Is Immigration really the top problem we need Obama to deal with?

[J_J_]

We have record number of people living in poverty in this country,

record number of homeless school children....

Who is creating solutions for the problems millions of Americans are dealing with every day?

[VanillaRhapsody]

1. It is if you are a child about to have both parents deported.....

and you know all those folks are LIVING in poverty....under the table wages....

My god...some people!

[pkdu]

4. Not some people...same people. Nt.

[MohRokTah]

140. +1

[J_J_]

13. The legal immigrants will now be fired, corporations like illegals for a reason

They want to pay them crap and treat them like dirt.

No one has stopped or is working to stop corporations from hiring illegal immigrants. That is the real problem.

[VanillaRhapsody]

19. uh wut???

throw your hands up....why do anything about anything?

[J_J_]

26. Why not go after corporations hiring illegals? What is the problem with that?

No one is actually trying to stop the problem.

What is stopping corporations from firing anyone who is legal, and instead hire illegals they can still pay crap and treat like dirt?



Why not stop the H1B visas that are allowing Indian workers to be paid a few dollars per day instead of Americans?

[VanillaRhapsody]

29. What would you have him do to them? Give them a time out?

what kind of power do you think he has? He cannot write laws....

[J_J_]

34. Shut down the business if they are hiring illegal immigrants- don't go after immigrants

They are desperate and here because they will be given jobs.

If companies were forced to hire legal workers, pay them well, there would be no job opportunites for illegal workers.

[VanillaRhapsody]

36. HOW does he do that?

WOW....




Uh...if you read....you would know that is net ZERO now....I suppose you also believe in "Self-Deportation"
too!

Here is how ill informed you are....even Jeb Bush recognizes that fact...

http://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2012/aug/28/jeb-bush/jeb-bush-says-illegal-immigration-net-zero/

[J_J_]

40. seriously? If they are illegal, isn't it illegal to hire them? DUH! You send people to arrest them

Have you seen Fast Food Nation?

They know exactly who is doing the hiring and government looks the other way.

[VanillaRhapsody]

43. and Obama knows....right....he can executive order them to JAIL!!!

You might as well give up...you are looking foolish in this thread...

[J_J_]

48. There is no way to hold corporations who hire illegal workers accountable to the law?

So the law has no meaning?

I guess I am foolish to think we are a nation of laws, are that there are ways to enforce them.

[VanillaRhapsody]

83. Oh and Obama and his Executive Orders can fix that?

[TheKentuckian]

82. No EO required, that is called enforcement of laws on the book or are you arguing it is legal

to hire undocumented workers?

Now, I personally don't care if the unauthorized migrants are hired at prevailing wages but you aren't arguing right and wrong but rather insinuating that Obama would can't take the action because he can't and that would have to be supported.

[VanillaRhapsody]

84. I am arguing that Obama cannot EO that out of existence....PERIOD!

Why are you supporting splitting children from their mothers?

[TheKentuckian]

123. What are you inventing now? When did I say anything about splitting up families?

Why have you supported busting up families as Obama had already "out deported" Bush before he was reelected?

[VanillaRhapsody]

125. that IS what this is fucking about.....Children BORN in the United States having their parents

deported...leaving them alone!!!!

They are ONLY covered by the EO IF they have children born here AND they have been here 5 yrs...

[TheKentuckian]

137. I'm not against this action, my argument was that no EO is required to prosecute

illegal hiring.

Rather than cede that obvious point you argue by invention about something else (at least somewhat hypocritically) and try to jam words into someone else's mouth to do it to maintain your wildly ineffective and lame shtick of yelling bully of a Turd Way fierce advocate.

[VanillaRhapsody]

153. Then what the hell are you talking about....you make no sense at all!

You just wanted in on an argument with me apparently....

[TheKentuckian]

167. I'm talking about a nonsense point you made that Obama can't enforce illegal hiring laws.

I don't know why you argued the point but it is false to the point of being nonsensical.

I guess it is a flaw of the belligerent, lashing out, snarky bully of a fierce advocate shtick to make random false points and then just stick to them by conflating them with entirely different issues as a weak defense.

[VanillaRhapsody]

168. they are already law....he

Last edited Sat Nov 22, 2014, 12:00 PM - Edit history (1)

Doesnt need EO for that...thats already on the books.....

Executive Orders are not used to enforce EXISTING law...that is not what they were intended for....

[VanillaRhapsody]

103. then why does this matter...its ALREADY on the books...Obama is not preventing that!

Geebus....



There is nothing TO Executive Order!!!

[TheKentuckian]

121. Yup, this is the enforcing the law part BUT an EO could be made to refocus enforcement

in that direction but not required.

[VanillaRhapsody]

155. No an EO cannot do that.....You also act like the EO is a magic wand....

you need to take a civics lesson...

