hurricane and to protect Mississippi's growing coastal population from rail accidents. But critics of the measure call it a gift to coastal developers and the casino industry that would be paid for with money carved out of tight Katrina relief funds and piggybacked onto funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"It is ludicrous for the Senate to spend $700 million to destroy and relocate a rail line that is in perfect working order, particularly when it recently underwent a $250 million repair," said Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), who is planning to challenge the funding ... "it is wrong for senators to turn this tragedy into a giveaway for economic developers."
Securing money for pet home-state projects is nothing new for Lott, a famous benefactor of the Mississippi coastline, or for Cochran, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. ...Wednesday, April 12, 2006
9 in 10 showed that the best drug was the one made by the company funding the study ...
Comparison of Schizophrenia Drugs Often Favors Firm Funding Study: "By Shankar Vedantam | Washington Post Staff Writer | Wednesday, April 12, 2006; Page A01
Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co. recently funded five studies that compared its antipsychotic drug Zyprexa with Risperdal, a competing drug made by Janssen. All five showed Zyprexa was superior in treating schizophrenia.
But when Janssen sponsored its own studies comparing the two drugs, Risperdal came out ahead in three out of four.
...
In fact, when psychiatrist John Davis analyzed every publicly available trial funded by the pharmaceutical industry pitting five new antipsychotic drugs against one another, nine in 10 showed that the best drug was the one made by the company funding the study.
...
By contrast, when the federal government recently compared a broader range of drugs in typical schizophrenia patients in a lengthy trial, two medications that stood out were cheaper drugs not under patent ...
...
"A perfectly independent agency has to be set up that says, 'Here are the areas where trials must be done,' " said Drummond Rennie, deputy editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association. "There will be two classes of trials -- the believable ones and the non-believable ones."
...
But several experts say industry-sponsored trials are failing to answer the questions doctors really need answered: Which drug works best for which patient? Are differences in drugs worth the differences in cost? How many patients are likely to recover entirely, rather than just show progress in the right direction? ...
Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co. recently funded five studies that compared its antipsychotic drug Zyprexa with Risperdal, a competing drug made by Janssen. All five showed Zyprexa was superior in treating schizophrenia.
But when Janssen sponsored its own studies comparing the two drugs, Risperdal came out ahead in three out of four.
...
In fact, when psychiatrist John Davis analyzed every publicly available trial funded by the pharmaceutical industry pitting five new antipsychotic drugs against one another, nine in 10 showed that the best drug was the one made by the company funding the study.
...
By contrast, when the federal government recently compared a broader range of drugs in typical schizophrenia patients in a lengthy trial, two medications that stood out were cheaper drugs not under patent ...
...
"A perfectly independent agency has to be set up that says, 'Here are the areas where trials must be done,' " said Drummond Rennie, deputy editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association. "There will be two classes of trials -- the believable ones and the non-believable ones."
...
But several experts say industry-sponsored trials are failing to answer the questions doctors really need answered: Which drug works best for which patient? Are differences in drugs worth the differences in cost? How many patients are likely to recover entirely, rather than just show progress in the right direction? ...
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
one-third of [Iraq 1 veterans] now receive disability compensation
Iraq Mess is Literally Making People Sick :: from www.uruknet.info :: news from occupied Iraq - ch: "Judy Leurquin" | April 10, 2006
Of the more than 670,000 troops deployed to the Gulf in 1991, about one-third of them now receive disability compensation.Remember your mother's warning, "If you can't clean up after yourself, don't make the mess"? Didn't we subject our children to that mantra?
Take Iraq, for example. During the 1991 Gulf War our military attacked Iraq and its people with over 350 tons of depleted uranium (DU). During the current war and occupation we've fired 2,200-plus tons on people and cities all over Iraq. A byproduct of uranium enrichment, DU remains radioactive for 4.5 billion years. We have turned the cradle of civilization into a toxic wasteland.
DU is cheap. Nuclear power plants are glad to have arms manufacturers take this radioactive waste material off their hands. DU is effective, 1.7 times denser than lead. It's pyrophoric, burning everything it hits into a charred crisp.
