Senate restores $18 billion in jobless benefits

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By ANDREW TAYLOR

WASHINGTON (AP) - Congress is sending President Barack Obama an $18 billion bill to restore unemployment benefits for people who have been out of a job for months and resume full Medicare payments to doctors threatened by a 21 percent cut.

The House cleared the bill Thursday night by a 289-112 tally taken just two hours after it emerged from the Senate on a 59-38 vote that capped an unusually partisan debate. Republicans largely chose to take a stand against the legislation for adding to the $12.8 trillion national despite backing it by wide margins in December and again recently.

"It increases the deficit by $18 billion, a cost to be paid for by future generations," said Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Kan. "This legislation is yet another unfortunate example of business as usual in our nation's capital."

But the vote comes as welcome relief to hundreds of thousands of people who lost out on the additional weeks of benefits after exhausting their state-paid benefits. They will be able to reapply for long-term unemployment benefits and receive those checks retroactively under the legislation.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20100416/D9F3R8700.html

[SpiralHawk]

1. Where the hell were these whiney republicons when their own Commander AWOL Bush

was running the frikkin deficient into the crapper?

Freaking hypocrites deluxe.

[BunkerHill24]

2. haven't you heard....they were molesting terror suspects....

It is rather shameful, shameful we are not talking about torture....torture ordered and done by America's leadership.


Cheney 'ordered CIA to hide plan'
BBC World Service

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8146466.stm


"The head of the CIA has accused former US Vice-President Dick Cheney of concealing an intelligence programme from Congress, a top US senator says."

[InkAddict]

10. And Goss agrees to tapes destruction?????

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4345512


Where have all the flowers gone....?
Long time passing

[BrklynLiberal]

3. What Congress do these people watch every day????????

after it emerged from the Senate on a 59-38 vote that capped an unusually partisandebate.

[tonysam]

4. It'll have to be fought again in about three or four weeks.

This incremental bullshit is ridiculous. And of course there is no talk of a Tier V.

[j420norcal]

5. I predict a tier V

There just has to be, and it will happen AS QUIET AS POSSIBLE.

[tonysam]

6. There probably will be if for no other reason than an election coming up. n/t

[Techn0Girl]

7. IT ONLY EXTENDS UNEMPLOYMENT FOR SIX MORE WEEKS

Only six weeks... until May 31st ....then they have to do it all over again.
They are doing this a month at a time since last December.
Congress does not have what it takes to care about the American worker for more than a month.

Trillions for the Bankers.
A month more of unemployment for us.

[quiet.american]

8. Thanks, Dems for working through the GOP nonsense to get this done.

And at least they're looking at making the extensions last for a year at a time --

Congress has to extend the unemployment benefits once a month. A growing number of lawmakers want the extensions to last for a year instead of having to renew every month.

Among the proposals being put forward for the emergency unemployment compensation program are:

• Federal Additional Compensation to temporarily increase all unemployment insurance benefits by $25 dollars a week.
• Waive the interest fee on loans until January 2011 for state unemployment insurance programs receiving loans to pay benefits.

Many of those without work can be described as self employed. Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics described a self employment assistance program that could be used to promote entrepreneurship. The self-employed will also receive business counseling, technical assistance and entrepreneurial training. This program has been enacted in seven states.

[Democat]

9. Jerry Moran should know that future generations are going to pay one way or another!

Does he think that children aren't paying with their future when their parents are out of work and homeless because of his party?

[jxnmsdemguy65]

11. I recommend everyone reading this call the aptly-named Jim Moran's office...

...202 225 2715 ... and let his staff know what an asshat he is for ignoring the plight of WORKING PEOPLE so severely impacted by this horrible economic recession. I hope that Tom Coburn and the other asshat Republicans truly feel the pain that they caused by this little show of cutting off peoples unemployment around Easter.

It's time that these asshats feel the pain they've been causing....some people have begun to go after them without holding back:

http://thehayride.com/2010/04/the-brennans-beatdown-piecing-together-a-story/

This is what it's coming down to! When will these asshat Republicans wake up to the near-total economic damage that they've caused this country for the past 30 years?