[amandabeech]

99. If the undocumented workers provide decent quality fake ID to satisfy the form I-9 requirements,

the employer isn't supposed to get in trouble if they don't know that the workers are here without documents. That makes it harder to crack down on employers.

However, if employers have reason to believe that the workers are undocumented, then the feds can raid them.

In home area, some of the food processors have been raided. The rumor is that the feds were tipped off. But that hasn't happened in several years, and the locals all believe that the food processors are hiring many undocumented immigrants. It's not a priority for the Obama ICE.

[VanillaRhapsody]

104. You talking about all those that came in planes with visas and just overstayed???

or what?

[amandabeech]

107. No, I'm talking about mostly Mexicans who came here without documentation

and then acquired good quality fake IDs. It's quite common.

[VanillaRhapsody]

150. Oh yes all 12 million of them right?

[amandabeech]

154. From what I've read, it's about half, but I can't vouch for the number.

[VanillaRhapsody]

156. then YOU need to show WHAT you have read.....

put up!!!!

Dollars to donuts you WON'T!

[amandabeech]

159. I'm just going from memory on the number, no more, no less. n/t

[VanillaRhapsody]

160. that doesn't work around here....if you make a claim....you source it or its false...

and I called bullshit.....when you get called on...the onus is on your to back up your claim...

[VanillaRhapsody]

151. and those that came on planes "don't" get fake id's just Mexicans.....rioght!

[amandabeech]

157. No, I imagine that many Visa overstayers get fake IDs, too,

although the one who was my roommate worked under the table. She processed a lot of payroll information and was amazed at how many people had fake IDs. It became obvious during tax season, according to her.

[VanillaRhapsody]

158. Please provide a source that 6 million "illegal immigrants" have fake Ids...

I want to SEE that....

provide your source of information....we want to KNOW where you get this shit from...

[amandabeech]

161. You're more interested in this topic than I am. Google is your friend. n/t

[VanillaRhapsody]

162. YOU made this claim that YOU believe.....back it up...as I say Bullshit!

that's how it works...Did you do term papers in high school? Remember sourcing your work? Same goes here....

WE want to see where you got that or its false....and you pulled it out your ass...and it makes you look like a racist...

Its on YOU!

[pampango]

146. "Under Obama, ICE announced sanctions against major employers."

Under Bush, workplace raids on factories and meatpacking plants received much attention. But after Obama took office, the Department of Homeland Security unveiled a new strategy and ditched the workplace raids, which also tended to punish employees, in favor of "paper raids" -- I-9 paperwork audits of employers to determine if they complied with employment eligibility verification laws.

"ICE will focus its resources within the worksite enforcement program on the criminal prosecution of employers who knowingly hire illegal workers in order to target the root cause of illegal immigration," Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano said in April 2009. The change was dramatic: the number of I-9 audits soared from 503 in 2008 to more than 8,000 in 2009.

Under Obama, ICE announced sanctions against major employers. That included a $1 million fine against Abercrombie and Fitch that grew out of an I-9 inspection in November 2008 while Bush was president, and the termination of hundreds of workers at Chipotle restaurants.

In 2007, ICE arrested 92 employers, while in 2012 it arrested 240, according to ICE. Final orders -- rulings at the end of the case which show employers violated hiring rules -- also increased under Obama. In 2007, there were two final orders, while in 2012 there were 495.

http://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2013/jul/03/debbie-wasserman-schultz/obama-holds-record-cracking-down-employers-who-hir/

As Immigration Audits Increase, Some Employers Pay a High Price

L. E. Cook was one of 1,444 businesses to receive an introduction to ICE’s stepped-up worksite enforcement program in 2009 — almost three times the number audited in 2008. Last year, 2,196 businesses were audited. An ICE representative said the agency did not categorize audits by business type and that the law applied across industries.

“Any company is at risk at any given time,” said Leon Versfeld, an immigration lawyer in Kansas City, Mo. In one prominent case, American Apparel, the clothing manufacturer, was forced to terminate 1,800 undocumented workers after a 2009 audit. Chipotle Mexican Grill, the restaurant chain, has let go hundreds of workers since its audit began last year.

While the administration of George W. Bush focused on headline-making raids that resulted in arrests of immigrant workers, the Obama administration has gone after employers with ICE’s I-9 audits on the theory that employers who hire unauthorized workers create the demand that drives most illegal immigration.

After the audit, Mr. Cox started using E-Verify, a federal program that lets employers confirm the authenticity of a job applicant’s Social Security and green card numbers electronically. Although the program’s use is mandatory in some states, its reliability has been debated, and it remains voluntary in California. A bill in Congress that would require all American employers to use the program could go to a vote this month.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/14/business/smallbusiness/how-a-small-business-can-survive-an-immigration-audit.html?pagewanted=all

[Warren Stupidity]

130. just admit what your agenda is and get it over with.