When DU weapons strike targets, a fine aerosol of uranium oxide is formed, which can be inhaled. Inhaled particles can cause serious damage, especially the insoluble particles that can remain in the body a long time. DU is an alpha emitter that wreaks havoc on DNA, RNA, proteins and enzymes. Over time, mutations form and cancers develop. Children have been born with birth defects. DU has been found in all parts of the body.
Initial symptoms of DU contamination may include severe headaches, fatigue, shortness of breath, night sweats, fever, poor appetite, joint pain, gastrointestinal problems, rashes and oozing lesions. Later on more serious conditions develop, including cognitive difficulties, memory loss, mood swings, neuropathies, blood disorders, menstrual problems, burning semen, increased pain and greater immobility. Death by DU poisoning can be slow and agonizing.
Of the more than 670,000 troops deployed to the Gulf in 1991, about one-third of them now receive disability compensation. According to Doug Rokke, former Army physicist and director of DU cleanup following the first gulf war, more than 11,000 have died since that war ended. (The ground war, which lasted only 100 hours, claimed 179 lives, most from friendly fire.)
Gulf War I troops were exposed to a plethora of harmful substances. There were untested vaccinations, unproven prophylactic medications, potent insect repellents, carcinogen-laden cleaning products, oil fires, sarin gas, and depleted uranium. While most doctors and scientists agree that the unexplained illnesses, which they labeled Gulf War Syndrome, are likely due to a synergistic effect of all of the toxic exposures, some argue that DU caused most of the problems. ...
Of the more than 670,000 troops deployed to the Gulf in 1991, about one-third of them now receive disability compensation.Remember your mother's warning, "If you can't clean up after yourself, don't make the mess"? Didn't we subject our children to that mantra?
Take Iraq, for example. During the 1991 Gulf War our military attacked Iraq and its people with over 350 tons of depleted uranium (DU). During the current war and occupation we've fired 2,200-plus tons on people and cities all over Iraq. A byproduct of uranium enrichment, DU remains radioactive for 4.5 billion years. We have turned the cradle of civilization into a toxic wasteland.
DU is cheap. Nuclear power plants are glad to have arms manufacturers take this radioactive waste material off their hands. DU is effective, 1.7 times denser than lead. It's pyrophoric, burning everything it hits into a charred crisp.
When DU weapons strike targets, a fine aerosol of uranium oxide is formed, which can be inhaled. Inhaled particles can cause serious damage, especially the insoluble particles that can remain in the body a long time. DU is an alpha emitter that wreaks havoc on DNA, RNA, proteins and enzymes. Over time, mutations form and cancers develop. Children have been born with birth defects. DU has been found in all parts of the body.
Initial symptoms of DU contamination may include severe headaches, fatigue, shortness of breath, night sweats, fever, poor appetite, joint pain, gastrointestinal problems, rashes and oozing lesions. Later on more serious conditions develop, including cognitive difficulties, memory loss, mood swings, neuropathies, blood disorders, menstrual problems, burning semen, increased pain and greater immobility. Death by DU poisoning can be slow and agonizing.
Of the more than 670,000 troops deployed to the Gulf in 1991, about one-third of them now receive disability compensation. According to Doug Rokke, former Army physicist and director of DU cleanup following the first gulf war, more than 11,000 have died since that war ended. (The ground war, which lasted only 100 hours, claimed 179 lives, most from friendly fire.)
Gulf War I troops were exposed to a plethora of harmful substances. There were untested vaccinations, unproven prophylactic medications, potent insect repellents, carcinogen-laden cleaning products, oil fires, sarin gas, and depleted uranium. While most doctors and scientists agree that the unexplained illnesses, which they labeled Gulf War Syndrome, are likely due to a synergistic effect of all of the toxic exposures, some argue that DU caused most of the problems. ...
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Bush’s EPA Nominee Has Relaxed Rules For Polluters, Weakened Clean Air Legislation
Think Progress � Bush’s EPA Nominee Has Relaxed Rules For Polluters, Weakened Clean Air Legislation: "Bush’s EPA Nominee Has Relaxed Rules For Polluters, Weakened Clean Air Legislation
William Wehrum, President Bush’s nominee to head the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation (OAR), has earned a reputation in Washington as “the behind-the-scenes architect” of some of the Bush administration’s most controversial initiatives. Some lowlights:
- Wehrum was a lead author of Bush’s “Clear Skies” legislation, which would have loosened emissions caps on dangerous airborne toxins.
