President Barack Obama got the $825 (or $1.2 trillion over a decade) stimulus package through the House of Representatives but the 244 to 188 vote is a hollow victory indeed. Without a single Republican voting for the bill, his high-profile visit to Capitol Hill on Tuesday came to exactly naught - at least on the House side.
Obama vowed to change Washington and usher in a new post-partisan era. The the mood music and optics were pitch perfect as he trekked up to the Hill. Republicans praised his gesture, welcomed his sincere demeanour and appreciated his willingness to listen.
Problem was, he wanted only to listen and did not want to act on what Republicans said. When he was asked if he would re-structure the package to include more tax cuts, he reportedly responded: "Feel free to whack me over the head because I probably will not compromise on that part."
He apparently added: "I understand that and I will watch you on Fox News and feel bad about myself." (Read Toby Harnden's full story here)
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In his song, Everybody Knows, poet/singer/songwriter, Leonard Cohen, captures the present mood for America.
Everybody knows that the dice are loadedThe dice are loaded and the fight is fixed. Those who played by the rules will pay for those who lied and cheated. This is how the American Dream has turned into the American Nightmare.
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows that the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
That’s how it goes Everybody knows
Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied
Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died
And so, as I post this blog, my heart is sad for our children and their future. Where is their American Dream? Where is their hope? How can we honestly say we have unselfishly taken care of our children?
We haven't. Not one bit and Washington could care less.
What America needs, America doesn't want. We have placed our hope in all the wrong places therefore are living out the consequences of trusting in man and not God.
The only hope for our America is God.
How much further must we fall before we "get it?"
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Judi Ly
nn Lake has kept up with leading edge business trends throughout her varied and successful career. She had already had her "15 minutes of fame" over and over again before starting her family. Judi and her family now reside in South Carolina, but, having been born and raised on Long Island, NY, it is clearly evident that she will always be a "New Yorker." Today, she successfully runs her own advertising agency which handles everything from logos, branding and package design while she continues to work closely with self-published authors from design to promotion. For more information, visit judilake.com
nn Lake has kept up with leading edge business trends throughout her varied and successful career. She had already had her "15 minutes of fame" over and over again before starting her family. Judi and her family now reside in South Carolina, but, having been born and raised on Long Island, NY, it is clearly evident that she will always be a "New Yorker." Today, she successfully runs her own advertising agency which handles everything from logos, branding and package design while she continues to work closely with self-published authors from design to promotion. For more information, visit judilake.com