[TheBlackAdder]

139. FOX News Talks about it EVERY day for 6 years-It MUST Be. Besides, Obama addressed it in minutes. NT

[Ykcutnek]

2. No, these people needed him to deal with it:

He's their President too.

[Cha]

91. Nice depictive photo, Ykcutnek! Gracias~

[emulatorloo]

3. Huge fail, but thanks for playing.

[RedCappedBandit]

5. The insinuation being we can only do one thing at a time

Did it ever occur to you that our shitty immigration policies contribute to the poverty and homelessness rates? ffs

[J_J_]

15. what is being done to help millions who are starving?

What is being done to help homeless school children?

[upaloopa]

42. Well now we have a repub Congress ask them.

Don't hold your breath.

[RedCappedBandit]

72. A lot.

But not enough. Thanks to obstructionist right-wing representatives.

Which is exactly why the President should use what power he does have to act without them. So do you care to explain how this piece of immigration reform will somehow inhibit the work that is being done, or prevent further work from being done, to aid the hungry and homeless?

[J_J_]

74. he acted alone on this- he can act alone again

He wasn't helpless on immigration, why is he so helpless on everything else?

what are the plans to help aid the hungry and homeless?

What work is being done? That was my whole question.

No one has mentioned any plans coming forth.

They live in a bubble in DC, I don't think they realize we have real problems.

[kydo]

97. What exactly can he do for the hungry and homeless, alone (ie EO), that he won't get sued for?

I think your questions are better off asked to the orange drunk dude that is leader of the House and his little turtle faced friend.

President Obama has attempted to improve our infrastructure which would generate much revenue and create lots of jobs which would in turn help reduce hungry people and homeless in the US. But alas the orange man was either drinking, drunk, hung over, on vacation, or trying to repeal the ACA, threatening government shut down and refusing to extend the debt limit, the last six years.

But seriously, what type of EO could the President write for the hungry and homeless, that the GOP wouldn't impeach, sue or shut the gov down over?

[RedCappedBandit]

108. He's not the only one who can act on those issues, first of all,

and to imply that there's nothing being done is a disservice to those who dedicate their lives proving you wrong.

And you're avoiding my question, which is how does taking a step forward on immigration prevent further work on homelessness and poverty?

Obama has done work to address these issues. He can only do so much without the legislative branch who won't pass anything he puts forward. Your issue seems to be that he did something on immigration today, somehow in place of any additional work. Why?

[TheBlackAdder]

141. Take a CIVICs lesson. Learn who controls the purse strings in this government! nt

[VanillaRhapsody]

105. What's the matter President Obama did not wave his magic Executive Order wand and end world

hunger?

[Warren Stupidity]

131. Ask the republican congress. nt.

[TBF]

6. 'Merca

If I could do one thing as president I would get rid of capitalism. Although I doubt they'd let me write an Executive Order to that effect and live to tell about it.

I give him credit for finding a way to help many low-income folks who toil in jobs here. Whether you consider them Americans or not.

[J_J_]

17. Is he stopping corporations from hiring illegal immigrants?

If not, the legal people will expect better wages and treatment, so they will be fired and corporations will bring in new illegal immigrants.

[TBF]

25. Did you listen to

The part of the speech about enforcement? Did you watch it at all? This is temporary work permits for folks who have been here more than 5 years. Ramping up enforcement on folks trying to enter illegally now. These are folks who are already here working and should be paying taxes like the rest of us.

[J_J_]

30. they need to stop going after PEOPLE, and go after the CORPORATIONS that are using/abusing them

That is not ending.

[TBF]

45. Agree with you on that -

Not sure what he can do via executive order to stop corporations from doing things they are allowed (or given incentives to do).

He is helping a limited amount of people who have been in the country awhile. This is pretty limited in scope. There are definitely systemic problems that need addressing beyond this.

[Sheepshank]

62. Go after corporations?.....but then he wouldn't have the time and money to help the poor in your op

you need to make up yor mind what ONE thing you think Obama should be actively pursuing.

[VanillaRhapsody]

109. Obama must search every restaurant and Landscaping business by hand until EVERY employer

of immigrants are banished to The Wall....oh wait...that's Game of Thrones....

Oh wait....I can just see him waiting in the bushes at Home Depot....Citizen's Arresting 'Mericans in pickup trucks hiring the "illegals"!!!

[1StrongBlackMan]

61. Stop this foolishness ...

Obama shifted away from Bush’s strategy of workplace raids and turned the focus on employers. Between 2008 and 2009, immigration audits soared from 503 to more than 8,000.

With more at link: http://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2013/jul/03/debbie-wasserman-schultz/obama-holds-record-cracking-down-employers-who-hir/

So, YES. President Obama's administration is going after and prosecuting EMPLOYERS for hiring undocumented workers!

[emulatorloo]

79. Facts don't matter to pot-stirring trolls.

I appreciate the link though, thanks!

[former9thward]

87. Did you even read your link?

It says the claim is "Half True".

