Month: April 2011

Obama releases copy of birth certificate

Posted by dwilson – April 28, 2011

Donald Trump has made headlines in the past week trumpeting conspiracy theories that President Barack Obama was not born in the United States.

In response the White House has released a copy of Obama’s long form birth certificate showing the document from Hawaii.

Trump had played up the “birther” theories that won’t die despite repeated investigations by Republican office holders and the news media. Obama said the birth certificate is being released to remove the distraction.

Sarah Palin, who was among the early birther adherents, was convinced that Obama was born in Hawaii after she saw that his birth in 1961 was reported in a newspaper in the 50th state.

Two Hawaiian governors, both Republicans, have vouched for the authenticity of Obama’s birth records.

President Obama’s Long Form Birth Certificate
View more documents from White House

James Stewart writes about how lies damage U.S.

Posted by dwilson – April 28, 2011

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Quincy native James B. Stewart, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author, has a new book out. “Tangled Webs: How False Statements are Undermining America” tells the stories of Bernie Madoff, Martha Stewart, Barry Bonds and Scooter Libby.

The biggest political revelation in Stewart’s book is that Karl Rove apparently lied to President George W. Bush about how CIA operative Valerie Plame was “outed” in an interview with columnist Robert Novak.

“When President Bush asked (Rove) point blank if he had leaked a CIA agent’s identity to Novak, (Rove) said the subject hadn’t even come up in his conversation with Novak,” Stewart said during an exclusive interview with the Quincy Herald-Whig.

Stewart said lying is a form of “moral corruption” that is harming America.

He put the blame on national leaders, both Democrats and Republicans.

“We had, in Bill Clinton, a president who committed perjury and only grudgingly, if that, apologized for it. And in Bush we had a president who condoned it” by commuting Libby’s prison sentence, Stewart said.

Stewart will be at the Quincy Public Library May 7 to sign copies of his book.

Statistician: Gasoline prices exceed historic levels

Posted by dwilson – April 27, 2011

A chart prepared by Timothy McMahon and linked here uses data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration to show what gas prices have been in inflation-adjusted dollars.

The chart starts in 1918 when gasoline would have cost $3.61 per gallon if using those imaginary inflation-adjusted dollars. By 1981, when gas sold for $1.35 a gallon, the actual cost was about $3.24 in current terms.

One shortcoming of the graphic is that it was last updated during July 2010.

With gas selling for $4 a gallon or more in many places, the chart makes one wistful for the 1980s and 1990s, when costs were in the $1 range.

Supreme Court won’t consider health care law … yet

Posted by dwilson – April 25, 2011

The U.S. Supreme Court does not intend to hear arguments at this time about whether it is unconstitutional to require that Americans purchase health insurance.

A one-sentence order was issued by the high court (4/25/11) that it would not review a Virginia ruling that it is unconstitutional for the health care reform law to mandate purchase of insurance.

That does not mean the issue is dead.

The Virginia case is under appeal in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Similar cases are under appeal in the Third, Sixth, Ninth and District of Columbia Circuit Courts of Appeal.

Maureen Martin, a senior fellow for legal affairs at the Heartland Institute, said cases normally “proceed from the trial court to federal courts of appeal and then to the Supreme Court,” which is not required to take a case.

At issue is whether the U.S. Constitution gives the federal government the power to require its citizens to buy any product or service. The individual mandate was included in the health care overhaul approved by Congress last year. Drafters of the legislation said everyone who is financially able must buy health insurance or face fines that will offset the governmental and hospital costs.

Researcher: Religious beliefs motivate voters

Posted by dwilson – April 21, 2011

Chris Raymond, a graduate instructor of political science at the University of Missouri-Columbia, has done a study showing that religious beliefs greatly influence voters.

While that may not surprise everyone, the study was launched to confirm or refute the contention by some political analysts that “religious voting no longer matters.”

Raymond studied voting trends in the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom. The three countries are in the middle of different trends. Religion is seen as a greater influence in U.S. elections, a declining influence in German elections and relatively steady in the U.K.

“Regardless of the trends, religiosity remains on par with class issues as far as why people vote. In fact, I argue that religion is No. 2 to social status,” Raymond said.

“It’s important to understand that religion isn’t the only factor, but an important one. This makes sense because as a person with a vote, my religion and my class are how I perceive the world.”

Findings from his study have been published in the journal Electoral Studies.

Comparative tax tool helps clear up comparisons

Posted by dwilson – April 13, 2011

A new income tax comparison tool allows users to see what taxes have been charged in the United States (in 2010 dollars) since 1945.

I can’t speak for the web site’s accuracy. There’s a lot of information to input for this type of calculator — way beyond my abilities.

It is interesting to see how the $1 million wage earners saw their lowest tax rates toward the end of the Reagan years. But if you look at wage earners in the $60,000 to $80,000 range the payments are lower now than during any other time in the past 66 years.

A search for $10,000 and $20,000 wage earners also appears to show how taxes were at zero just before Reagan was elected, but climbed after that.

It’s an interesting widget.

Schilling shares thoughts on tea party

Posted by dadam – April 12, 2011

U.S. Rep. Bobby Schilling, R-Colona, Ill., often has been called a tea party favorite after his win against incumbent Phil Hare, D-Rock Island last November.

During a visit to Quincy on Monday, Schilling clarified that he agrees with the tea party on many levels, but is frustrated when he sees some people seek to divide the nation. He said “a lot of good people” are in the tea party and questions how many of them are extremists.

This video from a meeting with area school superintendents lets Schilling explain in his own words.

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Legislative pay cut bill is just window dressing

Posted by dwilson – April 6, 2011

Members of the Illinois House passed legislation Tuesday to cut their own pay by 10 percent.

House Bill 2891 passed 85-14. It now heads to the Senate, where it has almost no chance of passing in its current form.

I’m a cynic when it comes to bills like this. They make good headlines. They give lawmakers a chance to tout their willingness to sacrifice … and they almost never become law.

One of the Senate’s options on this is to change the wording, even slightly, and pass something similar. As long as the two chambers do not pass identical bills, it cannot become law.

Rep. Michelle Mussman, D-Schaumburg, was the chief sponsor of HB 2891, which would cut base legislative pay from about $68,000 to about $61,200.

There were certainly some among the 85 supporters of the bill who are willing to see their salaries cut in order to save the state about $1.2 million per year.

“This is an issue where we can and must lead by example if we are to get our fiscal house back in order,” said Rep. Norine Hammond, R-Macomb.

My to taxpayers is this: Don’t count on saving $1.2 million until it becomes law.

Obama officially a candidate for 2012

Posted by dwilson – April 4, 2011

President Barack Obama kicked off his 2012 campaign today with the launch of a video on barackobama.com. The video does not have Obama speaking but has supporters expressing their excitement about the campaign.

One man who appears on the video says: “I don’t agree with Obama on everything, but I respect him and I trust him.”

That’s a different strategy for a national campaign. It would be interesting to see what the marketing gurus for web sites had to say about soft selling candidates.

Several Republicans have said they’re running for President. Who do local folks want to see with that nomination? Comments are welcomed.

Ethanol executive calls for consistency

Posted by dwilson – April 1, 2011

Jeff Broin, chief executive officer of POET, the world’s largest producer of ethanol, wrote an opinion piece for The Hill blog.

His column, linked here, notes that gasoline in the United States sells for 17 cents less per gallon thanks to the use of about 14 billion gallons of ethanol in U.S. fuels.

Broin calls for a consistent approach from Congress — omething that has been lacking.