- In 2002, while serving as OAR’s general counsel, Wehrum shepherded through a rule written by forest products industry lobbyists that relaxed the emission standards for formaldehyde. Wehrum had previously represented those same timber interests as a lobbyist.
- In 2004, Wehrum implemented new industry-friendly mercury guidelines that substantially weakened the Clean Air Act. Again, Wehrum’s former lobbying firm played an instrumental role in drafting the rule.
- Just this week, a draft of a new air pollution rule, drafted under the oversight of Wehrum, came under fire from congressional leaders. The proposal would allow polluters to discharge thousands of pounds of airborne toxins while “virtually avoiding regulation.“
The good news: Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) plans to put a hold on Wehrum’s nomination if it moves to the Senate floor."
William Wehrum, President Bush’s nominee to head the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation (OAR), has earned a reputation in Washington as “the behind-the-scenes architect” of some of the Bush administration’s most controversial initiatives. Some lowlights:
- Wehrum was a lead author of Bush’s “Clear Skies” legislation, which would have loosened emissions caps on dangerous airborne toxins.
- In 2002, while serving as OAR’s general counsel, Wehrum shepherded through a rule written by forest products industry lobbyists that relaxed the emission standards for formaldehyde. Wehrum had previously represented those same timber interests as a lobbyist.
- In 2004, Wehrum implemented new industry-friendly mercury guidelines that substantially weakened the Clean Air Act. Again, Wehrum’s former lobbying firm played an instrumental role in drafting the rule.
- Just this week, a draft of a new air pollution rule, drafted under the oversight of Wehrum, came under fire from congressional leaders. The proposal would allow polluters to discharge thousands of pounds of airborne toxins while “virtually avoiding regulation.“
The good news: Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) plans to put a hold on Wehrum’s nomination if it moves to the Senate floor."
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Bush authorized leak of Iraq intelligence estimate, indicted ex-Cheney aide says [... leading to outing of CIA Agent]
The Raw Story | Bush authorized leak of Iraq intelligence estimate, indicted ex-Cheney aide says: "RAW STORY | Published: Thursday April 6, 2006
A former White House aide under indictment for obstructing a leak probe, I. Lewis Libby, testified to a grand jury that he gave information from a closely-guarded "National Intelligence Estimate" on Iraq to a New York Times reporter in 2003 with the specific permission of President Bush, according to a n Publish Post ew court filing from the special prosecutor in the case, ...
...
Dems call for Bush to 'come clean,' cite 8 denials
A former White House aide under indictment for obstructing a leak probe, I. Lewis Libby, testified to a grand jury that he gave information from a closely-guarded "National Intelligence Estimate" on Iraq to a New York Times reporter in 2003 with the specific permission of President Bush, according to a n Publish Post ew court filing from the special prosecutor in the case, ...
...
Dems call for Bush to 'come clean,' cite 8 denials
After today's claim by Ex-VP chief of staff "Scooter" Libby that he was led to believe the President had approved the leak of classified information to reporters, Democrats have called for the President to set the record straight about his alleged involvement.
"President Bush must fully disclose his participation in the selective leaking of classified information," said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid in a brief statement. "It's time for the President to come clean about his involvement in the leak case."
The statement was accompanied by eight of the numerous instances in which Bush or his spokesman, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, denied the President had knowledge of the leak.
That incidents identified by Democrats follow:
"If there is a leak out of my administration, I want to know who it is. And if the person has violated law, the person will be taken care of. . . . I have told our administration, people in my administration to be fully cooperative. I want to know the truth. If anybody has got any information inside our administration or outside our administration, it would be helpful if they came forward with the information so we can find out whether or not these allegations are true and get on about the business."
"I'd like to know if somebody in my White House did leak sensitive information."
"If someone committed crime, they will no longer work in my administration."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)