We asked Vaughan if she thinks Wasserman Schultz was correct to state that Obama holds the record on enforcement of employers.

"It depends on which metric you choose," she said. "If your metric is the number of audits, yes. If your metric is bringing cases to prosecution that seriously punish employers, to the point where I would say there would be a deterrent effect, I would strongly disagree with her statement."

Additionally, I-9 audits are not a complete or perfect measurement of worksite enforcement against employers who hired illegal workers, said former U.S. Rep. Bruce Morrison, D-Conn., who chaired the immigration subcommittee from 1989 to 1991. Morrison now lobbies on immigration matters and has informally advised hospitals and other businesses that have faced I-9 audits.

He described some of the I-9 audits as paperwork snafus -- for example an employer who didn’t check the right box.

"If there are no illegals, you are more likely to be cut a break on penalties than if you hired a lot of illegals, but you get fined anyhow..." he said. "Trying to say who is being tougher on this aspect of enforcement I think is kind of a silly discussion, because what were people fined for? And did that help prevent unauthorized employment or not?"

Wasserman Schultz said that Obama has cracked down "on employers who are attracting undocumented immigrants and hiring them more than any previous president."

She used the word "employers" and not "employees" here for a reason: Obama shifted away from Bush’s strategy of workplace raids and turned the focus on employers. Between 2008 and 2009, immigration audits soared from 503 to more than 8,000. But other metric tell a more nuanced story. Final orders against employers, for example, were higher in the 1990s than they are now.

We rate this claim Half True.

[1StrongBlackMan]

100. Yes, I read it ...

and I even was able to comprehend and apply it to JJ's claim that the Obama Administration is not prosecuting employers.

What did YOU get out of the link?

[former9thward]

128. That the increase was mostly do to paperwork items.

It is easy to find paperwork violations that do not address the core problem. My state (AZ) has a corporate death sentence for employers employing undocumented workers. Corporations can be put to death if they are found to be knowingly employing them. They should have that at the federal level.

[1StrongBlackMan]

134. I'm in AZ, as well ...

1) the paperwork violations result in fines;

2) The paperwork violations trigger the states "death penalty" ... if it were to be ever applied.

[former9thward]

136. Well it depends on what the paperwork violations are.

All violations ultimately generate paperwork. At the federal level there is no death sentence. Just fines.

[1StrongBlackMan]

144. True. eom.

[joshcryer]

116. Executive orders only cover the Federal branch.

In this case Obama is ordering the CIS to implement new immigration standards. It's an administrative law thing.

Getting rid of capitalism is nigh-impossible given that the constitution requires just compensation for anything being nationalized (the US is worth about $225 trillion, say 90% of that is corporate / elite capital, you're still looking at 10x the GDP, and 20x the budget).

And anyway, if we don't trust the government to reign in corporations then I don't see how we can trust the government to nationalize everything and mandate equal pay and stuff like that.

[TBF]

117. Where did I say I wanted to nationalize everything?

nt

[joshcryer]

118. How else do you get there?

[TBF]

120. Here we go again ...

you're pretty unimaginative for an anarchist.

[joshcryer]

126. I think you underestimate capitalism.

And that's been a problem with socialist critiques for far too long. Marx is right in that capitalism is a transitional period, everyone including Marx is wrong about how to get there.

For a President to "get rid of capitalism" they would have to start nationalizing things. They could nationalize the banks, for starters, maybe, without getting impeached. From there it's a much more daunting process. Look at Wal-Mart, the epitome of a socialized corporate environment (their margins are only 5%, so they are literally a socialist hierarchy; equalize the pay for all the workers and you have a socialist microcosm). Only way to take it over and make it "more socialist" is to buy it out, that's around $300 billion. Or you could just pass legislation in Congress that taxes the top elites and mandates a higher wage for corporations, and you kill a dozen birds with one stone. But, oops, that requires Congress.

But, whatever, I'm unimaginative...

[TBF]

133. You've convinced me -

we need a socialist revolution to accomplish it. But then, that's not a hard sale.

In the meantime I don't see a problem with Obama's amnesty for families. More people will be paying taxes and we can use it since the 1% sure aren't going to pay their fair share anytime soon.

[Kalidurga]

7. It's a big problem

it's tied to the top problem and that is oppression in all it's forms.

[FSogol]

8. Should I file this under, "nothing is ever good enough" or under "you can't do two things at once"

[Ykcutnek]

10. Obama ate breakfast today.

Why didn't he take the time to end world hunger first?

CORPORACRAT!!!

[J_J_]

21. Is he doing anything at all to address millions of starving people in America?

??

[VanillaRhapsody]

27. you do realize they ARE some of the people starving in America right?

[1StrongBlackMan]

64. Perhaps you've heard of the SNAP Program? n/t

[J_J_]

66. Child poverty in U.S. is at highest point in 20 years, report finds

It is getting worse.

We need to find solutions to the cause of the problem, like canceling free trade agreements, not creating new ones.

[1StrongBlackMan]

70. Okay ...

I see we're a mile wide and an inch deep, here.

[VanillaRhapsody]

111. and Obama should use the "mighty Executive Order wand" to end poverty immediatly!

You do understand that Pres. Obama doesn't control the purse strings right?

Why don't you ask why your buddy John Boehner why HE hasn't ended child poverty???

[TheBlackAdder]

142. If Obama WERE an emperor, he could do this. He's not, so J_J_ is just trolling. nt

[VanillaRhapsody]

152. Exactly.....

I think he believed Rush Limbaugh when he told him Barack Obama was "magic"

[HereSince1628]

9. Forget that prioritization...is it a VERY GOOD THING?

Yes.

A very good thing is infinitely better than doing nothing.

[Xipe Totec]

11. Unlike his predecesor who could not walk and chew a pretzel, Obama can do two things at once. nt

[J_J_]

22. But HE IS NOT doing anything

The TPP is not going to help either, more like, make matters worse.

[Xipe Totec]

23. Your concern is duly noted. nt

[Skidmore]

41. And how do you know this?

That he's not doing anything?

[J_J_]

57. Do free trade agreements help Americans keep jobs and put food on their families?

No one on this thread can tell me what solution is being brought forth to help millions of Americans who are starving and homeless.

Maybe Obama does have a plan, but no one here at DU has a clue about it, but they are oh so sure he is doing something.

[Xipe Totec]

78. You on the other hand are just so full of... solutions. nt

[uppityperson]

51. "HE IS NOT doing anything"? Nothing? He talked about immigration yesterday so is taking today off?

Seriously?

[Agnosticsherbet]

12. President Obama can not legislate (create law) or raise funds so can not create programs

for the poor. He can not raise funds to help school children.

Republicans have controlled the House since 2010, and the House is where such programs must begin. Thanks to the 2014 midterm, they now have control of the Senate, so we will see even fewer programs to fix the above problem. They control the SCOTUS is unfavorable to keeping programs for the poor that come before them. I suspect it will be a fight just to keep what we have until a new Congress sits in 2017. We need a Congress to make substantive change, and we do not have control of that.

Want better programs?Get people out to vote in the midterms.

[J_J_]

58. If he can make his own path on immigration, he can stand up to the bastards and help the rest of US

He could have vetoed the food stamp cuts.

He can use the bully pulpit to demand that Congress do something to help create jobs.

He can stop trying to pass new secret 'free' trade agreements.

[amandabeech]

68. He promised to re-negotiate NAFTA as well.

It's past time to get started on that.

[J_J_]

73. yes, exactly. People don't seem to want to look at the root of our problems

which is the only way to fix our problems.

Where did the jobs go? The huge sucking sound Ross Perot warned us about!

So in order to bring back jobs we must cancel free trade agrements, not create new ones.

Republicans like to complain about $$ helping people.

Instead of 'takers' on welfare and food stamps, if people had jobs they might be paying taxes.

Surely Republicans will be working on that straight away.


I can't find anyone who wants to have a discussion on real solutions.

Everyone is happy to watch US turn into a service economy on minimum wage while the media tells us what we want and what to do about the issues they care about "Keystone" "ISIS" "Benghazi" "Bill Cosby!!"

[amandabeech]

89. No discussion on real issues means fewer people energized to vote, too.

Both parties are getting far too much money from people who benefit from the current arrangements to do anything that will really make a difference for working people.

About the only thing that would make a change would be a Supreme Court ruling overturning the line of cases that equates money with speech. Perhaps that will happen in my lifetime and perhaps not.

[Agnosticsherbet]

124. The "Bully Pulpit" is a phrase that describes a Presidents ability to sway public opinion.

Give me any evidence that Republicans give a shit about public opinion. They don't. Americans by healthy margins wanted an Immigration bill like the one from the Senate. Republicans don't give a shit about public opinion. People need to stop thinking the Bully Pulpit is real.

The cut to food stamps was part of an Omnibus spending bill to fund the government. Because the American people elected a Republican House, the American People got a House that required that as part of funding the government. The American people must love the loss of food stamps because a majorty went out and handed Republicans the Senate and more seats in the House. If the people think that food stamps do not want to be cut, they should vote and elect democrats. All budgets start in the House. Republicans control the House. Blame the House of Representatives because they don't give a fuck about the poor or public opinion.

He has made many speeches to call for Congress to pass a jobs bill. So far, Republicans have refused to pass a jobs bill. That is because the Bully Pulpit isn't a real thing. It is just a way of swaying public opinion, and Republicans don't give a shit about public opinion. They also don't giv a fuck about the poor or middle class. At this time, the American people who bothered to get off their butt and vote voted for no jobs. Only Congrses can pass a jobs bill. The American people just handed the whole of Congress to Republicans who don't give a fuck about them.

it s his explicit Presidential Power to negotiate treaties with foreign powers. Those treaties must be approved by the Senate. Those treaties will be revealed when the Senate is asked to approve or disapprove. People may or may not like the agreements he negotiates. That is why the Senate is given final approval. There is no constitutional or legal requirement that he negotiate in public.

[FSogol]

14. Obama should issue an executive order to end poverty! That's what I would do.

[J_J_]

24. He allowed 8 Billion to be cut from food stamps, even as farm subsidies were increased

Now we are spending $25 Billion in Iraq per year to bomb them.

[FSogol]

28. That's a total misrepresentation of the changes to food stamps and has no connection

to Iraqi wars.

As I have replied to you before:

You keep promoting this supposed outrage, but the "cuts" aren't connected to the war in any way and
aren't really cuts. To steal some writing from DUer, okaawhatever:

"The bill the Senate passed closes a loophole in the way some states calculate the heat and eat program. From what I understand, a person who qualifies for the heat and eat program qualifies for more food stamps. What some states did was give families $1 in heat and eat money so they would qualify for more food stamps. The cost to the individual state was $1 but the federal food stamp program ended up paying more than it would if the people resided in another state. I think many people found this unfair and that is why some Democrats signed off on the "cut".

I also saw an article that said if people can prove the cost of their heating bills the cut may not affect them anyway. That is why many of the articles said "it could affect up to 850k families" instead of "it would..." "



http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4427722

Here's what the NCSL said about the Heat and Eat Program and a diagram of what States were affected:
http://www.ncsl.org/research/human-services/-heat-and-eat-and-snap-changes-in-the-2014-farm-bill.aspx

[FLyellowdog]

85. Well, he actually did prevent

an even worse scenario from taking place.
When House Republicans originally argued for a food stamp cut of between $20.5 billion and $39 billion, he threatened to veto both of those proposals. They backed down and thus the 8 billion was the compromise.

Here is a link that might lower your angst.
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/obama-signs-food-stamp-cut

[spanone]

16. yes. it is one of the 'top problems'.

[demwing]

18. That's a first world problem right there!

Yes, it is the top problem, along with a dozen other top problems.

You have to start with SOMETHING, are we now quibbling about which THING to start with?

[J_J_]

38. No one is doing anything about the growing number of homeless children

It is disturbing and digusting in this greatest richest nation on earth.

And even here on DU, I try to start a discussion and you all just shoot the messenger, no one can give me one thing that Obama is doing to help starving homeless people which have reached record levels.


He is attempting to pass the TPP which will make it worse!

[demwing]

110. often, when a person wants to start a dialog

they offer up suggestions for how the dialog could progress. All you did was complain about the current state of the dialog.

I'm not saying your heart is in the wring place, I'm saying your head is.

[Comrade Grumpy]

20. Yes. It's been festering for years. n/t

[LanternWaste]

31. You then believe that dealing with A prevents dealing with B, C or D?

You then believe that dealing with A prevents dealing with B, C or D?

[J_J_]

55. dealing with A is fine, but it really wasn't the nation's top priority

And no one is dealing with B, C or D...that is my real problem.

I just cannot imagine what it would be like to have no home, to have to go to school dirty, have no clean clothes, no warm place to sleep, not knowing whether you will have dinner that night...how is a child supposed to learn in those conditions?

[LanternWaste]

75. Simply because you may be ignorant of a particular or a specific, does not in fact, make it the case

"and no one is dealing with B, C or D..."

Simply because you may be ignorant of a particular or a specific, does not in fact, make it the case. Point us towards objective sources verifying that homelessness and hunger are not being dealt with at all, and you may begin sounding credible.

[J_J_]

80. I have not been given one credible solution being offered

I started this thread asking what is being done to help address the growing number of starving and homeless Americans and no one has anything

[Sheepshank]

32. you are ignoring

1. push to increase minimuym wages
2. ACA and subsidies
3. Job growth
4. immigration
5. During the worst of the recession, unemployment benefits were extended several times.
6. School lunch ( and sometime breakfast) subsidies continues

WTF are you blabbering on about. While there is till much to do, you are ignoring these items that will financially benefit millions of people. You are ignoring this in the op and in almost every followup response. It's willfull, and not by accident that you are pretending the plight of the poor isn't being addressed in any way shape or form.

[J_J_]

60. Child poverty in U.S. is at highest point in 20 years, report finds

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025702382

More Than 48 Million Americans Live In Poverty, Census Bureau Reports
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014920745


Things seem to be getting worse, that's what I'm blabbering on about....

[Sheepshank]

63. and your friendly Republican Congress

could get millions of those stats turned around with programs ALREADY SUGGESTED BY OBAMA

[J_J_]

71. Well he just did what he wanted on Immigration- He can do it again!

He's not helpless- he's helpless- which is it?

[Sheepshank]

94. you are your faux outrage talking points are useless in this discussion

learn how the money side (congressional appropriations and lack thereof) of all of these systems works and then we'll talk.

Immigration issue...at least the limited portion discussed by Obama, doesn't need Congressional funding, there are no monies needed to be appropriated. That is one reason why the Reps are so frustrated that it can be done...this is the reason Obama was able to bypass Congress. Got it?

[elias49]

149. Well you ARE blabbering. I'll give you that.

Are YOU doing anything to help even one hungry child?
That's a rhetorical question by the way.
I'm sorry but this is a stupid OP.

[DonCoquixote]

166. ypu seem to ignore

the things many people have told you Obama is doing, but of course, you ignroe that because you think he can just executive order whatever you wish for.

[BeyondGeography]

33. Ffs...

[VanillaRhapsody]

35. What the Fuck Has Obama Done So far you ask?

http://whatthefuckhasobamadonesofar.com/

[Iggo]

37. Not anymore.

NEXT!

[J_J_]

46. yes, what is next? That was my whole point!

What do the Americans people need our president and our Congress to do to act in our behalf to help millions of starving homeless people?

We need to start leading here, they aren't even paying attention to our needs.

[Iggo]

115. Well...no, it wasn't.

Keep dancing, though!

[upaloopa]

39. He doesn't work on one problem at a time.

I'm sure he can walk and chew gum too.

[J_J_]

44. But HE IS NOT doing anything to address millions who are starving and homeless

He is attempting to pass a new free trade agreement in private.

The 'free' trade agreements are how Americans lost their jobs in the first place.

[uppityperson]

52. Maybe you missed this reply

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5850111

[HappyMe]

53. Write to your congress critter and senator about this.

[upaloopa]

56. I guess you have a copy of his task list.

Can you email it to me?

[upaloopa]

65. Who put forth an economic stimulus package.

Who killed the second stimus? A turtle named McConnell.
What was the unemployment rate when Obama took office? What is it now?
Who sent congress a jobs bill and an infrastructure bill? Who killed them? A turtle named McConnell.
You are barking up the wrong tree.

[J_J_]

77. It's getting worse- Obama stood up to them on immigration, why is he helpless on everything else?

Child poverty in U.S. is at highest point in 20 years, report finds

More Than 48 Million Americans Live In Poverty, Census Bureau Reports

[upaloopa]

81. You are just flogging a dead horse. Go outside and

play in the snow if you are in Buffalo

[Spazito]

47. LOL...nice try but major fail...

Enjoy.....or not.

[FSogol]

50. Awesome cartoon. n/t

[azmom]

76. That is awesome!!

[Cali_Democrat]

135. LOL. nt

[Drunken Irishman]

49. I'm not living in poverty or a homeless child. So, no, it isn't a top problem...

I mean, that's pretty much what you're suggesting by saying immigration is not a top problem. It might not be a top problem for YOU but it is for millions of people living in this country.

[J_J_]

69. More Than 48 Million Americans Live In Poverty, Census Bureau Reports

I'm glad Obama helped, now something needs to be done about this!

Child poverty in U.S. is at highest point in 20 years, report finds

and there are many more people suffering than just immigrants...

[Drunken Irishman]

93. There can be more than one top problem.

To many of those 48 million living in poverty - what Obama did will positively impact them.

[Lil Missy]

54. Yes, it had to bubble to the top eventually

[drray23]

59. that is a specious argument

Its the usual old well worn argument that apparently the white house can not tackle more than one problem at a time.

Well, the president deals with a multitude of things at once. Its like when I was a kid and my mother telling us to eat our soup because there were starving children in the world.
Fail. Yes the president has to address the broken immigration system as well as a number of other things.

[dilby]

67. How many of those who are living in Poverty are undocumented residents working

below minimum wage jobs because they are being exploited by employers who use their legality against them?

[1StrongBlackMan]

86. I had a Hispanic co-worker, whose Uncle ...

was heavily involved in human trafficking, here is Tucson, AZ.

His "business model" was to find a group of 10-15 folks, charge them between $1,500-3,000 to get them across the border. For another $1,500-3,000, he would arrange "employment", in Phoenix, AZ (at below minimum wage and paid in cash on Fridays off site).

On the Thursday before "pay day", he would call ICE and have them "raid" the spot where the workers were to be paid.

My co-worker shared that her Uncle died a particularly painful, disease ridden death and she hoped there was a special place in hell for this guy.

[bravenak]

113. I knew a woman who imported people from Korea and other Asian countries.

She would pay to bring them and make them work until they paid off what they owed for bringing them here. Then add charges for a bunch of stuff. It takes tens of thousands of dollars to get your papers from her so you can be free. I call her a slaver. She is. Her son went to jail though. So she is lonely now , other than her slaves. I do not like her, but nobody will ever turn her in. They all have Stockholm syndrome or something. They feel like they need her to make it. Luckily most have kids born here who speak english now. Sad it has to be like this for immigrants. Taken advantage of in the land of the free.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

88. Well, he needed to deal with it years ago.

I know a lot of people on here really don't care what politicians do once in office, as long as they have a (D) after their names, but it actually is important, in terms of both the party brand and getting themselves and other Democrats elected.

This is a 'better late than never' sort of thing. Moving on it BEFORE the midterms would have helped a lot more, but it still will help for 2016.

Are there other things we need done? Sure. But politics involves motivating voters, and even though it appears to have been a lesson learned later than it should have been, at least maybe it was learned.

If you want those other things to get done, you have to motivate enough voters to come out and vote for Dems.

[Octafish]

90. Sideshow. And it's cheap.

Unlike Keynesian economic policy.

What we have is what Reagan brought in 1981: tax cuts for the rich and welfare for War Inc.

[jwirr]

92. Yes, the people this effects live here and many have the same problems as you are talking about.

[SidDithers]

95. RepublicansRZombies...

Huey P Long
Ghost of Huey Long
Chrom
No Compromise
win-the-fight
Fight2Win
Thorin Oakenshield
We Want Peace


Did I miss any?

Sid

[Spazito]

101. !!!!

Explains a lot.

[SidDithers]

170. Gotta love DU's revolving door...

Sid

[LawDeeDah]

96. You speak from a certain side of 'we'.

giveaway

[Skittles]

98. I suspect

you're one of those folk for whom the immigration issue would never quite make it to a point where it needed to be dealt with

[Progressive dog]

102. I thought he did a good job explaining what

the President can do and what he can't do. Since Congress has to approve budgets, unless your priorities cost nothing, the President can't just do them.

[Algernon Moncrieff]

106. It's one of the top problems -- so yes

It's also a problem he can fix, since the Republican solution to the record number of people living in poverty and the record number of homeless school children is to attempt to dismantle food stamps.

[sadoldgirl]

112. You want to know what are more

important issues? Forget you complaint about the starving children then.

It is CLIMATE CHANGE, for heavens sake!

All those children you are talking about may not survive that at all.

So, why has he not done anything about the most important issue?

Simply: Because he cannot do it without Congress, Energy corporations and
without the people's consent. How would YOU do it as President????

[randys1]

114. Yeah, fuck Obama, saving families from being split up, what an asshole

[MurrayDelph]

119. Yeah.

His priority isn't the same as MY priority, therefore his is invalid and screw him for wasting time on it!

[randys1]

122. Just something about him, cant put my finger on it, he is different, know what I mean? lol

[tuhaybey]

127. He can do more than one thing...

It isn't a question of identifying just the one most important thing and doing only that, it is a matter of identifying all the things that ought to be done and doing as many of them as possible, and yes, immigration reform clearly ought to be done.

[Warren Stupidity]

129. It is an important problem and it is something the executive branch

can act on without congressional approval and it is a smart political move and it will hurt and possibly derail the entire republican agenda for the next two years and it will not be the only thing done.

[brooklynite]

132. How about - it took him an hour to sign new rules for Customs & Border Protection...

...and now he can work on the more complicated stuff.

[MohRokTah]

138. Jesus Christ, Obama could cure cancer, extend life to 150 years, set up medicare for all, ...

Jail all the bankers, increase COLA adjustments for Social Security, end global hunger, end war for all time, then walk on water and STILL SOME WOULD COMPLAIN!

[emulatorloo]

163. Yeah, fuck Obama, saving families from being split up, what an asshole

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5850819

[madokie]

145. Yes it is

we have a lot of problems here. If we wait, for whatever the reason, the right moment none of it will be taken care of. We need to get these people in our fold not living in the shadows where they can be exploited as they are now. Good on Obama for doing this.

This is a good step in the right direction to stopping the bleeding of good pay for a good days work especially in the construction world where many of the owners hire undocumented workers for the sole purpose of taking advantage of there situation.

[MineralMan]

147. Did anyone say it was?

I don't remember anyone saying that. So, why do you ask? Governing is not a zero sum thing.

[Maedhros]

148. Immigration reform doesn't really step on the toes of the powerful.

It only riles up the Nativists and Know Nothings, therefore he feels comfortable taking action.

Ask him to kill the TPP? Expand Medicare? Contract the military? Never.

[karynnj]

164. There is never just one problem a President has to work on

All the things you mention would seem to need to get legislation passed. many of these things were (inadequately) part of what his various budgets and stimulus packages were designed to do.

It will take real creativity to address these at all unless there is a way to get the Republicans to allow funding for these programs. I suspect more will have to be done at the state level --- which works better in some states than others.

[Android3.14]

165. Good question

Perhaps it is the only problem over which he has any influence.

[J_J_]

169. seems to be able to increase war spending and killing

President Obama Orders Longer Combat Role in Afghanistan
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025852232